United News of Bangladesh

Russian President Vladimir Putin has reappointed Mikhail Mishustin as prime minister for the lower house’s approval. Parliament Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said the house, the State Duma, will hold a session later Friday to consider Mishustin’s candidacy. Mishustin’s approval is a mere proforma in the Kremlin-controlled parliament. In line with Russian law, Mishustin, 58, who held the job for the past four years, submitted his Cabinet’s resignation on Tuesday when Putin began his fifth presidential term at a glittering Kremlin inauguration. Mishustin’s reappointment was widely expected by political observers, who noted that Putin values his skills and the lack of political ambition. Mishustin, the former head of Russia’s tax service, has kept a low profile, steering clear of political statements and avoiding media interviews.

Russian forces unleashed a nighttime barrage of more than 50 cruise missiles and explosive drones at Ukraine’s power grid Wednesday, targeting a wide area in what President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called a “massive” attack. The bombardment blasted targets in seven Ukrainian regions, including the Kyiv area and parts of the south and west, damaging homes and the country's rail network, authorities said. Three people, including an 8-year-old girl, were injured, according to officials. Russia has repeatedly pounded Ukraine’s energy infrastructure during the war that is stretching into its third year and has claimed thousands of lives. By taking out the power, the Kremlin’s forces aim to rob Ukrainian manufacturing of its energy supply, especially military plants, and crush public morale. The mass barrages also drain Ukrainian air defenses of ammunition as Kyiv’s depleted forces await delivery of the latest batch of promised Western military support. Ukrainian officials have been pleading for more NATO-standard air defense systems, such as Patriots. Russia pummeled Ukraine’s energy infrastructure during the “blackout winter” of 2022-23. In March, it launched a new wave of attacks, one of which completely destroyed the Trypilska power plant near Kyiv, one of the country’s biggest. Russian President Vladimir Putin has framed the attacks as retaliation for Ukrainian long-range strikes on Russian oil refineries. On Wednesday, a Ukrainian attack hit an oil terminal, injuring five workers and starting a fire, Russia-appointed authorities in the partially occupied Luhansk region said. Russian bombardments, though frequent, have become less regular in recent weeks, and Ukrainian officials suspect Moscow is stockpiling resources ahead of a major battlefield offensive that could come within weeks. The 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line has changed little since the early months of the war, but Russia has recently made small but steady gains in some areas as Ukraine battles with a lack of manpower and a shortage of weapons. In a social media post, Zelenskyy noted that Wednesday’s attacks occurred on the day that Ukraine observes the end of European fighting in World War II and equated Ukraine's current struggle with that conflict. National electrical grid operator Ukrenergo said facilities were hit in the Vinnytsia, Zaporizhzhia, Kirovohrad, Poltava and Ivano-Frankivsk regions. Two energy facilities were hit in the Lviv region, which is in the country’s far west and distant from the fighting’s front lines, according to regional Governor Maksym Kozytskyi. DTEK, Ukraine’s biggest private energy supplier, said the attack “seriously damaged” equipment at three of its thermal power plants. The attack was the fifth in the last six weeks targeting the company’s facilities, DTEK said. Overall, since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, the company’s assets have come under attack nearly 180 times, injuring 51 workers and killing three, it said. Russia launched 55 missiles and 21 Shahed drones overnight, the Ukrainian air force said. Air defenses downed 39 of the missiles and 20 of the drones, Ukrainian air force commander Mykola Oleshchuk said. Russian forces also damaged the railway station building and train tracks in Kherson, national railway operator Ukrzaliznytsia said.

Police arrested about 125 activists as they broke up a pro-Palestinian demonstration camp at the University of Amsterdam early Tuesday, as protests that have roiled campuses in the United States spread into Europe. Police in the Dutch capital said in a statement on the social media platform X that their action was “necessary to restore order” after protests turned violent. There were no immediate reports of injuries. Israeli forces take control of the Gaza side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt Video from the scene aired by national broadcaster NOS showed police using a mechanical digger to push down barricades and officers wielding batons and shields moving in to end the demonstration, beating some of the protesters and pulling down tents. Protesters formed barricades from wooden pallets and bicycles, NOS reported. Scores of demonstrators occupied a small island at the university on Monday, urging Amsterdam universities to break academic ties with Israel because of its offensive in Gaza in the aftermath of the deadly Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas militants in southern Israel. There have also been demonstrations in recent days at campuses in France and the United Kingdom. Photos from the Amsterdam campus Tuesday morning showed tents, banners and food along with piles of cobblestones that had been pulled up from the street. Before police moved in, scuffles broke out Monday night between two rival groups of activists. Police said in a statement that they cleared the makeshift camp after the protesters refused repeated orders to leave. Israeli army tells Palestinians to evacuate parts of Gaza's Rafah before an expected assault “The protest in this form created a very unsafe situation, partly due to the barricades that prevented emergency services from entering the site. In the event of a disaster, the activists themselves could possibly become stuck on the site,” police said. They said the campus was calm Tuesday morning, but that officers remained present in the area. Calls to the university went unanswered early Tuesday and the university did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. In Finland, dozens of protesters from the Students for Palestine solidarity group set up an encampment outside the main building at the University of Helsinki. Demonstrators said they would stay at the site in central Helsinki until the university, which is Finland’s largest academic institution, cuts academic ties with Israeli universities. In Denmark, students set up a pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of Copenhagen. About 45 tents were erected on the lawn outside the campus of the Faculty of Social Sciences, known as CSS. The faculty sits in an old municipal hospital in the heart of the Danish capital. The university's administration said students can protest on campus but called on them to respect the rules on its grounds. "Seek dialogue, not conflict and make room for perspectives other than your own,” the administrators said in a statement posted on X. Israeli army tells Palestinians to evacuate parts of Gaza's Rafah ahead of an expected assault It said the administration "cannot and must not express an opinion on behalf of university employees and students about political matters, including about the ongoing conflict” in Israel and the Palestinian territories. On their Facebook page, members of the activist group Students Against the Occupation said their attempts to talk to the administration over the past two years about withdrawing the school's investments in companies with ties to activities in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories have been in vain. "We can no longer be satisfied with cautious dialogue that does not lead to concrete action,” the group said. In Paris, student groups called for gatherings in solidarity with Palestinians later Tuesday. On Friday, French police peacefully removed dozens of students from a building at the Paris Institute of Political Studies, known as Sciences Po, after they had gathered in support of Palestinians. On Tuesday, students at the prestigious institution, which counts French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and President Emmanuel Macron among its alumni, were seen entering the campus unobstructed to take exams as police stood at the entrances. Protests took place last week at some other universities across the country, including in Lille and Lyon. The Prime Minister’s Office said police had been requested to remove students from 23 sites on French campuses.

A man wielding a sword attacked members of the public and police officers in a east London suburb early Tuesday, killing a 13-year-old boy and injuring four others, authorities said. A 36-year-old man was arrested in a residential area near Hainault underground station, police said. The incident is not being treated as terror-related or a “targeted attack.” Two police officers were in hospital being treated for stab wounds. Two other people were also injured. Chief Supt. Stuart Bell described the incident as “truly horrific.” “I cannot even begin to imagine how those affected must be feeling,” he said outside the homes in east London where the crime happened. The Metropolitan Police said they were called early Tuesday to reports of a vehicle being driven into a house in a residential street and people being stabbed close to the Hainault underground station. No other details were immediately available. Video on British media showed a man in a yellow hoodie holding a long sword or knife walking near houses in the area. Witnesses say they heard police shouting to the suspect urging him to put down the weapon as they chased after him. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the incident was “shocking," adding: “Such violence has no place on our streets.” Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said police do not believe there is a threat to the wider community. “We are not looking for more suspects,'' he said. ”This incident does not appear to be terror-related." Transport for London said Hainault underground station was closed due to a police investigation in the area.

The European Union said Tuesday that it's scrutinizing Facebook and Instagram over a range of suspected violations of the bloc's digital rulebook, including not doing enough to protect users from foreign disinformation ahead of EU-wide elections. The EU's Executive Commission said it's opening formal proceedings into whether parent company Meta Platforms breached the Digital Services Act, a sweepting set of regulations designed to protect internet users and clean up social media platforms. Brussels has been cracking down on tech companies since the DSA took effect last year, opening investigations into social media sites TikTok and X, formerly known as Twitter, and ecommerce platform AliExpress. TikTok last week bowed to EU pressure last week and halted a reward feature on its new app after the Commission started demanding answerse about it. “We have a well established process for identifying and mitigating risks on our platforms," Meta said in a statement. "We look forward to continuing our cooperation with the European Commission and providing them with further details of this work.” The Commission said it's looking into whether Meta is doing enough to curb the spread of “deceptive advertisements, disinformation campaigns and coordinated inauthentic behaviour” that could pose a risk to “electoral processes” and consumer protection. Officials said it didn't appear that the company has an effective mechanism for content moderation, including for advertisments made with generative AI, including deepfakes - a shortcoming that they said appears to have been exploited by malicious actors for foreign interference. The EU also suspects that Facebook and Instagram might be reducing the visibility in recommendation feeds of political content from accounts that pump out a lot of it - a practice known as shadowbanning - and not being transparent about it with users, which would be in violation of the DSA. A third concern is that Meta is phasing out the use of Crowdtangle, a tool used for real-time election-monitoring used by researchers, journalists and civil society. The Commission is giving Meta five days to respond with information on any “remedial measures” it's taking to make up for its loss. EU officials are taking measures to safeguard elections as citizens of the bloc's 27 nations prepare to vote for lawmakers in June. The Commission is also investigating whether Meta's mechanism for users to flag illegal content is good enough under the DSA, because it suspects that method isn't easy to access and user-friendly.

Scotland's first minister, Humza Yousaf, resigned on Monday rather than face a no-confidence vote just days after he torpedoed a coalition with the Green Party by ditching a target for fighting climate change. Yousaf, whose Scottish National Party has been weakened by a campaign finance scandal and divisions over transgender rights, stepped down after failing to strike a deal with a breakaway nationalist party whose single seat could have given him a majority in Scotland's devolved regional parliament. With no prospect of victory, Yousaf quit rather than face defeat later this week when Scottish lawmakers were scheduled to vote on motions of no confidence in Yousaf and his government. "After spending the weekend reflecting on what is best for my party, for the government and for the country I lead, I've concluded that repairing our relationship across the political divide can only be done with someone else at the helm,'' he told reporters. "I have therefore informed the SNP's national secretary of my intention to stand down as party leader." The debacle in Scotland adds to the fevered political climate in the broader United Kingdom, where concerns about immigration, health care and government spending have undermined support for the ruling Conservative Party. The Conservatives and the opposition Labour Party had proposed separate no-confidence motions as they sought to weaken the SNP before a U.K.-wide parliamentary election expected to take place later this year. The SNP has been the dominant party in Scottish politics for almost two decades and currently holds 43 of the country's 59 seats in the U.K. parliament. On Thursday, England and Wales will hold local elections that are seen as barometer of support for the government. In an effort to save his government, Yousaf had written to all of the party leaders asking for separate meetings to discuss their concerns "in a hopefully constructive spirit." With all the other parties lined up against him, the tight electoral math in Scotland meant that Yousaf's fate hinged on the upstart Alba Party, which holds just one seat in the Scottish parliament. The SNP has 63 of the 128 voting lawmakers, leaving Yousaf one vote short of what he needed to eke out a victory.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said Wednesday that Europe must continue to step up its help for Ukraine even after the approval of a big U.S. aid package, but made clear that he's sticking to his refusal to send Taurus long-range cruise missiles to Kyiv. Scholz spoke after meeting British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Berlin. The two countries are Europe's biggest suppliers of military assistance to Ukraine as it counters Russia's full-scale invasion, and both vowed to keep that up “for as long as it takes.” Ukraine's cause was boosted this week by the approval in Congress of a $61 billion U.S. military aid package that had been held up for months. Scholz described it as “an encouraging and necessary signal.” “But I also want to say clearly that the United States' decision doesn't release us here in Europe from the task of further expanding our support for Ukraine so that the country can defend itself against the aggressor,” he said. Scholz, whose country recently pledged to supply a third Patriot missile battery to Ukraine, appealed again for other European countries that have the system to examine whether they can spare one. Still, asked whether he will reverse his often-criticized refusal to send Taurus missiles, Scholz listed at length the military hardware Germany has provided and added: “As far as the weapons system you mention is concerned, my decision won't change.” Scholz has argued that Taurus missiles could only be used responsibly with the involvement of German soldiers, whether inside or outside Ukraine, and says that is a line he doesn't want to cross. Sunak, who on Tuesday pledged new military aid to Ukraine, praised Germany's efforts on air defense in particular and said “every country has got different things that it can bring to the table.” Ukrainian troops have faced acute shortages of shells and air defense systems, allowing Russian forces to edge forward in some parts of eastern Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pleaded for greater international assistance, warning that his country will lose the war without it.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a Russian missile strike that smashed a prominent skyline television tower in Kharkiv was part of the Kremlin’s effort to intimidate Ukraine’s second-largest city, which in recent weeks has come under increasingly frequent attack. The strike sought to “make the terror visible to the whole city and to try to limit Kharkiv’s connection and access to information,” Zelenskyy said in a Monday evening address. The northeastern Kharkiv region straddles the approximately 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line where Ukrainian and Russian forces have been locked in battle for more than two years since Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The front line has changed little during a war of attrition, focused mostly on artillery, drones and trenches. Since late March, Russia has stepped up the pressure on Kharkiv, apparently aiming to exploit Ukraine’s shortage of air defense systems. It has pounded the local power grid and hit apartment blocks. On Monday, a Russian Kh-59 missile struck Kharkiv’s 250-meter (820-foot) -high TV tower, breaking it roughly in half and halting transmissions. A Washington think tank said Russia may be eyeing a ground assault on Kharkiv. “The Kremlin is conducting a concerted air and information operation to destroy Kharkiv City, convince Ukrainians to flee, and internally displace millions of Ukrainians ahead of a possible future Russian offensive operation against the city or elsewhere in Ukraine,” the Institute for the Study of War said in an assessment. The expected arrival in Ukraine in coming weeks of new military aid from its Western partners possibly has prompted Russia to escalate its attacks before the help arrives, the ISW said, adding that trying to capture Kharkiv would be “a significant challenge” for the Kremlin’s forces. Instead, the Russian military command “may attempt to destroy Kharkiv City with air, missile, and drone strikes and prompt a large-scale internal displacement of Ukrainian civilians,” it said. The U.S. Senate was returning to Washington on Tuesday to vote on $61 billion in war aid to Ukraine after months of delays. Zelensky said U.S. President Joe Biden assured him the aid would include long-range and artillery capabilities. “Four priorities are key: defense of the sky, modern artillery, long-range capacity, and to ensure that packages of American aid arrive as soon as possible,” Zelenskyy said. Also Tuesday, Britain pledged 500 million pounds ($620 million, 580 million euros) in new military supplies for Ukraine, including 400 vehicles, 60 boats, 1,600 munitions and 4 million rounds of ammunition. The shipment will also include British Storm Shadow long-range missiles, which have a range of about 150 miles (240 kilometers) and have proven effective at hitting Russian targets, the British government said. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak spoke with Zelenskyy on Tuesday morning to confirm the new assistance. He announces the aid during a visit to Warsaw later in the day where he was meeting with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Less cheering news came from the European Union, however. EU countries that have Patriot air defense systems gave no clear sign Monday that they might be willing to send them to Ukraine, which is desperately seeking at least seven of the missile batteries. Ukraine’s army is also heavily outnumbered in the fight, and expanding the country’s mobilization has been a delicate issue. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Tuesday signaled that authorities plan to clamp down on young men of conscription age who have moved abroad, with details of the specific measures to be made public soon. “Staying abroad does not relieve a citizen of his or her duties to the homeland,” Kuleba said on the social media platform X. Meanwhile, Russia launched 16 Shahed drones and two Iskander-M ballistic missiles over Ukraine’s southern and central regions, the Ukrainian air force said Tuesday morning. It said all but one of the drones were intercepted. In Odesa, an overnight attack injured nine people, regional Gov. Oleh Kiper said. Among those injured were two infants and two children aged nine and 12, Kiper said. City mayor Hennadii Trukhanov said 58 apartments in 22 buildings were damaged.

The U.K. on Tuesday pledged an additional $620 million in new military supplies for Ukraine, including long-range missiles and four millions rounds of ammunition, at a time when Ukraine is struggling to hold off advancing Russian forces on the eastern front line of the war, now in its third year. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak spoke with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday morning to confirm the assistance and "assure him of the U.K.’s steadfast support for Ukraine’s defense against Russia’s brutal and expansionist ambitions,” Sunak's office said. Sunak was traveling to Warsaw later Tuesday to meet with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for talks about further aid for Ukraine. Ahead of the visit the U.K. government said Sunak would announce 500 million pounds ($620 million, 580 million euros) in new British military supplies, including 400 vehicles, 60 boats, 1,600 munitions and 4 million rounds of ammunition. The shipment will include British Storm Shadow long-range missiles, which have a range of some 150 miles and have proved effective at hitting Russian targets. “President Zelenskyy thanked the Prime Minister for the U.K.’s continued support, saying the new military assistance would make a material difference to ordinary Ukrainians fighting on the front line to defend their country," Downing Street said. The announcement comes three days after the U.S. House of Representatives approved $61 billion in aid for Ukraine, as American lawmakers raced to deliver a fresh round of U.S. support to the war-torn ally. However, Downing Street did not indicate whether the aid would be immediately available for delivery. Zelenskyy has repeatedly pleaded for greater international assistance, warning that his country will lose the war without it. Ammunition shortages linked to the aid holdup over the past six months have led Ukrainian military commanders to ration shells, a disadvantage that Russia seized on this year — taking the city of Avdiivka and currently inching towards the town of Chasiv Yar, also in the eastern Donetsk region.

Five migrants, including a child, died while trying to cross the English Channel from France to the U.K., French authorities said Tuesday, just hours after the British government approved a migrant bill to deport some of those who entered the country illegally to Rwanda. The prefecture responsible for the north of France said in a statement authorities spotted several boats, packed with migrants, off the coast of Pas-de-Calais, attempting to depart in the early morning. Several French navy ships, including assistance and rescue tug Abeille Normandie, intervened to rescue “a very overcrowded boat carrying more than one hundred people on board,” the statement, emailed to The Associated Press, said. “They rescued several people, but unfortunately, five people have died despite the emergency services' swift intervention,” it said. The regional prefect Jacques Billant said a woman, three men and a 7-year-old girl died. He also said the boat attempted to sail off the beach in Wimereux and carried 112 people. The statement added that the rescue operation was ongoing and helicopters and boats were already deployed on scene. The Voix du Nord, a regional newspaper, said the bodies were discovered at the Wimereux beach in northern France on Tuesday morning. About 100 migrants have been rescued and placed aboard a French navy ship. They will be taken to the port of Boulogne, the paper said. This came only hours after British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s latest effort to send some migrants on a one-way ticket to Rwanda finally won approval from Parliament. The U.K. government plans to deport some of those who enter the country illegally as a deterrent to migrants who risk their lives in leaky, inflatable boats in hopes that they will be able to claim asylum once they reach Britain. Human rights groups have described the legislation as inhumane and cruel. Both the United Nations refugee agency and the Council of Europe called on the U.K. Tuesday to rethink its plans for fears they could damage international cooperation on tackling the global migrant crisis. Migrants trying to cross the busy English Channel face drownings and sinking among other deadly incidents, often aboard crowded boats. An estimated 30,000 people made the crossing in 2023, according to U.K. government figures.