For today, links to eleven reports: from Reuters, Agence France-Presse, the Associated Press. Tass, National Public Radio, and the Kyiv Post; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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Russia launches third ballistic missile attack on Kyiv this month, Ukraine says. From Reuters. KYIV — Russia today carried out its third ballistic missile attack on Kyiv this month but preliminary data indicated most of the projectiles were shot down on approach, the military administration of the Ukrainian capital said. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine says struck another bridge in Russia’s Kursk region. From AFP. Ukraine said today it had struck a second key bridge in the Kursk region, seeking to disrupt Moscow’s supply routes as Kyiv’s unprecedented incursion on Russian soil stretched through its second week. Russia meanwhile . . . READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from the Kyiv Independent.

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Ukrainian drones spark fuel fire in south Russia. From AFP. Ukrainian drones attacked an oil storage facility in Russia’s southern Rostov region early this morning, sparking a large fuel fire, the local governor said. Videos  . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukrainian troops have struck 2 key bridges in Russia. Could it mean they’re there to stay? From AP. KYIV — Ukraine has destroyed a key bridge in Russia’s Kursk region and struck a second one nearby, less than two weeks into its stunning cross-border incursion, disrupting Russian supply routes and possibly signaling that its troops are planning to dig in. READ MORE . . .

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Russian air defenses down 10 HIMARS rockets, 35 Ukrainian drones over day. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian air defenses destroyed 10 U.S.-made HIMARS rockets, two French-made Hammer bombs and 35 Ukrainian drones over the past 24 hours, according to the Defense Ministry. READ MORE . . .

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Russia denies report about indirect talks with Ukraine. From Reuters. MOSCOW — Russia today denied a report that Ukraine’s attack on the Kursk region had derailed indirect talks with Kyiv on halting strikes on energy and power targets, saying there had been no talks with Kyiv about civilian infrastructure facilities. The Washington Post reported on Saturday . . . READ MORE . . .

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U.S. should immediately negotiate with Russia, Ukraine — presidential candidate. From Tass. WASHINGTON — The United States should immediately sit at the negotiating table with Russia, Ukraine and other stakeholders, said Jill Stein Friday after she was approved as the Green Party’s U.S. presidential candidate earlier in the day. “We need to . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 17  Ukraine’s assault on Russia: What do we know? Reported by Adrian Ma | NPR  Nick Connolly, who covers Kyiv for German news outlet DW, talks about the Ukrainian invasion of Russia. Click HERE to listen and read.

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Ukrainian military engineers to receive Buffalo mine protected vehicles. From Kyiv Post. The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense says it has codified and approved the Buffalo mine protected armored engineering vehicle for delivery. The Buffalo is manufactured by the U.S. company Force Protection, Inc, a division of General Dynamics. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 17  Ukraine offensive doesn’t alter Western anti-escalation stance, Poland says, by Justyna Pawlak and Marek Strzelecki | Reuters  WARSAW — Ukraine is reaping “huge political gains” from its military offensive into western Russia but the incursion is not altering the “anti-escalation approach” of the West, Polish Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said. Ukraine says it has seized more than . . . READ MORE . . .

For today, links to four reports: from the Associated Press, Reuters, and Middle East Eye; and to commentary from Antiwar.com via Consortium News and ScheerPost, and from Arabi21 via Middle East Monitor; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE and RITTER entries for this date are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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Deadly violence persists in Gaza despite mediators’ hopes for a truce, by Wafaa Shurafa and Samy Magdy | AP  DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — As mediators expressed optimism for an imminent cease-fire deal, violence raged today in the Gaza Strip, where an Israeli airstrike killed at least 18 people, all from the same family. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters.

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FROM AUG. 16  Gaza ceasefire talks paused with resumption planned next week, by Andrew Mills and Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  DOHA / CAIRO — Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha paused on Friday with negotiators to meet again next week seeking an agreement to end fighting between Israel and Hamas and free remaining hostages, as U.S. President Joe Biden said “we’re not there yet”. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Middle East Eye.

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FROM AUG. 16  When presidents kill, by Andrew P. Napolitano | Antiwar.com / Consortium News  Today, American troops are on the ground in Ukraine showing Ukrainian forces how to use American weapons to kill Russian troops and in Israel showing the Israeli Defense Forces how to kill civilians in Gaza — by secret presidential orders that . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 14  Gaza’s genocide started with the Rabaa massacre, by Osama Gaweesh | Arabi21 / Middle East Monitor  What I experienced eleven years ago and what I have been witnessing in the last ten months of genocide in the Gaza Strip makes me believe that the genocide in Gaza actually began on the day of the Egyption army’s massacre at Rabaa square in Cairo, Aug. 14, 2013. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to six reports: from the Moscow Times, Reuters, the Associated Press, Tass, and the Kyiv Independent; and to commentary from Reuters, the Kyiv Post, and, via Consortium News and ScheerPost, from Antiwar.com. (GAZA and RITTER entries for this date are HERE and HERE.) — MCM 

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FROM AUG. 16  Ukrainian army destroys bridge in Russia’s Kursk Region. From the Moscow Times. Ukrainian forces on Friday destroyed a key bridge in Russia’s southwestern Kursk region, disrupting a link between Russian-controlled areas and those where Kyiv has made incremental advances, according to pro-Kremlin media and military bloggers. READ MORE. . .

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Russia says Ukraine used Western rockets to destroy bridge in Kursk region. From Reuters. MOSCOW — Russia’s foreign ministry said Friday Ukraine had used Western rockets, likely U.S.-made HIMARS, to destroy a bridge over the Seym river in the Kursk region, killing volunteers trying to evacuate civilians. “For the first time . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia continues to suppress Ukrainian breakthrough attempts in Kursk area — top commander. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian troops are suppressing Ukrainian breakthrough attempts in the Kursk area around the clock, according to the Deputy Chief of the Russian Armed Forces’ Main Military-Political Department, Akhmat Special Forces, Commander Maj. Gen. Apty Alaudinov. READ MORE . . .

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Russian missile sparks blaze in Ukraine as Kyiv’s troops push into Russia’s Kursk region. From AP. Russia kept up its assault on Ukraine today even as Ukrainian forces pushed into Russia’s Kursk border region. A Russian missile sparked a blaze in the city of Sumy that . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russian air defenses down 10 HIMARS rockets, 35 Ukrainian drones over day. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian air defenses destroyed 10 U.S.-made HIMARS rockets, two French-made Hammer rockets and 35 Ukrainian drones over the past 24 hours, the Defense Ministry said today in a broader statement. READ MORE . . .

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Thousands flee as Russian troops take one Donetsk Oblast village after another, by Emmanuelle Chaze | The Kyiv Independent  For the thousands of civilians living under the constant threat of Russian fire, life has become unsustainable, but leaving is not always an option. In the village of Selydove . . . READ MORE . . .

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How Russia looked the wrong way as Ukraine invaded, by Mark Trevelyan, Anastasiia Malenko and Gleb Stolyarov | Reuters  LONDON / KYIV — In the hours before Ukrainian soldiers stormed across Russia’s western border, there was no sign from Moscow that anything was amiss. At midnight at the start of Aug. 6 . . . READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk Region is a game-changer, by Eugene Czolij | Kyiv Post  Ukraine’s successful military incursion into Russia has not only amazed the West, but also stunned the Kremlin by exposing its actual vulnerability, both to NATO and Russia’s oligarchic elite, particularly when . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 16  When presidents kill, by Andrew P. Napolitano | Antiwar.com / Consortium News / ScheerPost  Today, American troops are on the ground in Ukraine showing Ukrainian forces how to use American weapons to kill Russian troops and in Israel showing the Israeli Defense Forces how to kill civilians in Gaza — by secret presidential orders that . . . READ MORE . . .

 

A link to an article from Consortium News; others are accessible by clicking on its name below. (GAZA and UKRAINE entries for this date are HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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FROM AUG. 16  A farewell to truth, by Scott Ritter | Special to Consortium News  The execution of a search warrant on my residence by the F.B.I. on Aug. 7 was not my first run-in with America’s premier law enforcement agency. In the 1990s, when I was working as chief weapons inspector for the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) . . . READ MORE . . .

For now, links to five reports: from the Associated Press, Reuters, and National Public Radio, and to commentary from Middle East Monitor and Middle East Eye; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for today, so far, is HERE.) — MCM

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Diplomacy intensifies to halt the Israel-Hamas war and prevent wider regional war, by Ravi Nessman | AP  JERUSALEM — International diplomacy to prevent the war in Gaza from spreading into a wider regional conflict intensified today, with the British and French foreign ministers making a joint trip to Israel while internationally mediated cease-fire talks in Qatar were expected to enter their second day. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters, and HERE for AUG 15 report from NPR.

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FROM AUG. 15  Gazans are caught in a cycle of displacement by the Israeli military. Reported by Hadeel Al-Shalchi | NPR  As ceasefire talks hang in the balance, Palestinians in Gaza seem to be caught in an endless cycle of displacement as the Israeli military pushes into areas they have previously been. Click HERE to listen and read, and HERE for report from Reuters.

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Israel is slaughtering Palestinians with western arms, by Dr Ramzy Baroud | Middle East Monitor  While many are earnestly pointing at the devastation of war, the rampant human rights violations and the deliberate relegation of international and humanitarian law, there are those who see war from an entirely different perspective: profits. READ MORE . . .

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Why Arab regimes’ betrayal of Palestine may come back to haunt them, by Abdullah Al-Arian | Middle East Eye  Several Arab states have offered Israel significant support since it unleashed its assault on Gaza. This has brought into focus a long-developing regional picture of how these states have been enlisted in the US-Israeli security order. Some . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

For now, links to eight reports: from National Public Radio, the Associated Press, Reuters, the Kyiv Independent, the Moscow Times, Tass, and the Kyiv Post; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. (GAZA entry for this date, so far, is HERE.)— MCM

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Ukrainian forces now control more than 400 square miles of Russian territory. Reported by Michel Martin | NPR  Ukraine says it has solidified its control over parts of Russia’s Kursk region. Retired Lieutenant General Ben Hodges talks about Ukraine’s strategic goals behind the operation. Click HERE to listen and, later, read. Click HERE for report from AP.

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Russia destroys Ukrainian unit armed with NATO weapons in Kursk region, RIA says. From Reuters. MOSCOW — Russian forces destroyed a Ukrainian reconnaissance and sabotage unit that was armed with weapons from NATO countries in Russia’s western Kursk region, the RIA state-run media agency reported today, citing unidentified security sources. READ MORE . . .

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U.S. considering sending Ukraine first long-range cruise missiles this fall, source says, by Kateryna Hodunova and news desk | The Kyiv Independent  Talks between Ukraine and U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration about supplies of long-range cruise missiles are “in the advanced stages,” according to a source close to President Volodymyr Zelensky’s administration. The timeline . . . READ MORE . . .

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Russia says Ukraine struck shopping mall in occupied Donetsk. From the Moscow Times. A crowded shopping mall in the Russian occupied Ukrainian city of Donetsk caught fire after alleged Ukrainian shelling today. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Tass.

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Situation in Kursk Region: elimination of Ukrainian mobile groups, HIMARS launchers. From Tass. MOSCOW — Ukraine’s losses in the Kursk area have amounted up to 220 troops and 19 armored vehicles, the Russian defense ministry said. READ MORE . . .

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Secret Russian counter-drone EW system recovered by Ukraine in Kursk Region, by Steve Brown | Kyiv Post  An editor from the Censor.net news site posted a video on his Facebook channel on Aug. 14 showing the secret Russian Volnorez (Breakwater) counter-drone electronic warfare system recovered by Ukrainian forces in the Kursk region along with . . . READ MORE . . .

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MAY BE CONTINUED

First, links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, and National Public Radio; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for today, so far, is HERE.) — MCM

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Diplomacy intensifies to halt the Israel-Hamas war and prevent wider regional war, by Ravi Nessman | AP  JERUSALEM — International diplomacy to prevent the war in Gaza from spreading into a wider regional conflict intensified today, with the British and French foreign ministers making a joint trip to Israel while internationally mediated cease-fire talks in Qatar were expected to enter their second day. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from Reuters, and HERE for AUG 15 report from NPR.

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FROM AUG. 15  Gazans are caught in a cycle of displacement by the Israeli military. Reported by Hadeel Al-Shalchi | NPR  As ceasefire talks hang in the balance, Palestinians in Gaza seem to be caught in an endless cycle of displacement as the Israeli military pushes into areas they have previously been. Click HERE to listen and read, and HERE for report from Reuters.

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TO BE CONTINUED

For today, links to six reports: from Reuters, the Associated Press, National Public Radio, Middle East Eye, and Middle East Monitor, and to commentary from Middle East Eye; other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (UKRAINE entry for this date is HERE.) — MCM

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New round of Gaza ceasefire talks begins in Qatar, by Andrew Mills and Nidal Al-Mughrabi | Reuters  DOHA / CAIRO — A new round of Gaza ceasefire talks was underway in the Qatari capital Doha this afternoon, an official briefed on the meeting said, with Israel’s spy chief joining his U.S. and Egyptian counterparts and Qatar’s prime minister for the closed-door meeting. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from AP.

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FROM AUG. 14  The status of cease-fire talks, crisis in Gaza and Israeli politics. Reported by Daniel Estrin | NPR  It’s been over 10 months since the attacks on Israel that lead to the war in Gaza. We look at Gaza’s humanitarian situation, how the war has affected Israeli politics and where cease-fire talks stand. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif is alive, says senior official. From Middle East Eye  Mohammed Deif, the commander of Hamas’ armed wing, is still alive, according to one of the movement’s senior officials, Osama Hamdan. In an interview with the Associated Press . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from AP.

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U.S.’s approval of new arms deal to Israel confirms complicity in Gaza genocide, Hamas says. From Middle East Monitor. Hamas has criticised the U.S. administration’s approval of a new arms deal to Israel worth $20 billion, saying the decision confirms Washington’s complicity in the Gaza genocide. In a statement issued yesterday . . . READ MORE . . .

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Gaza ceasefire talks enter new round with low expectations. What’s stopping the deal? by Umar A Farooq | Middle East Eye  A new round of indirect negotiations for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas to put an end to the devastating war on Gaza was set to begin today in Qatar. But . . . READ MORE . . .

 

 

For today, links to nine reports: from the Associated Press, National Public Radio, Reuters, the Kyiv Post, the Kyiv Independent, the Moscow Times, and Tass, and to commentary from Reuters, other articles are accessible by clicking on their names or initials below. (GAZA entry for this date is HERE.)— MCM

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NEWER  Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says Kyiv troops have full control of the Russian town of Sudzha, by Samya Kullab and Johm Gambrell | AP  KYIV — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said today that Kyiv troops have full control of the Russian town of Sudzha in the Kursk region in their incursion into Russian territory. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 14  Ukraine attacks a second region in Western Russia, prompting a state of emergency. Reported by Greg Myre | NPR  Ukrainian forces attack a second border region in western Russia, where the governor declares a state of emergency. Ukraine also targets air bases in at least a half-dozen regions. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Ukraine reports heavy fighting on eastern front after Russia incursion. From Reuters. KYIV — Ukraine said there was no sign Russian military pressure was receding along the eastern front inside its borders today, more than a week after its incursion into Russia, and reported the heaviest fighting in weeks near Pokrovsk. READ MORE . . .

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Russian commander says Ukraine’s forces pushing along the border front, by Guy Faulconbridge and Maxim Rodionov | Reuters   MOSCOW — A senior Russian commander said today that Ukrainian forces had been pushed out of one village in Russia’s border region but that Kyiv’s forces were still probing along the front more than nine days since the lightning incursion into Russia. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine captures over 100 Russian troops in largest single operation in Kursk, by Kateryna Zakharchenko | Kyiv Post  Ukraine’s Security Service special forces captured 102 Russian soldiers on Wednesday in the Kursk region of Russia, which currently marks the largest single capture of enemy troops and . . . READ MORE . . . Click HERE for report from the Kyiv Independent.

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Ukrainian drone attack damages 2 hangars, satellite images show, as fighting in Russia grinds on, by Samya Kullab and Johm Gambrell | AP  KYIV — A Ukrainian drone attack on Russian air bases damaged at least two hangars and other areas, satellite images analyzed by The Associated Press today show. Images taken Wednesday . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 14  Russia’s use of inexperienced conscripts for Kursk defense raises questions. From the Moscow Times. Russian soldier Yaroslav Tipusyak spent his 19th birthday as a prisoner of war in Ukraine — just a day after he was captured by Kyiv’s forces in Russia’s Kursk region last week. He . . . READ MORE . . .

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NATO invades Russia in Kursk Region, ex-U.S. intel officer says. From Tass.  NEW YORK — NATO has invaded Russia, Scott Ritter, a former U.S. Marine Corps intelligence officer and UN weapons inspector, said, commenting on the situation in the borderline Kursk Region. “What happened in Kursk . . . READ MORE . . .

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NEWER  Ukraine’s Russia incursion racks up gains, but risks loom, by Tom Balmforth and Pavel Polityuk | Reuters  KYIV — Ukraine has chalked up a string of victories more than a week since blindsiding Russia with a lightning cross-border assault, but the risks are piling up as its troops make plans to hold territory and Russia recovers its footing. READ MORE . . .

For today, links to six reports: from Reuters, the Moscow Times, the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, National Public Radio, and Tass, and to commentary from the Kyiv Independent; others are accessible by clicking on its initials below. (GAZA entry for this date is HERE.)— MCM

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Ukraine pounds Russia with drones and says it is advancing deeper, by Guy Faulconbridge and Lidia Kelly | Reuters  MOSCOW — Ukraine pounded Russia with missiles and drones today and said it was advancing deeper in the biggest foreign incursion into Russia since World War Two that U.S. President Joe Biden said posed a dilemma for President Vladimir Putin. READ MORE . . .

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Russia says downed 117 Ukrainian drones, air bases reportedly targeted. From the Moscow Times. Russia’s Defense Ministry said early today that its air defense systems intercepted 117 Ukrainian drones and four missiles across eight regions overnight. READ MORE . . .

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Ukraine claims more advances, prisoners taken as it presses an incursion into Russia, by Illia Novikov and Emma Burrows | AP  KYIV — Ukrainian forces pushed on with their major cross-border incursion into Russia’s Kursk region for a second week today, claiming to have. . . READ MORE . . .

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Oleksandr Syrsky, the Ukrainian general overseeing Kursk incursion. From AFP. Ukraine’s top military commander Oleksandr Syrsky, who was born in Russia and studied in Moscow, is leading an unprecedented assault on Russian territory. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 13  What Russians are saying about Ukraine’s latest incursion. Reported by Vincent Acovino, Jeanette Woods, and Mary Louise Kelly | NPR  Mika Golubovsky, English-language editor of Mediazona, talks about about what Russians are saying about the chaos of Ukraine’s major incursion. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Russian forces wipe out Ukrainian army’s fuel base over past day — top brass. From Tass. MOSCOW — Russian forces destroyed a Ukrainian army fuel base and struck enemy manpower and equipment in nearly 150 areas over the past day in the special military operation in Ukraine, Russia’s Defense Ministry said today in a broader statement. READ MORE . . .

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Kursk incursion deals blow to Putin’s prestige marking first ground invasion of Russia since World War II, by Oleg Sukhov | The Kyiv Independent  The 1,000 square kilometers Ukraine says it controls in Russia’s Kursk Oblast amounts to a tiny share of Russia’s massive terrain. Yet . . . READ MORE . . .