Monday, October 24, 2022

Six In The Morning Monday 24 October 2022

 

Ukraine war: Russian spy chief blames West for nuclear tension

By Steve Rosenberg
Russia Editor


Western leaders have expressed concern about the scale of nuclear sabre-rattling over Ukraine by senior Russian officials, including President Putin, especially after February's invasion.

How does Moscow react to charges it is engaging in such rhetoric and threats?

I asked one of Russia's most powerful officials, Sergei Naryshkin, head of the SVR Foreign Intelligence Service, to respond to international criticism.

He denied any Russian nuclear rhetoric, even though there's been plenty.

Mr Naryshkin pointed the finger back at the West.



Myanmar airstrike kills dozens at concert, says Kachin separatist group



Reported attack by military comes three day before region’s foreign ministers meet to discuss widening violence

 and agencies



More than 60 people attending the anniversary celebration of the main political organisation of Myanmar’s minority ethnic Kachin people have been killed in airstrikes by the military, according to members of the group and a rescue worker.

The reported attack came three days before south-east Asian foreign ministers were due to attend a special meeting in Indonesia to discuss widening violence in Myanmar.

The number of casualties at Sunday night’s celebration in the northern state of Kachin appeared to be the highest in a single air attack by the military since it seized power in a coup in February last year, overthrowing the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.


German ex-soldiers sentenced over mercenary force in Yemen


Prosecutors alleged the former Bundeswehr soldiers were motivated by money and fundamentalist Christian beliefs when they tried to form a force of up to 150 troops to intervene in Yemen's civil war.

Two former Bundeswehr soldiers received suspended prison sentences on Monday for attempts to form a terrorist organization.

The Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart found the two German soldiers had tried to establish a mercenary force to intervene in the civil war in Yemen.

Had they succeeded, their mercenary force would have consisted of former and current Bundeswehr soldiers.


Chinese Communist Party's National Congress: The Challenges facing Xi's China








Over ten years, Xi Jinping has managed to gain unprecedented control over Chinese society. Most experts agree this is set to continue, with ruthless censorship and repression of dissidents, NGOs and lawyers critical of those in power. And there is little reason for hope when it comes to the Uyghurs, trapped in the mass incarceration and surveillance system set up in the region of Xinjiang. 








Protests in IranThe Regime’s Trail of Blood


By Alexander EppKlaas NeumannDawood Ohdah und Matthias Stahl


Since the death of Jina Mahsa Amini, Iran has been gripped by unrest. The 22-year-old woman died on September 16 after being taken into custody by the morality police for her allegedly "unislamic outfit." Just a few weeks before, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi had issued a new decree strengthening the country’s "hijab and chastity" law. Critics have accused the morality police of being responsible for her death, though the police have strenuously denied the charge.

Yet photos and videos have been shared on social media channels that appear to show Amini lying badly injured in a hospital bed shortly before her death.


Billionaire dumps Australia netball team in dispute over father’s racist comments

Updated 12:15 AM EDT, Mon October 24, 2022


 

When Australia’s richest woman Gina Rinehart threw a financial lifeline to Netball Australia, she triggered a debate about sponsorships and the role of social and political issues in the sporting sphere. Then she walked away.

Rinehart’s bombshell decision to withdraw a 14 million Australian dollar ($8.9 million) sponsorship deal for the Diamonds, Australia’s national netball team, caught the players off-guard and struck a blow to the future of Netball Australia – a sporting body mired in debt.

The drama engulfing the Diamonds is not new, but experts say disputes could become more common as athletes and fans take a stronger stance on the source of sponsorship money.










No comments:

Translate