American officials say two Russian fighter jets deliberately intercepted the ‘unmanned aerial vehicle’, while Moscow claims the US was flying too close to its territory.
Here Sky News looks at what we know so far.
What happened?
The US regularly uses spy drones to gather intelligence around Ukraine, including the MQ-9 Reaper.
Reapers can be flown remotely up to 50,000ft. They are used primarily for surveillance but can be equipped with missiles for attack missions.
Image: MQ-9 Reaper drone. AP file pic
Defence analyst Professor Michael Clarke tells Sky News: “The Americans had a surveillance drone going round in circles over the Black Sea.
Advertisement
“It was almost certainly just surveying, picking up intelligence from on the ground. The Russians always try to put them off and buzz them with their aircraft.”
On this occasion, two Russian Su-27 fighter jets tried to intercept the drone by flying in front and dumping fuel on top of it in an effort to blind or damage it, US officials say.
This went on for 30 or 40 minutes on Tuesday morning before one of the Su-27s clipped the rear propeller of the Reaper somewhere between Crimea and Odesa.
Due to the damage, the Americans were forced to crash it into the water.
What has the US said?
The US Department of Defense has said the fighter jet’s contact with the drone forced it to crash land.
“Several times before the collision, the Su-27s dumped fuel on, and flew in front of the MQ-9 in a reckless, environmentally unsound and unprofessional manner,” US Air Forces Europe and Air Forces Africa commander James B. Hecker said.
The US says it was conducting routine operations in international airspace and that the Russian interception was “unsafe and unprofessional” and “demonstrates a lack of competence”.
Its European command also insists that while Reapers can carry weapons for attack missions, the one involved on Tuesday was only for intelligence.
What does Russia say?
The Kremlin says the American drone was flying too close to Crimea, which it annexed in 2014 and claims as its own territory.
Russia has also falsely declared the area a no-fly zone – describing the incident as a “provocation”.
Russian ambassador to the US, Anatoly Antonov, said: “The unacceptable actions of the United States military in the close proximity to our borders are cause for concern.
“If, for example, a Russian strike drone appeared near New York or San Francisco, how would the US Air Force and Navy react?”
Image: Russian Air Force Su-27 jet fighters. File pic
Although the Su-27 carries a 30mm gun, Moscow says it “did not use airborne weapons” on this occasion.
It also claims its jet “did not come into contact” with the Reaper and the crash was a result of “sharp manoeuvring”.
Professor Clarke added: “In my mind, something clearly went wrong.
“Any pilot of a jet who could deliberately fly into a propeller of a drone that goes so slowly is a complete idiot.
“It’s much more likely that it was an accident and the pilot hit the propeller.”
What happens now?
While the Soviet-era jet managed to return back to base safely, the US drone has not been recovered.
According to Sky News security and defence editor Deborah Haynes: “The Americans will have done all they can to make sure that anything secret is not accessible, deleted, destroyed.”
Russian ambassador Mr Antonov was summoned to the US on Tuesday when he said Russia does not want any direct confrontation with Washington.
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.
Datawrapper
This content is provided by Datawrapper, which may be using cookies and other technologies.
To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies.
You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Datawrapper cookies or to allow those cookies just once.
You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options.
Unfortunately we have been unable to verify if you have consented to Datawrapper cookies.
To view this content you can use the button below to allow Datawrapper cookies for this session only.
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”.
Follow The World
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
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.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
3:53
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.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
2:50
‘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.