Friday, April 8, 2022

Six In The Morning Friday 8 April 2022

 Dozens dead after Ukraine railway station hit by rockets

More now from the scene at Kramatorsk where at least 50 people died and dozens were wounded after rockets hit the railway station.

Video from outside the station in eastern Ukraine shows damaged cars and personal belongings that were abandoned after the area was hit.

A remnant from a rocket is embedded in grass near the station. It has the Russian words "for children" written on its side. However the phrasing - "za detei" in Russian - suggests it was fired in support of children, rather than aimed at children.

Emergency services have taken the injured to hospital and removed bodies from the scene. Russia denies involvement in the strike.

Summary

  1. Ukraine says at least 50 people are dead and dozens wounded after rockets hit a train station in the city of Kramatorsk in eastern Ukraine
  2. Thousands of people were at the station at the time as they fled Russian attacks, says the Donetsk regional governor
  3. Russia denies involvement in the strike, with a Kremlin spokesman saying it had no scheduled missions in the area
  4. Russia is stepping up its offensive in the Donbas region of eastern Ukraine as it withdraws from the north
  5. Cities there have come under heavy Russian attack overnight, with residents sheltering in basements and Severodonetsk hit by rocket fire
  6. UK PM Boris Johnson is meeting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for talks and will give a joint news conference later
  7. European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen has gone to Kyiv for talks with President Zelensky



Desperation amid food shortages in Shanghai as Covid lockdown bites


Lockdown had been due to end on Tuesday, leaving residents unprepared to be indefinitely housebound

Rhoda Kwan in Taipei


Stories of desperation are emerging in Shanghai as the city enters its third day of strict lockdown, with increasingly widespread reports of residents being unable to access food, medicine and other essentials.

The city’s Covid lockdown was extended indefinitely earlier this week after staggered restrictions failed to contain infections. City officials had promised the staggered lockdown would end on 5 April, leaving many residents of the Chinese megacity unprepared to be indefinitely housebound.

Despite the severe measures, Shanghai’s cases continue to rise as mandatory testing continues. The city reported 20,398 new infections on Friday, 824 of which were symptomatic.


Moscow rules: Why the west’s Middle East partners choose Putin over principle in Ukraine war


Gulf nations have refused to condemn the invasion or back western sanctions against Russia, underscoring deepening ties with Moscow as their faith in the US fades, writes Borzou Daragahi



For decades the west has wined and dined the oil-rich autocrats of the Arabian peninsula, welcoming them to purchase football clubs and even win access to the political elite while selling them advanced weapons and buying up their gas and oil.

But at a crucial juncture in European history, with Russia attacking Ukraine and threatening the entire post-Second World War security order, the Gulf states are nowhere to be found.

The west has been unable to count on the United Arab Emirates’ vote at the UN to condemn the invasion; and during Thursday’s vote to remove Moscow from the UN’s Human Rights Council after its alleged war crimes in Ukraine, all of the Gulf states abstained.


Opinion: Political chaos doesn't augur well for Pakistan's democracy

Prime Minister Imran Khan may take his fight to the streets after a setback in Pakistan's top court, heightening political tensions and instability in the nuclear-armed Islamic nation, DW's Adnan Ishaq writes.

Pakistan's Supreme Court dealt a severe blow to Prime Minister Imran Khan and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party on Thursday by ruling that his maneuver to dissolve parliament — to avoid a vote of no-confidence in his leadership — and call early elections was illegal.  

It's not clear what Khan's next steps would be, but the opposition was ecstatic after the verdict. 

As per the court order, lawmakers are to convene at the National Assembly in Islamabad on Saturday for a no-confidence motion. 


First private mission launches for International Space Station

The first fully private mission to the International Space Station blasted off from Florida Friday with a four-member crew from startup company Axiom Space.

The partnership has been hailed by NASA, which sees it as a key step in its goal to commercialize the region of space known as "Low Earth Orbit," leaving the agency to focus on more ambitious endeavors deeper into the cosmos.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with the Crew Dragon capsule Endeavor launched at 11:17 am (1517 GMT) from the Kennedy Space Center.

What is Operation Dudula, South Africa’s anti-migration vigilante?

South Africa is one of the most unequal countries in the world and Operation Dudula is the latest group using that to launch attacks on African immigrants.


The rise in anti-immigrant sentiment once again in mostly low-income South African communities, also known as townships, has left immigrants and refugees fearing for their safety.

South African security forces have increased their numbers in some of these areas according to the police minister Bheki Cele, who arrived in Diepsloot, a working-class township in the north of Johannesburg, following violent protests against undocumented foreigners that left one Zimbabwean man dead on Wednesday.




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