Ukraine launches biggest drone attack on Moscow as Russia pummels Kyiv

Published

2 years ago

May 30, 2023

admin

MOSCOW Ukrainian drones struck wealthy districts of Moscow on Tuesday, in what one politician called the most dangerous attack since World War II, while Kyiv was also hit by air for the third time in 24 hours.

Drone attacks deep inside Russia have intensified in recent weeks, with strikes on oil pipeline installations and even the Kremlin earlier in May that Moscow has blamed on Ukraine.

Tuesdays early morning raid targeted some of Moscows wealthiest areas, including where Russian President Vladimir Putin and the elite have homes. The leader was in the Kremlin later and received a briefing on the attack, a spokesman said.

Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said two people were injured, one of whom was hospitalised, in the early morning attack. Moscows airports remained open. No deaths were reported.

Residents in south-western Moscow said they heard loud bangs, followed by the smell of petrol. Some filmed a drone being shot down and a plume of smoke rising over the Moscow skyline.

This morning, the Kyiv regime launched a terrorist attack with unmanned aerial vehicles on premises in the city of Moscow, Russias defence ministry said. Eight unmanned aerial vehicles were involved in the attack. All enemy drones were hit.

The ministry said special electronic counter-drone technology was used to divert three of the Ukrainian drones, while five more were shot down, including by Pantsir missile systems that help defend Moscow.

Ukrainian presidential aide Mykhailo Podolyak denied Kyiv was directly involved in Tuesdays attacks, though he said we are pleased to watch and forecast more.

Kyiv denied that it was behind the drone raid on the Kremlin earlier in May, though The New York Times reported that US intelligence believes Ukraine was behind that attack.

More than 15 months into one of the deadliest wars in Europe since World War II, there is little sign of peace, and Moscow has repeatedly warned that the West is escalating the war by supplying Kyiv with so much weaponry.

It was unclear how Russian President Vladimir Putin will react to the attack on Moscow, which brings the war in Ukraine to the capital of the worlds biggest nuclear power.

So far, Mr Putin has been successful in keeping the war in Ukraine far from Moscow, where life has continued relatively normally despite the biggest crisis in Russias ties with the West since the 1962 Cuban missile crisis.

Russian lawmaker Maxim Ivanov said Tuesdays drone attack was the most serious assault on Moscow since Nazi attacks during World War II, and no citizen could now avoid what he called the new reality.

You will either defeat the enemy as a single fist with our Motherland, or the indelible shame of cowardice, collaboration and betrayal will engulf your family, he said. More On This Topic Russia hits military base in Ukraine in new wave of strikes Ukraine aide proposes post-war demilitarised zone in Russia Also on Tuesday, Ukraine said it downed 29 out of 31 drones, mainly over Kyiv and the Kyiv region in the latest Russian barrage the third on the capital in 24 hours.

On Monday, Russia fired a barrage of missiles at Kyiv, sending panicked residents running for shelter in an unusual daytime attack on the Ukrainian capital following overnight strikes.

The latest barrages landed as the Ukrainian capital was still recovering from an overnight Saturday drone attack, the biggest since Russia began its campaign in Ukraine in February 2022. Rescuers working in a residential building that was damaged by drone attacks, in Kyiv, Ukraine, on May 30, 2023. PHOTO: AFP Kyiv received its first shipments of the American-made Patriot surface-to-air missile system in April, and US President Joe Biden on Monday suggested more aid was to come.

Asked about Russias fierce attacks on Kyiv, Mr Biden told reporters, Its not unexpected, adding: Thats why weve got to continue to give Ukraine all that it needs.

Kyiv has been preparing an offensive, although its timing and focus have been the subject of months of speculation. REUTERS, AFP More On This Topic Russia launches 15th air raid on Kyiv in May; Ukraine destroys over 70 drones, missiles Ukraine reports most important drone attack on Kyiv since invasion

World

‘They’re the ones who wronged us’: Freed Palestinian prisoner Zakaria Zubeidi rebukes UK and US over ‘harm they’ve caused’

Published

1 hour ago

February 1, 2025

admin

'They're the ones who wronged us': Freed Palestinian prisoner Zakaria Zubeidi rebukes UK and US over 'harm they've caused'

One of the most high-profile prisoners to be released by Israel has told Sky News that the world has ignored Palestinians and says Britain is one of the countries he blames for taking away his freedom.

Zakaria Zubeidi was imprisoned in 2019 after being found guilty by an Israeli military court of involvement in terrorism.

He was released as part of the ceasefire agreement and welcomed back to the West Bank by crowds of well-wishers, including the man who was prime minister less than a year ago.

Analysis: Zubeidi an ‘extremist’ to Israel but inspiration to Palestine

In his first interview with a European broadcaster, Zubeidi told Sky News he still believes in “a resistance that will lead us to freedom” but claimed that Israeli occupation of the West Bank was wholly down to the international community.

“My life is worthless without freedom,” he said, speaking in Ramallah. “Freedom has no price. But the world that has denied me my freedom – particularly Britain, France, and the United States – must return what they have taken from me and my children.

“They are the ones who need to reconsider their mistakes, not me.

“They are the ones who have wronged us, and they should think about rectifying the harm they have caused to me and my children.”

Zubeidi, whose mother, brother and son have all died as a result of Israeli military action, has admitted involvement in a 2002 bombing that killed six people.

However, he has also been acclaimed by many in the West Bank as a symbol of the resistance.

He was famously part of a group of prisoners who briefly escaped their Israeli jail after using kitchen utensils to dig a tunnel.

“My message to the Palestinian people is to prioritise their safety and well-being because the assault being carried out against them is immense. I have no message for the occupation [Israel],” he said.

“My message is to the world – the same world that granted the occupation the right to live on my land – to grant me my freedom.”

In common with many other released prisoners, he claimed to have been beaten while behind bars, saying: “The situation in Israeli prisons is extremely harsh. We’ve witnessed it all: severe beatings, attack dogs, relentless insults. Every form of abuse imaginable has been inflicted on the bodies of our prisoners.”

While many in Israel will consider Zubeidi to be a dangerous, murderous extremist, he is considered a totemic figure in the West Bank, and a natural leader in Jenin, where he grew up in a refugee camp.

After being released, Israeli authorities banned him from returning to Jenin.

Instead, he has remained in Ramallah, where a long line of people came to a school building to shake his hand and hug him.

Among them, former prime minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, who resigned less than a year ago.

He embraced Zubeidi and told Sky News the release of prisoners could be a catalyst for an enduring peace deal.

“We would like to see all prisoners released and we would like to see all hostages going home,” said Mr Shtayyeh.

He continued: “It’s a historic moment for everybody. It’s time for this bloodshed to stop. And I think it is a moment of truth for everybody.

“In Gaza, 60,000 people have been killed, more than 120,000 have been injured. And of course, there have been so many casualties in Israel, too.

“We know that. And this time Palestinians are desperate for peace. We want a genuine peace process that does really bring peace and justice for everybody.”

More than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s offensive, according to Hamas-run authorities in Gaza, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.

The offensive followed Hamas’s attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, when it took 250 people hostage and killed around 1,200 others.

UK

‘We’ll play some more soon’: Emails believed to be from Prince Andrew to Epstein after he claimed to cut contact revealed

Published

1 hour ago

February 1, 2025

admin

'We'll play some more soon': Emails believed to be from Prince Andrew to Epstein after he claimed to cut contact revealed

The Duke of York told Jeffrey Epstein they would “play some more soon!” two months after he claimed he cut contact with the convicted paedophile.

The emails were disclosed in a filing by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), who are defending an appeal by former Barclays boss, Jes Staley.

Staley is challenging a decision to ban him from the industry for misleading regulators on his ties to Epstein, one of the most severe measures the FCA can impose.

The court documents show an exchange of messages between Epstein and “a member of the British Royal Family” – believed to be Prince Andrew. It suggests the duke and Epstein – who killed himself in jail in 2019 – were in contact for longer than he has previously admitted.

In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor and was sentenced to 18 months in prison. After his release, Epstein and the duke were photographed walking together in New York’s Central Park, in December 2010.

The prince has claimed this was the last contact he had with Epstein.

In a 2019 interview with Newsnight, Andrew said he visited Epstein in person to tell him they could no longer be friends, believing it was the “honourable” thing to do.

Yet emails between the pair, which were handed to a court in London, show they kept exchanging messages until at least 27 February 2011.

On this date, Andrew emailed Epstein: “Keep in close touch and we’ll play some more soon!!!!”

The disgraced duke has come under fire for his relationship with the paedophile financier. In 2022, he settled a multi-million pound claim with Virginia Giuffre, who said she was trafficked by Epstein and forced to have sex with the royal.

Andrew stepped down from royal duties and public life and had claimed he never met Ms Giuffre. He agreed to settle the claim without admitting liability.

He has previously strenuously denied all allegations against him.

Newsnight interview ‘ill-advised’ – aide

Other court documents released on Friday revealed one of the prince’s senior aides admitted in a letter to an alleged Chinese spy that the duke’s Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis was “hugely ill-advised and unsuccessful”.

Dominic Hampshire wrote to Yang Tengbo on Buckingham Palace notepaper in March 2020.

In the letter, he said they “have dealt with the aftermath of a hugely ill-advised and unsuccessful television interview”.

Mr Hampshire praised Mr Yang, writing that “in what originally seemed like a lost cause, you have somehow managed to not only salvage but maintain and then incredibly, enhance the reputation of my principal [Prince Andrew] in China.

“Under your guidance, we found a way to get the relevant people unnoticed in and out of the house in Windsor; we orchestrated a very powerful verbal message of support to China at a Chinese New Year’s dinner and between the three of us, we have written, amended and then always agreed a number of letters at the highest level possible.”

Mr Yang said in a statement on Friday the spying allegations against him are “entirely unfounded”.

The Jes Staley emails

Emails showed Epstein inviting Andrew to meet Staley on 27 February, saying: “jes staley will be in London on next tue afternoon, if you have time [sic].”

Andrew replied: “Jes is coming on 1st March or next week?”

The pair then engaged in a discussion about press articles, before the duke told Epstein they would “play some more soon”.

Sky News has contacted Prince Andrew for a comment.

The prince still making uncomfortable headlines for his family

Just when you thought Prince Andrew couldn’t fall any further, another twist emerges in his shameful association with Jeffrey Epstein.

He’d claimed the last time he had contact with the convicted paedophile was in December 2010, when the pair were infamously photographed together in Central Park.

The Duke of York insisted he thought he was being “honourable” when choosing to stay with Epstein and personally tell him they could no longer be friends.

But this email suggests the pair stayed in touch beyond this date. We don’t know for how long, but it leaves Prince Andrew once more facing difficult and damaging questions about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

And yet again, Andrew’s judgement is under considerable scrutiny.

Last year had ended badly for the disgraced Duke after his association with an alleged Chinese spy was exposed. He had to keep clear of the Royal Family’s traditional Christmas day gathering at Sandringham.

The Duke of York has always denied witnessing or suspecting any of Epstein’s behaviour.

But their friendship cost him his reputation.

He now leads a reclusive life in Windsor, stripped of responsibility and royal roles. Yet still making uncomfortable headlines for the rest of his family.

Environment

This is New Jersey’s largest high-rise residential rooftop solar array

Published

2 hours ago

January 31, 2025

admin

This is New Jersey's largest high-rise residential rooftop solar array

New York-based real estate developer LeFrak has installed the largest rooftop solar array on a high-rise multifamily residential building in New Jersey.

The Beach, a 336-unit waterfront rental tower in Jersey City’s Newport neighborhood, now hosts a 180kW, 450-panel rooftop solar system that will offset 13% of the building’s carbon emissions, equivalent to removing 37 gas-powered cars from the road annually. Sunkeeper Solar, a Brooklyn-based solar energy company, installed the nearly $1 million system.

The new rooftop solar offsets energy produced by electrical systems used in The Beach’s common area spaces, including those that power elevators and lighting, as well as cooling and ventilation in the high-rise building’s lobby and amenities. The Beach’s roof design and the building’s orientation optimize the amount of solar power generated by the system.

“Solar makes sense on multi-family buildings, and especially because Jersey City is vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, projects like this should become the bar for new development. Going solar saves consumers money, reduces air pollution, and creates a more resilient energy grid – solar is a double green amenity,” said Doug O’Malley, director of Environment New Jersey.

Last year, LeFrak partnered with EV-sharing platform Envoy to offer Newport residents exclusive car-sharing benefits and access to a fleet of on-site electric vehicles, representing Envoy’s first expansion into New Jersey.

To limit power outages and make your home more resilient, consider going solar with a battery storage system. In order to find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. They have hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and you share your phone number with them.

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisers to help you every step of the way. Get started here. –trusted affiliate link*

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.