3 d. ago Ukraine war briefing: Kyiv hits warplanes in Russia as missile attack kills five in Ukraine

Ukrainian military claims strike on four Su-34 bombers at Marinovka base about 900km from border; Russian attack on Samar wounds 25. What we know on day 1,221See all our Ukraine war coverageUkraine’s military has said it struck four warplanes at an airbase in central Russia’s Volgograd region as part of a drive to hit Russian war assets. It said on Telegram it had hit four Su-34 aircraft at the Marinovka base outside the city of Volgograd, about 900km (550 miles) from the Ukrainian border. The post on Friday said the operation was conducted by the military’s special operations branch, together with the SBU security service and other services of the military. “According to preliminary information, four aircraft were hit, specifically SU-34 planes, as well as technical-operational facilities where different warplanes are serviced and repaired,” the statement said. There was no immediate comment from the Russian military.Ukraine’s military said the damage to Marinovka was being assesse...

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4 d. ago Security experts praise the Mail for doing a 'national service' by revealing new MI6 chief's granddad was a Nazi spy chief

A Mail investigation found incoming Secret Intelligence Service boss Blaise Metreweli is descended from notorious Ukrainian traitor Constantine Dobrowolski.

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1 week ago G7 leaders are paralysed by their fear of upsetting Donald Trump | Rafael Behr

Tyranny is contagious – and western governments’ reluctance to name the threat is helping it spreadThere is no founding charter or admissions process to the self-selecting group of “leading” economic powers that currently numbers seven. It was the G8 from 1997 to March 2014. Then Russia annexed Crimea and had its membership suspended, establishing the rule that participating nations should not seize their neighbours’ land.The White House used to condemn that sort of thing on the grounds that “it violates the principles upon which the international system is built”. These days, not so much. On Sunday, shortly after arriving for a G7 meeting in the Canadian resort of Kananaskis, Donald Trump told his host, the Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, that Vladimir Putin’s expulsion from the club had been a “big mistake”.Rafael Behr is a Guardian columnistOne year of Labour, with Pippa Crerar, Rafael Behr and moreOn 9 July, join Pippa Crerar, Rafael Behr, Frances O’Grady and Salma Shah as...

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2 w. ago World’s oldest professional footballer on playing at 59: ‘I won’t put limits on myself’

Mykola Lykhovydov is living his sporting dream with Ukraine’s Real Pharma, helped by a haka-like warm-up, local water and napsMykola Lykhovydov half-boils a kettle and, pausing slightly for dramatic effect, decants its contents into the waiting glasses. The water comes from an artesian well close to this small, rickety dressing room that doubles as a clubhouse. They say it flows from 80 metres underground and should be consumed just like this, served a little above body temperature and sipped gently so the body’s cells can properly hydrate. Nobody at FK Real Pharma would drink anything else before training and Lykhovydov swears by an extra benefit. “A doctor from Dynamo Kyiv told me this is the best water in Ukraine,” he announces. “It is the secret of eternal youth.”Whether marvel or myth, the regimen is serving Lykhovydov well. He turned 59 in January and is, as far as anybody knows, the oldest active professional footballer in the world. At almost a year older than the Japanese g...

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2 w. ago In this Israeli city hit by an Iranian missile, many people still support their military's operation

In the central Israeli city of Petah Tikva, many people seem to be lining up to support the military operation against Iran — despite an Iranian missile hitting here days ago

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2 w. ago Operation Mincemeat: Fake documents planted on dead body tricked Hitler and won WW2

The daring plot, in which a homeless man's corpse was planted in the sea to fool Hitler into changing tactics, has gone down in history. But until now no-one knew how important was the role of MI5 secretary Hester Leggatt

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3 w. ago Russia warns it will respond to Ukraine drone attacks ‘how and when’ it sees fit

Kremlin comments seem to confirm reports Putin told Trump Moscow was obliged to hit backRussia will respond to Ukraine’s daring drone operation “how and when” it sees fit, the Kremlin has warned, seeming to confirm reports Vladimir Putin had told Donald Trump that Moscow was obliged to retaliate.Ukraine has been bracing for retaliation after its SBU security service carried out a surprise drone strike over the weekend, targeting four airbases and damaging up to 20 Russian warplanes deep inside the country, according to US officials. Continue reading...

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3 w. ago Crimean bridge attack and Operation Spiderweb show Zelensky has a fist full of wild cards against Russia

Ukraine kept its latest attacks on Russia secret from America but its spectacular success shows it can win the war against Putin, writes world affairs editor Sam Kiley

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4 w. ago Ukraine hits Putin’s bridge to Crimea with underwater bomb attack

Kyiv has carried out extensive attacks on Russian targets hundreds of miles from the frontline as peace talks have stalled

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4 w. ago Ukraine hits bridge linking Crimea to Russia with underwater explosives

Operation ‘severely damaged’ base of Kerch Bridge, opened by Putin in 2018, Kyiv’s SBU security service saysEurope live – latest updatesUkraine has detonated a massive underwater blast targeting the key road and rail bridge connecting the Russian-occupied Crimean peninsula to Russia, damaging its underwater supports.The operation, claimed by Kyiv’s SBU security service, is the second high-profile operation by Ukraine in days striking significant Russian assets after a sophisticated drone raid on Moscow’s strategic bomber fleet on Sunday. Continue reading...

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4 w. ago Secret Ukraine operation 'hits bridge linking Crimea to Russia with 1,100kg of explosives' in dawn attack

The vast bridge has come under repeated attack by Kyiv forces

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4 w. ago Watch moment Russia’s Crimean bridge blown up in huge explosion by Ukraine forces

Video footage has captured the moment a bridge linking Russia and Crimea is blown up in a huge explosion carried out by Ukraine’s special forces.

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4 w. ago Ukraine attacks Putin's prized Kerch bridge to Crimea in daring underwater strike with TNT blasts leaving it 'in a state of disrepair' days after drones blitzed nuke bomber fleet

Ukraine's SBU security service said on Tuesday it had hit the road and rail bridge linking Russia and the Crimean peninsula below the water level with explosives. 

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4 w. ago Ukraine hits bridge linking Crimea to Russia with 1,100kg of underwater explosives, say security chiefs

The vast bridge has come under repeated attack by Kyiv forces

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4 w. ago Operation Spiderweb: a visual guide to Ukraine’s destruction of Russian aircraft

In a spectacular attack planned over 18 months, Ukrainian agents moved drones and explosives deep inside Russia to strike four airbasesA Ukrainian drone attack has destroyed billions of dollars worth of Russian aircraft stationed at bases across the country, including at locations as far away as Siberia, in what Kyiv claims is its longest-range assault of the war.The spectacular operation, known as Spiderweb, was prepared in secret over 18 months. Ukraine’s agents moved short-range drones and explosives inside Russia before they were launched remotely for a coordinated strike on Sunday that was intended to strike at Moscow’s air superiority. Continue reading...

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