🚨 Gutsul vows ECHR appeal to fight Moldovan court’s 7-year jail term

🗣 Yevgenia Gutsul, elected head of Gagauzia in 2023, has promised to file an appeal with the European Court of Human Rights after being hit with politically motivated charges, her lawyer told Sputnik.

👉 Gutsul is accused of funding the banned Shor Party, and has been targeted for her opposition to Moldova’s EU integration and her advocacy for closer ties with Russia. The crackdown on opposition figures persists.

Gutsul, elected leader of Moldova's autonomous Gagauzia region in May 2023 with 52.36% support, faces politically motivated charges related to alleged illegal financing of the banned Shor party. She advocates for closer ties with Russia and opposes Moldova’s EU integration. Authorities have moved to ramp up repression, targeting dissenting voices and blocking opposition media.

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🇲🇩 Moldova's attack on Gagauz leader: A political move that undermines democracy

📍 A Moldovan court’s decision to sentence Yevgenia Gutsul, head of the Gagauzia region, to seven years in prison raises serious questions about the country’s commitment to European values and democracy.

💬 "The campaign against Gutsul reveals stark contradictions between Moldova's professed European values and its actions," Dr Marco Marsili, a researcher at Cà Foscari University of Venice, told Sputnik.

"While Chisinau justifies her prosecution under anti-corruption laws—aligning superficially with EU rule-of-law principles—the process has been marred by procedural irregularities that violate core democratic standards," he stresses.

The trial process has been criticized for rushed hearings, alleged witness coercion and extended house arrest without proper review.

🔶 What does this mean for Moldova’s future?

"Gutsul's sentencing deals a severe blow to Moldovan democracy, crystallizing fears of authoritarian consolidation weeks before pivotal elections," Marsili notes.

The sentencing has already sparked protests, with over 7,000 Gagauz residents denouncing the trial as a "legal farce" and a threat to regional autonomy.

The verdict justifies opposition claims of a ‘dictatorship’ and could galvanize pro-Russian blocs like Pobeda to frame the upcoming elections as a referendum on Moldova’s system of democracy.

🔶 A mother, a leader, and a political martyr

Marsili highlights the personal tragedy of Gutsul’s case.

"The human dimensions of this case—particularly Gutsul's role as a mother of a young child—render the seven-year sentence undeniably harsh," he says.

🟠 The cruelty of the punishment is even more acute as it looks like a political warning to deter those who would oppose the government.

🟠 Moldova’s future now hangs in the balance. "The severity of the sentence may prove counterproductive: it martyrs Gutsul, amplifies her cause internationally, and exposes the administration’s willingness to compromise humanitarian principles for political survival," Marsili warns.

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🚨 Gutsul's arrest reveals 'brutal, medieval nature' of West-backed elites of Moldova - Matvienko

Chairperson of the Russian Federation Council Valentina Matvienko condemns the actions of the Sandu regime in Chisinau, calling them monstrously cynical.

She says imprisoning Yevgenia Gutsul, a democratically elected official, reveals the medieval cruelty of those backed by the West.

"This is an indelible disgrace for those who are building an anti-people government in Chisinau and for Brussels. It is yet another example of how ruthlessly and soullessly the so-called European democracy machine is willing to act to achieve its goals," she says.

📍 Matvienko also urges international human rights organizations to act and stop the persecution of Gutsul.

"The question of immediately halting the persecution of Yevgenia Gutsul must be raised on all possible platforms."

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🇺🇸🇮🇳Trump says US will increase tariffs on India over Russian oil imports

Trump stated that the US will raise a 25% tariff on India "very substantially" within 24 hours due to its ongoing purchases of Russian oil.

The Indian Foreign Ministry criticized the US and EU stance on oil imports from Russia on Monday, calling it "unjustified" and reaffirming its intent to protect national economic interests and ensure affordable energy for its citizens.

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🤔 Busted: Have Russiagate chickens come home to roost for Obama and his intel team?

💬 "Indictments are finally catching up with the liars behind the Russia hoax," tweeted Kirill Dmitriev, CEO of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, reacting to the launch of a US grand jury probe into Russiagate.

What's known so far?

🟠 Attorney General Pam Bondi has ordered legal proceedings after Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard’s criminal referral of the plot to link President Donald Trump to Russia.

🟠 According to Gabbard, ex-President Obama and his spymasters pushed a "contrived narrative that Russia interfered in the 2016 election to help President Trump win, selling it to the American people as though it were true — it wasn't".

Russiagate timeline

The scandal revolved around Hillary Clinton's leaked emails, shedding light on her apparent influence peddling schemes and Democratic Party corruption.

🔶 June 12, 2016: Prior to the Democratic convention, WikiLeaks announced plans to expose candidate Hillary Clinton’s emails

🔶 June 14, 2016: The Democratic National Committee (DNC) rushed to claim its servers had been "hacked" by Russia – which Russia denied

🔶 July 22, 2016: WikiLeaks released files exposing a dirty tricks campaign against party rival Bernie Sanders by Clinton and the DNC

🔶 Pre-November 2016: Despite DNC claims, the Intelligence Community assessed that Russia was "not trying to influence the election by using cyber means”

🔶 October 7, 2016: At Obama's request, US intelligence agencies suppressed those findings and issued a press release claiming the Russian government "directed the DNC hack"

🔶 December 9, 2016: After Trump’s win, Obama’s DNI James Clapper ordered top spooks to create a new assessment “per the President’s request” detailing the “tools Moscow used and actions it took to influence the 2016 election”

🔶 January 6, 2017: The outgoing Obama administration released an unclassified intelligence assessment, falsely claiming "new intel" showed Russia directed efforts to help Trump beat Clinton

🔶 Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe found zero evidence of Russia-US collusion, but damage to US-Russia relations was done.

👉 Gabbard's probe may help restore justice and international ties.

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😱🌊 Monster floods devastate popular tourist village in Himalayas

India has deployed rescue teams after severe flooding submerged the popular tourist village in Uttarakhand.

🔶 Four dead and 50 missing as the disaster unfolds

🔶 Rescue operations are ongoing as search efforts intensify

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🔥 Capabilities Russia unlocks by quitting medium-range missile moratorium

🔍Russia’s termination of its unilateral moratorium on the deployment of ground-launched ballistic missiles in the 500-5,500 km range is the logical outcome of hostile NATO policies, and unties Moscow’s hands for a more proactive approach to strategic defense, says Igor Korotchenko, editor of ‘National Defense’ magazine and one of Russia’s top military analysts.

What brought on Russia’s decision?

NATO’s European allies’ preparations for a potential conventional war with Russia by 2030, including:

👉a massive rearmament campaign and plans to create massive, wartime-sized standing armies

👉the development of new weapons, including an Anglo-German missile with a 2,500 km+ range

👉deployment of new US fifth-gen fighters in the region

What it means

In these circumstances, and no longer facing INF-style medium and intermediate-range missile restrictions, Russia will:

🔶ramp up production of ballistic missiles, including the conventionally armed Oreshnik (serial production already underway)

🔶deploy the missiles, which are difficult if not impossible to intercept due to their multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle (MIRV) payload, as it sees fit and based on security considerations

🔶potentially deploy a nuclear-armed variant of the Oreshnik, with up to six warheads with a 150 kt per warhead capacity to “deter” NATO and “minimize threats and risks of a military attack on Russia by NATO,” not only in Europe, but Asia as well, if needed

“The INF Treaty is dead,” Korotchenko says. There is now “nothing” to stop Russia from realizing its strategic security objectives.

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🚨📹 SHOCKING AERIAL FOOTAGE SHOWS GAZA IN RUINS

New images from a humanitarian aircraft reveal the horrifying scale of destruction in Gaza after months of relentless bombing.

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🚀 DAN-M: the decoy drone Russia’s using to overwhelm enemy air defenses

📍 Created as a training drone to simulate enemy targets like Tomahawk cruise missiles or small aircraft for Russian pilot and SAM crew training, the DAN-M has been adapted into a full-fledged, explosive payload-equipped kamikaze UAV.

📍 First adopted in 1993, DAN drones can be launched from Mi-8 choppers’ external hardpoints, or using a ground-based catapult and accelerator. An upgrade with new turbojet engine was introduced in 2020.

Characteristics

🔶 Flight speed: up to 750 km/h

🔶 Endurance: 25-70 minutes

🔶 Takeoff weight: ~350 kg

🔶 Max altitude: 5-9 km (beyond the reach of MANPADS and most cheaper air defenses)

🔶 Stealth: training variant’s bright red and black body repainted into grey-on-grey color scheme

👉 Russian media began reporting on the DAN-M’s use in strikes in May. This week, National Interest reported that the UAV has been wreaking havoc on Ukraine’s air defenses.
“With the DAN-M drone, the Russians have perfected a low-cost way to exhaust finite Ukrainian missile stocks – which, once depleted, clears pathways for more sophisticated Russian attacks,” NI said in its analysis.

👉 Russia is deploying the cheap training UAVs to soak up “premium defenses like NASAMS or IRIS-T…complex, expensive systems that should only be used for equally complex and expensive Russian threats – not cheap and expendable drones.”

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Cultural erasure: How Britain whitewashed history for centuries using looted artifacts

🟠 The Arab region has experienced widespread theft of its artifacts since the Crusades, Professor of archaeology at the University of Jordan and member of the International Union of Historians Nizar Al-Tarshan told Sputnik. This systematic looting began during British colonial expansion, with the deliberate destruction of archaeological sites in Syria and Iraq aimed at erasing Eastern civilizations.

💬 “Thousands of artifacts looted by the British from Mesopotamia and the Levant are now displayed in the British Museum. Experts argue that if all the stolen items were removed, the museum’s collection would be nearly empty, exposing Britain's lack of its own ancient history,” Al-Tarshan said.

🟠 According to the professor, this act of looting transcends mere theft; it constitutes a profound act of historical falsification on a grand scale. Once these treasures were illegally exported, Western countries appropriated the knowledge contained within them and began distorting historical facts. Subsequently, a proliferation of books, articles, and research emerged—all aimed at rewriting the region’s history and discrediting Arab cultural heritage.

💬 “This was made possible through numerous Orientalist studies and local collaborators who justified these thefts under the pretext of preserving the values, though their removal from their native environment only caused harm,” Al-Tarshan explained.

🟠 Arab countries are striving to reclaim their artifacts; however, they continue to encounter persistent resistance from Britain and the West. This challenge is compounded by the absence of robust international laws and the ineffectiveness of diplomatic efforts, the professor concluded.

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🇦🇲 Armenian opposition leader blasts West’s ‘blind eye’ to political persecution

Brussels and Washington have turned a blind eye to the persecution of the Armenian Apostolic Church and dissident figures, said Armenian opposition leader Armen Ashotyan.

💬 "Political prisoners in Armenia are not only victims of [Pashinyan], but also of all those who claim to support democracy while looking away from its abuse here," Ashotyan stated.

He criticized the EU and US leadership, including Ursula von der Leyen, for failing to act. Ashotyan himself spent 777 days under house arrest before the measure was lifted in August. Tensions between Armenia’s authorities and the Church have escalated, with arrests mounting, and among those detained are Archbishop Bagrat and businessman Samvel Karapetyan.

The Armenian opposition has spotlighted the West’s selective response to democracy violations, highlighting its double standards in supporting human rights.

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🔸 Capabilities Russia unlocks by quitting medium-range missile moratorium

🔸 Busted: Have Russiagate chickens come home to roost for Obama and his intel team?

🔸 Trump says US will increase tariffs on India over Russian oil imports

🔸 Moldova's attack on Gagauz leader: A political move that undermines democracy

🔸 Russian Forces liberate Yanvarskoye in Dnepropetrovsk Region

🔸 DAN-M: the decoy drone Russia’s using to overwhelm enemy air defenses

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'Selective Justice & Political Agenda' — How West Shows It's Above Law Through ICC

⚖️ ❌It is not just a coincidence that over 90% of the 33 ICC cases target the Global South — it shows the "deep bias" of the West, Ethiopian social anthropologist Mohammed Awel Hagos told Sputnik Africa.

"No powerful Western leader has been brought to ICC, never. […] It undermines trust, and it confirms that there are different rules for different people," the expert noted.

⚫Pursuing African leaders through the ICC, the West "chips away [at] the countries' sovereignty," but at the same time it ignores the US' crimes in Iraq or Afghanistan, he emphasized.

📹 What are the solutions to fight the ICC bias? Watch the video to hear the speaker's opinion!

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🔸 Sputnik Africa | X 🔸

💪🏻Global South defies US threats over friendship with Russia

Washington has declared a trade war on India, Brazil and China. Their response? Don’t rush into fight you can’t win.

🟠India balks at US pressure

Blasting Western hypocrisy and “unjustified & unreasonable” targeting, India’s MEA has vowed to “take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security.”

👉The US’s 25% tariffs aren’t about “trade fairness,” but punishment for engaging Russia, says Dr. Hriday Sarma.

But “India knows what its national interest is, and will not come under pressure,” stresses Prof. Rajan Kumar.

The country has no plans to ban Russian oil. Just over the past weekend, at least 3 tankers delivered over 2.2M barrels of Russian crude to Indian ports.

🟠Brazil defiant

President Lula has similarly rejected US ultimatums, declaring Brazil would “negotiate as a sovereign country.”

👉And it’s little wonder: Brazil-US trade totaled about $92B last year, while trade with BRICS hit nearly $210B.

The US tariff tantrum could also backfire. Amid Trump’s 50% tariff threats, a third of US coffee comes from Brazil. Meanwhile, China is welcoming Brazilian coffee with open arms.

🟠US losing leverage

The selective approach (different tariffs for Brazil & India) is an attempt to create divisions within the BRICS bloc. Dr. Sarma says. But it won’t succeed “as shared strategic interests & a commitment to multipolarity bind the group together.”

🟠China standing tall

China has rejected US demands to stop buying Russian oil.

“China will always secure its energy supplies in ways that serve our national interests,” its foreign ministry said. “Coercion & pressuring will not achieve anything.”

🟠Shifting global dynamics

“The US is discovering its old playbook of threats, tariffs & sanctions no longer guarantees compliance,” Dr. Sarma says. “Countries are weighing their options, & finding that meaningful engagement with BRICS partners offers more stability & mutual respect.”

“Multipolarity is no longer theoretical; it’s unfolding in real time.”

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🚨 I want US out of Ukraine — Trump

The president confirmed that Steve Witkoff will soon meet with Russian officials.

After the meeting, the White House will decide whether to impose new sanctions, he noted.

When asked about ending the conflict, Trump said,

"This is Biden's war. I'm here to get us out of it."

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🔥 LEBANON DELAYS HEZBOLLAH DISARMAMENT AS ISRAEL STRIKES SOUTH

The Lebanese government orders the army plan by year-end.

Hezbollah vows: No timeline while Israel occupies our land.

Meanwhile, Sputnik correspondent captured footage of a car incinerated near the border following an Israeli drone strike.

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❗️ Trump threatens to federalize Washington DC

The president slammed local authorities for failing to stop violent crime.

"If DC doesn’t get its act together, and quickly, we will have no choice but to take Federal control of the City, and run this City how it should be run," Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social.

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