World
Was Ukraine’s ex-Defence minister caught partying on a yacht?
Viral social media posts claim Oleksiy Reznikov was seen partying on a yacht in the South of France days after leaving his post as defence minister of Ukraine. But these photos pre-date the war in Ukraine and were taken in Turkey in 2020.
Was the newly dismissed Ukrainian Defence minister, Oleksiy Reznikov, spotted on a luxurious yacht in the South of France as Russia continues its invasion?
The claim has gained traction on multiple social media platforms as users shared a photo of Reznikov next to a woman seemingly partying on a boat.
“This is the former Minister of Defence of Ukraine Reznikov after his resignation. He is already in Europe on a yacht,” said one account.
“Sacked #Ukraine defence minister #Reznikov partying on a yacht moored off the #CoteDAzur, maybe spending some of those millions he’s stolen? Meanwhile, Ukrainians he press-ganged are sent to die every day,” said another X user.
The claim that money sent to Ukraine has been stolen by government officials is a common propaganda narrative spread by pro-Kremlin accounts.
Where and when was the photo taken?
After doing a reverse image search, Euronews found the photo is more than three years old and therefore unquestionably pre-dates Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which started in February 2022.
The original photo was posted on Reznikov’s official Facebook page on Valentine’s Day in 2020.
The former minister shared several photos celebrating his engagement to Yulia Zoriy, a TV presenter.
The photo was taken before Reznikov even became the Ukrainian defence minister, which was in November 2021.
Moreover, this photo wasn’t even taken in the South of France but in Istanbul, Turkey in front of the Rumeli Fortress on the Bosphorus Strait, according to AFP.
Why was Oleksiy Reznikov fired?
On 3 September, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the dismissal of his defence minister, Oleksiy Reznikov.
In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Reznikov confirmed that he had submitted his resignation letter to the country’s parliament.
Reznikov was replaced by former businessman Rustem Umerov.
Six Ukrainian deputy defence ministers were fired on 18 September following the dismissal of Reznikov.
Although Reznikov didn’t face any allegations of corruption himself, his ministry had been dogged by accusations of corruption including that the ministry bought goods and equipment for the army at inflated prices.
Several Ukrainian outlets report the Ministry of Defence in late 2022 signed a contract with a Turkish company to supply winter uniforms, which then tripled in price.
Ukrainian journalists have determined this gear can be purchased in Turkey at prices well below those paid by the ministry.
World
Police charge three people with death of One Direction star Liam Payne
Toxicology tests show One Direction star had cocaine, prescription drugs and alcohol in his system.
Three people have been charged over the death of One Direction singer Liam Payne’s death, according to the Argentine prosecutor’s office.
Payne had traces of alcohol, cocaine and a prescription antidepressant in his system when he died, authorities said in a statement.
They have charged someone close to Payne, a hotel employee, and a suspected drug dealer, it was announced on Thursday.
All three are accused of playing a role in giving Payne the drugs. The person who was visiting with Payne is also charged with “abandonment of a person followed by death”, authorities said. They are not naming those who have been charged.
Fall from balcony
Payne, who had a child, died at the age of 31 after falling from a third-floor balcony on October 16 in Buenos Aires. He died from multiple injuries caused by the fall. His body was found in the hotel’s internal courtyard.
Payne was a member of the popular boy band One Direction, formed in 2010 after its members, Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson and Zayn Malik, had auditioned as solo acts for the television show The X-Factor.
The band was created by the show’s judge, Simon Cowell and shot to international fame. The group had been on hiatus since 2016 as the band members pursued solo careers.
‘Breakdown’
Initial police investigations showed Payne was alone in his room and experiencing a “breakdown”.
Following his death, police found substances in his hotel room, such as packs of clonazepam, a central nervous system depressant, energy supplements and other over-the-counter drugs strewn among his belongings.
Authorities also recovered a whiskey bottle, lighter and mobile phone from the internal courtyard where Payne’s body was found.
In recent years, Payne had acknowledged struggling with alcoholism, saying in a YouTube video posted in July 2023 that he had been sober for six months after receiving treatment.
Payne’s death sparked an outpouring of grief from his fans and fellow band members.
The Casa Sur hotel in Buenos Aires, where he died, has become a place for Payne’s fans to pay their respects. They have left flowers, candles and photos of the singer in a makeshift shrine around a tree at the hotel’s entrance.
Payne had travelled to Argentina to see former One Direction bandmate Niall Horan in concert two weeks before he died.
World
French Watchdog Probes Polymarket, Where Trader Won Big on Trump Bet
World
Israel takes hard line against terrorists, allowing deportation of family members
A new law in Israel allows for the deportation of family members of Palestinian attackers, including Israelis, to the Gaza Strip or another location.
Passed by Israel’s parliament, known officially as Knesset, early on Thursday with a 61-41 vote, the law was championed by members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party and his far-right allies. Deportation of a terrorist’s immediate family member could be ordered by the interior minister authority following a hearing, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Family members who had advance knowledge of an attack and failed to report it to police or “expressed support or identification with an act of terrorism or published words of praise, sympathy or encouragement for an act of terrorism or a terrorist organization” would be subject to the law, The Times of Israel reports.
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They would be deported for a period of seven to 20 years. The Israel-Hamas war is still raging in Gaza, where tens of thousands have been killed and most of the population has been internally displaced, often multiple times.
Legal experts believe that any attempt to implement the law would likely lead to it being struck down by Israeli courts.
“The bottom line is this is completely nonconstitutional and a clear conflict to Israel’s core values,” Eran Shamir-Borer, a senior researcher at the Israel Democracy Institute and a former international law expert for the Israeli military, told the Associated Press.
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It is unclear if the law will apply in the occupied West Bank, where Israel already has a long-standing policy of demolishing the family homes of attackers. Palestinians have carried out scores of stabbing, shooting and car-ramming attacks against Israelis in recent years.
Palestinians living in Israel make up around 20% of the country’s population. They have citizenship and the right to vote but face widespread discrimination. Many also have close family ties to those in the territories and most sympathize with the Palestinian cause.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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