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CNN —Poland is planning to move around 10,000 troops to its eastern border with Belarus amid mounting concerns over Wagner forces in the region. Wagner troops have been stationed within Belarus – a close ally of Russia – in the wake of a short-lived rebellion carried out by the group. The Polish Defense Minister, Mariusz Blaszczak, told public radio that while 10,000 soldiers will be on the border, 4,000 will directly support the border guard and the remaining 6,000 will be in reserve. Geoffroy van der Hasselt/AFP/Getty ImagesThe border wall at the Polish Belarusian border on July 09, 2023. Poland has been sounding the alarm about Wagner forces in Belarus in recent weeks.

Persons: Wagner, Russia –, Mariusz Blaszczak, Blaszczak, ” Blaszczak, ”, Geoffroy van der, Omar Marques, Sergei Shoigu, Shoigu, Mateusz Morawiecki Organizations: CNN, Belarus –, Polish Defense, Polish, European Air Defence Conference, Les Invalides, Getty, Russian, Defense Ministry, NATO, EU Locations: Poland, Belarus, Russia, Belarusian, Paris, Geoffroy van der Hasselt, AFP, Polish Belarusian, Lithuania, Russian

☆ Poland to Deploy 2,000 Troops To Reinforce Belarus Border
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Cassandra Vinograd | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Poland will send an additional 2,000 troops to reinforce its border with Belarus, a deputy interior minister told Poland’s state news agency on Wednesday, amid heightened tensions in the area related to the war in Ukraine. The minister, Maciej Wasik, said that the deployment was double what the country’s Border Guard had requested and that the reinforcements would arrive in two weeks, according to PAP, Poland’s state news agency. There was no immediate response from Belarus. Poland’s prime minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, said last week that there were at least 4,000 Wagner fighters in Belarus. He warned against “provocations” and “sabotage actions” from Belarus by the relocated Wagner fighters, a caution that came days after two Belarusian helicopters breached Polish airspace, heightening jitters in the region.

Persons: Maciej Wasik, Wasik, Russia’s Wagner, Mateusz Morawiecki, Wagner Organizations: country’s Border Guard, NATO Locations: Poland, Belarus, Ukraine

☆ Poland to send 2,000 troops to reinforce Belarus border
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A sign is seen near the Bug River at the Poland-Belarus border, near Kostomloty, Poland July 20, 2023. Poland has worried increasingly about the border area since hundreds of battle-hardened Wagner mercenaries arrived in Belarus last month at the invitation of President Alexander Lukashenko. Belarus started military exercises near the border this week, and Lukashenko said several times that he is restraining Wagner fighters who want to attack Poland. "This reinforcement will be not by 1,000, but by 2,000 soldiers," Maciej Wasik told PAP. Belarus started military exercises near the border this week.

Persons: Wagner, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko, Maciej Wasik, Mariusz Blaszczak, Wasik, Alan Charlish, Peter Graff Organizations: REUTERS, Border Guard, Security, Defence, Thomson Locations: Poland, Belarus, Kostomloty, WARSAW, Belarusian, Warsaw

☆ Ukrainian orphans taste freedom after fleeing Russian occupation
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | by ( Stefaniia Bern | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

"There was no ping pong in occupation, children don't even play soccer in the stadiums. Last month, their father finally died of AIDS, the same illness that killed their mother a decade ago, leaving them orphans. Moscow says it has gathered hundreds of thousands of orphans and vulnerable children there, taking them to Russia for their safety. Children whose parents die are the most urgent cases, because the Russian-installed occupation authorities will swiftly impose legal guardianship, said Save Ukraine's founder, Mykola Kuleba. Once they have Ukrainian passports sorted, they will go stay with their late father's ex-wife, now a refugee in Slovakia.

Persons: Ilona Pavliuk, Maksym, Ilona, didn't, tugging absentmindedly, haven't, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Mykola Kuleba, Peter Graff, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: REUTERS, KYIV, Valera, International Criminal Court, Save, Ukraine, Dnipro, Thomson Locations: Kyiv, Ukraine, Belarus, Vladyslav, Nova Kakhovka, Pishchane, Dnipro, Russia, Russian, Moscow, Hague, Save Ukraine, Slovakia, Ukrainian

☆ Ukraine says it thwarts attempt by Russian saboteur group to cross its northern border
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Aug 1 (Reuters) - Ukraine has thwarted an overnight attempt by a Russian saboteur group to cross its northern border, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko wrote on the Telegram messaging app. "Last night, in the Chernihiv region, border guards stopped an attempt by an enemy saboteur-reconnaissance group to cross the state border of Ukraine within the Semenivka community," he said. Serhiy Naev, commander of the joint forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said that four armed people attempted to cross the border but were repelled by Ukrainian fire. He added that reserves of the State Border Guard Service and Ukraine's armed forces were deployed to strengthen the area. Ukraine has strengthened its northern military sector following the arrival of Russian mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin in Belarus.

Persons: Ihor Klymenko, Serhiy Naev, Klymenko, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Anna Pruchnicka, Christina Fincher Organizations: Armed Forces of, State Border Guard Service, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Chernihiv, Armed Forces of Ukraine, Ukrainian, Belarus

☆ Poland's prime minister fears over 100 Wagner mercs approaching his country's borders will try to pose as migrants and sneak into NATO territory
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said Wagner troops are poised to infiltrate NATO territory. Over 100 mercenaries have gathered near Poland's border with Belarus, he said on Saturday. Morawiecki warned that the fighters could pose as migrants or border guards to try and sneak in. The Russian fighters are near Grodno, a Belarusian city 10 miles from the Polish border, Morawiecki said at a press conference in Gliwice. Polish officials have for years accused Belarus of attempting to overwhelm Poland's border forces by sending migrants west — a charge Minsk has denied.

Persons: Mateusz Morawiecki, Wagner, Morawiecki, Arnoldas Abramavičius, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Alexander Lukashenko, Prigozhin, Jarosław Kaczyński Organizations: Polish, Service, European Union, BBC, Kremlin, Poland, Agence France Presse Locations: Poland's, Belarus, Wall, Silicon, Grodno, Belarusian, Polish, Gliwice, Minsk, Lithuanian, Poland, Lithuania, Ukraine, Moscow

Thousands of Wagner troops are reportedly in Belarus following a failed military uprising in Russia. What exactly Wagner troops are doing in Grodno is unclear, as Wagner has not commented on the reports. It is not clear exacttly how many Wagner troops are in Belarus. They were invited to the country as part of a deal negotiated by the Belarus president to end the mercenary group’s armed insurrection against the Kremlin last month. The two plan to hold joint military exercises near the border with Poland, a move likely to further raise tensions.

Persons: Wagner, Mateusz Morawiecki, Morawiecki, ”, “, Alexander Lukashenko, Vladimir Putin, Lukashenko, Putin Organizations: CNN, Poland ”, EU, NATO, Analysts, Kremlin Locations: Russian, Poland, Lithuania, Polish, Grodno, Belarus, Russia, Belarusian, EU, Kaliningrad, Baltic, Ukraine, Russia’s, “, ” Poland

☆ More Wagner fighters move closer to Polish border, Poland PM says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WARSAW, July 29 (Reuters) - A group of a hundred soldiers from the Russian Wagner group have moved closer to the Belarusian city of Grodno near the Polish border, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Saturday. Earlier this month, Poland began moving more than 1,000 troops to the east of the country amid rising concerns that the presence of Wagner fighters in Belarus could lead to increased tension on its border. Most likely they (the Wagner personnel) will be disguised as the Belarusian border guard and help illegal migrants get to the Polish territory (and) destabilise Poland," Morawiecki said at a press conference in Gliwice, western Poland. "They will most likely try to enter Poland pretending to be illegal migrants and this poses additional threats," Morawiecki said. The following day, some Wagner fighters arrived at the training ground of the 38th airborne assault brigade outside the city of Brest, just a few miles from the Polish border.

Persons: Russian Wagner, Mateusz Morawiecki, Wagner, Morawiecki, Anton Motolko, Russia's, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Agnieszka Pikulicka, David Holmes Organizations: WARSAW, Warsaw Pact, NATO, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Russian, Belarusian, Grodno, Polish, Poland, Warsaw, U.S, Ukraine, Belarus, Gliwice, Lithuanian, Kaliningrad, Africa, Brest, Moscow, Russia

☆ Putin 'just hid' during Wagner's mutiny, proving he can't guarantee 'security' for Russia, a former Russian colonel says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-25 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Putin "just hid" during Wagner's mutiny, a former Russian colonel told The Washington Post. Chaos in Russian leadership left local authorities without direction during Prigozhin's rebellion. Gudkov told the Post that Putin's inaction during Yevgeny Prigozhin's 24-hour rebellion severely damaged his reputation with top Russian officials. That's left Putin appearing weak. One senior Moscow financier connected to Russian intel told the Post: "Russia is a country of mafia rules.

Persons: Putin, Wagner, Vladimir Putin, Gennady Gudkov, Gudkov, Yevgeny Prigozhin's, Prigozhin, Sergei Shoigu, Alexander Lukashenko, standdown, unsparingly, Prigozhin —, That's Organizations: Washington Post, Service, Russian Defense, Ukraine, Kremlin, Russian intel Locations: Russian, Wall, Silicon, Ukraine, Prigozhin, Belarus, Moscow, Russia

One rainy spring evening, a young Iranian mother with a mangled arm, her husband and their 3-year-old daughter met a smuggler near the Iraqi border who gave them a stern ultimatum: Ensure the child’s silence or leave her behind. The mother, Sima Moradbeigi, 26, recalled that she dashed to a pharmacy for a bottle of cough syrup to drug her daughter into a stupor. Under the cover of night, the family followed the smuggler out of Iran along mountain paths, sometimes crouching or crawling through muddy scrubland to avoid border guards stalking their route with flashlights. Hours later, Ms. Moradbeigi and her husband said, they arrived safely at a mosque outside the city of Sulaimaniya in Iraq’s northern Kurdistan Region. The Islamic Republic — the theocracy that arose after Iran’s 1979 revolution — was never hospitable to women who rebelled against its strict religious codes for dress and behavior.

Persons: Sima Moradbeigi, Moradbeigi, Juan, —, Mahsa Amini Locations: Iranian, Iran, Sulaimaniya, Iraq’s, Kurdistan Region, Republic

☆ Russian player Zvonareva blocked from entering Poland
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WARSAW, July 22 (Reuters) - Russian tennis player Vera Zvonareva was blocked from entering Poland for reasons of state security and public safety, the Polish interior ministry said on Saturday. "The Border Guard prevented a Russian tennis player from entering Poland. Vera Zvonareva, using a visa issued by France, tried to get into our country on a flight from Belgrade to Warsaw," the ministry said in a statement. Zvonareva, who landed in Poland on Friday, is on a list of people considered undesirable there, the ministry said. "After arriving from Serbia, the tennis player stayed in the transit zone of Warsaw Chopin Airport and today after 1200 she flew to Podgorica."

Persons: Vera Zvonareva, Zvonareva, Vera, Ukraine's, Anna Wlodarczak, Tommy Lund, Pearl Josephine Nazare, Christian Radnedge, Hugh Lawson Organizations: WARSAW, BNP, Warsaw, Guard, Warsaw Chopin Airport, Tennis Association, WTA, Thomson Locations: Russian, Poland, Polish, Beijing, France, Belgrade, Warsaw, Serbia, Podgorica, Russia, Belarus

☆ Travis King disappeared into a North Korea more isolated than ever
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Josh Smith | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

SEOUL, July 21 (Reuters) - When U.S. soldier Travis King sprinted across the border into North Korea from the South this week, he disappeared into a North Korea where lingering COVID-19 concerns and restrictions have made the already secretive country more isolated than ever. Officials in Washington said North Korea had yet to give any response through a number of channels, including at the United Nations. North Korean border guards fatally shot and burned the body of a South Korean fisheries official near their disputed maritime border in 2020. North Korean guards at the site still shelter inside buildings, apparently to avoid the risk of catching COVID. But North Korea often seeks meetings with high-level American officials before any releases, and that could be complicated by their worries over COVID, he added.

Persons: Travis King, King, Andrei Lankov, Lankov, Isaac Taylor, Kim Jong Un, Steve Tharp, COVID, Tharp, Bobby Hall, Josh Smith, Lincoln Organizations: Korea Risk, U.S, United Nations Command, United Nations, Security, U.S . Army, North, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, Korea, Pyongyang, Seoul, U.S, United States, Washington, North Korean, Korean, South . Sweden, North

☆ Stranded in a Strange Land, and Waiting for Death
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( Vivian Yee | More About Vivian Yee | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For nearly three weeks now, more than 1,000 men, women and children from Africa have been clinging to survival in the no-man’s lands at Tunisia’s borders. A few scrubby trees offer fitful shade, videos taken by migrants show, and border guards from neighboring Libya and Tunisian aid workers occasionally drop off water and a bit of bread. Over and over, they sent pleas for help from the dwindling number of phones they managed to keep charged:“Please help us. We are dying,” one wrote to The New York Times on Saturday. If there’s any way you can help us …”By Sunday, the text messages had stopped.

Persons: ” Organizations: The New York Times Locations: Africa, Tunisia’s, Libya, Sfax, Europe, North Africa

☆ For North Korea, US defectors can be a propaganda win, but a logistical pain
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Josh Smith | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Analysts said discussions over the soldier's fate could see some of the first diplomatic engagement between North Korea and the United States in years. "I do not think North Korea views the latest incident as strong leverage or an opportunity to engage the U.S.," she said. "North Korea knows that the U.S. government is unlikely to change its North Korea policy or its commitment to U.S. extended deterrence because of one U.S. soldier who reportedly faced disciplinary action and wilfully crossed into North Korea." "Their conditions are better not only than the average North Korean prisoner, but of the average North Korean citizen." North Korean border guards fatally shot and burned the body of a South Korean fisheries official in 2020, and later leader Kim Jong Un ordered an entire city into lockdown when a North Korean crossed back into the country from the South.

Persons: Travis King, King, Andrei Lankov, Rachel Minyoung Lee, Tae Yong, Tae, Lankov, Otto Warmbier, Kim Jong Un, Josh Smith, David Brunnstrom, Hyonhee, Angus MacSwan Organizations: U.S, Army, Security Area, North, Korea Risk, Stimson, Korean, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, U.S, North Korean, Pyongyang, ., United States, Seoul, Korea, Korea's, American, Korean, Washington

☆ 'Chaos' is fueling fights among Putin's top commanders. These are the players battling for power.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-17 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

More than three weeks after the historic challenge to Russian President Vladimir Putin's authority, there's still internal power plays and high-level purges in motion. "We are seeing a lot of military formations and military figures that are pushing for their own objectives." For example, in Kadyrov's case, he may be pushing for control to shield his fighters from the battlefield in Ukraine and send conventional Russian forces instead. Consequences for disobedienceInsubordination against Moscow's military leadership, such as Teplinsky's criticisms or the Wagner's rebellion, has undermined Russian military leaders but has also come with consequences for members of the anti-Gerasimov camp. The instability increasingly endemic to the Russian military comes as the Ukrainians try to break through their defensive lines.

Persons: Wagner Group's, Vladimir Putin's, Wagner, Putin, doesn't, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Prigozhin, Alexander Lukashenko, Alexander Ermochenko, he's, Stepanenko, Valery Gerasimov, Sergei Shoigu, Ramzan Kadyrov, Kadyrov, there's, Gerasimov, Vladimir Putin, Staff Valery Gerasimov, Alexei Nikolsky, Gen, Mikhail Teplinsky, Russia's, Teplinsky, Sergei Surovikin, There's, Friedemann Kohler, hasn't, Russia's Aerospace Forces Sergei Surovikin, Russian Armed Forces Valery Gerasimov, Staff Sergei Rudskoi, Mikhail Metzel, Ivan Popov, Vladimir Seliverstov, Popov, vilely, Viktor Zolotov, it's, ISW, Vyacheslav Gladkov Organizations: Service, Institute for, Wagner Group, Kremlin, Southern Military, REUTERS, Russian Ministry of Defense, Russian Armed Forces, Russian Defense, Russian, Staff, AP, Russia's VDV Airborne Forces, Getty, Russia's Aerospace Forces, Armed Forces, Sputnik, Arms Army, 106th Guards Airborne, Russian MoD, National Guard, Russian National Guard Service, PMC Wagner Group Locations: Russian, Russia, Wall, Silicon, Ukraine, Moscow, Prigozhin, Belarus, Rostov, Don, Russia's Belgorod, Sputnik, Washington, Chechnya, Sochi, REUTERS Maj, Belgorod

☆ Tunisia and EU sign pact to stem migration
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-16 | by ( Tarek Amara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The deal follow weeks of talks and Europe's pledge of major aid to Tunisia amounting to 1 billion euros ($1.12 billion) to help its battered economy, rescue state finances and deal with a migration crisis. All essential measures for bolstering efforts to stop irregular migration," Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Twitter. The European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyens said the bloc will allocate 100 million euros to Tunisia to help it combat illegal migration. Thousands of undocumented African migrants have flocked to the city of Sfax in recent months seeking to head for Europe in traffickers' boats, amounting to an unprecedented migration crisis for Tunisia. "We are very pleased, it is a further important step towards creation of a true partnership between Tunisia and the EU, which can address in an integrated fashion the migration crisis," Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Miloni said.

Persons: Kais Saied, Giorgia Meloni, Ursula von der Leyen, Mark Rutte, Read, Europe's, Ursula von der Leyens, Giorgia Miloni, Meloni, Saied, Tarek Amara, Crispian Balmer, Anthony Deutsch, Hatem Maher, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Dutch, European Union, Twitter, European Commission, EU, Thomson Locations: Italian, Tunisia, EU, Tunis, TUNIS, Europe, Sfax, Rome, Italy, Libya, Amesterdam

☆ Wagner mercenaries entering Belarus as Minsk announces 'road map' for joint military drills
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-15 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

A fighter from Russian Wagner mercenary group conducts training for Belarusian soldiers on a range near the town of Osipovichi, Belarus July 14, 2023 in this still image taken from handout video. Separately, a spokesperson for Ukraine's State Border Guard Service said Saturday that the force also had observed "some groups" of Wagner fighters crossing from Russia into Belarus. The Belarusian Defense Ministry said in an online statement late Friday that it had developed a "road map" with Wagner's management for joint training exercises drills by the nation's military personnel and the private mercenaries. Earlier Friday, the Defense Ministry said that Wagner fighters had begun training Belarusian soldiers. Prigozhin had accused the senior Russian military leadership for months of bungling the war in Ukraine and starving his troops of ammunition.

Persons: Russian Wagner, Wagner, Belaruski Hajun, Alexander Lukashenko, Lukashenko, couldn't, Andriy Demchenko, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Vladimir Putin, Prigozhin, Putin, denigrate Prigozhin Organizations: country's Defense Ministry, Russian, The Associated Press, Lukashenko, AP, Ukraine's, for National Resistance, State Border Guard Service, Ukrainska Pravda, Belarusian Defense Ministry, Defense Ministry, General Staff, Russia's Kommersant Locations: Russian, Osipovichi, Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Minsk, Moscow, Rostov, Prigozhin

☆ Boat sinking off Tunisia leaves one dead, at least 10 migrants missing
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-09 | by ( Tarek Amara | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TUNIS, July 9 (Reuters) - At least 10 Tunisian migrants were missing and one died after their boat sank off Tunisia as they tried to cross the Mediterranean to Italy, a judicial official said on Sunday. The latest tragedy raises the number of dead and missing off the North African country's coasts to more than 600 in the first half of 2023, far more than in any previous year, according to figures compiled by Reuters. Tunisia's coastguard rescued 11 people from the boat, which set off from the coast off the town of Zarzis, Faouzi Masmoudi, a judge in the city of Sfax, told Reuters. Tunisia is under pressure from European countries to stop large numbers of people departing from its coasts. Reporting by Tarek Amara; Editing by Alison Williams and Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Faouzi, Kais Saied, Tarek Amara, Alison Williams, Alexander Smith Organizations: Reuters . Tunisia's coastguard, Reuters, Tunisian, Economic, Social Rights, coastguard, Thomson Locations: TUNIS, Tunisia, Italy, Libya, Africa, Europe, African, Zarzis, Sfax, sinkings, Tunisia's

[1/5] German Patriot air defence system units are seen at the Vilnius airport in Vilnius, Lithuania July 7, 2023. Many are also providing advanced air defence systems which the Baltic states lack. But for the region with total population of about 6 million people, this is not enough to sustain large militaries, invest in their own fighter jets or advanced air defence. NATO is NATO, and we feel ourselves safe because we are in NATO. He added that he feared waves of migrants at the border, or border violations, or military vehicles appearing at the border without explanation.

Persons: Janis Laizans, Joe Biden, Biden, Gitanas Nauseda, Caesar, Wagner, Edvard Rynkun, Elena Tarasevic, Col Steffen Lieb, Rustamas Liubajevas, Sabine Siebold, John Irish, William Maclean Organizations: Patriot, REUTERS, NATO, Belarus Allies, Baltic, European Union, Reuters, Wagner, Thomson Locations: Vilnius, Lithuania, Belarus, KANIUKAI, Russia, Baltic, Estonia, Latvia, Germany, Spain, France, Finland, Denmark, United Kingdom, Poland, Kaniukai, Ukraine, Kaliningrad, Russian, Minsk

☆ Poland moves troops to eastern border amid Wagner fears
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] Polish army troops stand guard, as part of the 12th and 17th Mechanized Brigades are starting to move to the east of the country, in Poland, July 8, 2023. "This is a demonstration of our readiness to respond to attempts at destabilisation near the border of our country." Last Sunday Poland said it would send 500 police to shore up security at its border with Belarus. Poland has seen an increase in the number of migrants trying to cross the Belarus border in recent weeks. A senior Wagner commander was quoted as saying on Saturday that mercenaries from the group were preparing to move to Belarus.

Persons: Wagner, Vladimir Putin's, Yevgeny Prigozhin's Wagner, Mariusz Blaszczak, Alan Charlish, Ros Russell Organizations: 17th Mechanized, REUTERS, NATO, Wagner Group, Twitter, Border Guard, Thomson Locations: Polish, Poland, Handout, REUTERS WARSAW, Belarus, Russian, destabilisation, Morocco, India, Ethiopia, East, Africa

☆ On Ukraine War’s 500th Day, Zelensky Shows Defiance and Russia Strikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-08 | by ( Cassandra Vinograd | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Russian forces launched a deadly strike on a city in eastern Ukraine on Saturday morning as President Volodymyr Zelensky marked the 500th day of the war with a show of defiance, sharing a video of himself visiting Snake Island, a strip of land in the Black Sea that has become a potent symbol of his country’s resistance to the invasion. At least eight civilians were killed and 13 others were injured when Russian forces shelled a residential area of the city of Lyman at around 10 a.m., Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app. Rescue efforts continued, according to officials. The midmorning attack was a grim reminder of the toll taken on Ukraine by 500 days of war. Mr. Zelensky paid tribute on Saturday to all those who have lost their lives, using the backdrop of Snake Island to underscore Ukrainian resolve.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky Locations: Ukraine, Snake, Lyman, Ukrainian, Odesa, Russian

☆ Poland to bolster security on border with Belarus, interior minister says
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WARSAW, July 2 (Reuters) - Poland will send 500 police officers to its border with Belarus, Minister of Interior Mariusz Kaminski said on Sunday. The Polish Border Guard on Sunday said that 187 people tried to cross into Poland from Belarus illegally on Saturday. "Due to the tense situation on the border with Belarus I have decided to bolster our forces with 500 Polish police officers from preventive and counter-terrorism units," Kaminski wrote on Twitter. "They will join 5,000 border guards and 2,000 soldiers guarding the security of this border." Reporting by Karol Badohal Editing by David GoodmanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Mariusz Kaminski, Kaminski, Karol Badohal, David Goodman Organizations: WARSAW, Polish Border Guard, Twitter, Thomson Locations: Poland, Belarus

☆ Gunman kills two at Moldova's main airport before being arrested - police
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

CHISINAU, June 30 (Reuters) - A foreign national shot dead two people at Moldova's main international airport on Friday after being denied entry into the country, police and the interior ministry said. Police detained the man after the incident at Chisinau International Airport, the east European country's largest airport. Moldova's Newsmaker website cited unnamed officials saying the man had seized a gun from a border police officer after being taken to an area to be barred entry. Moldova, which gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, has a population of 2.6 million and is pushing to join the European Union. Reporting by Alexander Tanas, Writing by Olena Harmash and Tom Balmforth; Editing by Timothy HeritageOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Moldova's, Alexander Tanas, Olena Harmash, Tom Balmforth, Timothy Organizations: Police, Chisinau International Airport, Facebook, European Union, Timothy Heritage, Thomson Locations: CHISINAU, Chisinau, Turkey, Moldova, Soviet Union, Romania, Ukraine

☆ Tajik man shoots two dead at Moldova's international airport
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Alexander Tanas | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

CHISINAU, June 30 (Reuters) - A 43-year-old Tajik man grabbed a gun, shot dead two security officers and wounded a civilian at Moldova's main international airport on Friday after being denied entry to the country, authorities said. The suspected assailant was himself wounded and apprehended, police said, in an incident that briefly grounded flights at Chisinau International Airport. Moldova's acting chief prosecutor, Ion Munteanu, said the shooting was being examined as a terrorist act. The two killed were a border guard and an airport security officer, President Maia Sandu said, offering condolences. It was only after we went far away from the airport that we were told there is someone who is shooting."

Persons: Ion Munteanu, Olena Shevelyova, Dorin Recean, Maia Sandu, Munteanu, Dragos Galbur, Alexander Tanas, Olena Harmash, Tom Balmforth, Cynthia Osterman, Ron Popeski, Grant McCool Organizations: Chisinau International Airport, European Union, Thomson Locations: CHISINAU, Chisinau, Tajikistan, Soviet, Asia, Istanbul, Moldova, Moldovan, Soviet Union, Ukrainian, Milan

☆ Russian flyers who disobeyed orders to attack Wagner forces may be caught up in Putin's dragnet
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Sam Fellman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Suspicions of disloyalty seemingly extend far beyond senior officials and generals who had direct ties to Prigozhin. Some pilots and airmen are said to face questions for refusing orders to fire on the Wagner columns during their coup. Some Russian bloggers felt it was hypocritical to punish the aviators when the mutineers were let off. Russian warplanes fired on Wagner Group mercenaries to try to stop their advance over the weekend, but some pilots and airmen face questions for refusing orders to fire. Putin is said to have discussed assassinating Prigozhin and has indicated the Wagner founder is under investigation for stealing from the Russian government.

Persons: Wagner, —, Romanov, Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin's, Sergei Surovikin, Putin, Prigozhin Organizations: Service, Wagner Group, Prigozhin Locations: Prigozhin, Moscow, Ukraine, Russian, Russia, Belarus

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