🌊 Untreated sewage floods Wellington’s coastline — reports

Millions of litres of raw sewage have flowed into the sea off New Zealand’s capital after a major failure at Wellington’s wastewater treatment plant, according to The Guardian.

🦠 Local authorities described the leak as an “environmental disaster”, urging residents not to enter the water, collect seafood, or walk dogs on nearby beaches. About 70 million litres of untreated wastewater spilled into coastal waters after heavy rain overwhelmed the system.

Wellington’s mayor called the incident a “catastrophic failure”, while officials warned repairs could take months, with ongoing risks to public health and marine life.

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🔊🇫🇷 French former minister resigns from Arab World Institute over Epstein ties — reports

Former French culture minister Jack Lang resigned as president of Paris’ Arab World Institute, which is overseen by France’s foreign ministry, after revelations of his past contacts with Jeffrey Epstein and the launch of a financial investigation, Reuters reported.

💶 French financial prosecutors opened a probe into Lang and his daughter on suspicion of “aggravated tax fraud laundering.” Lang said the allegations were “baseless.”

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🇪🇺🇷🇺 Europe needs Russia to survive - Putin's envoy Dmitriev

💬 "Inevitable. Europe needs Russia to survive," Kirill Dmitriev said on X, commenting on a Foreign Policy article noscriptd "Europe Is Getting Ready to Pivot to Putin."

The article, citing European Council President Antonio Costa's speech to journalists on January 27, said that Costa believed Europeans should be prepared to negotiate with Russia if necessary.

Previously, French President Emmanuel Macron and Finnish President Alexander Stubb, as well as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, have also advocated, to varying degrees, for dialogue between Europe and Russia.

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🇬🇧 UK's Mandelson faces pressure to return 'five-figure' payoff amid Epstein ties scandal

The UK will review the payment made to former Ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson upon his resignation due to an investigation into his ties to Epstein, Sky News reported citing a Downing Street source.

Mandelson had forwarded an internal UK government document to Epstein in 2009 while serving as Prime Minister Gordon Brown's Business Secretary.

The UK police have launched a criminal investigation into Mandelson for forwarding the document.

💬 "Given what we know now, Mandelson should either pay the money back or give it to a charity to support victims," the source said.

Earlier, PM Keir Starmer announced his intention to strip Mandelson of his peerage and promised to disclose information about him except for documents classified for national security reasons.

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🇸🇰 Slovak President Pellegrini slams sending MiG-29 fighters to Ukraine

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🚨 Executor, accomplices in assassination attempt on General Alexeyev identified

The direct executor of the assassination attempt on General Vladimir Alexeev has been identified as Russian citizen Lyubomir Korba, the Russian security service stated.

"With the assistance of partners from the United Arab Emirates, Russian citizen Lyubomir Korba, born in 1960, who was the direct perpetrator of the crime, was arrested in Dubai and handed over to the Russian authorities," the statement said.

The accomplices in the assassination attempt have been identified as Russian citizens Viktor Vasinin and Zinaida Serebritskaya. Serebritskaya has left for Ukraine, while Vasinin has been arrested in Moscow.

An assailant shot at Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev in a residential building in Moscow on February 6. He was hospitalized.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that the assassination attempt on Alexeyev demonstrates that Ukraine is willing to carry out constant provocations aimed at disrupting the negotiation process.

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🚨 Surveillance footage shows perpetrator fleeing after shooting at General Alexeyev in Moscow

The security service has released video showing him discarding the pistol in a snowbank and leaving the area.

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🚨 Assailant in General Alexeyev's attempted murder extradited to Russia

Russian citizen Lyubomir Korba was arrested in Dubai with the assistance of UAE partners and has been extradited to Russia, the Russian security service stated.

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🚨 Executor of assassination attempt on Alexeyev arrived in Russia under Ukrainian intelligence orders

The shooter, Lyubomir Korba, is a native of the Ternopol region in Ukraine, the Russian Investigative Committee stated.

He was instructed by Ukrainian intelligence to carry out a terrorist attack against General Alexeyev.

Other statements:

🟠 The executor of the assassination attempt on Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev fired at him at least three times

🟠 Makarov pistol with a silencer was discovered at the scene of the assassination attempt

🟠 Viktor Vasinin, an accomplice in the attack on Alexeyev, has been charged under two articles of the Russian Criminal Code

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🇩🇪 Seven AfD members barred from entering Germany's Bundestag

Two MPs are from the AfD (Alternative for Germany) faction, while the five other members support individual lawmakers. Salaries of all seven are being withheld, Bild reports.

The AfD members reportedly have to undergo an obligatory reliability check “to avert risks to the Bundestag’s security, functionality and operational capacity.”

AfD parliamentary manager Bernd Baumann has meanwhile signaled readiness to take legal action against Bundestag President Julia Kolckner, accusing her of “further discrimination against the AfD in parliamentary proceedings.”

👉 The AfD has long been subject to a political сrackdown over its irreconcilable stance on the EU, migration, and economic policy, regarded as a threat to the bloc’s established order.

👉 The party also calls for restoring ties with Russia and lifting anti-Russian sanctions.

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🔥 🇷🇺 Russian artillery of Vostok battlegroup smashes Ukraine's assets in Zaporozhye region

Recon drone operators team up with to D-30 howitzer crews to wipe out enemy's strongholds and manpower.

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🚨 🇷🇺💥 RUSSIAN MOD UPDATE: HUGE GAINS AND DEVASTATING UKRAINIAN LOSSES

⚡️ Glushkovka in Kharkov and Sidorovka in Sumy FREED

By liberating the Sidorovka in the Sumy region, the Russian army has expanded its buffer zone around Komarovka and Belaya Bereza.

🟠 The Russian Armed Forces struck fuel and energy facilities used by the Ukrainian arms industry

🟠 Air defense superiority: 42 unmanned aerial vehicles and three long-range Neptune missiles were shot down by Russian air defense systems

🟠 Ukrainian losses: around 1,105 troops killed or wounded

Read about the origins of Russia's special military op HERE

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