Month: February 2023

Turkish Teen Filmed ‘Last Moments’ From Quake-Hit Apartment

A 17-year-old high school student has captured Turkish hearts after he filmed a farewell message to his loved ones as he was trapped under the rubble of his home during last week’s earthquake. Taha Erdem and his family were asleep when a 7.8 magnitude quake hit their hometown of Adiyaman in the early hours of Feb. 6. Taha was abruptly woken by violent tremors shaking the four-story apartment building in a blue-collar neighborhood of the central Anatolian city. Within 10 seconds, Taha, his mother, father and younger brother and sister were plunging downward with the building. He found himself alone …

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In Baltics, Poland, Grassroots Groups Strive to Help Ukraine

In a dusty workshop in northern Lithuania, a dozen men are transforming hundreds of wheel rims into potbelly stoves to warm Ukrainians huddled in trenches and bomb shelters. As the sparks subside, one welder marks the countertop: 36 made that day. Hours later, they’ve reached 60. People from across Lithuania send old wheel rims to the volunteers gathering weekly in Siauliai, the Baltic country’s fourth-largest city. Two cars loaded with wood stoves wait outside the workshop ahead of the long night drive south. Since Russia invaded Ukraine last February, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia — three states on NATO’s eastern flank …

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Ukraine Unit Faces Blizzard of Russian Attacks

On the deserted edge of a town near the front line in eastern Ukraine, a Ukrainian soldier kneels in a firing position, a gloved finger on the trigger of his high-powered rifle. “The Russians want to control this road,” says his commander, who goes by the call sign “Virus,” looking up and down a snow-covered residential street. Dogs bark behind the garden walls and beyond as small-arms fire crackles in the near distance, in between the muffled sound of artillery shelling. As the anniversary of Russia’s invasion approaches Friday, expectations are high that the fighting will intensify in Ukraine. But …

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Former Shah’s Son Calls for Increased Support of Iranians

A group of exiled Iranians will increase support for opposition movements in the country so they can continue to pressure the authorities there amid a crackdown on protests, the last heir to the Iranian monarchy said Saturday. Iran has been rocked by unrest since the death in police custody of a young Iranian Kurdish woman in September after she was detained for flouting a strict Islamic dress code. The protests are among the strongest challenges to the Islamic Republic since the revolution. ‘Maximum pressure’ and ‘maximum support’ Eight Iranian exiled dissidents, including Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the toppled …

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Six Charged After 18 Migrants Died in Truck in Bulgaria

Bulgarian prosecutors have charged six people with human trafficking after 18 Afghan migrants were found dead Friday inside a truck dumped on a dirt road near the capital Sofia. Prosecutors said the truck was abandoned near the village of Lokorsko after the driver and his companion found that many of the 52 migrants in the hidden compartments of the truck, which were isolated with foil, were dizzy and some had already died. The truck driver and his companion were also charged over the deaths of the migrants, prosecutors said. Despite strong and prolonged banging on the cabin, the driver refused …

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US Declares Russia Committed ‘Crimes Against Humanity’ in Ukraine

The Biden administration formally concluded that Russia has committed “crimes against humanity” during its nearly year-long invasion of Ukraine, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said Saturday. “In the case of Russia’s actions in Ukraine we have examined the evidence, we know the legal standards, and there is no doubt: these are crimes against humanity,” Harris, a former prosecutor, said at the Munich Security Conference. “And I say to all those who have perpetrated these crimes, and to their superiors who are complicit in these crimes, you will be held to account.” The official determination, which came at the end of …

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Political Prisoner’s Family, Lawyer Do Not Know Where He Is

Human Rights Watch said Saturday that the monthlong refusal of Russian officials to provide information about the whereabouts of a political prisoner has raised concerns that he has been “forcibly disappeared.   Andrey Pivovarov’s family and lawyer have not been in contact with him since January 18, when he sent a letter informing them that he was being transferred from a St. Petersburg prison to a prison colony.   HRW said in a statement, “The authorities should immediately quash his politically motivated imprisonment and unconditionally release Pivovarov and, in the meantime, urgently allow his family and lawyer to meet with …

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Ghanaian Footballer Atsu’s Body Found Under Rubble in Turkey Quake, Agent Says

Ghanaian footballer Christian Atsu has been found dead under the building where he lived in southern Turkey after last week’s massive earthquake, the ex-Chelsea winger’s Turkish agent said. “Atsu’s lifeless body was found under the rubble,” Murat Uzunmehmet told reporters in Hatay, where the athlete’s body was found. “Currently, more items are still being taken out. His phone was also found.” Atsu had been scheduled to fly out of southern Turkey hours before the quake, but Hatayspor’s manager said on Friday the Ghanaian opted to stay with the club after scoring the game-winning goal in a Feb. 5 Super Lig …

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Biden to Vow ‘As Long as It Takes’ Support for Ukraine on War Anniversary

President Joe Biden will mark the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine with a speech Tuesday in Poland, where he is expected to reiterate the United States’ commitment to support the defense of Ukraine “for as long as it takes” despite growing Republican reticence and softening overall support among Americans. Scheduled to arrive in Warsaw on Tuesday morning, Biden will meet with Polish President Andrzej Duda to discuss “collective efforts to support Ukraine and to bolster NATO’s deterrence,” said John Kirby, National Security Council (NSC) spokesperson in a briefing to reporters Friday. Biden also will meet with NATO leaders from …

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Turkey Rages at Shoddy Construction After ‘Earthquake-Proof’ Homes Topple

Residents of a luxury housing complex in southern Turkey thought their apartments were “earthquake-proof” until the structure toppled like a domino in last week’s devastating earthquake, leaving hundreds feared dead. Now the wreckage of the Ronesans Rezidans, which was advertised as “a piece of paradise” when it opened a decade ago, has become a focus of public anger. Survivors stand by the pile of debris that was the 249-apartment block waiting for news of loved ones as hopes of their survival fade. “My brother lived here for 10 years. … It was said to be earthquake safe, but you can …

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