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Ukraine war: Drone attack on Russian bomber base leaves three dead
AUkrainian drone attack on an airbase for bombers in southern Russia has left three people dead, Moscow says.
Air defences shot down the drone near the Engels base, but falling debris fatally wounded three technical staff, the defence ministry said.
Earlier this month, Russia accused Ukraine of a similar attack on the airfield, home to bombers that have carried out missile attacks on Ukraine.
The base lies about 650km (400 miles) north-east of Ukraine’s border.
The Ukrainian military did not officially admit to the latest attack, but air force spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said the explosions were the result of what Russia was doing on Ukrainian soil.
Hours afterwards Russia’s FSB security service announced it had killed a fourstrong “sabotage group” trying to enter the Russian border region of Bryansk from Ukraine armed with improvised explosive devices and German-made submachine guns. The FSB released video of what it said was the “liquidation” of the group, although there is no independent confirmation of the incident.
The latest drone attack inside Russia will come as an embarrassment to Russian authorities, coming so soon after the two 5 December attacks hundreds of kilometres from the front line - both at the Engels base and in the Ryazan region. At the time Russia also blamed falling debris for the deaths of three servicemen and what it described as light damage to two aircraft.
Social media early on Monday posted videos of blasts and air sirens in the vicinity of Engels airfield.
Russia’s defence ministry said later that its air defences had shot down the drone flying at low altitude at about 01:35 on Monday (22:35 GMT Sunday).
Saratov governor Roman Busargin expressed his condolences to the men’s families and friends, and said there was “absolutely no threat to residents” in the town of Engels itself.
The Ukrainian air force spokesman said satellite imagery of the airfield would soon reveal the full damage from Monday’s attack, adding that earlier blasts had damaged aircraft at the base.
The Engels air base has been repeatedly used by Russia to carry out missile strikes on various targets in Ukraine since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion on 24 February.
The Kremlin has accused Ukraine of attacking its territory before, but the latest incidents have taken place far deeper in Russian territory.
After the 5 December attacks, there were widespread calls for tightened security around Russian military installations and the latest attack suggests that has not happened.
Separately on Monday, Ukraine’s foreign ministry demanded Russia’s removal as one of five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and called for its exclusion from the UN “as a whole”.
Buffalo blizzard: Storm turns city into ‘war zone’
Asevere winter storm that has swept across North America has left the city of Buffalo, New York, looking like a war zone, the state governor has said.
On Monday the city recorded 25 weather-related deaths, up from 13 on Sunday.
“This is a war with mother nature and she has been hitting us with everything she has” since Thursday, New York State Governor Kathy Hochul said.
Blizzard conditions, which stretched from Canada to the Mexican border, have killed at least 50 people nationwide.
The region around Buffalo, in upstate New York, has been worst affected.
Governor Hochul, a native of Buffalo, said: “It is (like) going to a war zone, and the vehicles along the sides of the roads are shocking.”
She said residents were facing a “lifethreatening situation”, as many emergency vehicles were unable to reach worst-hit areas or got stuck in snow themselves.
One family with young children - aged 2 to 6 - had to wait for 11 hours before being rescued in the early hours of Christmas Day.
“I was basically just hopeless,” the father, Zila Santiago, told CBS News. He said he had managed to stay warm by keeping the engine running and kept distress at bay by playing games with the children.
More victims are expected to be discovered once melting snowdrifts reveal trapped vehicles and allow access to remote homes.
The “bomb cyclone” winter storm - which occurs when atmospheric pressure plummets, causing heavy snow and winds - has disrupted travel across the US.
Forecasters say it will ease off in the next few days, but the advice remains to avoid travelling unless essential.
Over the weekend an estimated 250,000 homes and businesses experienced blackouts - although power has been steadily restored.
Storm-related deaths were also reported in Vermont, Ohio, Missouri, Wisconsin, Kansas, and Colorado. South Florida’s temperatures dropped so low, that iguanas froze and fell from trees.
The western US state of Montana was the worst hit by the cold, with temperatures dropping to -50F (-45C).
In Canada, the provinces of Ontario and Quebec are bearing the brunt of the storm.
Four fatalities occurred when a bus rolled over on an icy road near the town of Merritt, in the western province of British Columbia.
Police officers found a horrendous scene when they arrived
China to end Covid quarantine for foreign arrivals
China has announced that its requirement for travellers arriving in the country to go into quarantine will end on 8 January.
The measure is the latest in a series of restrictions to be lifted as China abandons its zero-Covid policy.
China is seeing an explosion in Covidrelated infections and medical workers have said they are struggling to cope.
In his first comments on the changes, President Xi Jinping urged officials to do what was “feasible” to save lives.
State media quoted him as saying the country faced new situations demanding a more targeted response.
China has stopped publishing Covid statistics, but it is thought thousands of people may be dying every day.
Since March 2020, all passengers arriving in China have had to undergo mandatory centralised quarantine.
But the length of time has been progressively reduced, from three weeks originally to just five days at present.
Under the new rules, Covid will be downgraded from a Class A infectious disease to Class B, meaning that quarantine will no longer be enforced.
China’s about-turn on how it manages the pandemic has left Mr Xi in an uncomfortable position, analysts say.
He was the driving force behind the zero-Covid policy, which was blamed for restricting people’s lives excessively and harming the economy.
But having abandoned it, he now has to take responsibility for the huge wave of infections and hospital admissions, mainly among older people.
Public anger over the president’s handling of the pandemic is one of the areas in which he is most vulnerable.
Source; BBC
