Latest news with #JonGambrell
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
These satellite photos show Russian bombers Ukraine says it destroyed
Satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press on Wednesday show seven destroyed bombers on the tarmac at a Russian air base in eastern Siberia, one of the targets Ukraine said it struck with drones in one of the most daring covert operations of the war. The photos provided by Planet Labs PBC show aircraft wreckage and scorched areas at the Belaya Air Base, a major installation for Russia's long-range bomber force. In the images, at least three Tu-95 bombers and four Tu-22Ms appear to be destroyed. The planes were parked on an apron beside a runway surrounded by grassland. Other aircraft at the base appear unscathed. Ukraine said that 41 Russian warplanes, including strategic bombers and other types of combat aircraft, were destroyed or damaged in Sunday's operation, which officials said was planned over 18 months. The attack delivered a heavy blow to Russia's air force and its military prestige. It has so far been impossible to confirm the full extent of the damage. Russia has claimed Ukraine's estimates are exaggerated. The Russian Defense Ministry said the attack set several warplanes ablaze at air bases in the Irkutsk region and the Murmansk region in the north, but the fires were extinguished. It also said Ukraine also tried to strike two air bases in western Russia, as well as another one in the Amur region of Russia's Far East, but those attacks were repelled. Russian President Vladimir Putin hasn't commented on the issue. The Tu-95 is a four-engine turboprop plane that can fly intercontinental missions and was designed in the 1950s to rival the U.S. B-52 bomber. The Tupolev Tu-22M is a sweep-wing twin-engine supersonic bomber. Russia has used the heavy planes in the all-out war, which began in February 2022, to launch waves of cruise missile strikes across Ukraine. For decades, long-range bombers have been part of the Soviet and Russian nuclear triad that also includes land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles and atomic-powered submarines carrying ICBMs. The strategic bombers have flown regular patrols around the globe showcasing Moscow's nuclear might. ___ Follow AP's coverage of the war in Ukraine at Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
These satellite photos show Russian bombers Ukraine says it destroyed
Satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press on Wednesday show seven destroyed bombers on the tarmac at a Russian air base in eastern Siberia, one of the targets Ukraine said it struck with drones in one of the most daring covert operations of the war. The photos provided by Planet Labs PBC show aircraft wreckage and scorched areas at the Belaya Air Base, a major installation for Russia's long-range bomber force. In the images, at least three Tu-95 bombers and four Tu-22Ms appear to be destroyed. The planes were parked on an apron beside a runway surrounded by grassland. Other aircraft at the base appear unscathed. Ukraine said that 41 Russian warplanes, including strategic bombers and other types of combat aircraft, were destroyed or damaged in Sunday's operation, which officials said was planned over 18 months. The attack delivered a heavy blow to Russia's air force and its military prestige. It has so far been impossible to confirm the full extent of the damage. Russia has claimed Ukraine's estimates are exaggerated. The Russian Defense Ministry said the attack set several warplanes ablaze at air bases in the Irkutsk region and the Murmansk region in the north, but the fires were extinguished. It also said Ukraine also tried to strike two air bases in western Russia, as well as another one in the Amur region of Russia's Far East, but those attacks were repelled. Russian President Vladimir Putin hasn't commented on the issue. The Tu-95 is a four-engine turboprop plane that can fly intercontinental missions and was designed in the 1950s to rival the U.S. B-52 bomber. The Tupolev Tu-22M is a sweep-wing twin-engine supersonic bomber. Russia has used the heavy planes in the all-out war, which began in February 2022, to launch waves of cruise missile strikes across Ukraine. For decades, long-range bombers have been part of the Soviet and Russian nuclear triad that also includes land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles and atomic-powered submarines carrying ICBMs. The strategic bombers have flown regular patrols around the globe showcasing Moscow's nuclear might. ___ Follow AP's coverage of the war in Ukraine at Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press


CNA
15-05-2025
- Politics
- CNA
Trump's Middle East tour: US president says US getting very close to securing nuclear deal with Iran
Negotiations are underway in the Middle East, as US President Donald Trump says Washington is inching closer to securing a nuclear deal with Iran for long-term peace. Jon Gambrell reports from Dubai.

Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Dubai International Airport, busiest for world travel, sees record 92.3 million passengers in 2024
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel, saw a record 92.3 million passengers pass through its terminals in 2024, officials announced Thursday. The result cements Dubai's bounce back from the coronavirus pandemic, surpassing the previous record set in 2018 for the first time. Today, the airport feels like it is bursting at the seams with aircraft movements and crowds moving through its cavernous terminals as authorities plan to move operations in 10 years to the city-state's second airport after a nearly $35 billion upgrade. Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, announced the figure on the social media platform X. In 2023, the airport, known as DXB, had 86.9 million passengers. Its 2019 traffic was 86.3 million passengers. It had 89.1 million passengers in 2018 — its previous busiest-ever year before the pandemic, while 66 million passengers passed through in 2022. A real-estate boom and the city's highest-ever tourism numbers have made Dubai a destination as well as a layover. However, the city is now grappling with increasing traffic and costs pressuring both its Emirati citizens and the foreign residents who power its economy. In 10 years, Dubai plans to move its airport operations to Al Maktoum International Airport, some 45 kilometers (28 miles) away from DXB. The airport, which opened in 2010 with one terminal, served as a parking lot for Emirates' double-decker Airbus A380s and other aircraft during the pandemic. But since then, it has slowly returned to life with cargo and private flights. It also hosts the biennial Dubai Air Show and has a vast, empty desert in which to expand. Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Explosion forces crew to abandon Hong Kong-flagged container ship in the Red Sea
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — An explosion struck a Hong Kong-flagged container ship Tuesday traveling north through the Red Sea, sparking a major fire that forced its crew to abandon the vessel, shipping industry officials said. The ship was drifting and ablaze some 225 kilometers (140 miles) off the coast of Hodeida, a port city in Yemen held by the country's Houthi rebels, said the Diaplous Group, a maritime firm. It did not name the vessel. Data from NASA satellites tracking wildfires showed the blaze burning Tuesday and Wednesday off Eritrea's Dahlak Archipelago corresponded to satellite-tracking data from for the location of the ASL Bauhinia, a Hong Kong-flagged container ship. It had been traveling from the United Arab Emirates' Jebel Ali port in Dubai to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, before beginning to drift Tuesday. It wasn't immediately clear what caused the fire in the Red Sea, which has been repeatedly targeted by attacks from the Houthis. The rebels said last week they were limiting their assaults following a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. The Houthis did not immediately acknowledge the fire incident. The vessel was abandoned and the crew later rescued unharmed, another maritime industry official told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as authorization hadn't been given to speak publicly about the incident. The official described the cargo aboard the vessel as 'dangerous,' without immediately elaborating. The ultimate owner of the ASL Bauhinia, CSSC Hong Kong Shipping Co. Ltd., could not be immediately reached for comment Wednesday. The Red Sea is home to coral and marine life that previously has been threatened by burning ships from the Houthi campaign and the threat of wider oil spills. The Houthi attacks, which began in November 2023, have halved the number of ships passing through the Red Sea corridor, a crucial route for energy shipments and cargo moving between Asia and Europe. Despite the pledge by the Houthis to limit their attacks, shippers broadly are still shying away from the route over the risks. Some $1 trillion worth of trade passed through the region each year before the attacks. Jon Gambrell, The Associated Press