Month: July 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin declared victory Monday in Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk province as Ukrainian troops retreated from their last stronghold in the city of Lysychansk.   Moscow’s forces immediately turned their attention to fighting in the adjoining Donetsk province. It is part of the industrialized Donbas region Putin has sought to take control of during his invasion of Ukraine, now in its fifth month, after failing earlier to topple the government of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy or capture the capital, Kyiv.    Ukraine said Russian forces are now trying to advance on Siversk, Fedorivka and Bakhmut in the Donetsk region, …

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A gunman who killed three people when he opened fire in a crowded shopping mall acted alone and apparently selected his victims at random, Danish police said Monday, all but ruling out that the attack was an “act of terrorism.” Police have not identified a motive for Sunday’s attack inside one of Scandinavia’s biggest shopping centers. A suspect carrying a rifle and knife was quickly arrested, and Copenhagen chief police inspector Søren Thomassen said the 22-year-old Danish man also had access to another gun. He said the firearms were obtained illegally and that the suspect was known to mental health …

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French President Emmanuel Macron replaced several ministers Monday, in a Cabinet reshuffle that was expected after his ruling alliance lost its majority in parliament. Macron appointed French Red Cross director Jean-Christophe Combe as the new minister for solidarity and for the disabled, replacing Damien Abad, who is under investigation in a sex scandal. Abad has denied any wrongdoing. While the foreign, finance and defense portfolios remained unchanged, Macron made several changes in other key positions. Macron appointed Laurence Boone, the chief economist of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), as new Europe minister to replace Clement Beaune, a …

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  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed to win back territory with the help of advanced weapons after his forces withdrew from Lysychansk, the last remaining Ukrainian-held territory in the eastern Luhansk province.  In his nightly address Sunday, Zelenskyy said Russia was focusing its firepower on the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, and that Ukrainian forces would respond with long-range weapons supplied by Western allies such as the U High Mobility Artillery Rocket System from the United States.  “The fact that we protect the lives of our soldiers, our people, plays an equally important role. We will rebuild the walls, we …

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Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev said on Sunday there were casualties among civilians and law enforcement officers after rare protests in the Central Asian country, and an exiled opposition politician said at least five people had been killed.  Separately, a local government official told an Uzbek news website that thousands of people have been hospitalized.  In a statement posted online, Mirziyoyev said rioters had carried out “destructive actions” in the city of Nukus, capital of the northwestern Karakalpakstan region, by throwing stones, starting fires and attacking police.  “Unfortunately there are victims among civilians and law enforcement officers,” he said. The statement …

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The number of pubs in England and Wales has plunged to its lowest ever level, according to analysis published on Monday which blames the coronavirus pandemic and soaring costs. In the first half of this year, pub numbers dropped below 40,000 — a fall of more than 7,000 since 10 years ago. A total of 200 pubs called “last orders” for good from the end of December to the end of last month, real estate advisers Altus Group said. Pubs, which have been central to British communities for centuries, have either been demolished or converted into homes and offices, it …

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Germany and Ireland on Sunday told Britain there was no legal or political justification for Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s plan to override parts of the Brexit deal governing trade with Northern Ireland. The British parliament is considering a new law which would unilaterally change customs arrangements between Britain and Northern Ireland that were initially agreed as part of its exit deal from the European Union. Britain says the changes are necessary to ease the overly burdensome requirements of the divorce deal, designed to prevent goods flowing into EU member Ireland via British province Northern Ireland. Johnson says the checks are …

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Peter Brook, one of the world’s most innovative theater directors who perfected the art of staging powerful drama in bizarre venues, has died aged 97, his publisher said Sunday. The British director used the world as his stage mounting productions ranging from challenging versions of Shakespeare through international opera to Hindu epic poems. Brook put on plays in gymnasiums, deserted factories, quarries, schools and old gas works in towns around the world. His 1970 Stratford production of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” played all in white and with a huge, garlanded swing, secured his place in the annals of theater …

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Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Sunday pledged further military support to Ukraine, including armored vehicles and drones, while meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv. Making the first ever visit to Ukraine by an Australian premier, Albanese said at a news conference in Kyiv that his country would give Ukraine “a hundred million dollars of military support,” without specifying if he meant Australian dollars. This figure in Australian dollars would amount to $68 million. The prime minister specified that Australia would provide extra military equipment requested by Ukraine including 14 armored personnel carriers, 20 Bushmaster armored vehicles and a …

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