Ukraine-Russia war – latest: Three villages ‘liberated’ in Kyiv’s first gains of counteroffensive
Ukrainian forces have claimed their first successes in a long-anticipated counteroffensive, as they recaptured three villages from Russian forces in the southeast of the country on Sunday. If confirmed it would mean the first week of its pushback against Moscow ended in tangible territorial gains for Ukraine. Unverified footage showed Kyiv’s forces hoisting the Ukrainian flag at a building in the village of Blahodatne in Donetsk region and posing with their unit’s flag in the adjacent village of Neskuchne. The troops also reportedly retook Makarivka, the next village to the south, and advanced between 300m and 1,500m in two directions on the southern front, deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar said in a statement. Success has also been seen in the Bakhmut direction, the minister said. Volodymyr Zelensky praised Ukrainian troops last night and said: “Of course, I am thankful to our soldiers for this day”. The long-expected counteroffensive was indirectly confirmed by Vladimir Putin on Friday, who said that a Ukrainian military push was underway, but had failed to breach Russian defensive lines and taken heavy casualties. Read More Ukraine claims first successes of counteroffensive as it recaptures three villages Ukraine's dam collapse is both a fast-moving disaster and a slow-moving ecological catastrophe Musician Travis Leake spoke up about freedom of speech in Russia with Anthony Bourdain in 2014. Now he’s been detained
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UBS Group AG completed the deal to acquire former rival Credit Suisse Group AG, sealing the biggest merger
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Barbecue Index Shows South African Food Inflation Is Easing
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Crypto Stays Shaky After SEC Crackdown Led to Weekend Selloff
Cryptocurrencies fell Monday, though staying above their weekend lows, as last week’s regulatory crackdown by the US Securities
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China’s Covid-Positive Test Rate Jumped to 40% Last Month
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Trump, allies escalate attacks on criminal case as history-making court appearance approaches
Donald Trump and his allies are escalating efforts to undermine the criminal case against him and drum up protests as the former president braces for a history-making federal court appearance this week on dozens of felony charges accusing him of illegally hoarding classified information. Trump's Tuesday afternoon appearance in Miami will mark his second time in as many months facing a judge on criminal charges. But unlike a New York case some legal analysts derided as relatively trivial, the Justice Department's first prosecution of a former president concerns conduct that prosecutors say jeopardized national security and that involves Espionage Act charges carrying the threat of a significant prison sentence in the event of conviction. Ahead of his arraignment, Trump ratcheted up the rhetoric against the Justice Department special counsel who filed the case, calling Jack Smith “deranged" and his team of prosecutors “thugs" as he repeated without any evidence his claims that he was the target of a political persecution. He called on his supporters to join a planned protest at the Miami courthouse Tuesday, where he will be arraigned on the charges. “We need strength in our country now,” Trump said, speaking to his longtime friend and adviser Roger Stone in an interview on WABC Radio. “And they have to go out and they have to protest peacefully. They have to go out.” “Look, our country has to protest. We have plenty of protest to protest. We’ve lost everything,” he went on. He also said there were no circumstances “whatsoever” under which he would leave the 2024 race, where he's so far been dominating the Republican primary. Other Trump supporters have rallied to his defense with similar language, including Kari Lake, the unsuccessful Republican gubernatorial candidate in Arizona who pointedly said over the weekend that if prosecutors “want to get to President Trump,” they're ”going to have to go through me, and 75 million Americans just like me. And most of us are card-carrying members of the NRA." Trump's calls for protest echoed exhortations he made ahead of a New York court appearance last April, where he faces charges arising from hush money payments made during his 2016 presidential campaign, though he complained that those who showed up to protest then were “so far away that nobody knew about ’em,” And just like in that case, he plans to address supporters in a Tuesday evening speech hours after his court date. Trump is expected to depart for Miami on Monday and will spend the rest of the day in Florida, huddled with advisers. After his court appearance, he will return to New Jersey, where he’s scheduled a press event to publicly respond to the charges. Trump supporters were also planning to load buses to head to Miami from other parts of Florida, raising concerns for law enforcement officials who are preparing for the potential of unrest around the courthouse. Mayor Francis Suarez was expected to announce additional details Monday about the preparations though there was little police presence near the courthouse as late as Sunday afternoon and barricades hadn’t yet been erected nearby, a stark contrast to New York City where police planned for protests for weeks even though no violence ultimately happened. The Justice Department unsealed Friday an indictment charging Trump with 37 felony counts, 31 relating to the willful retention of national defense information. Other charges include conspiracy to commit obstruction and false statements. The indictment alleges Trump intentionally retained hundreds of classified documents that he took with him from the White House to his Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago, after leaving the White House in January 2021. The material he stored, including in a bathroom, ballroom, bedroom and shower, included material on nuclear programs, defense and weapons capabilities of the U.S. and foreign governments and a Pentagon “attack plan,” the indictment says. The information, if exposed, could have put at risk members of the military, confidential human sources and intelligence collection methods, prosecutors said. Beyond that, prosecutors say, he sought to obstruct government efforts to recover the documents, including by directing personal aide Walt Nauta — who was charged alongside Trump — to move boxes to conceal them and also suggesting to his own lawyer that he hide or destroy documents sought by a Justice Department subpoena. Some fellow Republicans have sought to press the case that Trump is being treated unfairly, citing the Justice Department's decision in 2016 to not charge Democrat Hillary Clinton for her handling of classified information through a private email server she relied on as secretary of state. But those arguments overlook that FBI investigators did not find any evidence that Clinton or her aides had willfully broken laws regarding classified information or had obstructed the investigation. New Hampshire Republican Gov. Chris Sununu, speaking Sunday on CBS News, said there was a “huge difference” between the two investigations but that it “has to be explained to the American people.” The Justice Department earlier this month informed former Vice President Mike Pence that it would not bring charges over the presence of classified documents in his Indiana home. A separate Justice Department special counsel investigation into the discovery of classified records at a home and office of President Joe Biden continues, though as in the Clinton case, no evidence of obstruction or intentional law-breaking has surfaced. Trump's own former attorney general, William Barr, offered a grim prediction of Trump's fate, saying on Fox News that Trump had no right to hold onto such sensitive records. “If even half of it is true,” Barr said of the allegations in the indictment, “then he’s toast. I mean, it’s a pretty — it’s a very detailed indictment, and it’s very, very damning. And this idea of presenting Trump as a victim here — a victim of a witch hunt is ridiculous.” ___ Colvin reported from New York. Follow Eric Tucker on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/etuckerAP ___ More on Donald Trump-related investigations: https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump Read More Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement The Great Grift: How billions in COVID-19 relief aid was stolen or wasted Report: Billionaire investor, philanthropist George Soros cedes control of empire to a younger son US aims to rejoin UN scientific and educational organization to push back on China
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Qatar’s Top Dealmakers Get Ready for a Spending Power Boost
Qatar is targeting more investment in new frontiers and sectors like technology and health care, as high demand
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Hedge Fund Bond Bears Are Relentlessly Shorting Treasuries
Hedge funds extended their record selling streak of short-dated Treasuries amid bets the Federal Reserve’s fight with inflation
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WTC final: Why has India stopped winning ICC tournaments?
Stars like VIrat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja failed to win World Test Championship for India.
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UBS to Impose Risk Limits on CS With Deal Set to Close, FT Says
UBS Group AG will impose strict restrictions on bankers from Credit Suisse Group AG, including a ban on
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US Economy Remains ‘Very, Very Hot,’ Larry Summers Says
The US economy remains “very, very hot,” though not as much as it was six to 12 months
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Microsoft Gaming Chief Doesn’t See a Need for New Xbox Yet
Microsoft Corp.’s video gaming chief Phil Spencer said he doesn’t “feel an imperative” to come out with a
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