Ukrainian drone attack sparks blaze at oil refinery in Russia
Footage recorded on Sunday (3 August) shows smoke rising from the depot following the explosion, which Moscow has said was caused after debris from a downed drone struck a fuel tank.
More than 120 firefighters were sent to extinguish the blaze, whilst flights were temporarily grounded at Sochi's airport.
Mayor Andrei Proshunin later announced that 'the situation is totally under control' and confirmed that there were no victims.
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The Sun
4 minutes ago
- The Sun
Mauro Icardi killed and ATE pigeon after using homemade slingshot at Barcelona academy, claims former team-mate
MAURO ICARDI left Barcelona stars stunned with his wild antics during his time at the club's academy, says a former team-mate. The Argentine joined La Masia as a fifteen-year-old after being spotted playing for a club from the Canary Islands. 1 Sergi Gomez, who went on to play for Sevilla and Espanyol, shared an apartment with Icardi, future Stoke star Marc Muniesa and Champions League winner Sergi Roberto. And he told Spanish podcast Post United: "Mauro arrived at La Masía and we were teammates for three or four seasons. "During one of those seasons, we shared an apartment. One day, he said to me, 'Sergi, come with me to the park next door.' "He was carrying a Y-shaped piece of wood that he had cut the day before, with a rubber band tied to it. "He had made a homemade slingshot. We went to the park, and he pointed to a very tall pine tree and said, 'See up there?' "He grabbed a rock, stretched the rubber band, and... boom. "He brought down the pigeon from a height of 20 or 30 metres. "We went back, he plucked its feathers, threaded a wire through it, lit a fire, and ate it in front of me. "I remember thinking: 'What awaits me if we start like this?'" Mauro Icardi shows his skills at the Barcelona youth academy Icardi, now 32, is currently going through divorce proceedings with wife and former agent Wanda Nara. The striker accuses Nara of infidelity, which could lead to her having to pay alimony if found to be the reason for the divorce. The estranged couple have two daughters together - Francesca, 10, and Isabella, 8. But Gomez was positive about his former team-mate as a person. He said: "We lived through a lot together, and if he sees me, he'll know that I hold that in my heart."
Telegraph
15 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Germany's crimewave has a dangerous lesson for Britain
Just days ago in Germany, Michael Ballweg was convicted after a 44-day court case for tax evasion. The sum: €19.53. For this, Ballweg was arrested in 2022 and spent nine months in a high-security prison. His home was searched and he was accused of misappropriating hundreds of thousands of euros, charges that were not substantiated in court. The prosecution demanded three years in prison and half a million euros as a fine, which was then rejected. The immensely harsh treatment of Ballweg cannot be separated in the minds of many Germans from his past as the most popular anti-lockdown organiser during the Covid pandemic. Many will suggest it is striking how efficient and uncompromising the German state can be when dealing with critics and political dissenters, and yet how lenient it appears in response to widespread theft. According to a new study by the EHI Retail Institute, shoplifters caused billions of euros in losses for German retailers. The data, gathered from 98 major retail chains operating over 17,000 stores, which represent more than 20 per cent of all retail sales in Germany, revealed that nearly €3bn worth of goods were stolen in 2024. This marks the third consecutive year of rising shoplifting-related losses and the highest figure ever recorded. Consumers must bear the financial burden of paying higher prices to cover the growing costs of surveillance, private security, and anti-theft measures. A new phenomenon in Germany is the rise of highly organised criminal gangs and clans. These groups are believed to be responsible for a significant portion of shoplifting crimes, focusing on alcohol, trainers, tech products, and cigarettes, which they then sell on the grey market. Estimates suggest that one in three thefts is committed by organised crime. Interestingly, while official police statistics report a 5 per cent decrease in shoplifting, many retailers have observed an increase. This discrepancy may stem from the fact that 98 per cent of incidents are not even reported to the police due to low conviction rates. Instead, many retailers opt to issue exclusion orders, banning known thieves from entering their premises, as a more practical response. According to Stefan Genth, general manager of the German Trade Association: 'Many retailers are frustrated because reports rarely lead to the perpetrators being convicted and sanctioned, and therefore they avoid the bureaucratic effort involved in filing criminal charges.' He also warned that Germany may be heading toward a situation similar to that in the United States, where many products are locked behind security cases. The lax sentencing and response to shoplifting seems to have made many criminals completely brazen. Store managers report that thieves walk out with shopping worth €200. An increase in violence by thieves has led some stores to forbid employees to stop the criminals. The nature of crime in Germany has changed dramatically. Traditionally not known for spectacular heists or entrenched organised crime, the country has, over the past five years, seen a rise in both. One of the most notorious examples involves the Remmo clan, a powerful Arab crime syndicate whose members immigrated to Germany between 1975 and 1990. Five members were convicted in connection with the audacious 2019 burglary of the Green Vault in Saxony, during which they stole jewels and artefacts of immense historical and cultural value. They were also behind the 2017 theft of a massive gold coin bearing the image of Queen Elizabeth II from a museum in Berlin, a crime facilitated by an accomplice they had infiltrated into the museum's security staff. Despite the scale of the crime, the criminals got away with a fine and only four and a half years in jail. Worryingly, the reach of the clans appears to extend beyond theft: there have been documented cases of infiltration into the police, job centres, and local government immigration offices, raising concerns about institutional vulnerability. What remains is a feeling that Germany is capable of prosecuting and punishing dissenters and politically inconvenient people, while organised crime, much of it foreign, is allowed to grow. It's small solace to know that, while our economy has been without any meaningful growth for five years, at least the private security firms have record revenues. It surely won't be long until the shops in Germany have the same ubiquitous locked cabinets and security tags that are already such a feature of places like San Francisco and London.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Lord Dannatt urged ministers to crack down on Palestine Action at request of US firm
A member of the House of Lords urged ministers to crack down on Palestine Action at the request of a US defence company that employs him as an adviser. Richard Dannatt, a former head of the British army, wrote privately to two separate Home Office ministers asking them to address the 'threat' posed by the group after its activists targeted a factory in 2022. The activists caused extensive damage to the factory which is run by Teledyne, a US multinational that sells technology for military, aerospace and other applications. Lord Dannatt has been a paid adviser to the company since 2022. Dannatt's involvement after the attack on the factory in Wales led to allegations heard later in court that the peer was 'seeking to influence' the criminal investigation into the Palestine Action activists. The police officer in charge of the investigation had told Teledyne executives that 'it would not be wise to have a member of the House of Lords poking around in a live criminal case', according to evidence heard in the trial of one of the activists. Dannatt said he was completely unaware of the exchanges in the trial and said the allegations were 'baseless'. His actions on behalf of the company nonetheless demonstrate the value to companies looking to affect government policy of having a member of the House of Lords as an adviser. Dannatt, 74, has sat in the Lords since 2011. He is now under investigation by the house authorities over two sets of allegations that he broke parliamentary rules that forbid lobbying. One allegation stems from undercover filming by the Guardian. He has denied the earlier allegations, saying: 'I am well aware of … the Lords code of conduct … I have always acted on my personal honour.' In July this year, ministers banned Palestine Action, claiming it was involved in terrorism. Supporters of the group countered that the ban was absurd and draconian. The group is challenging the legality of the ban in court. Two years ago, four activists were convicted of conspiring to damage Teledyne's factory in Presteigne in Wales. They had broken into the factory to protest against the sale of military equipment to Israel. They smashed windows and computer screens, drilled holes in the roof, sprayed red paint, and set off smoke grenades. Prosecutors told the court that the damage totalled more than £1m. The four activists were jailed for between 23 and 27 months. While three of the activists pleaded guilty, the fourth went to trial. Transcripts of her trial were obtained by the Guardian and reveal allegations heard in court that Dannatt sought to interfere in the police's investigation of the protest. On 19 December 2022, 10 days after the action at the Welsh factory, Sgt Alex Stuart of Dyfed-Powys police, who was in charge of the investigation, sent an email to four of his superiors. He had spoken with the general manager of the factory in the UK. She had told him that a senior Teledyne executive based in the US had 'spoken to Lord Richard Dannatt about Palestine Action'. Stuart wrote: 'Lord Dannatt was chief of the army general staff. He's now a life peer. He has an invested interest [sic] in this aspect of UK trade and investment, particularly military projects. 'Essentially there have been an indication that he wants this case to be explained and he wants to have some input on it. They haven't explained exactly what he wants, however I have told them that it would not be wise to have a member of the House of Lords poking around in a live criminal case.' He added: 'I have explained that they need to establish what Lord Dannatt wants.' He wrote that if the peer was concerned in general about Palestine Action's tactics, he should talk to senior police officers at a national level. 'It's not best placed for him to actively speak with an investigation team about the matter in the way that I think he wants to.' Later that day, a DCI replied to Stuart: 'The chief constable is aware of the case and has received an update. Whilst Lord Dannatt has every right to communicate with the force regarding matters of concern, it does not mean that the matters he raises receive the response that he may want.' At the criminal trial in May 2023, James Manning, the barrister for one of the defendants, asked Stuart whether he was concerned that Dannatt was seeking to have some input into the case which at that stage was being investigated by the police as a live criminal investigation. Stuart replied: 'Yeah, to a certain extent, yes.' Manning then asked: 'And you thought that that was inappropriate … and you told [Teledyne] as much?' Stuart replied: 'Yes.' Elen Owen, the prosecutor, told the court there was 'absolutely no evidence' that Dannatt had tried to 'influence' the investigation. 'He was just asking for information and the email … chain makes it quite clear that the decision was made by the police that it would be inappropriate to, to make any contact with him and, and that was the end of the matter.' The judge hearing the case, Rhys Rowlands, agreed with the prosecution that Dannatt was not relevant to the trial and that there was no evidence to suggest he had tried to interfere. His opinion was based on a decision about whether the police officer could be questioned about his concerns. He allowed the questioning to go ahead, though ruled Dannatt could not be named. Dannatt described the officer's allegations as 'unfounded' and pointed to the judge's view that he 'had nothing to do with the trial'. He suggested the general manager may have sought to use his name to help present their case. Teledyne and the general manager did not respond to a request for comment. On 22 December 2022, Dannatt had an online call with the factory's general manager and another senior member of Teledyne. Dannatt told the Guardian that Teledyne had 'contacted me to seek my assistance in raising concerns by the company to the government with regard to attacks on their premises'. He added: 'They briefed me on the Palestine Action attacks, and I then agreed to write to the home secretary.' In his letter, Dannatt declared his role 'at the outset' as a paid adviser to the company, but said he believed 'the threat from Palestine Action has more widespread implications for security and the economy within the United Kingdom'. The letter to Suella Braverman was headed 'General The Lord Dannatt GCB CBE MC DL', addressed from the House of Lords. He outlined the details of Palestine Action's activities at Teledyne's factory and at another factory run by a different arms company in Edinburgh. Dannatt wrote: 'The slow pace at which the British legal system has been working to take action against those involved in the trespass and criminal damage resulting from such 'direct action' has served to embolden Palestine Action and their continued recruitment drive for individuals who are prepared to commit arrestable offences.' He told Braverman he would be 'very grateful to receive assurance that the threat from Palestine Action is fully recognised by our security services and appropriate action [is] either planned or being taken'. He said he had 'undertaken to brief the Teledyne main board in the United States that the threat from Palestine Action in the UK is being suitably addressed'. Dannatt contacted the government again in September 2024 after 'attacks on Teledyne facilities continued and the company asked [him] to raise their concerns again'. In a letter to Dan Jarvis, the Labour security minister, Dannatt once again disclosed his role. Under the same letterhead, he said he would be 'very grateful to receive assurance from the current government that the threat posed by Palestine Action continues to be fully recognised by our security services and that appropriate action is being taken.' The best public interest journalism relies on first-hand accounts from people in the know. If you have something to share on this subject you can contact us confidentially using the following methods. Secure Messaging in the Guardian app The Guardian app has a tool to send tips about stories. Messages are end to end encrypted and concealed within the routine activity that every Guardian mobile app performs. This prevents an observer from knowing that you are communicating with us at all, let alone what is being said. If you don't already have the Guardian app, download it (iOS/Android) and go to the menu. Select 'Secure Messaging'. SecureDrop, instant messengers, email, telephone and post See our guide at for alternative methods and the pros and cons of each.
