Drone Strike

Exclusive: At a launch site in the Ukrainian countryside, members of the elite ‘Magyar’s Birds’ brigade are turning Russia’s vast size into a weaknessSparrows were cheeping as the sun set over a field of tall yellow sunflowers when a moped-like growl suddenly disturbed the evening calm. The noise rose, dipped, and rose again. Lt Col Ray – a Ukrainian commander with the 414th aviation brigade – took cover in a leafy ditch.Seconds later a Ukrainian drone roared into a mauve sky. It jerked upwards at a 45-degree angle, orange flames fizzing, and then motored serenely onwards. The flying object resembled a sleek grey biplane with a wooden propeller and tail. It left behind clouds of billowing black smoke and a whiff of gunpowder. Continue reading...

• Iran has claimed responsibility for launching a drone attack on U.S. facilities in Kuwait and striking two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. • The targeted tankers were reportedly under "aerial escort" from the United States at the time of the strikes. • Separately, an Israeli political source told CBS News that the IDF will not withdraw from the current "yellow line" unless Hamas is completely disarmed.

• The UK Supreme Court will hear an appeal regarding the legal status of Palestine Action, an anti-Israel activist group. • The case follows a June Court of Appeal ruling that banning the group as a terrorist organization was lawful due to its support for violence. • This reverses a February High Court decision which had found that the ban unlawfully interfered with the group's freedom of expression.

• The European Union has implemented a new sanctions package targeting 56 Russian individuals and military-industrial entities. • The measures specifically focus on disrupting the production of long-range drones, such as the Garpiya, and communication networks designed to rival Starlink. • These sanctions aim to degrade Russia's military capabilities and provide critical support for Ukraine's ongoing battlefield efforts.

Interviews with residents of Russian-held region point to frustration with Moscow as Ukrainian campaign to isolate it takes toll on daily lifeFirst, the guests stopped coming. As Ukrainian drones and missiles pounded Crimea throughout the spring and into the summer, Russian tourists began cancelling their bookings at the small guesthouse Marina runs in Yevpatoria, a resort town on the peninsula’s Black Sea coast.Then petrol became scarce, making it harder to stock the business with food and other essentials. Now, electricity and running water are cut off for much of the day, just as the summer heat sets in. Continue reading...

Vital maritime corridor closes after 90 vessels – including shadow fleet oil tankers – are attacked in under a weekRussia has been forced to suspend shipping in the Sea of Azov after 90 vessels were targeted by Ukrainian drones in less than a week.Ukraine’s drone forces chief, Robert Brovdi, said on Sunday that his units had hit 10 tankers and four ferries overnight, as well as a major oil refinery in the city of Syzran. There were multiple strikes on electricity sub-stations in occupied Crimea, he added. Continue reading...

El Obeid becomes key battleground in war between Sudan’s armed forces and their paramilitary enemies, the RSFFatima is losing count of the number of drone attacks on the besieged city of El Obeid in Sudan, but says the attacks this past weekend were the most violent so far.The drones hit schools and fuel stations, killing more than 20 people, including students, she says. “Over the past few months, seeing 40 or 45 drones is the norm. You can literally count them,” said the aid volunteer, whose name has been changed for fear of retribution. Continue reading...