Connect with us

Published

on

US intelligence is “leaning towards” Moscow being behind the attack on a dam in a Russian-controlled part of southern Ukraine, NBC News reports.

The Biden administration is working to declassify some of its intelligence and share it – with a motive still being assessed, NBC adds.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described the bursting of the Nova Kakhovka dam as “an environmental bomb of mass destruction” and said only liberating the entire country could guarantee protection against new “terrorist” acts.

“Such deliberate destruction by the Russian occupiers and other structures of the hydroelectric power station is an
environmental bomb of mass destruction,” Mr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address.

He said the destruction of the dam would “not stop Ukraine and Ukrainians. We will still liberate all our land”.

“Only the complete liberation of Ukrainian land from the Russian occupiers will guarantee that there will be no more such terrorist attacks.”

Wagner chief claims Russia used ‘lethal force’ against mercenaries – Ukraine latest

Earlier, a state of emergency was declared around the dam by local Moscow-backed authorities.

Amid nearby flooding, evacuations were being prepared in the Nova Kakhovka, Golo Pristan and Oleshky districts, the latter two across the mouth of the Dnipro river from the Ukrainian-held regional capital Kherson.

The water level in the town of Nova Kakhovka is now up by 11m, according to its Russian-installed mayor, who said the town was now underwater and that around 600 houses had been flooded.

“The water continues to mount. An evacuation is being carried out of civilians from the adjacent flooded zones to preserve all lives … There is no panic in the town,” Vladimir Leontyev said in a video message on Telegram.

An emergencies official alongside him said the water below the dam was expected to keep rising for 72 hours before subsiding and allowing a clean-up operation.

Mr Leontyev added: “This crime cannot be written off. This is a terrorist act directed against civilians, Ukrainians did it”.

Damaged buildings are seen as the Nova Kakhovka dam was breached in Kherson region, Ukraine June 6, 2023 in this screen grab taken from a video obtained by Reuters/via REUTERS    THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES.
Image:
Damaged buildings at the dam

TASS said half the span of the 3.2km-long dam had been destroyed and the collapse of the remainder was ongoing.

Ukraine’s state hydroelectric agency said the plant had been “totally destroyed” after a blast in its engine room and could not be restored.

RIA also reported, citing the Kherson region’s head, that 22,000 people in 14 settlements had been affected so far.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Swans swim through submerged Ukrainian town

Rescue efforts

Evacuations have started on both the Ukrainian and Russian sides of the river.

In Nova Kakhovka residents were told to “collect personal belongings and documents, take food for three days and drinking water. Turn off gas and water before leaving your residential buildings.”

A zoo called Kazkova Dibrova, located on the bank of the Dnipro, was completely flooded and all 300 animals were dead, a representative said via the zoo’s Facebook account.

Pic: AP
Image:
A local resident gestures near his house, which was flooded after the dam blew Pic: AP

On the northern side of the river, Ukraine’s interior minister said Russia was shelling areas in the southern region of Kherson from where people were being evacuated on Tuesday after the destruction of the Nova Kakhovka dam, and that two police officers had been wounded.

“The Russian military continue to shell territory where evacuation measures are being carried out. An hour ago, two police officers were wounded in the area. Shelling continues at the moment,” Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko told Ukrainian television.

The Ukrainian Interior Ministry called for residents of 10 villages on the Dnipro river’s right bank and parts of the city of Kherson to gather “essential documents and pets, turn off appliances and leave”.

Pic: State Emergency Service of Ukraine/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
Image:
Ukrainian authorities providing flood relief Pic: State Emergency Service of Ukraine/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Blame game

Both Ukrainian and Russian officials blamed each other for destroying the dam. Ukraine’s military said Russian forces blew up the dam.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

James Cleverly: Russian invasion led to this crisis

“The Kakhovka [dam] was blown up by the Russian occupying forces,” the south command of Ukraine’s armed forces said on Tuesday on Facebook.

“The scale of the destruction, the speed and volumes of water, and the likely areas of inundation are being clarified.”

Nova Kakhovka dam: what we know

  • The dam is 30m tall and 3.2km long. It holds water equal to that in the Great Salt Lake in the US state of Utah in a reservoir which is 240km long and up to 23km wide
  • Ukraine and Russia have previously accused each other of targeting the dam with attacks, and last October President Zelenskyy predicted that Russia would destroy the dam in order to cause a flood
  • In February, water levels were so low that many feared a meltdown at the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, whose cooling systems are supplied with water from the reservoir held up by the dam
  • By mid-May, after heavy rains and snow melt, water levels rose beyond normal levels, flooding nearby villages. Satellite images showed water washing over damaged sluice gates
  • Ukraine controls five of the six dams along the Dnipro river, which runs from its northern border with Belarus down to the Black Sea and is crucial for the entire country’s drinking water and power supply
  • The reservoir feeds the North Crimean Canal – a channel which has traditionally supplied 85% of Crimea’s water

Andriy Yermak, the head of President Zelenskyy’s administration, said the destruction was an attempt to “raise the stakes” in its full-scale invasion and stoke fears of a nuclear catastrophe.

A satellite image shows the Kakhovka dam in October 2022. Pic: European Union/ Copernicus Sentinel-2 L2A
Image:
A satellite image shows the Kakhovka dam in October 2022. Pic: European Union/ Copernicus Sentinel-2 L2A

Russian forces blew up the dam “in a panic”, Ukraine’s military intelligence agency added.

Click to subscribe to the Sky News Daily wherever you get your podcasts

The office of Ukraine’s prosecutor general has started “urgent investigations” into whether the blast is a war crime or could be possible criminal environmental destruction, or ‘ecocide’. Ukraine is one of a small number of states, including Russia, that have criminalised ‘ecocide’.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Ukraine had sabotaged the dam to distract attention from its faltering counteroffensive and was also intended to deprive Crimea of the freshwater it receives from the reservoir.

“We can state unequivocally that we are talking about deliberate sabotage by the Ukrainian side,” Mr Peskov told reporters.

Read more:
Dam destructions could be most damaging single event of war
Has Ukraine launched a large-scale offensive?

Arms contract shows Iran sold Russia ammunition

Pic: National Police of Ukraine/Reuters
Image:
Emergency services at work in a Russian-occupied area Pic: National Police of Ukraine/Reuters

Asked about allegations Russia had destroyed the dam, Mr Peskov said: “We can strongly reject this. We officially declare that here we are definitely talking about deliberate sabotage from the Ukrainian side.”

He said the sabotage could “potentially have very serious consequences for several tens of thousands of residents
of the region”.

Nuclear nightmare

The dam was built in 1956 on the Dnipro river as part of the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant and supplies water to the Crimean peninsula and to the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, which is also under Russian control.

Ukraine’s state atomic agency said the dam’s destruction posed a threat to the nuclear plant but that the situation at the facility was currently under control.

FILE PHOTO: A view shows the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in the course of Russia-Ukraine conflict outside Enerhodar in the Zaporizhzhia region, Russian-controlled Ukraine, March 29, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Ermochenko//File Photo
Image:
The Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is in Russian hands

The UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, said on Twitter it was closely monitoring the situation but there was “no immediate nuclear safety risk at [the] plant”.

Nova Kakhovka map
Image:
Nova Kakhovka map

International condemnation

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly warned “the destruction of Kakhovka dam is an abhorrent act [and] intentionally attacking exclusively civilian infrastructure is a war crime”.

Continue Reading

World

Twelve British soldiers injured in major traffic pile-up in Estonia – local media

Published

on

By

Twelve British soldiers injured in major traffic pile-up in Estonia - local media

Twelve British soldiers were injured in a major traffic pile-up in Estonia, close to the border with Russia, local media have reported.

Eight of the troops – part of a major NATO mission to deter Russian aggression – were airlifted back to the UK for hospital treatment on Sunday after the incident, which happened in snowy conditions on Friday, it is understood.

Five of these personnel have since been discharged with three still being kept in the military wing of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.

The crash happened at an intersection at around 5pm on Friday when the troops were travelling in three minibuses back to their base at Tapa.

Two civilian cars, driven by Estonians, are thought to have collided, triggering a chain reaction, with four other vehicles – comprising the three army Toyota minibuses and a third civilian car – piling into each other.

According to local media reports, the cars that initially collided were a Volvo S80, driven by a 37-year-old woman and a BMW 530D, driven by a 62-year-old woman.

The Estonian Postimees news site reported that 12 British soldiers were injured as well as five civilians. They were all taken to hospital by ambulance.

The British troops are serving in Estonia as part of Operation Cabrit, the UK’s contribution to NATO’s “enhanced forward presence” mission, which spans nations across the alliance’s eastern flank and is designed to deter attacks from Russia.

Around 900 British troops are deployed in Estonia, including a unit of Challenger 2 tanks.

Read more:
Russian forces capture ‘former British soldier’ fighting for Ukraine – reports
Russia ‘ready to hit UK’ with wave of cyber attacks

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence said: “Several British soldiers deployed on Operation CABRIT in Estonia were injured in a road traffic incident last Friday, 22nd November.

“Following hospital treatment in Estonia, eight personnel were flown back to the UK on an RAF C-17 for further treatment.

“Five have since been discharged and three are being cared for at the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine, Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham. We wish them all a speedy recovery.”

Defence Secretary John Healey said: “Following the road traffic incident involving British personnel in Estonia, my thoughts are with all those affected, and I wish those injured a full, swift recovery.

“Thanks to the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham for their excellent care.”

Continue Reading

World

Egypt: Two Britons believed to be among 16 missing as tourist boat sinks after being ‘hit by large wave’

Published

on

By

Egypt: Two Britons believed to be among 16 missing as tourist boat sinks after being 'hit by large wave'

Two Britons are believed to be among more than a dozen people missing after a boat sank in the Red Sea off the Egyptian coast.

The yacht, called Sea Story, had 44 people on board, including 31 tourists of varying nationalities and 13 crew.

Authorities are searching for 16 people, including 12 foreign nationals and four Egyptians, the governor of the Red Sea region said, adding that 28 other people had been rescued.

Preliminary reports suggested a sudden large wave struck the vessel, capsizing it within about five minutes, governor Amr Hanafi said.

“Some passengers were in their cabins, which is why they were unable to escape,” he added in a statement.

Pic: STR/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

More than dozen missing after tourist boat sinks off Red Sea in Egypt, Marsa Alam - 25 Nov 2024
Survivors of the sinking boat rest at a harbor in Marsa Alam, Red Sea Governorate, in Egypt 25 Novermber 2024.
Image:
Survivors rescued from the Sea Story in Marsa Alam. Pic: STR/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Passengers rescued from sunken tourist boat

The people who were rescued only suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scrapes with none needing hospital treatment.

A Foreign, Commonwealth and Development office spokesperson said: “We are providing consular support to a number of British nationals and their families following an incident in Egypt and are in contact with the local authorities.”

The foreign nationals aboard the 34-metre-long vessel, owned by an Egyptian national, included Americans, Belgians, British, Chinese, Finns, Germans, Irish, Poles, Slovakians, Spanish, and Swiss.

Sea Story had no technical problems, obtained all required permits before the trip, and was last checked for naval safety in March, according to officials.

The four-deck, wooden-hulled motor yacht was part of a multi-day diving trip when it went down near the coastal town of Marsa Alam following warnings about rough weather.

Egypt map

Officials said a distress call was received at 5.30am local time on Monday.

The boat had left Port Ghalib in Marsa Alam on Sunday and was scheduled to reach its destination of Hurghada Marina on 29 November.

The Sea Story was carrying 45 people according to a statement by the Red Sea Governorate.
Pic: Dive Pro Liveaboard
Image:
The Sea Story had 44 people on board. File pic: Dive Pro Liveaboard

Some survivors had been airlifted to safety on a helicopter, officials said.

The firm that operates the yacht, Dive Pro Liveaboard in Hurghada, said it has no information on the matter.

According to its maker’s website, the Sea Story was built in 2022.

Read more on Sky News:
Microsoft ‘investigating issue’ after users report problems
People join forces to save 30 whales stranded on beach

The incident comes after the Egyptian Meteorological Authority issued a warning on Saturday about turbulence and high waves on the Red Sea.

The organisation had advised against maritime activity for Sunday and Monday.

Some tourist companies have stopped or limited operations on the Red Sea due to the potential dangers from conflicts in the region.

Continue Reading

World

Prosecutors file to drop 2020 presidential election interference charges against Trump

Published

on

By

Prosecutors file to drop 2020 presidential election interference charges against Trump

A motion has been filed to drop the charges against Donald Trump of plotting to overturn the 2020 US presidential election result.

Mr Trump was first indicted on four felonies in August 2023: Conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and an attempt to obstruct an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights.

The president-elect pleaded not guilty to all charges and the case was then put on hold for months as Mr Trump’s team argued he could not be prosecuted.

U.S. Special Counsel Jack Smith looks on as he makes a statement to reporters after a grand jury returned an indictment of former U.S. President Donald Trump in the special counsel's investigation of efforts to overturn his 2020 election defeat, at Smith's offices in Washington, U.S. August 1, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Wurm TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Image:
Special Counsel Jack Smith. Pic: Reuters

Donald Trump supporters storm the US Capitol
Image:
Donald Trump supporters storm the US Capitol

On Monday, prosecutors working with special counsel Jack Smith, who had led the investigation, asked a federal judge to dismiss the case over long-standing US justice department policy, dating back to the 1970s, that presidents cannot be prosecuted while in office.

It marks the end of the department’s landmark effort to hold Mr Trump accountable for the attack on the US Capitol on 6 January 2021 when thousands of Trump supporters assaulted police, broke through barricades, and swarmed the Capitol in a bid to prevent the US Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.

Trump plays blinder as accusers forced to turn blind eye over Capitol riots

In winning the White House, he avoids the so-called ‘big house’.

Whether or not prison was a prospect awaiting Donald Trump is a moot point now, as he now enjoys the protection of the presidency.

The delay strategy that he pursued through a grinding court process knocked his federal prosecution past the election date and when his numbers came up, he wasn’t going down.

Politically, and legally, he has played a blinder.

Read more analysis from James Matthews here

Mr Smith’s team had been assessing how to wind down both the election interference case and the separate classified documents case in the wake of Mr Trump’s election victory over vice president Kamala Harris earlier this month, effectively killing any chance of success for the case.

In court papers, prosecutors said “the [US] Constitution requires that this case be dismissed before the defendant is inaugurated”.

They said the ban [on prosecuting sitting presidents] “is categorical and does not turn on the gravity of the crimes charged, the strength of the government’s proof, or the merits of the prosecution, which the government stands fully behind”.

Mr Trump, who has said he would sack Mr Smith as soon as he takes office in January, and promised to pardon some convicted rioters, has long dismissed both the 2020 election interference case and the separate classified documents case as politically motivated.

Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington
Image:
Trump supporters try to break through a police barrier at the Capitol in Washington. Pic: AP

He was accused of illegally keeping classified papers after leaving office in 2021, some of which were allegedly found in his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida.

The election interference case stalled after the US Supreme Court ruled in July that former presidents have broad immunity from prosecution, which Mr Trump’s lawyers exploited to demand the charges against him be dismissed.

Mr Smith’s request to drop the case still needs to be approved by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan.

No date had been set for a trial.

Read more:
Trump can seek hush money case dismissal

Prosecutors to focus on ‘worst rioters’
Hollywood star jailed over Capitol riot

At least 1,500 cases have been brought against those accused of trying to overthrow the election result on 6 January 2021, resulting in more than 1,100 convictions, the Associated Press said.

More than 950 defendants have been sentenced and 600 of them jailed for terms ranging from a few days to 22 years.

Continue Reading

Trending