Ukraine war: Zelensky accuses Russia of plot to blow up dam
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of preparing to blow up a dam at a hydroelectric plant in southern Ukraine, which would lead to a "large-scale disaster".
In his overnight address he said the Kakhovka dam on the Dnieper river had been mined by Russian forces, according to Ukrainian information.
The dam is under Russian occupation, but Ukrainian forces are closing in.
Russia has already accused Ukraine of firing missiles at the Kakhovka dam.
The dam also provides Russia with one of the few remaining routes across the Dnieper river in the partially occupied Kherson region.
Almost 12,500 people arrested in Iran protest crackdown, says rights group
Families struggle to contact relatives as opposition calls for movement to focus on plight of thousands in jail
Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor
Almost 12,500 people have been arrested and nearly 250 killed since the street protests began in Iran, according to a prominent human rights group, with thousands of anxious families struggling to make contact with loved ones who have gone missing and presumed to be in jail.
The news came as the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, Maj Gen Hossein Salami, said security forces were close to snuffing out the remaining protests. He said: “Sedition is going through its last moments.”
But protesters have insisted that defiance was continuing. One group pointed to truck drivers joining oil refinery workers on rallies, as well as demonstrations among Baloch people in Zahedan. As many as 200 refinery workers have been arrested since their protests started a fortnight ago.
Turkish singer rejects 'hatred' charges in court hearing
Pop singer Gulsen faces up to three years in jail for allegedly "inciting hatred" during a concert. The 46-year-old has been stopped from visiting her 5-year-old son, who lives in Spain.
Turkish pop singer Gulsen appeared in court Friday on charges of "inciting hatred" after she made a joke about graduates of the country's religious schools during a concert.
During a gig in April, the 46-year-old singer, whose full name is Gulsen Colakoglu, referred to them as "perverts."
A video of the comment appeared on social media in August, sparking outrage among conservatives in the largely Muslim country, which led to her being taken into custody and later house arrest.
Pakistan's Khan barred from office for five years over 'corrupt practices’
Former Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan was disqualified Friday from running for political office for five years, his lawyer said, after the country's election commission ruled he misled officials about gifts he received while in power.
The decision is another twist in political wrangling that began even before Khan's April ouster, and is one of several legal battles being fought by the former international cricket star and his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.
"The ECP (Election Commission of Pakistan) has declared Imran Khan was involved in corrupt practices," Gohar Khan, one of his lawyers, told reporters, adding he had been disqualified for five years.
How river pollution is killing people in an Indian village
Dozens of villages near India’s capital are suffering after years of unchecked industrial pollution has contaminated their water.
Vikas Rathi lies, barely alive, on a cot in the sparsely furnished living room of a small two-story house in Gangnauli village in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh. The 23-year-old’s gaunt cheeks highlight his pinched nose and sunken eyes even more.
Vikas has been diagnosed with stunted growth and bone deformity. He is one of the hundreds of young adults and adolescents across the region who are afflicted by a host of ailments: stunted growth, liver diseases, cancers, and critical deformities.
The greatest risk to China’s Xi Jinping? Himself
China’s economy is faltering. Unemployment is skyrocketing. Endless Covid lockdowns are wreaking havoc on businesses and people’s lives. The property sector is in crisis. Ties between Beijing and major global powers are under strain.
The list of problems faced by the world’s second-largest economy goes on – and many of those long-term challenges have only worsened under a decade of Xi Jinping’s rule. Yet the Chinese leader’s grip on power is unwavering.
In the past decade, Xi has consolidated control to an extent unseen since the era of Communist China’s strongman founder, Mao Zedong. He’s the head of the Chinese Communist Party, the state, the armed forces, and so many committees that he’s been dubbed “chairman of everything.” And now, he is poised to step into a norm-breaking third term in power, with the potential to rule for life.
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