Israel carries out deadly airstrikes against suspected Hezbollah positions in southern Lebanon
A series of Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon have killed at one person and wounded eight others. The Israeli military said it bombed infrastructure belonging to the Hezbollah militant group that included weapons and tunnel shafts as part of an underground network. AP video shot by Ali Sharafeddine and Fadi Tawil
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New York Post
40 minutes ago
- New York Post
Israel says Greta Thunberg has been deported after Gaza-bound ship she was on was seized
Activist Greta Thunberg was deported from Israel Tuesday, the country's Foreign Ministry said, a day after the Gaza-bound ship she was on was seized by the Israeli military. In a post on X, the Foreign Ministry shared a photo of Thunberg on a plane, saying she had departed Israel and was headed to France before continuing on to Sweden. Adalah, a legal rights group in Israel representing Thunberg and the other activists, said Thunberg, two other activists and a journalist had agreed to be deported and leave Israel. 3 Greta Thunberg was deported from Israel on Tuesday, the country's Foreign Ministry said, a day after the Gaza-bound ship she was on was seized by the Israeli military. @IsraelMFA/X Other activists refused deportation, were being held in detention and their case was set to be heard by Israeli authorities. Thunberg was one of 12 passengers on board the Madleen, a boat carrying aid destined for people in war-torn Gaza. Israeli naval forces seized the boat early Monday about 125 miles off of Gaza's coast, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, the group that organized the journey. The boat, accompanied by Israel's navy, arrived in the Israeli port of Ashdod Monday evening, according to Israel's Foreign Ministry. 3 Israel's Foreign Ministry shared a photo of Thunberg on a plane, saying she had departed Israel and was headed to France before continuing on to Sweden. @IsraelMFA/X 3 Thunberg was one of 12 passengers on board the Madleen, a boat carrying aid destined for people in war-torn Gaza. The activists said they were protesting the ongoing war and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Israel says such ships violate its naval blockade of Gaza. Israel's Foreign Ministry portrayed the voyage as a public relations stunt, saying on social media that 'the 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel.'
42 minutes ago
Russia skirts Western sanctions to ramp up its military footprint in Africa
DAKAR, Senegal -- Even as it pounds Ukraine, Russia is expanding its military footprint in Africa, delivering sophisticated weaponry to sub-Saharan conflict zones where a Kremlin-controlled armed force is on the rise. Skirting sanctions imposed by Western nations, Moscow is using cargo ships to send tanks, armored vehicles, artillery and other high-value equipment to West Africa, The Associated Press has found. Relying on satellite imagery and radio signals, AP tracked a convoy of Russian-flagged cargo ships as they made a nearly one-month journey from the Baltic Sea. The ships carried howitzers, radio jamming equipment and other military hardware, according to military officials in Europe who closely monitored them. The deliveries could strengthen Russia's fledgling Africa Corps as Moscow competes with the United States, Europe and China for greater influence across the continent. The two-year-old Africa Corps, which has links to a covert branch of Russia's army, is ascendant at a time when U.S. and European troops have been withdrawing from the region, forced out by sub-Saharan nations turning to Russia for security. Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have been battling fighters linked with al-Qaida and the Islamic State group for more than a decade. At first, mercenary groups with an arms-length relationship to the Kremlin entered the fray in Africa. But increasingly, Russia is deploying its military might, and intelligence services, more directly. 'We intend to expand our cooperation with African countries in all spheres, with an emphasis on economic cooperation and investments,' Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. 'This cooperation includes sensitive areas linked to defense and security.' Russia's 8,800-ton Baltic Leader and 5,800-ton Patria are among hundreds of ships that Western nations have sanctioned to choke off resources for Russia's war in Ukraine. The ships docked and unloaded in Conakry, Guinea, in late May, AP satellite images showed. Other ships made deliveries to the same port in January. They delivered tanks, armored vehicles and other hardware that was then trucked overland to neighboring Mali, according to European military officials and a Malian blogger's video of the long convoy. The military officials spoke to AP about Russian operations on condition of anonymity. The AP verified the blogger's video, geolocating it to the RN5 highway leading into Bamako, the Malian capital. After the latest delivery in Conakry, trucks carrying Russian-made armored vehicles, howitzers and other equipment were again spotted on the overland route to Mali. Malian broadcaster ORTM confirmed that the West African nation's army took delivery of new military equipment. AP analysis of its video and images filmed by the Malian blogger in the same spot as the January delivery identified a broad array of Russian-made hardware, including 152 mm artillery guns and other smaller canons. AP also identified a wheeled, BTR-80 armored troop carrier with radio-jamming equipment, as well as Spartak armored vehicles and other armored carriers, some mounted with guns. The shipment also included at least two semi-inflatable small boats, one with a Russian flag painted on its hull, as well as tanker trucks, some marked 'inflammable' in Russian on their sides. The military officials who spoke to AP said they believe Russia has earmarked the most potent equipment — notably the artillery and jamming equipment — for its Africa Corps, not Malian armed forces. Africa Corps appears to have been given air power, too, with satellites spotting at least one Su-24 fighter-bomber at a Bamako air base in recent months. For years, French forces supported counterinsurgency operations in Mali and neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger. But France pulled out its troops after coups in Mali in 2020 and 2021, in Burkina Faso in 2022 and Niger in 2023. Russian mercenaries stepped into the vacuum. Wagner Group, the most notable, deployed to Sudan in 2017 and expanded to other African countries, often in exchange for mining concessions. It earned a reputation for brutality, accused by Western countries and U.N. experts of human rights abuses, including in Central African Republic, Libya and Mali. Of 33 African countries in which Russian military contractors were active, the majority were Wagner-controlled, according to U.S. government-sponsored research by RAND. But after Wagner forces mutinied in Russia in 2023 and their leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, was killed two months later in a suspicious plane crash, Moscow tightened its grip. Russian military operations in Africa were restructured, with the Kremlin taking greater control through Africa Corps. It is overseen by the commander of Unit 29155, one of the most notorious branches of Russia's shadowy GRU military intelligence service, according to the European Union. Unit 29155 has been accused of covertly attacking Western interests for years, including through sabotage and assassination attempts. The EU in December targeted Unit 29155 Maj. Gen. Andrey Averyanov with sanctions, alleging that he is in charge of Africa Corps operations. 'In many African countries, Russian forces provide security to military juntas that have overthrown legitimate democratic governments, gravely worsening the stability, security and democracy of the countries,' the EU sanctions ruling said. These operations are financed by exploiting the continent's natural resources, the ruling added. The Russian Ministry of Defense didn't immediately respond to questions about Averyanov's role in Africa Corps. Researchers and military officials say the flow of weapons from Russia appears to be speeding Africa Corps' ascendancy over Wagner, helping it win over mercenaries that have remained loyal to the group. Africa Corps is also is recruiting in Russia, offering payments of up to 2.1 million rubles ($26,500), and even plots of land, for signing a contract with the Ministry of Defense, plus more on deployment. Within days of the latest equipment delivery, Wagner announced its withdrawal from Mali, declaring 'mission accomplished" in a Telegram post. Africa Corps said in a separate post that it would remain. The changeover from Wagner to Africa Corps in Mali could be a forerunner for other similar transitions elsewhere on the continent, said Julia Stanyard, a researcher of Russian mercenary activity in Africa. 'Bringing in this sort of brand-new sophisticated weaponry, and new armored vehicles and that sort of thing, is quite a bit of a shift,' said Stanyard, of the Switzerland-based Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime. Armed groups in Mali have inflicted heavy losses on Malian troops and Russian mercenaries. The al-Qaida linked group JNIM killed dozens of soldiers in an attack this month on a military base. Insurgents also killed dozens of Wagner mercenaries in northern Mali last July. Some of the latest hardware could have been shipped over specifically in response to such attacks, military officials said. They said the jamming equipment, for example, could help defend against booby traps detonated using phone signals. The latest convoy attracted attention because a Russian Navy warship, the Boykiy, escorted the ships after they set off in April from Russia's Kaliningrad region on the Baltic. Last October, in what's considered a hostile act, the Boykiy's radar systems locked onto a French Navy maritime surveillance plane on patrol against suspected Russian efforts to sabotage underwater cables, according to military officials. The convoy included a third sanctioned Russian cargo ship, the Siyanie Severa. It continued onward as Baltic Leader and Patria unloaded in Conakry, docking in Bata, Equatorial Guinea. Wagner has maintained a strong presence in the nearby Central African Republic.
Yahoo
42 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Entertainment world reacts to Greta Thunberg interception in Gaza-bound aid boat
Early on Monday morning, Israeli forces intercepted and seized a boat called the Madleen, which was heading to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid in what activists said was a protest against Israel's ongoing military campaign in the Gaza Strip. A group of activists, including Greta Thunberg, will be returned to their home countries after the Gaza-bound boat they were travelling on was seized, Israeli authorities said. Israel's Foreign Ministry dismissed the voyage as a public relations stunt, saying in a post on X that "the 'selfie yacht' of the 'celebrities' is safely making its way to the shores of Israel." Thunberg shared news of the campaign in a video update on 2 June that saw her wear a Fontaines D.C. charity jersey and raise awareness for the 'Freedom Flotilla' trip, with the boat departing from Italy. The group has claimed that authorities had 'forcibly intercepted' the boat and acted with 'total impunity.' Huwaida Arraf, a Freedom Flotilla organiser, shared: 'Israel has no legal authority to detain international volunteers aboard the Madleen. These volunteers are not subject to Israeli jurisdiction and cannot be criminalised for delivering aid or challenging an illegal blockade - their detention is arbitrary, unlawful, and must end immediately.' Thunberg accused Israel of "kidnapping" her and reached out for global support. In a statement, she said: 'I urge all my friends, family, and comrades to put pressure on the Swedish government to release me and the others as soon as possible'. The entertainment world has responded to the interception of the boat. Legendary rock band Garbage reshared a post that called for 'the release of all involved immediately,' and before posting an update with the caption: 'All eyes on the @gazafreedomflotilla . Let aid in. What is happening to the Palestinians is monstrous. How many more dead children do we have to see before the world acts?!?' Singer-songwriter Cat Power shared an update on Instagram pushing for the release of Thunberg and the activists. 'We demand the immediate release of all 12 hostages taken by Israel in violation of international law,' the singer shared in the caption, before listing out the names of those who were onboard the Madleen. 'THE WORLD MUST ACT NOW. THIS IS A CRISIS.' Norwegian singer Aurora shared an update that claimed the Israeli government offered Thunberg the option to 'attack, arrest, or turn back', while Irish rap group Kneecap shared an earlier update that said: 'Solidarity with Liam Cunningham (Game Of Thrones actor) and all on the 'freedom flotilla' to Gaza'. British singer-songwriter Nadine Shah also shared a video made by an activist on the Madleen, which said: 'This is not the world you want to leave behind to your children. When you look into the faces of your children, know there are children in Gaza, the same age, and they have the same rights. They have the right to live in dignity, they have the right to live free. They have the right to just live. Do everything in your power, keep your eyes on us and remember why we are here. You need to do the real work, and that is to stop your government from sending weapons to Israel to commit these war crimes and atrocities.' Bambie Thug, last year's Eurovision entry for Ireland, also reposted an update that read: 'We demand that Madleen is allowed to land safely and peacefully in Gaza with all activists unharmed', while author Matt Haig shared the following regarding Greta Thunberg and the criticism aimed at the young activist: 'Like her. Don't like her. But she is the opposite of 'performative'. She is literally heading into a genocide with a target on her back.' After an almost three-month blockade aimed at pressuring Hamas, Israel started allowing some basic aid into Gaza last month. Humanitarian workers and experts say it is not enough and have warned of famine unless the blockade is lifted and Israel ends its military offensive. An attempt last month by Freedom Flotilla to reach Gaza by sea failed after another of the group's vessels was attacked by two drones while sailing in international waters off Malta, organisers said. The group blamed Israel for the attack, which damaged the front section of the ship.
