List of All Articles with Tag 'person'

Two Russian soldiers have been jailed for refusing to return to the frontline in Ukraine, the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) said. In an intelligence update posted on Twitter, the ministry said two Russian soldiers were sentenced to serve at least two years in a penal colony by a military court for refusing to obey orders to return to the front in Ukraine. It comes after Russian independent media outlet Mediazona reported that Russia was convicting close to 100 soldiers a week for refusing to fight. The defence ministry predicted “there will be approximately 5,200 convictions a year for refusing to fight” if the trend continues. The high rate of convictions demonstrates the “poor state of morale” and “reluctance” to fight in the Russian Army, the MoD said. The update continued: “Refusal to fight likely reflects the lack of training, motivation and high stress situations Russian forces face along the entire Ukrainian frontline.” However, the defence ministry said it is likely Russia mitigates losses in soldiers by “committing a mass of poorly trained soldiers to the frontline.” “Since Russia’s September 2022 partial mobilisation, Russia has adapted its approach to warfare by utilising sheer mass for offensive and defensive operations,” the update explained. In September 2022, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilisation of 300,000 military reservists for the war in Ukraine. The call-up prompted hundreds of thousands of men to flee the country. Outbound flights were full and neighbouring countries received large influxes. Soon afterwards, Mr Putin toughened up penalties for desertion and refusal to fight, making the offences punishable by up to 10 years in prison, or 15 years for voluntary surrender to enemy forces. But first-time offenders may be exempted from criminal liability “if he took measures for his release, returned to his unit or place of service and did not commit other crimes while in captivity”, according to the new law. Within weeks of the boost to Russian numbers, UK defence chiefs concluded many of the newly mobilised soldiers were poorly equipped, possibly with weapons in a “barely usable” condition. Earlier this year, the MoD suggested Russian troops were using shovels for hand-to-hand combat in Ukraine because of an ammunition shortage. In the latest development in Putins’s war in Ukraine, at least four of Russia’s military transport planes were damaged after Ukraine launched its biggest drone attack on Russian soil since the beginning of the invasion. The Il-76 transport aircraft were damaged after drones hit an airport in the western Pskov region, located 660km north of the Ukrainian frontier and near the borders of Estonia and Latvia. Read More Ukraine: Largest drone attack on Russian territory since invasion began as cargo planes destroyed Ukraine-Russia war live: Kyiv’s huge drone attack as Putin floods frontline with ‘poorly trained troops’ Russian hard-line nationalist ordered to stay in prison after accusing Putin of weakness The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

The president of Gabon, Ali Bongo Ondimba, knew well the threat of military coups in his part of the world

CNN is bringing in former New York Times and BBC leader Mark Thompson in an attempt to turn around its fortunes

The start of the NFL season is not far away. Pro football is always honoring its legends. Here are some who deserve Hall of Fame consideration.

Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. has named Mark Thompson as the chief executive officer of CNN, bringing in the

The worst disruption to UK air traffic control in almost a decade following a technical fault risks costing carriers around £100 million, the head of...

In 2017, Nick Kyrgios accused Donna Vekic of cheating on her then-boyfriend Stan Wawrinka

There's plenty of British TV on Hulu, but what's the best? Sure, you could enjoy

Rubbery pirates, hidden treasure, and ferocious sea monsters... It's all there in One Piece, Netflix's

Vladimir Putin will leave Russia and travel the farthest distance from his home country for the first time since an arrest warrant was issued against him by the International Criminal Court (ICC), according to a report. Mr Putin has reportedly accepted an invitation by Xi Jinping to visit China and the Kremlin is gearing up for his attendance at the Belt and Road Forum in October, three people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. News of the visit comes after Mr Putin declined an invitation by India to attend G20 summit next week. The Kremlin said the Russian leader has a “busy schedule” while his main focus at the moment is Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russia will be instead be represented by its foreign minister Sergey Lavrov. Moscow is an ally to Delhi and Beijing, both of whom are regional rivals and share strained diplomatic ties with each other. Both countries are not signatories to the ICC either. The Russian leader has, ever since the warrant was issued, travelled only to Russian-occupied areas in Ukraine. Before the warrant, he had visited Iran last year. On Tuesday, the Kremlin said a schedule for bilateral Russian-Chinese contacts was being worked out, when asked about the reported visit. “The schedule of bilateral Russian-Chinese contacts at various levels, including at the highest level, is being coordinated,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. “We will inform you about specific events and deadlines in a timely manner.” Mr Putin and Mr Xi have declared a “no limits” partnership between their countries. China has refused to condemn Russia’s actions in Ukraine directly while emphasing the importance of upholding Kyiv’s territorial integrity. In March, an arrest warrant was issued against Mr Putin and Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Alekseyevna Lvova-Belova, for alleged war crimes committed by deporting Ukrainian children into Russia during the conflict. Human rights groups have estimated that more than 19,000 children were deported and placed with Russian families. Russian officials have claimed the children were taken in as a war-time humanitarian gesture. The Kremlin has rejected the war crime accusations. The Russian leader had earlier avoided going to South Africa, which is an ICC signatory, to attend the Brics summit last week. Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan also invited Mr Putin to visit Ankara for talks on a Black Sea grain deal, but he is now said to be considering traveling to Moscow himself. Turkey is not an ICC signatory. The flurry of announcements about the diplomatic visits come as British foreign minister James Cleverly visited China in the first such visit by a UK diplomat in five years. Mr Cleverly said he will urge China to fulfil its international commitments and show responsibility on the world stage on the Ukraine invasion. On Mr Putin’s purpoted visit to Beijing, he said, “Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine cannot be justified by Moscow or indeed anywhere else”. Read More India protests China's land claim ahead of the G20 summit President Xi Jinping is expected to attend Russia earns less from oil and spends more on war. So far, sanctions are working like a slow poison Vladimir Putin ‘too busy’ to face world leaders at G20 The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

President Ali Bongo is under house arrest after being ousted by the army after a disputed election.

Warner Bros Discovery named Mark Thompson as CEO of CNN on Wednesday, tasking the former New York Times