There’s a new weapon heading for Ukraine that could help defend its cities from missiles – and it’s named after a famous raccoon.
For months NAFO (North Atlantic Fella Organisation) have been waging an information war on social media against Russian propaganda, and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for Ukraine’s armies as they go.
So when Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s United24 initiative asked if NAFO wanted to raise money to pay for a naval drone – and give it a name – they were quick to bite.
The challenge to the fellas is part of United24’s quest to assemble a fleet of 100 sea drones, following what Ukraine says was a strike on Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in October exclusively using unmanned vessels.
It only took a few weeks for the fellas to raise the $250,000 (£205,000) needed for one such drone, which they have duly named Raccoon’s Revenge.
Image: ‘The raccoon of Kherson’ which was taken from the city’s zoo has a Telegram channel dedicated to it
Since then, “The Raccoon of Kherson” has become something of a celebrity on Russian social media and has been used as a mascot by Russian paratroopers.
Clearly the fellas believe that the raccoon has not forgotten its Ukrainian roots, and the moniker Raccoon’s Revenge defeated names including HMS Bonquerer and Aqua Bonker 9000 in a recent poll of more than 11,000 people.
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This video shared by Ukrainian media outlets purports to show maritime drones attacking Russian warships in Sevastopol in October
Money raised by NAFO fellas helping Ukraine
“I was partial to HMS Bonqueror myself, but Racoon’s Revenge was the community choice,” US Army veteran and current fella Pete told Sky News.
He added: “If a Russian warship gets taken out by a drone crowdfunded by NAFO, that might be hard to top as far as humour in this war goes.
“And with the thousands of mortar and artillery shells, dozens of vehicles and artillery pieces we’ve sponsored, and all the rest, that’s a pretty high bar to clear.”
Pete also helps run the forge – the team of designers who create custom ‘fella’ avatars for people who donate to Ukraine.
He added: “I’d like to highlight the fellas in the forge who are responsible for making the diverse, highly creative profile pics for donation.
“Without them, this whole thing is impossible. They’re truly the glue that holds this together, and without them, Kama and I would have been unable to keep up.”
Image: They are NAFO and they’re here to troll Russian politicians and raise money for Ukraine. Meet the fellas. Pic: @Official_NAFO/@fellarequests
NAFO have already raised huge sums – a million dollars by some counts – for the Ukrainian military and their tongue-in-cheek humour has proved popular online.
Their slogans and fellas are appearing everywhere, including painted on a 2S7 Pion self-propelled gun named “Super Bonker 9,000”.
United24 said on Twitter: “You did it, you magnificent doggos!
“As of this morning, $255,546 for the #NAFOdrone has been raised!
“Thank you to every fella for making this happen, for every #nafofleet, every donation. Raccoon’s Revenge is non-negotiable, thanks to each one of you.”
So what are naval drones like the Raccoon’s Revenge, and have they been used in the war before?
Russia says that 16 maritime drones were involved in the attack on its Black Sea fleet near the Crimean port of Sevastopol in October, with two ships suffering damage.
United24 claims that three Russian vessels were damaged, including the flagship Admiral Makarov.
Image: An example of the naval drones Ukraine is crowdfunding. Pic: United24
The naval drones being funded through United24 are 5.5 metres long, have a range of up to 800km (500 miles) and can carry a combat load of up to 200kg.
Missiles fired from Russian warships have been part of Moscow’s destruction of Ukraine’s power networks that has plunged cities into darkness – so Ukraine hopes that naval drones can disrupt the ships.
Any remaining residents in Gaza’s largest city should leave for a designated area in the south, Israel’s military has warned.
Israeli forces are carrying out an offensive on suburbs of Gaza City, in the territory’s north, as part of plans to capture it – raising concern over an already-devastating humanitarian crisis.
While Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced pressure to stop the attack and allow more aid in, the military has announced a new humanitarian zone in the south.
Spokesperson Avichay Adraee said Gaza City residents should head to a designated coastal area of Khan Younis.
There, he said they would be able to receive food, medical care and shelter.
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On Thursday, Israel said it has control of around 40% of Gaza City and 75% of the entire territory of Gaza.
Many of the city’s residents had already been displaced earlier in the war, only to return later. Some of them have said they will refuse to move again.
That’s despite the military claiming it is within a few kilometres of the city centre, coming after weeks of heavy strikes.
But the war in Gaza has left Israel increasingly isolated in the diplomatic sphere, with some of its closest allies condemning the campaign that’s devastated the territory.
Just two weeks ago, a famine was declared in Gaza City and surrounding areas by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, a globally recognised system for classifying the severity of food insecurity.
Image: A resident runs with his belongings in Gaza City. Pic: Reuters
There is also concern within Israel, where calls have grown to stop the war and secure the release of the remaining 48 hostages.
Israel believes 20 of those hostages are still alive.
Even as relatives of those hostages lead protests, Mr Netanyahu continues to push for an all-or-nothing deal to release all hostages and defeat Hamas.
On Friday, Donald Trump said Washington is in “very deep” negotiations with Hamas to release the captives.
“We said let them all out, right now let them all out. And much better things will happen for them but if you don’t let them all out, it’s going to be a tough situation, it’s going to be nasty,” he added.
Hamas is “asking for some things that are fine”, he said, without elaborating.
A man was heard screaming in the water moments before he died after a shark attack in Sydney, witnesses have said.
Emergency services responded to reports that a man in his 50s had suffered critical injuries at Long Reef Beachshortly after 10am (1am in the UK) on Saturday.
The man, whose identity has yet to be confirmed, was brought to shore but died at the scene, authorities have said.
Two sections of a surfboard have been recovered and taken for examination, and beaches near the area are closed as drones search for the animal.
Police are liaising with wildlife experts to determine the species of shark involved.
Image: Pic: Sky News Australia
Surfer screamed ‘don’t bite me’
Speaking to Sky News Australia, witness Mark Morgenthal said he saw the attack and that the shark was one of the biggest he had ever seen.
“There was a guy screaming, ‘I don’t want to get bitten, I don’t want to get bitten, don’t bite me,’ and I saw the dorsal fin of the shark come up, and it was huge,” Mr Morgenthal said.
“Then I saw the tail fin come up and start kicking, and the distance between the dorsal fin and the tail fin looked to be about four metres, so it actually looked like a six-metre shark.”
Image: Mark Morgenthal said it ‘looked like a six metre shark’ in the attack. Pic: Sky News Australia
Victim was a father and experienced surfer
New South Wales Police Superintendent John Duncan said at a press conference that the victim was 57 years old, calling the incident a “terrible tragedy”.
“The gentleman had gone out about 9.30 this morning with some of his friends, about five or six of his mates,” he added. “He’s an experienced surfer that we understand.
“Unfortunately, it would appear that a large, what we believe to be a shark, has attacked him. And as a result of that, he lost a number of limbs.
“His colleagues managed to make it back to the beach safely, and a short time later, his body was found floating in the surf, and a couple of other people went out and recovered it.”
Mr Duncan added that officers “understand he leaves behind a wife and a young daughter… and obviously tomorrow being Father’s Day is particularly critical and particularly tragic”.
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Two of the three Britons killed in the Lisbon funicular crash have been named.
Kayleigh Smith, 36, and William Nelson, 44, were a couple and died alongside 14 others in Wednesday’s incident.
Ms Smith graduated from the Arden School of Theatre in Manchester, where Mr Nelson ran the master’s degree in directing.
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Lisbon crash: What happened?
The identity of the third British victim has not yet been confirmed.
MADS theatre in Macclesfield, Cheshire, said Ms Smith was a “valued member of our society” who will be “greatly missed”.
It said she was an award-winning director and actress, who had also done multiple crew and front-of-house roles.
Five Portuguese citizens died when the packed carriage plummeted out of control – four of them workers at a charity on the hill – but most victims were foreigners.
Police said the other fatalities were two Canadians, two South Koreans, one American, one French citizen, one Swiss and one Ukrainian.
All but one were declared dead at the scene – and 21 others in the packed carriage were injured.
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‘We felt no brakes anymore’
The yellow carriages of the Gloria funicular are a big draw for tourists, as well as a proud symbol of the Portuguese capital.
The journey is just 265m (870ft) up a steep hill and takes three minutes, with two carriages travelling in opposite directions on a linked cable.
Witnesses reported seeing one of the carriages hurtle down the hill before derailing and crashing 30m from the bottom.
The aftermath shows it crumpled and twisted against the side of a building.
People who were in the bottom carriage said they were a few metres into the climb when it started going backwards.
When they saw the other car speeding towards them, many jumped through the windows to escape.
Image: The crash happened around 6pm on Wednesday. Pic: Reuters
Prime Minister Luis Montenegro called the crash “one of the biggest tragedies of our recent past” and authorities are under intense pressure to quickly identifying the cause.