Latest news with #defenceministry
Free Malaysia Today
6 days ago
- General
- Free Malaysia Today
Moscow airports disrupted as Ukraine launches assault
Ukraine said that Russia launched more than 900 drones over three days up to Monday. (EPA Images pic) MOSCOW : Russian authorities said they had battled a major Ukrainian drone attack late yesterday and early today, with at least two Moscow airports forced to suspend flights. The defence ministry said in a Telegram post that 112 Ukrainian drones had been 'destroyed and intercepted' in six different regions in the three hours up to midnight. Moscow's mayor, Sergei Sobyanin, said on Telegram that 12 drones heading for the Russian capital had been shot down. Some 59 had targeted the southwestern region of Bryansk, the defence ministry said. Others were fired at the Kursk, Belgorod, Tula, Oryol and Kaluga regions. The attack comes after Ukraine said it had faced the most intense three days of Russian drone attacks since Moscow launched its military offensive in 2022. The Russian military announces Ukrainian drone attacks most days but rarely of this intensity over such a short period of time. Moscow, several hundred kilometres from the frontier, is not often the target of such a big attack. But authorities have been increasingly forced to divert flights from Moscow airports in recent weeks. This time, the federal aviation transport agency said restrictions had been introduced at Moscow's Vnukovo and Zhukovsky airports. Ukraine said that Russia launched more than 900 drones over three days up to Monday. Thirteen civilians were killed in attacks on Sunday, including three children. Russia's defence ministry said yesterday that it had responded to Ukraine's 'provocation' by launching drone and missile attacks on Russian civilian installations.
Malay Mail
26-05-2025
- General
- Malay Mail
India races to contain oil spill after cargo ship with hazardous materials sinks off Kerala
BENGALURU (India), May 26 — India's coastguard raced today to contain an oil spill from a container ship with hazardous cargo that sank off the southern coast yesterday, Kerala's state government said. The Liberian-flagged MSC ELSA 3, listed as a 184-metre (603-foot) freight ship, went down off the coast of Kerala yesterday, with all 24 crew members rescued. It was carrying 640 containers, including 13 with hazardous cargo and 12 containing calcium carbide, a chemical used for fertiliser production and steelmaking. The vessel also contained some 370 tonnes of fuel and oil. 'The Coast Guard is taking action to prevent the spread of oil using two ships,' Kerala's government said in a statement. 'The work of spraying dust to destroy the oil is in progress using a Dornier aircraft'. India's defence ministry said the ship sank 'due to flooding' some 38 nautical miles southwest of Kochi, raising concerns for the 'sensitive marine ecosystem along Kerala's coast'. The government has put coastal areas on high alert and warned people not to touch or approach any containers — some of which have already washed up along the coast. The ship was sailing between the Indian ports of Vizhinjam and Kochi when it ran into trouble on Saturday and issued a distress call. — AFP
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Yahoo
Belgian paratroopers shot during Scottish training exercise
Three Belgian soldiers have been injured in a 'shooting incident' during a training exercise in Scotland, Belgium's defence ministry has said. The casualties were rushed to hospital after being 'seriously injured' in Monday's gunfire. Two are now stable, although one is expected to undergo surgery before being able to return home. The other soldier has already been discharged after only suffering minor injuries. Around another 12 soldiers suffered hearing damage as a result of the incident which is reported to have taken place during a joint military drill at a training centre near Loch Lomond. It is believed to have involved a misfire during a live ammunition exercise. The defence ministry declined to reveal where in Scotland the incident took place. Last week it was reported that around 600 Belgian armed forces personnel were in Moray for a large-scale operation called Red Condor. A spokesman for the defence ministry said: 'On May 12, during Exercise Red Condor currently taking place in Scotland, three Belgian soldiers were injured. 'They received first aid on site and were then transferred to a regional hospital. In addition, around a dozen soldiers suffered hearing damage. 'Defence authorities have confirmed that the two soldiers who were seriously injured are now in stable condition. 'They have already been able to speak with their families. One of them will undergo surgery in Scotland before being repatriated to Belgium.' The families of those injured have been informed, they added. In a post on X, Belgian prime minister Bart De Wever offered his condolences to the injured soldiers and their families. 'I have received the sad news that three soldiers from the Third Parachute Battalion were injured during an exercise in Scotland,' he wrote. 'I wish the injured a speedy recovery. My thoughts are with their loved ones.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
The Independent
13-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Three Belgian soldiers injured in training exercise in Scotland
Three Belgian soldiers have been injured in a training exercise in Scotland, Belgium's prime minister said. Belgium's defence ministry told the BBC that two of the soldiers were in a stable condition, with one expected to undergo surgery in Scotland before returning to Belgium. The third was taken to hospital with minor injuries and has been discharged. In a post on X, prime minister Bart De Wever offered his condolences to the injured soldiers and their families. 'I have received the sad news that three soldiers from the Third Parachute Battalion were injured during an exercise in Scotland,' he wrote. 'I wish the injured a speedy recovery. My thoughts are with their loved ones.' Belgium's defence ministry said approximately 10 other soldiers suffered hearing damage during the incident. A spokesman told the BBC: 'The incident took place during a planned training exercise. An investigation has been launched to determine the exact circumstances. 'The families of the injured personnel have been informed.'
BBC News
03-04-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Syria condemns Israeli strikes as tensions rise over Turkey
Syria has strongly condemned a fresh wave of Israeli strikes on airbases and other military sites overnight as an "unjustified escalation".The foreign ministry said the attacks almost destroyed Hama airbase and injured dozens of people. A monitoring group reported that four defence ministry personnel were military said it hit "capabilities that remained" at the western Hama and central T4 airbases, along with military infrastructure in Damascus. It also said Israeli forces killed gunmen during a ground operation in Deraa province, where authorities put the death toll at came amid reports that Turkey was moving to station jets and air defences at Syrian airbases. Israel's defence minister warned Syria's interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Thursday that he would "pay a very heavy price" if he allowed "forces hostile to Israel" to enter the Israeli military has carried out hundreds of strikes across Syria to destroy military assets - including jets, tanks, missiles, air defence systems, weapons factories and research centres - since former president Bashar al-Assad's regime was overthrown by rebel forces in December after 13 years of civil rebels were led by Sharaa's Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) - a former al-Qaeda affiliate that is still designated as a terrorist organisation by the UN, the US, the EU and the has also sent troops into the UN-monitored demilitarised buffer zone in the Golan Heights, as well as several adjoining areas and the summit of Mount it has demanded the complete demilitarisation of the three neighbouring southern provinces of Deraa, Quneitra and Suweida, saying it would not accept the presence of the forces of Sharaa's government there. The Syrian foreign ministry said Wednesday night's air strikes targeted "five locations across the country within 30 minutes, resulting in the near-total destruction of Hama Military Airport and injuring dozens of civilians and military personnel".The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said there were at least 18 strikes which targeted planes, rail tracks and towers at Hama airbase. Israel also hit T4 airbase, which is near Palmyra, and a branch of the Scientific Studies and Research Centre (SSRC) in the Barzeh neighbourhood of Damascus, it added."This unjustified escalation is a deliberate attempt to destabilise Syria and exacerbate the suffering of its people," the Syrian foreign ministry called the strikes "a blatant violation of international law and Syrian sovereignty", and urged the international community to "exert pressure on Israel to cease its aggression".Syria may have been the location for these strikes, but the real target was has been nervously eyeing a joint defence pact Turkey is negotiating with Syria's transitional government, and these latest air strikes come amid Turkish reports of military equipment being moved to Syrian airbases, including a statement on Thursday morning, Israeli defence minister Israel Katz warned President Sharaa: "If you allow forces hostile to Israel to enter Syria and endanger Israeli security interests - you will pay a very heavy price.""Yesterday's air force activity... is a clear message and a warning to the future - we will not allow the security of the State of Israel to be harmed."Katz did not elaborate on what forces he considered "hostile", but foreign minister Gideon Saar separately said that Israel was concerned at the "negative role" that Turkey was playing in Syria."They are doing their utmost to have Syria as a Turkish protectorate. It's clear that is their intention," he told a news conference in Paris. The SOHR also reported that Israeli ground forces shelled a national park west of the southern city of Deraa on Wednesday night, killing nine gunmen who attempted to confront to the shelling, dozens of Israeli military vehicles had entered the al-Jabaliya Dam area near Nawa and taken up positions there, prompting "calls from the mosques in the area [to wage] jihad against the Israeli incursion", it province's government warned that the "massacre" of nine people had sparked widespread public anger. It has not so far identified those Israeli military confirmed that its forces had operated in Deraa overnight, "seizing weapons and destroying terrorist infrastructure"."Several armed men fired at our forces in the area. The forces responded with gunfire and eliminated several armed militants from the ground and air," it military said it would "not allow a military threat to exist in Syria".However, Turkey's growing investment in Syria is seen by Israel as another level of risk of regional confrontation is growing, and with it the risk of Syria once again becoming host to the conflicts of outside powers.
