Alexei Navalny ally Leonid Volkov attacked with hammer outside his home

Published

1 year ago

March 13, 2024

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A long-time ally of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has been attacked with a hammer near his home in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius.

Lithuanian police are investigating the assault on 43-year-old Leonid Volkov as it remains unclear who carried it out – and their motive.

A pine forest near Mr Volkov’s house was cordoned off by police, and officers with dogs and flashlights were seen searching the area on Tuesday night.

Ukraine-Russia war latest: Armed groups ‘invade’ Russia

Mr Navalny’s spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said the attacker smashed a window of Mr Volkov’s car, sprayed tear gas into his eyes and started hitting him with a hammer.

She posted an image on social media platform X showing Mr Volkov on an ambulance stretcher.

Ivan Zhdanov, another prominent ally of Mr Navalny, posted images on his Telegram account showing Mr Volkov with a bruise on his forehead, blood coming from a leg wound, and a vehicle with damage to the driver’s door and window.

Mr Volkov’s wife said he had returned home from hospital with a broken arm and was unable to walk.

“The choice between running to your husband who was attacked or not leaving your sleeping children alone is disgusting. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone,” she wrote on X.

“We will all work even harder. And even angrier.”

‘We will all be killed’

Mr Volkov used to be in charge of Mr Navalny’s regional offices and election campaigns – Mr Navalny ran for mayor of Moscow in 2013 and sought to challenge Russian President Vladimir Putin in the 2018 presidential election.

He left Russia several years ago under pressure from the authorities.

He and his team launched a project last year called Navalny’s Campaigning Machine with the goal of talking to as many Russians as possible, either by phone or online, and turning them against Mr Putin ahead of the 15-17 March presidential election.

Russian independent news outlet Meduza said it interviewed Mr Volkov several hours before the attack and asked him about the risks Mr Navalny’s aides faced.

“The key risk is that we will all be killed,” it quoted Mr Volkov as saying.

Lithuania’s foreign affairs minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, who also leads Homeland Union, the ruling party, described the assault as “shocking”.

“Perpetrators will have to answer for their crime,” he wrote on X.

A large part of Mr Navalny’s political group, the Anti-Corruption Foundation, which includes Mr Volkov, are residing in European Union and NATO member Lithuania after fleeing Russia.

Mr Navalny, 47, was a high-profile and vocal critic of President Putin and had been serving a 19-year prison term when he died in an Arctic penal colony last month.

The 47-year-old had been behind bars since January 2021, when he returned to Moscow after recovering in Germany from nerve agent poisoning, which he blamed on the Kremlin.

Western leaders have made clear they hold the Russian regime ultimately responsible for his death.

Putin says Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons

The attack on Mr Volkov comes as Mr Putin said he was ready to use nuclear weapons if there was a threat to his country’s statehood, sovereignty or independence.

In an interview with Russian state television released on Wednesday, he said he hoped the US would avoid any escalation that could trigger a nuclear war, but emphasised Russia’s nuclear forces are ready for it.

Asked if he has considered using nuclear weapons in Ukraine, the Russian leader said there had been no need.

He also asserted Moscow would achieve its goals in Ukraine and held the door open for talks, stressing any deal would require firm guarantees from the West.

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Pakistan launches ‘military operation’ against India

Published

3 hours ago

May 10, 2025

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Pakistan launches 'military operation' against India

Pakistan has launched attacks on “multiple targets” across India, according to the media wing of Pakistan’s military.

Pakistan said in a statement that retaliatory attacks are underway in response to what it called “continuous provocation” by India, which fired missiles at three air bases inside Pakistan.

“Multiple targets in this operation are being engaged all across India,” the statement from Pakistan Armed Forces (PAF) said.

Pakistan’s military said it used medium-range Fateh missiles to strike more than 25 military sites, including airbases and weapons depots in the Indian states of Gujarat, Punjab and Rajasthan, as well as locations in India-administered Kashmir.

Pakistan’s military posted footage on X showing missiles being fired from what appeared to be a mobile launcher.

The AP news agency also said loud explosions have been heard in India-administered Kashmir, in the disputed region’s two big cities of Srinagar and Jammu, and the garrison town of Udhampur.

Meanwhile, an Indian military source told Reuters that India has launched air operations in Pakistan, although no further details were given.

The operations mark the latest escalation in a conflict between the two nuclear-armed rivals, triggered by a deadly attack last month in India-administered Kashmir.

Most of the 26 civilians killed were Hindu Indian tourists. India blames Pakistan for backing the assault, an accusation Islamabad rejects.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called a meeting of the National Command Authority, the body which takes security decisions, including those related to the country’s nuclear arsenal.

State-run Pakistan television said three air bases were struck by India on Friday, although Pakistan insisted most of the missiles had been intercepted.

Despite the military offensive, PAF also posted a message on X in what appeared to represent an opportunity to de-escalate the situation.

“Now that a response has been given we hope the neighbour [India] will move to dialogue and diplomacy like Civilized Nations,” it said.

In recent days, both countries have launched a series of missile and drone strikes, although the scale and impact have been consistently questioned by each other.

On Wednesday, India conducted airstrikes on several sites in Pakistani territory. Pakistan said it shot down five Indian fighter jets.

On Thursday, India claimed to have repelled drone and missile attacks at military targets in more than a dozen cities and towns, including Jammu in India-administered Kashmir. Meanwhile, India claimed it struck Pakistan’s air defence systems and radars close to the city of Lahore.

The Indian army said on Friday that Pakistan fired about 300 to 400 drones, targeting military installations along the western borders – a claim strongly denied by Pakistan.

The G7 group of advanced economies, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the US and Britain, urged maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan.

“We call for immediate de-escalation and encourage both countries to engage in direct dialogue towards a peaceful outcome,” a statement issued on Friday said.

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World

European leaders to meet in Ukraine for ‘coalition of the willing’ talks – and issue call to Russia

Published

3 hours ago

May 10, 2025

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European leaders to meet in Ukraine for 'coalition of the willing' talks - and issue call to Russia

Sir Keir Starmer will join other European leaders in Kyiv on Saturday for talks on the “coalition of the willing”.

The prime minister is attending the event alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, recently-elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.

It will be the first time the leaders of the four countries will travel to Ukraine at the same time – on board a train to Kyiv – with their meeting hosted by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Follow latest updates on the Ukraine war

Military officers from around 30 countries have been involved in drawing up plans for the coalition, which would provide a peacekeeping force in the event of a ceasefire being agreed between Russia and Ukraine.

Ahead of the meeting on Saturday, Sir Keir, Mr Macron, Mr Tusk and Mr Merz released a joint statement voicing support for Ukraine and calling on Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire.

“We reiterate our backing for President Trump’s calls for a peace deal and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to secure an enduring peace,” they said.

“Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.”

The leaders said they were “ready to support peace talks as soon as possible”.

But they warned that they would continue to “ratchet up pressure on Russia’s war machine” until Moscow agrees to a lasting ceasefire.

“We are clear the bloodshed must end, Russia must stop its illegal invasion, and Ukraine must be able to prosper as a safe, secure and sovereign nation within its internationally recognised borders for generations to come,” their statement added.

“We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine.”

The European leaders are set to visit the Maidan, a central square in Ukraine’s capital where flags represent those who died in the war.

They are also expected to host a virtual meeting for other leaders in the “coalition of the willing” to update them on progress towards a peacekeeping force.

This force “would help regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces after any peace deal and strengthen confidence in any future peace”, according to Number 10.

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Ten explosions near international airport in India-administered part of Kashmir, officials say

Published

9 hours ago

May 9, 2025

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Ten explosions have been heard near Srinagar International Airport in India-administered parts of Kashmir, officials have told Reuters news agency.

The blasts followed blackouts caused by multiple projectiles, which were seen in the sky above the city of Jammu earlier on Friday.

Explosions were also heard in the Sikh holy city of Amritsar, in the neighbouring Punjab state, according to Reuters.

An Indian military official told the agency that “drones have been sighted” and “they are being engaged”.

It comes as tensions between India and Pakistan across the line of control around the region of Kashmir have boiled over this week, leading to fears of a wider conflict.

On Wednesday morning, India carried out missile strikes in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered parts of the disputed region.

The retaliation came weeks after 26 people, mainly Indian tourists, were shot dead by gunmen in an India-administered part of Kashmir last month.

The government in India said it hit nine “terrorist infrastructure” sites, while Pakistan said it was not involved in the April attack and the sites were not militant bases.

Around 48 people have been killed since Wednesday, according to casualty estimates on both sides – which have not been independently verified.

India also suspended its top cricket tournament, the Indian Premier League, as a result of rising tensions, while the Pakistan Super League moved the remainder of its season to the United Arab Emirates.

Meanwhile, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a conference on Friday that the US is in constant contact with both India and Pakistan.