World

Zelenskyy says US military aid to Ukraine has not stopped

Published

22 hours ago

January 26, 2025

Zelenskyy says US military aid to Ukraine has not stopped

The future of US aid to Ukraine remains uncertain as President Donald Trump begins his second term in office.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said the US has not stopped military aid to Ukraine after the new Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced he would pause foreign aid grants for 90 days.

Zelenskyy did not clarify whether humanitarian aid had been paused but Ukraine relies on the US for around 40% of its military needs.

“I am focused on military aid; it has not been stopped, thank God,” he said at a press conference in Kyiv.

The future of US aid to Ukraine remains uncertain as President Donald Trump begins his second term in office.

The American leader has repeatedly said he wouldn’t have allowed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to start if he had been in office, although he was president as fighting grew in the east of the country between Kyiv’s forces and separatists aligned with Moscow, ahead of Putin sending in tens of thousands of troops in 2022.

On Thursday, Trump told Fox News that Zelenskyy should have made a deal with Putin to avoid the conflict.

A day earlier, Trump also threatened to impose stiff tariffs and sanctions on Russia if an agreement isn’t reached to end the fighting in Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said he had enjoyed “good meetings and conversations with President Trump” and that he believed the US leader would succeed in his desire to end the war.

“This can only be done with Ukraine and otherwise it simply will not work because Russia does not want to end the war and Ukraine does,” Zelenskyy said.

Eastern offensive

With Trump stressing the need to quickly broker a peace deal, both Moscow and Kyiv are seeking battlefield successes to strengthen their negotiating positions ahead of any prospective talks.

For the past year, Russian forces have been waging an intense campaign to punch holes in Ukraine’s defences in the Donetsk region to weaken Kyiv’s grip on the eastern parts of the country.

The sustained and costly offensive has compelled Kyiv to give up a series of towns, villages and hamlets.

Russia’s Defence Ministry claimed on Friday that Russian troops had fought their way into the centre of the strategically important eastern of Velyka Novosilka, although it was not possible to independently confirm the claim.

Elsewhere, three civilians were killed on Saturday in shelling in the Russian-occupied area of Ukraine’s Kherson region, the Moscow-installed Governor Vladimir Saldo said.

He urged the residents of Oleshky, which sits close to the frontline in southern Ukraine, to stay in their homes or in bomb shelters.

Russia also attacked Ukraine with two missiles and 61 Shahed drones overnight into Saturday.

Ukrainian air defences shot down both missiles and 46 drones, a statement from the air force said. Another 15 drones failed to reach targets due to Ukrainian countermeasures.

Related Topics:donald trump Featured Russia Russia's invasion of Ukraine Ukraine united states War In Ukraine

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World

Australia Day Protesters Vandalize Melbourne and Sydney Statues

Published

1 hour ago

January 26, 2025

Press Room

Australia Day Protesters Vandalize Melbourne and Sydney Statues

Some Australians were in no mood to celebrate the country’s national day on Sunday because they had long seen it as a reminder of colonial oppression. A few protesters took that antipathy a step further — by vandalizing statues to British settlers and an English king.

The damage done in Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra was a fresh sign that Australia Day, which commemorates when a British fleet sailed into Sydney Harbor to start a penal colony in the late 18th century, remains divisive.

Even as some Australians mark the holiday with barbecues and pool parties, critics note that it set in motion centuries of oppression of Indigenous people. Some prefer to call it Invasion Day or Survival Day, and they make their displeasure clear through protests or other actions.

In Sydney this week, a statue of Captain James Cook, who claimed part of the Australian continent for the British crown in 1770, was drenched in red paint. Its hand and nose were severed, too. The statue had been restored after facing a similar attack last year.

In Melbourne, a monument to John Batman, an explorer who settled the city on lands occupied by Aboriginal people, was toppled and destroyed early Saturday. Protesters in Melbourne also spray-painted the words “land back” on a memorial for Australian soldiers who died fighting in World War I.

And on Sunday in Canberra, the capital, there was graffiti on a statue of King George V. “The colony is falling,” someone had written on its base in red paint.

Australian officials condemned the vandalism.

“We should find it in our hearts and in our minds to respect differences of views but not let it turn ugly,” said Jacinta Allan, the state premier of Victoria, according to a report by the television station 9News.

Representatives for the police in the states of Victoria and New South Wales said on Sunday afternoon that there had been no arrests or charges in connection with the vandalism in Sydney and Melbourne. The police in Canberra did not immediately respond to an inquiry.

People have protested Australia Day for decades. Recent protests were bolstered by the global Black Lives Matter movement, in which people in the United States, Britain and elsewhere toppled statues they saw as symbols of racism and oppression.

Last year in Melbourne, a Captain Cook statue was sawed off at the ankles, and a monument to King George V was beheaded.

Many Australian officials are keenly aware of their country’s racist colonial past, and they’re not afraid to say so publicly. In one example, the City of Melbourne’s website has a section on “truth-telling” that talks about developing “a shared understanding of the impacts of colonization and dispossession on Aboriginal peoples.”

But merely acknowledging historical wrongs is not enough for some Indigenous activists. That was clear when King Charles III visited Australia last year.

“You are not our king,” a voice rang out shortly after Charles, who retains the ceremonial title of head of state in the former British colony, finished addressing Parliament. “Give us our land back. Give us what you stole from us.”

The voice belonged to Lidia Thorpe, an Indigenous senator and activist for Aboriginal rights. As security guards hustled her out of the chamber, she accused British colonizers of genocide and demanded that Britain enter into a treaty with Australia’s Indigenous population.

The king watched impassively from the stage.

World

Israel, Hamas reach deal to release hostages and allow Palestinians to return to Gaza Strip

Published

2 hours ago

January 26, 2025

Press Room

Israel, Hamas reach deal to release hostages and allow Palestinians to return to Gaza Strip

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced Sunday that an agreement has been reached with Hamas to release additional hostages starting this Thursday, while also allowing Palestinians to return to the northern part of the Gaza Strip beginning Monday morning.

Qatar helped mediate the agreement, which is expected to ease the first major crisis of the fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.

“After firm and determined negotiations led by Prime Minister Netanyahu, Hamas has backed down and will conduct an additional phase of hostage releases this coming Thursday,” Netanyahu’s office said. “As part of this phase, Israeli citizen Arbel Yehud, soldier Agam Berger, and one additional hostage will be released.”

The statement also noted that three additional hostages will be released on Saturday as part of the agreement.

ISRAELI MILITARY CHIEF STEPS DOWN OVER OCTOBER 7 HAMAS MASSACRE: ‘WEIGHS ON ME EVERY DAY’

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel and Hamas reached an agreement for the release of additional hostages and for Palestinians to return to the northern part of the Gaza Strip. (Getty Images)

Israel confirmed Hamas handed over a list that specified the condition of the hostages expected to be released in the first stage. Local media also reported the list specified the number of living and dead hostages, though names were not included.

Israeli officials claim most of the 26 remaining hostages are alive, which coincides with the list Hamas provided.

Netanyahu’s office also said Israel will allow Palestinians to return to the northern part of the Gaza Strip beginning Monday morning under the agreement with Hamas.

CEASEFIRE DISPUTES BETWEEN ISRAEL AND HAMAS, HEZBOLLAH THROW REGION INTO TURMOIL

A Palestinian fighter from the armed wing of Hamas takes part in a military parade

Hamas is believed to be holding 26 hostages, as of Sunday. (Reuters/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/File Photo)

Netanyahu reiterated that Israel will not tolerate any violation of the agreement between the two parties, adding that he will continue to push for the return of all hostages, dead or alive.

Likewise, the White House released a statement on Sunday afternoon saying the arrangement between Israel and Lebanon will be monitored by the U.S. and will remain in effect until Feb. 18, 2025.

“The Government of Lebanon, the Government of Israel, and the Government of the United States will also begin negotiations for the return of Lebanese prisoners captured after October 7, 2023,” the statement read.

HAMAS RELEASES 4 FEMALE HOSTAGES AS PART OF ISRAEL CEASEFIRE

President Donald Trump shakes hands with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate on July 26. (Amos Ben-Gershom (GPO) / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The agreement between Israel and Hamas comes after the former accused the latter of changing the order of hostages it had planned to release. As a result, Israeli forces blocked thousands of Palestinians from returning to northern Gaza.

Israeli forces also announced Friday that they would not withdraw from southern Lebanon as the ceasefire requires until the Lebanese government fully implements its own responsibilities. According to the agreement, both groups were expected to make withdrawals by Sunday.

“IDF troops operating in southern Lebanon fired warning shots to remove threats in a number of areas where suspects were identified approaching the troops,” the IDF wrote in a statement earlier Sunday.

BITTERSWEET REJOICING AS FIRST HOSTAGES RETURN TO ISRAEL AFTER 471 DAYS IN CAPTIVITY

Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate

President Donald Trump met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate back in July. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The disputes came just after President Donald Trump called for Egypt and Jordan to accept refugees from Gaza to “clean out” the region.

“I’d like Egypt to take people,” Trump said. “You’re talking about probably a million and a half people, and we just clean out that whole thing and say, ‘You know, it’s over.’”

Trump said he applauded Jordan for accepting Palestinian refugees but that he told the king: “I’d love for you to take on more, because I’m looking at the whole Gaza Strip right now, and it’s a mess. It’s a real mess.”

Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.

Greg Wehner is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital.

Story tips and ideas can be sent to Greg.Wehner@Fox.com and on Twitter @GregWehner.

World

Fourth case of damaged submarine cable

Published

4 hours ago

January 26, 2025

Press Room

This article was originally published in Italian

A submarine cable was damaged in the Baltic Sea, the fourth case reported by the Nordic countries in the past two months. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen emphasised, “The resilience and security of our infrastructure is a top priority.”

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson reported that at least one undersea cable connecting Sweden and Latvia has been damaged. This incident follows similar cases reported in the past two months between Lithuania and Sweden, Germany and Finland, and Estonia and Finland.

“There is information suggesting that at least one data cable between Sweden and Latvia has been damaged in the Baltic Sea. The cable is owned by a Latvian entity. I have been in close contact with Latvian Prime Minister Evika Silina throughout the day,” Kristersson wrote on X.

On 14 January, from Helsinki, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte announced that the Alliance would launch a new mission in the Baltic with new ships and dedicated aviation and new supporting technology, including ‘a small fleet of undersea drones’, to protect critical infrastructure from sabotage.

von der Leyen: ‘Full solidarity with the countries bordering the Baltic Sea’

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed strong solidarity with the EU countries bordering the Baltic Sea following the damage to an undersea data cable between Sweden and Latvia. Von der Leyen emphasised the importance of securing critical infrastructure, stating, “The resilience and security of our critical infrastructure is a top priority.” She further reaffirmed the EU Commission’s commitment to enhancing detection, prevention, and repair efforts in collaboration with global partners.