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Scottish Sun
2 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Israel begins invasion of Gaza City after calling up 60,000 troops to finally wipe out terror group Hamas
ISRAEL INVASION Israel begins invasion of Gaza City after calling up 60,000 troops to finally wipe out terror group Hamas Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ISRAEL has begun its full invasion of Gaza City as it aims to fully wipe out Hamas, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on Wednesday. IDF troops have now taken control of the outskirts of the city which is one of the terror group's last strongholds, Israeli military spokesperson Brig Gen Effie Defrin said. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 An Israeli military convoy manoeuvres in Gaza on August 20 Credit: Reuters 3 The IDF have begun their invasion of Gaza City, the Israeli military has said Credit: Reuters 3 The military aim to wipe out Hamas Credit: Reuters After a brutal clash with Hamas militant south of Khan Younis in the Gaza strip on Wednesday, Defrin said they would "deepen the blows to Hamas in Gaza City, a terror stronghold". He added: "We will deepen the blows to the terror infrastructure above and below ground, and disconnect the reliance of the population on Hamas." The spokesperson also told how the IDF were "not waiting" and that initial operations were underway in the area. He also said that the invasion would be launched against a "battered and bruised" Hamas. More to follow... For the latest news on this story, keep checking back at The U.S. Sun, your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, sports news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures, and must-see videos. Like us on Facebook at TheSunUS and follow us on X at @TheUSSun
Reuters
5 hours ago
- Reuters
Oil prices climb 2% on drop in US crude inventories as investors focus on Ukraine peace push
NEW YORK, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Oil prices climbed about 2% on Wednesday on a bigger-than-expected weekly drop in U.S. crude inventories as investors awaited the next steps in talks to end the Ukraine war, with sanctions on Russian crude remaining in place for now. Brent crude futures were up $1.02, or 1.6%, to $66.81 a barrel by 1:05 p.m. EDT (1705 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 95 cents, or 1.5%, to $63.30. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said energy firms pulled 6.0 million barrels of crude from inventories during the week ended August 15. , That was bigger than the draw of 1.8 million barrels forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll and the decline of 2.4 million barrels that market sources said the American Petroleum Institute trade group cited in its figures on Tuesday. "We had a decent-sized crude drawdown. We saw a rebound in exports ... That and the strong refinery demand really makes this a bullish report," said John Kilduff, partner with Again Capital. On Tuesday, crude prices fell more than 1% - with WTI closing at its lowest level since May 30 - on optimism that an agreement to end the Russia-Ukraine war seemed closer. U.S. President Donald Trump, however, conceded that Russian President Vladimir Putin might not want to make a deal. "Much of the choppy price action has been driven by daily updates to the Ukraine/Russian negotiations that have gone back and forth from bearish to bullish as far as the impact on future oil balances is concerned," analysts at energy advisory firm Ritterbusch and Associates said in a note. Russia was the second-biggest producer of crude in 2024 behind the U.S., so any agreement that could ease sanctions on Moscow should boost the amount of Russian oil available for export to global markets. On Tuesday, Trump said he had ruled out putting U.S. troops on the ground in Ukraine, but said the U.S. might provide air support as part of a deal to end Russia's war in the country. On Wednesday, Russia said attempts to resolve security issues relating to Ukraine without Moscow's participation were a "road to nowhere", sounding a warning to the West as it scrambles to work out guarantees for Kyiv's future protection. Russia, meanwhile, said it expects to continue supplying oil to India despite warnings from the U.S., Russian embassy officials in New Delhi said on Wednesday, adding that Moscow hopes trilateral talks will soon take place with India and China. Trump has announced an additional tariff of 25% on Indian goods exported to the U.S. from August 27, as a punishment for buying Russian oil. India's state-run refiners Indian Oil ( opens new tab and Bharat Petroleum ( opens new tab have bought Russian oil for September and October delivery, resuming purchases after discounts widened, two company officials aware of the matter said on Wednesday. Russian forces have advanced in the east of Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region, taking the village of Novoheorhiivka close to the Donetsk region, Russia's defence ministry said on Wednesday. "The likelihood of a quick resolution to the conflict with Russia now seems unlikely," Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at ANZ, said in a note. In other supply news, Iran said it believes the moment for "effective" nuclear talks with the U.S. has not yet arrived, its top diplomat said on Wednesday, adding that Tehran would not completely cut off cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog. Iran was the third-biggest producer of crude in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in 2024 behind Saudi Arabia and Iraq, so any agreement that could ease sanctions on Tehran should boost the amount of Iranian oil available for export to global markets. In Saudi Arabia, crude exports slipped in June to their lowest level in three months, according to data from the Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI). In Norway, the second biggest oil producer in Europe after Russia, combined oil and gas production exceeded an official forecast by 3.9% in July, according to the Norwegian Offshore Directorate (NOD).
Scottish Sun
6 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Why is Putin so scared of meeting Zelensky? How showdown with hero Vlad dismissed as a ‘Nazi comic' exposes his FAILURE
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) VLADIMIR Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky have only met in person once before. The next time they set eyes on each other, it could expose the Russian tyrant as a fraud and a failure before the eyes of his people. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 5 Zelensky and Putin attend a meeting on Ukraine with French President and German Chancelor at the Elysee Palace in 2019 Credit: AFP 5 Within three years of the meeting, their two countries would be locked in a full-scale war Credit: Reuters 5 In the days since Trump's separate meetings with the two leaders, Moscow has been quick to pour cold water on the prospect of a Putin-Zelensky summit Credit: Reuters When they first met, Zelensky was the freshly elected President of Ukraine, who soared to office with a landslide win - despite having no political experience. His past career was as an actor and comedian - rising to international fame with his role as an accidental president in the Ukrainian show Servant of the People. The contrast with the stony-faced macho image cultivated by Vladimir Putin could not have been more stark as they say down in 2019 for a summit in France. The pair did not shake hands at the tense, fruitless meeting. Within three years, their two countries would be locked in Europe's bloodiest war since 1945. Putin forced to 'accept failure' Donald Trump's renewed drive to bring the war to a close could bring a once unthinkable second meeting between Zelensky and Putin to reality. However, in the days since Trump's separate meetings with the two leaders, Moscow has been quick to pour cold water on the prospect. Zelensky, whose first language is Russian and performed in Moscow during Putin's rise to power, has said he is "ready" for a meeting with Vlad. But the very act of meeting with Zelensky could undermine Putin and the entire rationale for his war in the eyes of Russia. Scheming Putin WON'T draw a line under Ukraine - here's why he won't give up the Donbas Orysia Lutsevich, director of Chatham House's Russia and Eurasia program, told CNN that Putin "will have to accept the failure of sitting down with a President he considers a joke from a country that doesn't exist". Undermines Russia's war aims When the Russian despot ordered tanks to assault Kyiv in February 2022, his warped justification was based on claims that Ukraine was a fake country run by Nazis. Zelensky's Jewish identity makes the claim patently absurd, but for Putin to sit down with him would be a tacit admission of how ludicrous the claim was. For Vlad to meet Volod for talks, they would be sat there as two Presidents of legitimate, sovereign nations - something that the Kremlin's narrative could not possibly abide. And so long as Ukraine remains armed and sovereign, concession to Zelensky would prove Putin's war goals a failure. Russia has shown little indication of making major concessions so far, with the handover of vast swathes of Ukrainian territory to Moscow still Putin's core condition for peace. But to avoid Trump's wrath if talks fall through, Putin will want to shift the blame to Zelensky. Loggerheads over location His suggestion that the trilateral summit be held in Moscow - a predictably unacceptable proposal for Ukraine - could have been a calculated move to weasel out. And had the meeting been held in Russia's capital against the odds, Putin would have hailed it as a diplomatic coup for the Kremlin - and a chance to humiliate Ukraine's war leader. But Vlad's surrogates have taken to the airwaves to dampen expectations around a summit. Russia' Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said a meeting would have to be prepared "gradually... starting with the expert level and thereafter going through all the required steps". Lavrov added today that not involving Russia in discussions around Ukraine's security guarantees is a "road to nowhere". Disputes around the proposed location for the summit have also presented headaches for diplomats. While a Moscow meeting between the pair remains unlikely, other venues have also proved controversial. Suggestions for it to be held in Budapest were lambasted by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. He said: "Not everyone may remember this, but in 1994 Ukraine already got assurances of territorial integrity from the US, Russia and the UK. "In Budapest. Maybe I'm superstitious, but this time I would try to find another place." Switzerland, Qatar and Austria have been floated as other prospective venues. But Putin will be wary of a European location - where most states would be obliged to arrest him under an ICC warrant. 5 Disputes around the proposed location for a summit have presented headaches for diplomats Credit: EPA
