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Russia launches barrage of drones and missiles at Kyiv

Russia launches barrage of drones and missiles at Kyiv

Russia launched a barrage of drones and cruise and ballistic missiles at Kyiv, as well as other cities across the country. A series of explosions rocked the Ukrainian capital in the early hours of Monday, sending residents into bomb shelters, said Ukraine’s air force. Air strikes also targeted Kharkiv and other cities. Kyiv’s Mayor Vitali Klitschko said emergency services were called to the Holosiivskyi and Solomianskyi districts of Kyiv. One person was reportedly injured by falling debris in Shevchenkivskyi district. Serhiy Popko, head of Kyiv’s city military administration, said more than 10 cruise missiles, about 10 ballistic missiles and a drone fired at the Ukrainian capital and its suburbs were destroyed by Ukraine’s air defences. Ukrainian forces said that overall they destroyed 22 out of 35 missiles and 20 out of 23 attack drones over the Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Poltava, Mykolaiv and Zaporizhzhia regions. Oleh Syniehubov, head of the Kharkiv region, confirmed an early morning strike on the Industrialnyi district. The barrage comes a day after Russia’s military reported intercepting and destroying 158 Ukrainian drones targeting multiple Russian regions in one of the biggest Ukrainian attacks of the war that has raged for more than two years. Adblock test (Why?)

Israelis erupt in protest to demand Gaza ceasefire

Israelis erupt in protest to demand Gaza ceasefire

Tens of thousands of grieving and angry Israelis have surged into the streets after six captives were found dead in Gaza. Chanting “Now! Now!”, the crowds demanded on Sunday night that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reach a ceasefire deal with Hamas to bring the remaining captives home. The mass outpouring of anger appeared to be the largest such demonstration in 11 months of war. Protesters said it felt like a possible turning point, although the country remains deeply divided. Israel’s largest trade union, Histadrut, sought to raise the pressure further as it called a general strike for Monday. It aims to shut down or disrupt the main sectors of the economy, including banking, healthcare and the country’s main airport. Ceasefire negotiations have dragged on for months. Many blame Netanyahu for failing to reach a deal, which opinion polls show a majority of Israelis favour. Three of the six captives who were found dead — including an Israeli American — were reportedly scheduled to be released in the first phase of a proposed ceasefire deal that was discussed in July. This fuelled fury and frustration among the protesters. The military said all six captives were killed shortly before Israeli forces reached. Netanyahu blamed Hamas for the stalled negotiations. “Whoever murders hostages doesn’t want a deal,” he said. Hamas has offered to release the captives in return for an end to the war, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and the release of a large number of Palestinian prisoners, including high-profile members of Gaza’s armed groups. Top security officials say the intense pressure on Hamas has created favourable conditions for a ceasefire deal. The army, noting the difficulty of rescue operations, has acknowledged that a deal is the only way to bring home large numbers of captives safely. Adblock test (Why?)

Ex-daycare worker in Australia admits sexually abusing dozens of girls

Ex-daycare worker in Australia admits sexually abusing dozens of girls

Ashley Paul Griffith pleads guilty to 307 offences against some 60 children who were in his care. A former childcare worker in Australia has admitted to sexually abusing dozens of girls in one of the worst paedophile cases in the country’s history. Ashley Paul Griffith on Monday pleaded guilty to 307 charges involving children in his care, including 28 counts of rape, 90 counts of indecent treatment and 67 counts of making child exploitation material. The offences were carried out against some 60 children, many of them under 12, at childcare centres in Australia and Italy over a span of more than 19 years. The judge’s associate at the District Court in Brisbane took more than two hours to read out the charges against Griffith, 46, who appeared emotionless as he pleaded guilty to every charge, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported. Griffith was arrested in 2022 and originally charged with several child exploitation material offences. Prosecutors later charged the Gold Coast, Queensland man with more than 1,600 offences against 91 girls, but most of those charges were dropped before Monday’s hearing. New South Wales state police Assistant Commissioner Michael Fitzgerald last year described the case as “one of the most horrific cases of alleged child abuse our detectives have seen”. Police said they had been searching for Griffith since discovering a collection of child exploitation images and videos circulating on the dark web in 2014. Griffith, who is due to be sentenced at a later date, did not seek bail and was returned to custody after his arraignment. Adblock test (Why?)