Sunday, November 03, 2024

Rashida Tlaib refuses to endorse Kamala Harris as Gaza war takes toll on Dem voter base

Anders Hagstrom
F0X NEWS
Sat, November 2, 2024


Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., refused to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris at a rally in Detroit, Michigan on Friday.

Tlaib appeared alongside fellow "squad" member Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and members of the United Auto Workers union. While Ocasio-Cortez and other speakers threw their support behind Harris, Tlaib only urged Michiganders to get out and vote and didn't mention Harris, according to the Detroit News.

"Don’t underestimate the power you all have," she told rally-goers. "More than those ads, those lawn signs, those billboards, you all have more power to turn out people that understand we’ve got to fight back against corporate greed in our country. … We’ve got to make sure that the nonpartisan part of the ballot gets filled in."

Tlaib has been heavily critical of the Biden-Harris administration's handling of Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza. Her stance mirrors that of many Muslims and Arabs in the U.S., a demographic that has a large representation in Michigan.

Protesters Interrupt Kamala Harris' Michigan Rally: ‘No More Gaza War!’

Rep. Rashida Tlaib condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a "war criminal" when he spoke to Congress in July.

Tlaib issued her most stark rejection of the Harris-Walz ticket in September during an appearance on MSNBC. She said at the time that she had many consituents come to her saying they did not feel their could support Harris and she told them, "there’s other people on this ballot that support a ceasefire. There’s other people on this ballot that can protect our community."

Gaza Protesters Plague Harris Rallies: ‘Wish I Could Vote For U’

There are multiple third-party candidates for president on the ballot in Michigan, including Jill Stein and left-wing activist Cornel West.

Harris' campaign is attempting to play both sides of the Gaza conflict, appealing to Jewish voters in Pennsylvania by highlighting her support for Israel's autonomy, while condemning the violence in Gaza in ads aimed at Michigan Muslims.

A report from CNN on Friday put a spotlight on the Harris campaign's divergent Facebook ads.

"And let me be clear- I will always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself," Harris says in the Facebook ad, which had been taken from her DNC convention speech. "And I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself because the people of Israel must never again face the horror that a terrorist organization called Hamas caused on October 7, including unspeakable sexual violence and the massacre of young people at a music festival."


Anti-Israel protesters disrupt Vice President Kamala Harris with chants of 'Kamala, Kamala, you can't hide, we won't vote for genocide!' as she speaks to several thousand attendees at her presidential campaign rally in Detroit.

After an edit, Harris adds, "And know this: I will never hesitate to take whatever action is necessary to defend our forces and our interests against Iran and Iran-backed terrorists."

Meanwhile, the Harris campaign launched a separate ad, this one aimed at Arab-Americans in Michigan, expressing solidarity with civilians in Gaza.

"What has happened in Gaza over the past nine months is devastating," Harris says in the ad. "We cannot allow ourselves to become numb to the suffering and I will not be silent."

In another speech featured in the same ad," Harris says, "Our common humanity compels us to act."

The video itself is captioned as "VP Harris has been working to end the suffering in Gaza."

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Trump’s record of leaking intelligence and doubts over his new team have allies worried, experts say

Rhian Lubin
Fri, November 1, 2024 
The Independent

Trump’s record of leaking intelligence and doubts over his new team have allies worried, experts say


With days to go until America decides who will become the next president, there are concerns among some US allies over one of the most important aspects of their relationship with the world’s most powerful nation — intelligence sharing.

While a Kamala Harris presidency is expected to fit into a more predictable pattern of intelligence handling, security experts say some US allies have more “anxiety” about the alternative: Donald Trump’s return to the White House.

The Independent spoke to experts in intelligence, national security, and foreign policy from the UK, Australia, and Canada on the implications of a second Trump term. They all agree that the stakes couldn’t be higher – and suggest that the Republican candidate’s track record when it comes to leaking secret information is one of their causes for concern.


“There is trepidation about Mr Trump in the US intelligence community and throughout the Five Eyes network,” Dr Michael Fullilove, executive director of Australia’s Lowy Institute for International Policy in Sydney, tells The Independent, referring to the intelligence-sharing network made up of the US, the UK, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.

“The handling of secrets requires people to follow rules,” Fullilove says. “But Mr Trump doesn’t seem to believe that rules apply to him. He sees himself as existing in a rule-free zone. When you’re talking about the handling of classified intelligence, that’s a problem.”

During Trump’s first administration, the White House “leaked like a sieve,” Dr Daniel Larsen, a lecturer in intelligence and war studies at Scotland’s Glasgow University and previously at Cambridge, tells The Independent.

As a matter of law, a sitting president can declassify the most secret classified information, but US defense experts say even presidents have to transmit declassification orders through the proper channels.
Trump and classified information

In May 2017, months after taking office, Trump shared classified Israeli intelligence, concerning an undercover operation to infiltrate Isis, with the Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov and the Russian ambassador to the US at the time, Sergey Kislyak, during a meeting in the Oval Office. Amid uproar, Trump insisted he had every right to do so, tweeting: “As President I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled W.H. meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining to terrorism and airline flight safety. Humanitarian reasons, plus I want Russia to greatly step up their fight against ISIS & terrorism.”

In 2019, Trump tweeted a classified satellite image of a failed Iranian rocket launch to his millions of followers. Critics said that by doing so he risked revealing information about US surveillance techniques. Trump responded by telling reporters: “We had a photo and I released it, which I have the absolute right to do.”

Trump is accused of illegally hoarding thousands of classified documents — including papers relating to nuclear weapons and spy satellites – at his Mar-a-Lago resort after his term as president ended. Criminal charges brought by special counsel Jack Smith were sensationally dismissed by a federal judge who was appointed by Trump, but Smith has appealed that decision. Meanwhile, Trump has said he will “fire” Smith for investigating him if he is elected, and has suggested that Smith should be forced to leave the country.

Trump allegedly shared classified information about nuclear submarines to an Australian billionaire at Mar-a-Lago.

In 2019, Trump’s administration was accused of leaking information from the investigation into a terrorist attack on an Ariana Grande concert in Manchester, England, which left 22 people dead. In response, British police briefly stopped sharing information with the US, although the UK intelligence agencies did not.

Trump with Sergey Lavrov, left, and Sergey Kislyak in the Oval Office in May 2017. During the meeting Trump revealed secret information to his Russian guests about an Israeli intelligence operation. He later insisted he was entitled to do so (EPA)

Despite the leaks from Trump’s first term, experts largely agree that intelligence sharing between the allied nations would continue under a second Trump administration, but they acknowledge there would be some level of risk.

Professor Thomas Juneau, a former defense analyst with Canada’s Department of National Defense, explains that his country relies heavily upon the network as it “gets way more than it gives.”

“Is Trump going to kill the Five Eyes on day one? No. That’s way too extreme. But it is conceivable,” says Juneau, an associate professor at the University of Ottawa. “Is it conceivable that in four years, the Five Eyes are weakened and that we don’t necessarily get as much through as we used to? Yes, of course it is.”

Fullilove, of the Lowy Institute, maintains that the Five Eyes “will survive” Trump, and says the assertion that US allies would stop sharing information with the Americans if he were elected is “unrealistic”. But he adds an important caveat: “Trust is critical.”

Kim Darroch, a former British ambassador to the US who resigned in 2019 following the leak of some of his dispatches that were critical of Trump, told The Independent that the relationship between the UK and US intelligence communities “is close, strong and durable” and “will flourish whatever the political climate.”

Christopher Steele, the former head of MI6’s Russia desk who found himself at the center of a worldwide controversy after he authored the so-called Steele dossier, a series of startling allegations suggesting Trump might have been compromised by Moscow, has a much graver assessment. He tells The Independent that concern among British intelligence officials “should be very high” if Trump is re-elected.

“I don’t think we can feel confident that any information that we give America as part of our very close and very important intelligence and security alliance would be safe,” Steele says. “In my 40-year career, I’ve never felt so concerned about the state of the world.”

In 2019, a US Department of Justice report found that the FBI had “raised doubts about the reliability of some of Steele’s reports”. However, Steele maintains to this day that the dossier — an intelligence report collated for a private client — contained “original intelligence [and] was obtained from credible sources.”

In a new book titled Unredacted, Steele warns of “a new world disorder” if Trump takes back the White House next week.

The view on Trump’s home turf was that some of his behavior was “very disturbing” to those in the intelligence world, according to former New York Times correspondent Thom Shanker, who covered the Pentagon, the military and national security for the paper.

In June 2023, prosecutors unsealed an indictment that contained photographs of boxes of classified information stacked in Trump’s Mar-a-Lago bathroom.

“That’s kind of what really shocked people,” Shanker, George Washington University’s Project Director for Media and National Security, tells The Independent.

Boxes of classified documents found at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort (US Department of Justice/AFP via Getty Images)

“They were just in the open, where countless numbers of people just walked by and could have reached in and grabbed some or read them. So I think that was very disturbing to a lot of people who work in that world.”

Joe Biden’s home was also raided by the FBI in early 2023 after it emerged that he, too, took classified documents home with him when he was vice-president. Biden complied with the investigation, and no criminal charges were brought. Trump, however, was accused of a cover-up.

“When confronted with it, one cooperated with investigators, one obstructed,” Shanker says. “Taking the classified documents home is less telling than how they responded once they were confronted with it.”

So what do US allies think Trump 2.0 might look like?

Darroch says he is more concerned about a potential second term.

“Back in 2016, Trump had never served in any level of government, so was entirely inexperienced on how to make things happen,” he tells The Independent. “And he brought some mainstream Republican figures into government who turned out not to share his ideas and objectives.”

He continues: “If he wins a second term, it’s clear that he will appoint only supporters to positions around him, and he will have learnt from his first four years how to deliver. So bad ideas are much less likely to get stopped.”


Kim Darroch resigned as UK ambassador to the US in 2019 after dispatches critical of Trump were leaked (Getty)

Juneau says it would be “naive” to assume Trump’s second term would be like the first.

“My fear is that Trump two will be different,” he warns. “And the assumption that many are making here in Canada, but elsewhere too — that we survived Trump one, so we’ll be OK with Trump two — I find that that’s a naive assumption, even if it’s not completely impossible. Trump two will hit the ground running.”

Allied security services will be keeping a watchful eye on anyone Trump potentially nominates to head up the CIA and the NSA if he wins a second term.

“The thing that British intelligence would be watching like a hawk would be who he appoints to those positions,” says Larsen, the British intelligence historian. “There would obviously be more anxiety about a Trump administration just because of the much greater uncertainty as to who he might appoint and what those appointees might do.”

British officials, Larsen adds, would consider whether Trump appointees “might do something that would fundamentally change the bureaucratic relationship between these agencies on both sides of the Atlantic. [Whereas] with the Harris administration, you could count on the pretty traditional appointees to these organizations who would leave the relationship in place as it is,” he says.

Trump and Vladimir Putin shake hands at the beginning of a meeting at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland on 16 July 2018 (AP)

Differences in foreign policy could include Trump’s attitude to Nato, the 32-member Western defense organization, which he has repeatedly criticized. In February, he said the US would not help defend members who failed to spend 2 per cent of their GDP on defense, as per NATO targets. Instead, he said, he would tell the Russians to “do whatever the hell they want”.

John Bolton, who served as Trump’s national security adviser, has said he feared Trump was planning to pull the US out of NATO completely. Some observers suggest he may do that in a second term, or perhaps just make clear that he would not back NATO’s Article 5 commitment to come to the defense of any member that is attacked.

Trump has also repeatedly praised Russian president Vladimir Putin, among other dictators. At a joint news conference in Helsinki in July 2018, Trump surprised onlookers by taking Putin’s word over that of US intelligence agencies on the issue of whether Russia had interfered in the 2016 US election.

Unlike the first administration, Juneau says, Trump would “surround himself with people who will loyally implement his true vision from day one.”

“Jim Mattis, the first secretary of defense, some of [Trump’s] first national security advisers, some of the people at the CIA, like [Mike] Pompeo, they were Republicans. They were conservatives, but they were professionals, and they were actively blocking Trump’s craziest ideas,” says Juneau.

“The fear has got to be, from a Canadian national security perspective, [that] that won’t be the case under Trump two.”

Fullilove agrees that Trump “leant on the so-called adults in the room” when he was first in office. “This time, he has said that he doesn’t want those kinds of people in the room, and many of them will choose not to be in the room with him because they’ve seen what happened to the people who served him in his first term,” he adds. “So you are likely to see more Maga characters in senior positions.”

Trump in the Oval Office during his first term (EPA)

But Fullilove stresses that while “it would be harder” a second time round, Trump would not go completely unchecked. “On the other hand, don’t underestimate the resilience of the American system: the permanent civil service, the military, the Congress, the courts.”

He is also encouraged to hear JD Vance express his support for AUKUS, the trilateral security and defense partnership between Australia, the UK, and the US — but warns that there is still “some nervousness” because of his running mate.

“I asked JD Vance about AUKUS at the Munich Security Conference in February, and he said that he’s a fan,” Fullilove said. “The problem is that Mr Trump has no personal stake in AUKUS, and he has made a habit of ripping up deals that his predecessors signed. So, there is some risk to AUKUS. I wouldn’t overstate it, but there is some nervousness in Canberra.”

When approached for comment, the Trump campaign claimed that the Harris-Biden administration has “put our national security at risk more than any administration in history.”

Karoline Leavitt, the Trump campaign’s national press secretary, said in a statement to The Independent: “When President Trump was in office, NATO was strong, there was no war in Ukraine, and the Middle East was stable. Under Kamala Harris, the entire world is on the brink of a major war as Putin continues his crusade into Ukraine and Iran is funding terrorist attacks against our ally, Israel.”

Leavitt added: “President Trump will restore world peace through American strength and ensure European nations carry their weight by paying their fair share to our mutual defense to lighten the unfair burden on American taxpayers.”

As Americans head to the polls on Nov. 5, the world holds its collective breath as the count to determine the most powerful politician in the world goes down to the wire.

“The world is in the most fragile and dangerous state that it has been for a generation with war in Europe, conflict in the Middle East, and tension with China,” Darroch said. “Against this backdrop, the American people’s decision on who leads them for the next four years is more consequential than ever.”
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Senegalese women take aim at polluting countries in march for climate justice

ANNIE RISEMBERG
Sat, November 2, 2024 




Senegalese women march through the Medina neighborhood in Dakar, Senegal during the fourth Women's March for Climate Saturday, Nov, 2, 2024.
(AP Photo/Annika Hammerschlag)

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — About 50 Senegalese women climate activists hit the streets of Dakar Saturday to demand climate justice ahead of COP29 in a march held annually since 2021, but that organizers say is particularly pertinent this year.

Participants yelled “Down with capitalism! Down with polluting countries!” as they marched through Dakar’s Medina neighborhood, carrying banners and signs demanding protection of Senegal’s resources and calling for a decarbonized future.

“It’s been four years that we’ve been marching, and nothing’s changed. They’re spending billions to do their conferences, but they owe us billions in compensation,” said Cheikh Niange Faye, a former tour guide from Senegal’s Thiès region, referring to the countries responsible for the majority of greenhouse gas emissions.

“Us in the rural world, women from the rural world, this year we have seen a lot of floods.”

This year saw record breaking floods across the Sahel, and Senegal was no exception. Flooding in recent months has left tens of thousands of people affected and more than 1,000 hectares of crops damaged in the north and east of the country according to government figures.

Activists in Senegal say the countries responsible for greenhouse gas emissions owe Africa for the suffering caused by the effects of climate change, citing data from the Carbon Disclosure Project that puts the continent’s share of global emissions at just 3.8%.

Khady Camara is an activist based in Dakar and the main organizer of the Senegal women’s climate march. She said ahead of the COP29 she is calling on countries to respect the Paris Agreement.

Khady Faye is an environmental activist who traveled to Dakar from her home near Senegal’s Saloum Delta, a region which has suffered devastating coastal erosion.

Production at Senegal’s first offshore drilling site at the Sangomar oil fields, off Senegal’s coast near the delta, started this year. Australian group Woodside Energy has an 82% stake in the project.

“Think about the suffering of these communities, think about the suffering of these women. Try to leave our delta alone, try to leave the gas at Sangomar underground, to let the community live normally,” Faye said.
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The 'so important' efforts to ensure the contributions of ethnic minorities in wars are never forgotten

Bethany Gavaghan
Sun 3 November 2024 

-Credit: (Image: Richard Swingler Photography)

"One of the main things I took from it is being more conscious of being black, but because of some of my experiences I had to think about who I am in terms of my identity as a black person. That made me stronger." Meet Clifton Depass, one of the lead founding members of Black History Month in Wales, who is regarded as an elder statesman amongst lots of community members.

He was talking about being in the British Army as he and others gathered for an annual event in Cardiff. Every year, Race Council Cymru (RCC) hosts a memorial service for minority ethnic and Commonwealth servicemen and women in Cardiff, uniting communities in remembrance and gratitude for the brave people who fought and continue to serve in our forces today

The 2024 service took place on Saturday, November 2, at Alexandra Gardens and all kinds of veterans who spent time in the army from Wales attended to show their respects, including Clifton. He was born in Jamaica and came to Bristol in 1968 when he was 15. After going to school for a couple of years, he decided to join the army.


Clifton Depass -Credit:Richard Swingler Photography

Clifton recalled: "There were these beautiful advertisements and in those days Britain had colonies in places like Cyprus and Hong Kong and there was this beautiful advertisement of it projected on the telly and I decided to join for six years. There weren't many black people in the army at that time when I joined in 1970.

"There were 10 soldiers from minority ethnic groups in my regiment at the time but we stuck together because it was difficult for us at times in the army. There was lots of discrimination, name calling etcetera but there were also lots of things that I learned. It was a bittersweet experience but I'm very pleased that I joined, and one of the things I've taken away is being aware of adversity and making an effort to recognise others.

"It's important for me that their sacrifices and their contribution will never be forgotten. So it is a marker and it is a way of remembering and it is also a way of ensuring that the young generation is aware of the contributions of their ancestors and their legacy will continue forever. "

Errol Alexis was the oldest veteran in attendance at the event and shared exactly what life was like for him as someone from an ethnic minority. Now aged 88, Errol was born in the West Indies, on the Island of St Vincent, previously a British colony, in 1936. Errol’s father, a seaman, sent for him to come to Britain in 1957, when he was around 21 years of age.

Errol Alexis, aged 88, who joined the Welsh Regiment aged 22 -Credit:Richard Swingler Photography

But he never thought he would join the army, and it wasn’t until he was dismissed from college that he saw it as a possibility. He said: “I was one of only two black soldiers in the Welsh regiment at that time. It was a bit strange. I thought there would have been more black soldiers but there was a lot of racial tension at that time, so it was different for us. There was a bit of an attitude of ‘why should we join?’”

When asked if Errol felt like he was shown appreciation for his service when he initially came back from his time spent at the army, Errol replied: “No, no. There wasn’t any reaction.”

There were speeches and a number of people came to place poppy wreaths in front of the monument installed in 2019, commemorating the contribution of Black, Asian and Ethnic Minority service personnel who served during the First and Second World Wars. And one key message being pushed was the significance of the event to connect people’s stories from the war with younger generations.

People listen to the speeches being made -Credit:Richard Swingler Photography

Uzo Iwobi, chief executive of Race Council Cymru -Credit:Richard Swingler Photography

Uzo Iwobi, chief executive of Race Council Cymru, said: "It's so important that young people hear about the stories from people from ethnic minority backgrounds who lost their lives in the war, and sacrificed so much for the freedom that we take for granted.

"My husband's uncle who died in the war, I thought his story will never be told. Major Phillip served and died and carried the impact of the war and it is an honour to utter his name and acknowledge him alongside so many families that have lost loved ones. We honour the military because they gave their freedom, they gave their safety to keep us safe and comfortable.

"We cannot do enough for the veterans and all their families so it's a joy to do this year on year. I did it the first year with Patti Flynn, who campaigned so hard for the monument to be installed, and she wrote a beautiful speech to be read out before the one year anniversary of it being here. But, sadly, she died before the anniversary and I read her words out, which was an honour."


Army veteran Roma Taylor -Credit:Richard Swingler Photography

Sadly - not all of those who sacrificed their lives in war from minority ethnic groups got the recognition they deserved at the time.

Also at the event was veteran Roma Taylor, who was born in Antigua in 1943. She moved to Cardiff when she was 15 and quickly became an integral part of the community. Her early life was marked by her dedication to nursing, leading to her joining Queen Alexandra Nursing Corps, serving the Queen and country for 25 years.

During her military career, Roma worked in various countries, including Germany, Belgium, and France, and when she retired, she continued to serve her community through various charitable and community initiatives. Roma founded the Windrush Cymru Elders group in 2017,with the support of Race Council Cymru.

Discussing what made her join the army, Roma said: "I used to take my daughters to tap and ballet dance lessons and one day when I was there, this young lady walked in in a uniform and I said; 'oo, what uniform is that?' and she said 'I'm in the territorial army' and I wanted to join instantly.

"She said if I wanted to join I could come with her at their next meeting that Wednesday, so I did. Went up, signed the papers and it was fabulous. I was a nurse, did my nurse's training, got married, had my family and loved it. I wish I could be there now but, age, you know."

She strongly believes that people from minority ethnic groups deserve more recognition for their contribution in the war, noting: "They gave their lives, and we must respect that. They gave their lives. And Patti Flynn strived for 26 years to get that memorial stone. So we've got to respect what they did and what she's done to give them more recognition."

Keabetswe Sekati -Credit:Richard Swingler Photography

Keabetswe Sekati is also a veteran from the army. Originally from south Africa, he came to the UK in 2006 when the army was recruiting. Keabetswe had always wanted to join as a child but never got the chance in south Africa, so when the opportunity came to join the British army he jumped at it.

He said: "As someone who is an ethnic minority person from south Africa, I do feel there's not much representation from people like myself highlighted as much. For instance, the SS Mendi ship which sank in World War I, there were so many people from south Africa coming to the UK who died to help out with the war at the time, and that story has barely been heard. So, as a south African recently hearing that story it seems like, although we have always done our best to help out, we have not really been represented as much."

Looking ahead and considering what more could be done outside of events like this one, Keabetswe said: "It is interviews like this which will help first of all. And I myself am trying to highlight the work of commonwealth soldiers. So I think conversations can play a vital role, because some people can cringe a little bit even when I'm trying to talk through their stories and over the past few years I've been trying to break that barrier as best I can.

"And what would be wonderful is if people can be more comfortable talking about Sikh communities, Muslim communities, Caribbean communities, African communities and all of these different communities which need to be recognised for the work they have put in."
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UK

RIP
Dr Paul Stephenson: Civil rights campaigner and leading figure of Bristol Bus Boycott dies

Sky News
Updated Sun 3 November 2024



British civil rights campaigner Dr Paul Stephenson, best known for being one of the leaders of the successful Bristol Bus Boycott, has died aged 87.

Dr Stephenson helped to rally thousands of people for the 60-day boycott in 1963 after the Bristol Omnibus Company refused to hire black or Asian drivers.

The success of the boycott contributed significantly to the creation of the first Race Relations Act in parliament two years later.


Dr Stephenson's family have said he died on Saturday evening after a battle with Parkinson's disease and dementia.

In a statement, they described him as "a true pioneer in the civil rights movement" who had been "tirelessly working to dismantle the barriers of discrimination".

A year after the boycott Dr Stephenson was arrested for refusing to leave a Bristol pub that wouldn't serve him due to his race.

The arrest became a national news story before the case was dismissed and the barman who refused to serve him was dismissed by his employer.

Dr Stephenson later moved to London, where he worked for the Commission for Racial Equality.

In 1974, he was serving as a governor at a school in Brixton when he managed to convince world boxing champion Muhammad Ali to visit and meet the pupils.

Speaking to Sky News about the visit in 2014, he said: "When Muhammad walked out from behind the curtains the school erupted, the roof nearly came off. I'd never seen anything like it."

He was made an OBE for his services to equal opportunities in 2009 and was awarded honorary doctorates at three UK universities.

The first black person to be granted the Freedom of the City of Bristol, Dr Stephenson also received a Pride of Britain award for lifetime achievement from Sir Lenny Henry in 2017.

His children, Fumi and Paul Jr, said: "Despite the demands of his work, dad's love and support for our family never wavered. He encouraged our independence and growth, always striving to ensure that we could forge our paths.

"Dad's unwavering commitment to improving the lives and experiences of people in our community was truly infectious. His tireless work and activism touched the lives of so many, both locally and on a broader national and global scale.

"Ultimately, our father's legacy extends far beyond the awards and accolades he received. It is embodied in the lives he touched, the barriers he broke down, and the generations he inspired to fight for a more just and equitable world."

Read more:
Meet the faces behind the UK's own 1963 civil rights movement

What happened during the Bristol bus boycott?

In the 1960s the Bristol Omnibus Company, run by the local council, refused to employ black people.

The company claimed white passengers would not want to ride on buses driven by black men.

At the time, no laws were in place preventing this and employers could not be prosecuted for discriminating on racist grounds.

In April 1963, Dr Stephenson and fellow activists Roy Hackett, Prince Brown, Owen Henry and Audley Evans organised the boycott and a series of demonstrations in the city.

Four months later, the bus company announced that it would lift the ban and allow black people to work on their buses.

A month later, Bristol had its first non-white bus conductors.

The bus boycott was a major victory and contributed to the Race Relations Act being introduced in 1965 by Labour leader Harold Wilson. It banned all discrimination in the workplace.
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Silicon solar panels are hitting their limit.

This UK lab is making perovskite the next big thing

Lottie Limb
Sun 3 November 2024 
EURONEWS

Silicon solar panels are hitting their limit. This UK lab is making perovskite the next big thing


Tucked away on the outskirts of Oxford, the solar R&D centre looks like any other drab industrial unit in the October sun.

But for green energy enthusiasts, Oxford PV’s lab is as exciting as Charlie’s Chocolate Factory.

Dozens of solar cells are dished out to scientists at the start of the day, who set to work experimenting: tweaking their composition, stress-testing them in climate chambers, and zooming in on microscopes to separate the good cells from the bad.

Their secret ingredient? Perovskite, a crystal structure that increases the efficiency of solar panels when overlaid on traditional silicon cells.

Oxford PV, which evolved out of a University of Oxford research project and has a factory near Berlin, is leading the way on perovskite-on-silicon tandem solar cell manufacturing.

Related

Will the British Library’s giant solar heat project inspire other public buildings to decarbonise?

It's in good company in the Oxford Pioneer Park, where experts are also hard at work on electric motors and nuclear fusion.

Oxford PV is now reaping the benefits of being ahead of the curve on perovskite, with broad intellectual property rights and a deal with a US utility company in the bag.
Perovskite-on-silicon: the next big solar breakthrough?

No one needs convincing that the future features a great deal of solar energy. As well as being better for the climate and energy security, solar and wind are now the cheapest ways to add electricity generation in almost every country.

But traditional silicon solar cells are bumping up against their efficiency limit of around 26 per cent sunlight converted into electrical energy.

“We’re in the middle of the last wave of solar dying, whether that be in Europe due to Chinese competition or in the US due to the failure of some of the new thin-film PV companies,” Oxford PV CEO David Ward tells Euronews Green.

There has been little to challenge the incumbent position of silicon in the last decade - which is often the minimum time that it takes for a new hard tech innovation to break through.

Founded in 2010, Oxford PV is only now seeing the commercial world wake up to the potential of perovskite-on-silicon, for which it achieved a world-record efficiency for a cell of 29.5 per cent in 2020.

Since then, there’s been what Ward describes as a “burgeoning” of companies in the perovskite silicon tandem space, who are mostly playing catch up.

“The tipping point is really quick, and it’s been true across the PV industry in all of the silicon generations,” adds Ward.


What is perovskite exactly and how does it work?

Perovskite refers to an organic mineral discovered in Russia in the 1800s, which was named after mineralogist Lev Perovski. It also describes this type of mineral’s crystal structure, which can contain various atoms.

Oxford PV’s perovskite is made by machines (keeping it cheap) and is a semiconductor material well-suited to harvesting sunlight, deputy chief technology officer Ed Crossland explains.

In a regular solar panel, silicon ingots are sliced into very thin wafers and spread out to cover the widest area. Metal contacts are then added that activate the silicon material. In total, around 60 cells are placed together to form the panel.


Perovskite-on-silicon solar cells at the laboratory in Oxfordshire. - Oxford PV

For the tandem cells, perovskite is coated on top as an even thinner layer (around 1 micron to a silicon wafer’s 150 microns), which effectively creates two cells in one. The perovskite is invisible to the naked eye, but absorbs a higher energy spectrum from the sun than silicon can take in.

By producing more power per panel, “perovskite-on-silicon is the next tech idea that takes solar above what silicon alone can do,” says Crossland. Where silicon has a theoretical efficiency limit of 29 per cent, the tandem cell could reach 43 per cent.

The extra cost of adding the perovskite layer is more than outweighed by the value of this additional energy, explains Ward, making it a “no-brainer” for commercial partners.

Related

How do solar railways work? Startup gets green light for pilot project in Switzerland
What can perovskite-on-silicon panels be used for?

A spectrum of customers have declared their interest in perovskite-on-solar panels - from homeowners to major utility companies.

In September 2024, Oxford PV shipped its panels to an undisclosed US utility company, in the world’s first commercial deployment of perovskite tandem solar tech.

The panels are being installed in the corner of a new solar field, and monitored so that the US business can compare its benefits.

As well as ‘core’ manufacturing for solar roofs and fields, Oxford PV’s factory in Brandenburg can make cells for more specialist applications like aviation.

Perovskite-on-silicon cells being produced at the Brandenburg factory. - Oxford PV

Solar panels enable UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) that are used for 5G, military surveillance and satellite mapping to work like “one large flying wing”, explains Ward.

With the wings limited by weight and size, the power that these new solar cells can provide is “absolutely strategic”.

Perovskite-on-silicon panels could enable UAVs to stay afloat for longer, or fly at a more northerly latitude where the sun is weaker.

Scientists in the Oxfordshire lab are constantly trialling new ideas and materials, before sending prototypes to Brandenburg to prove that they can be scaled up. However, only a fraction make it that far: “In a commercial facility you can’t be changing the recipes daily,” Ward adds.

The German factory is not yet a gigawatt facility, however, and Oxford PV is keen to collaborate with other firms to realise the full potential of perovskite for our swiftly electrifying world.

‘Having an ecosystem is awesome’: How solar tech companies are collaborating

Given the reach of its early patents, collaboration is a core pillar of Oxford PV’s plans.

“It’s quite hard to do a perovskite-on-silicon solar cell without having to go a long way out of your way to avoid the IP set that we have,” says Ward.

“We’re not trying to keep it all to ourselves, but we would like to be involved if people are using our intellectual property to come to market.” As well as licensing, the company offers valuable knowhow to get partners up to speed.

Most of the newer start-ups are concentrated in China and, supported by a strategic drive for PV, the US.

In Europe, existing energy or silicon companies are increasingly getting into perovskite tandems, such as Enel in Italy.

“Having an ecosystem is awesome,” says Ward. “The whole market deciding that that’s where you’re going is much easier than saying hey, we’re the only people in this, because the evangelising you have to do to the customer base and to investors is so much harder.”

The CEO is confident that it will be a while before a new innovation comes along that puts perovskite in the rearview mirror. And, with the COP28 target of tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030, companies need to be investing in technologies that exist today.

“For all the negative news about European manufacturing and European PV, we have a new facility doing new technologies in a way that’s just not the same as old solar in silicon. China has done a very good job of making solar cheap in their own scale and efforts,” says Ward. “But this is a new paradigm.”


Chinese solar firms, ever-nimble, go further afield where US tariffs don't reach

A general view of the Chinese solar panel manufacturer Trina Solar's facility in Thai Nguyen · Reuters

Sun, November 3, 2024 
By Lewis Jackson, Phuong Nguyen, Colleen Howe and Nichola Groom

(Reuters) - Some of the biggest Chinese-owned solar factories in Vietnam are cutting production and laying off workers, spurred on by the expansion of U.S. trade tariffs targeting it and three other Southeast Asian countries.

Meanwhile, in nearby Indonesia and Laos, a slew of new Chinese-owned solar plants are popping up, out of the reach of Washington's trade protections. Their planned capacity is enough to supply about half the panels installed in the U.S. last year, Reuters reporting shows.


Chinese solar firms have repeatedly shrunk output in existing hubs while building new factories in other countries, allowing them to sidestep tariffs and dominate the U.S. and global markets despite successive waves of U.S. tariffs over more than a decade designed to rein them in.

While Chinese firms have been moving their solar manufacturing for years, the scope of the shift to Indonesia and Laos in this latest phase has not previously been reported. More than a dozen people in five countries, including employees at Chinese plants, officials at non-Chinese solar companies and lawyers were interviewed for this article.

"It's a huge cat and mouse game," said William A. Reinsch, a former trade official in the Clinton administration and senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

"It's not that hard to move. You set up and you play the game again. The design of the rules is such that the U.S. is usually one step behind."

China accounts for about 80% of the world's solar shipments, while its export hubs elsewhere in Asia make up much of the rest, according to SPV Market Research. That's a sharp contrast to two decades ago when the U.S. was a global leader in the industry.


America's imports of solar supplies, meanwhile, have tripled since Washington began imposing its tariffs in 2012, hitting a record $15 billion last year, according to federal data. While almost none came directly from China in 2023, some 80% came from Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Cambodia – home to factories owned by Chinese firms.

Washington slapped tariffs on solar exports from those four Southeast Asia nations last year and expanded them in October following complaints from manufacturers in the United States.

Over the last 18 months, at least four Chinese or China-linked projects have begun operations in Indonesia and Laos, and another two have been announced. Together, the projects total 22.9 gigawatts (GW) in solar cell or panel capacity.


Much of that production will be sold in the United States, the world's second-biggest solar market after China and one of the most lucrative. U.S. prices have on average been 40% higher than those in China over the past four years, according to data from PVinsights.


U.S. solar producers have repeatedly stated in trade complaints lodged with the U.S. government that they can't compete with cheap Chinese products that they say are unfairly supported by subsidies from the Chinese government and the Asian countries they export from.

Chinese solar firms have countered that their mastery of the technology makes them more competitive on price.

Tariffs are a key theme in the U.S. election, with Republican former President Donald Trump proposing levies on all U.S. imports to stimulate U.S. manufacturing, including a 60% rate on any goods from China. His rival, Democrat Vice President Kamala Harris has said Trump's plan would raise costs for U.S. consumers.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, however, have shown support for tougher tariffs on China's solar shipments to nurture a domestic supply chain.

"Going forward, the American public should demand much stricter enforcement of tariffs, especially around (China's) use of third countries to break U.S. trade law," Republican Congressman John Moolenaar, Chairman of the House Select Committee on China, told Reuters.


The U.S. Department of Commerce, the White House and China's commerce ministry did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

PAIN IN VIETNAM

The most immediate visible impact of the latest U.S. tariffs, which have brought total duties to more than 300% for some producers, has been in Vietnam's solar sector.

In August, Reuters visited industrial parks in northern Vietnam owned by Chinese-owned companies including Longi and Trina Solar, and spoke with workers.

In Bac Giang province, hundreds of workers at a large factory complex owned by Longi Green Energy Technology's Vinasolar unit lost their jobs this year, two employees with knowledge of the matter said.

The company was using just one of nine production lines in the industrial park, one of them said.

In Thai Nguyen, another province, Trina Solar has idled one of its two factories making solar cells and panels, two employees there said.

The employees at both companies declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue.


Longi did not respond to Reuters requests for comment. It said in June it had suspended output at a Vietnamese solar cell plant but did not provide details. Trina declined to comment. It said in June that some facilities in Vietnam and Thailand would be shut down for maintenance without elaborating.

While U.S. solar import data shows shipments from Vietnam up almost 74% through August, industry analysts have attributed the jump to the frontloading of exports to get ahead of this year's U.S. tariffs.

Vietnam's government did not respond to requests for comment.

NEW EXPORT BASES, US PLANTS

Chinese solar companies are flocking to Indonesia motivated by the tariffs on Vietnam, according to Indonesian industry ministry official Beny Adi Purwanto who cited Thornova Solar as an example. Thornova says on its website its Indonesian plant has annual capacity to build 2.5 GW of solar modules and 2.5 GW of solar cells for the North American market.

A new 1 GW Trina module and cell plant will be fully operational by end 2024 and will expand capacity, according to Beny. He noted China Lesso Group's solar module plant which has 2.4 GW in production capacity.


China-linked New East Solar also announced a 3.5 GW panel and cell plant in Indonesia last year.

The Chinese companies did not respond to Reuters requests for comment.

The shift to Indonesian production has been sharp and swift, according to one manager at a U.S. solar firm who was told by their Chinese supplier in Indonesia that they're inundated with big orders from major Chinese firms looking to export to the United States.

"The scale is totally different," said the manager who declined to be identified.

Solar exports from Indonesia to the U.S. nearly doubled to $246 million through August of 2024, according to federal data.

Solar companies seeking greener pastures in Laos include Imperial Star Solar. The firm, which has Chinese roots but most of its production in Cambodia, opened a Laos wafer plant in March slated to eventually have 4 GW in capacity.

The move, it said in a statement at the time, helped it sidestep U.S. tariffs.

SolarSpace also opened a 5 GW solar cell plant in Laos in September 2023. The primary purpose of transferring production capacity to Laos was not related to U.S. tariffs, the company said in a statement to Reuters but did not elaborate.


Solar exports from Laos to the U.S. were non-existent in the first eight months of last year but were worth some $48 million through August of 2024.

Others are going further afield.

JinkoSolar said in July it had signed an almost $1 billion deal with partners in Saudi Arabia to build a new 10 GW solar cell and module plant in the kingdom.

Construction of U.S. solar-manufacturing plants by Chinese companies is also surging as they too seek to take advantage of U.S. incentives.

Chinese companies will have at least 20 GW worth of annual solar panel production capacity on U.S. soil within the next year, enough to serve about half the U.S. market, according to a Reuters analysis.

(Reporting by Lewis Jackson in Sydney, Phuong Nguyen in Hanoi, Colleen Howe in Beijing and Nichola Groom in Los Angeles; Additional reporting by Stefanno Sulaiman in Jakarta, Francesco Guarascio and Khanh Vu in Hanoi, David Kirton in Shenzhen and Alexandra Alper in Washington; Editing by Richard Valdmanis and Edwina Gibbs)



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SPACE/COSMOS

Spacecraft could be fuelled by space junk collected in orbit

Sarah Knapton
Sun 3 November 2024 

Magdrive, a British tech company, believes that its innovation could help clean up Earth’s congested orbit, as well as creating a cutting-edge engine - @SpaceWatchGL/X.com


Spacecraft could soon be powered by space junk collected in orbit with a new engine that runs on scrap metal.

British tech startup Magdrive is developing a groundbreaking propulsion system which turns aluminium or copper into plasma to create thrust.

With an estimated 10,000 tonnes of debris floating in space, the company believes that the innovation could help clean up Earth’s congested orbit, as well as creating a cutting-edge engine.


It could even lead to satellites being able to cannibalise the casings that protect them during launch and recycle them as fuel after they have left the atmosphere.

Mark Stokes, chief executive of Magdrive, said: “There were no dinosaurs in space, so there is no chemical fuel, which means everyone has to bring their own propellant from Earth.

“It’s like building a new train every time you leave the station. So if you want to start building huge structures in space, or habitats for human beings, you need to find something different than existing propulsion. So we took a whole new approach.”

The innovation could enable satellites to cannibalise the casings that protect them during launch and recycle them as fuel

The new system works by feeding a small chunk of metal into a plasma injector where it is ionised using stored power from solar panels and turned into super hot, dense plasma. The plasma can then be shot out in gas form as a stream of bullets to produce thrust.

Currently companies working in space are limited by how much fuel they can carry from Earth, meaning they can only use their powerful thrusters sparingly.

Although solar-powered systems exist for long-term missions - generating thrust by shooting out particles of ionising gas - these produce very little force and are not good at quick, precise manoeuvring.

Magdrive believes that its plasma drive will have both power and longevity, and be able to be refuelled in space by companies collecting space junk or mining asteroids. It could allow satellites and other spacecraft to last three times as long.

Mr Stokes added: “Being able to alter the amount of power we put into the metal means we can tune it completely on the fly, and anyone can use a single propulsion system to do all these manoeuvres in space.

“We can use any solid metal. The initial thing is having to process the space metal, and commercial companies are looking at how exactly they do that, and we are talking to them early so we can get it in the form we want.”

Some 400,000 satellites have been approved globally for low Earth orbit, with Elon Musk’s SpaceX alone poised to launch another 44,000 for its Starlink internet constellation.

Experts have predicted that once all the planned internet constellations are operational there will be around 16,000 decaying satellites at any one time that will need to come out of orbit.

Not only are the dead satellites clogging up valuable orbit space but they risk setting off a major disaster. If one hits another, it could trigger a phenomenon known as the Kessler Effect, where debris from the collision creates a multiplying chain reaction of crashes.

Dead satellites in Earth orbit risk setting off a major disaster in space

Mr Stokes added: “Space is getting very congested and by the end of the decade satellites may need to make weekly manoeuvres to avoid hitting each other.

“That will mean chemical fuel systems will get used up very quickly and electrical systems don’t get you out of the way consistently.”

Speaking of the possibility of satellites using their own outer casings as fuel, he added: “80 per cent of the mass of a satellite is there to survive the launch and once it’s in place it doesn’t need all of that.

“That is perfect feed for the Magdrive so we’re also looking into developing self-eating ouroboric satellites.”
Size of a dishwasher

Magdrive, which was founded in 2019 and is based at the Harwell innovation and science campus, in Oxfordshire, has already raised more than £5 million in investment and grants, including funding from the UK Space Agency.

The company is set to begin in-space tests of its first small propulsion systems - named Rogue and Warlock - next year, before scaling up to the SuperMagDrive in 2027, which will be the size of a dishwasher.

As well as domestic satellites, spacecraft and constellations, the team also hope the technology will be useful for military purposes. Currently ground bases stations can track military satellites, but the Magdrive would allow satellites to make small trajectory adjustments to confuse the trackers.

The company is currently in talks with UK Space Command and US Space Force about the technology.


SpaceX wants to test refueling Starships in space early next year

TechCrunch · Image Credits:SpaceX

Aria Alamalhodaei
Fri, November 1, 2024 


SpaceX will attempt to transfer propellant from one orbiting Starship to another as early as next March, a technical milestone that will pave the way for an uncrewed landing demonstration of a Starship on the moon, a NASA official said this week.

Much has been made of Starship’s potential to transform the commercial space industry, but NASA is also hanging its hopes that the vehicle will return humans to the moon under the Artemis program. The space agency awarded the company a $4.05 billion contract for two human-rated Starship vehicles, with the upper stage (also called Starship) landing astronauts on the surface of the moon for the first time since the Apollo era. The crewed landing is currently scheduled for September 2026.


Kent Chojnacki, deputy manager of NASA's Human Landing System (HLS) program, provided more detail on exactly how the agency is working with the space company as it looks toward that critical mission in an interview with Spaceflight Now. It will come as no surprise that NASA is paying close attention to Starship’s test campaign, which has notched five launches so far.

SpaceX made history during the most recent test on October 13 when it caught the Super Heavy rocket booster mid-air using “chopsticks” attached to the launch tower for the first time.

“We learn a lot each time [a launch] happens,” Chojnacki said.

Chojnacki’s work history includes numerous roles in the Space Launch System (SLS) program, which oversees the development of a massive rocket of the same name that is being built by a handful of traditional aerospace primes. The first SLS rocket launched the Artemis I mission in December 2023, and future rockets will launch the subsequent missions under the Artemis program. No part of the rocket is reusable, however, so NASA is spending upwards of $2 billion on each launch vehicle.


The first contracts for the SLS program were awarded over a decade ago under what’s known as a “cost-plus” model, which means that NASA pays a base amount plus expenses. (This type of contract has been stringently criticized for incentivizing long development timelines and high expenses.) In contrast, HLS contracts are “fixed-price” — so SpaceX receives a one-time $2.99 billion payment provided it meets certain milestones.

Chojnacki said NASA has taken very different approaches to the HLS versus SLS program, even beyond the contracting model.

“SLS was a very traditional NASA program. NASA laid out a very strict set of requirements and dictated propellant inventory, dictated all the things to the various elements. They flowed down. They were cost-plus programs where the aerospace companies would respond, and we would work in a very traditional manner,” he said. “Moving to HLS, we're doing a lot of moving parts at one time. On SpaceX's contract right now, for their initial landing, there are 27 system requirements. Twenty-seven, and we kept it as loose as possible.”


Under SpaceX’s contract, they must meet mandatory design reviews, but SpaceX can also propose additional milestones for payment. One requirement that SpaceX requested is the ship-to-ship propellant transfer demonstration. Those tests are set to begin around March 2025, with testing concluding in the summer, Chojnacki said.

“That would be the first time that's demonstrated on this scale, so that is a big building block. And once you've done that, you've really cracked open the opportunity to move massive amounts of payload and cargo outside of the Earth’s sphere. If you can have a Starship with propellant aggregation, that's going to be the next step to doing an uncrewed demonstration.”

In addition to the testing, the next major review of Starship will be the Critical Design Review (CDR) in Summer 2025, which is when NASA certifies that the company met all 27 of those system requirements. Chojnacki said NASA astronauts also meet with SpaceX once a month to provide input on Starship’s interior. The company is building mockups of the crew cabin, including the sleeping quarters and laboratory, at Boca Chica. NASA anticipates getting a design update this month before looking at it during the CDR next year.

That isn’t the only place where NASA has offered its input: It also offered input on some aspects of the rocket design, like the vehicle’s cryogenic components, as well as conducting some testing on the thermal tiles that help keep the cryogenic fuels cold.

If all goes to plan, SpaceX will land astronauts on the moon in September 2026.

“That is definitively the date we're working towards. We don't have any known road blocks. We do have some first-time things that have to be demonstrated, and we have a plan in place to go demonstrate those.
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DRONE WAR

Russia attacked Ukraine with more than 2,000 drones in October, Kyiv says

Reuters
Fri, November 1, 2024 

Aftermath of a Russian drone strike in Kyiv

KYIV (Reuters) - Russia launched more than 2,000 attack drones at civilian and military targets across Ukraine last month, Kyiv's military said on Friday, as Kremlin forces press a grinding offensive on the front line of their February 2022 invasion.

Moscow has carried out regular air strikes on Ukrainian towns and cities, with the capital Kyiv coming under attack 20 times in October alone, according to city officials.

Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement it had intercepted 1,185 of the 2,023 drones launched last month and that another 738 were "locationally lost".

"In total, since the beginning of 2024, the enemy has launched 6,987 attack UAVs on the territory of Ukraine. Enemy drones mostly targeted civilian and critical infrastructure," it said.

Ukraine said on Friday it had destroyed 31 drones and one missile in Russia's latest overnight strike, which damaged residential buildings in at least two regions and a fire station in the southern Odesa region.

Russia has denied aiming at civilians and said power facilities are legitimate targets when they are part of Ukrainian military infrastructure.

Ukraine is girding for another season of power cuts amid the threat of new Russian attacks on the country's energy system, which had already been weakened by a series of strikes earlier this year.

(Reporting by Dan Peleschuk; Editing by Angus MacSwan)


Russia targets Kyiv in hours-long drone attack

Reuters
Updated Sat, November 2, 2024 

Russian drone strike in Kyiv

Russian drone strike in Kyiv

Russian drone strike in Kyiv

Russian drone strike in Kyiv

Aftermath of a Russian drone attack in Kyiv

KYIV (Reuters) -Russia unleashed its latest overnight drone strike on Ukraine, targeting the capital Kyiv in an attack that lasted into midday and wounded at least one person, city officials said on Saturday.

Debris from downed drones struck six city districts, wounding a police officer, damaging residential buildings and starting fires, according to city military administrator Serhiy Popko.

"Another night. Another air-raid alert. Another drone attack. The armed forces of the Russian Federation attacked Kyiv again according to their old and familiar tactics," Popko wrote on social media.

All the drones aimed at Kyiv had been shot down, he said.

Ukrainian energy provider DTEK said a high-voltage line powering the capital and two distribution networks in the Kyiv region had been damaged.

DTEK said in a statement that electricity had mostly been restored and that repairs were underway.

Reuters correspondents reported hearing explosions in and around the city during an air-raid alert that lasted more than five hours. One drone was seen flying low over the city amid the din of automatic-weapons fire.

Ukraine's military reported on Saturday that air defences had destroyed 39 out of 71 Russian drones that had been launched, and that another 21 had been "locationally lost".

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said strikes were also reported in the central Poltava and northeastern Sumy and Kharkiv regions.

"This year, we have faced the threat of 'Shahed' drones almost every night — sometimes in the morning, and even during the day," he wrote on social media, referring to the Iranian-made attack drones used by Russia.

Russian forces have carried out regular airstrikes on Ukrainian towns and cities behind the front lines of the war which began when Russia invaded its neighbour in February 2022.

Kyiv's military said on Friday that Moscow's forces had launched more than 2,000 drones at civilian and military targets across Ukraine in October alone.

Russia has denied aiming at civilians and said power facilities are legitimate targets when they are part of Ukrainian military infrastructure.

(Reporting by Dan Peleschuk; Additional reporting by Gleb Garanich and Pavel Polityuk; Editing by Angus MacSwan)


People injured in hours-long Russian drone attack on Kyiv

Reuters Videos
Updated Sat, November 2, 2024 


STORY: :: Russia unleashes an overnight

drone attack on Ukraine's capital

:: Kyiv, Ukraine

:: November 2, 2024

:: Injuries were reported after downed drones struck

a number of city districts, according to an official

Debris from downed drones struck six city districts, wounding a police officer, damaging residential buildings and starting fires, according to city military administrator Serhiy Popko.

"Another night. Another air-raid alert. Another drone attack. The armed forces of the Russian Federation attacked Kyiv again according to their old and familiar tactics," Popko wrote on social media.

All the drones aimed at Kyiv had been shot down, he said.


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 WWIII

Ukraine's Zelenskyy urges allies to act before North Korean troops reach the front

Associated Press
Updated Sat, November 2, 2024 

In this photo provided by Ukraine's 24th Mechanised Brigade press service, a serviceman of the 24th Mechanised Brigade installs landmines and non explosive obstacles along the front line near Chasiv Yar town in Donetsk region, Ukraine, Wednesday Oct. 30, 2024. (Oleg Petrasiuk/Ukrainian 24th Mechanised Brigade via AP)

In this image made from video released by the Russian Defense Ministry on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, Russian soldiers attend combat training for assault units at an undisclosed location in Ukraine. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

In this image made from video released by the Russian Defense Ministry on Thursday, Oct. 31, 2024, Russian snipers fire towards Ukrainian forces from an undisclosed location. (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP)

In this photo provided by Ukraine's 24th Mechanised Brigade press service, servicemen of the 24th Mechanised Brigade install anti-tank landmines and non explosive obstacles along the front line near Chasiv Yar town in Donetsk region, Ukraine, Wednesday Oct. 30, 2024. (Oleg Petrasiuk/Ukrainian 24th Mechanised Brigade )

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged its allies to stop “watching” and take steps before North Korean troops deployed in Russia reach the battlefield, and the country's army chief warned that his troops are facing “one of the most powerful offensives” by Moscow since the all-out war started more than two years ago.

Zelenskyy raised the prospect of a preemptive Ukrainian strike on camps where the North Korean troops are being trained and said Kyiv knows their location. But he said Ukraine can’t do it without permission from allies to use Western-made long-range weapons to hit targets deep inside Russia.

“But instead … America is watching, Britain is watching, Germany is watching. Everyone is just waiting for the North Korean military to start attacking Ukrainians as well,” Zelenskyy said in a post late Friday on the Telegram messaging app.

The Biden administration said Thursday that some 8,000 North Korean soldiers are now in Russia’s Kursk region near Ukraine’s border and are preparing to help the Kremlin fight against Ukrainian troops in the coming days.

On Saturday, Ukraine's military intelligence said that more than 7,000 North Koreans equipped with Russian gear and weapons had been transported to areas near Ukraine. The agency, known by its acronym GUR, said that North Korean troops were being trained at five locations in Russia's Far East. It did not specify its source of information.

Western leaders have described the North Korean troop deployment as a significant escalation that could also jolt relations in the Indo-Pacific region, and open the door to technology transfers from Moscow to Pyongyang that could advance the threat posed by North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile program.

North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui met with her Russian counterpart in Moscow on Friday.

Ukrainian leaders have repeatedly said they need permission to use Western weapons to strike arms depots, airfields and military bases far from the border to motivate Russia to seek peace. In response, U.S. defense officials have argued that the missiles are limited in number, and that Ukraine is already using its own long-range drones to hit targets farther into Russia.

Moscow has also consistently signaled that it would view any such strikes as a major escalation. President Vladimir Putin warned on Sept. 12 that Russia would be “at war” with the U.S. and NATO states if they approve them.

Ukraine facing “one of most powerful” Russian offensives since war began

Zelenskyy's call came shortly before Ukraine's top commander, Gen. Oleksandr Syrskiy, said on Saturday that his troops are struggling to stem “one of the most powerful offensives” by Russia since its all-out invasion of its southern neighbor in February 2022.

Writing on Telegram following a call with a top Czech military official, Syrskyi hinted that Ukrainian units are taking heavy losses in the fighting, which he said “require constant renewal of resources.”

While Syrskyi did not specify where the heavy fighting took place, Russia has for months been conducting a ferocious campaign along the eastern front in Ukraine, gradually compelling Kyiv to surrender ground. But Moscow has struggled to push Ukrainian forces out of its Kursk border region following an incursion almost three months ago.

Dozens injured in Russian strikes on Ukraine

Russian missiles hit Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv overnight into Saturday, killing a policeman and injuring dozens, local Gov. Oleh Syniehubov reported. According to Syniehubov and Ukraine’s national police force, one missile slammed into a spot where a large group of police were gathered, killing a 40-year-old serviceman and injuring 36 more.

In Ukraine’s southern Kherson province, Russian shelling on Saturday killed a 40-year-old woman and wounded three others, including two children, local Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin reported. Another Kherson resident was wounded in a drone attack later that day, according to local Ukrainian authorities.

Five more civilians, including two children, were injured after Russia struck Ukraine’s central Dnipropetrovsk region, Gov. Serhii Lysak said.

In Kyiv, air raid sirens wailed for over five hours early Saturday morning as Russian drones rained on the capital, sparking a fire in an office block downtown and injuring two people, according to the city’s military administration.

Overall, Russian forces overnight attacked Ukraine with over 70 Iranian-made Shahed drones, the Ukrainian air force reported Saturday. It said most were shot down or sent off-course using GPS jamming. Falling debris damaged power networks and residential buildings in multiple provinces and injured an elderly woman near Kyiv, officials said.

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry hinted that Russia’s drone campaign was slowing down, saying Moscow launched just over half as many in October as the month before.

Meanwhile, Russia’s defense ministry reported that its forces overnight shot down 24 Ukrainian drones over four Russian regions and occupied Crimea. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

In a separate development, four civilians were injured following a Ukrainian strike in Russia’s southern Kursk region, its Gov. Aleksei Smirnov said, without specifying what weapon was used. Moscow is still trying to dislodge Ukrainian forces from the province, months after they staged a bold assault that rattled the Kremlin and constituted the largest attack on Russia since World War II.


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 In Ukraine, hopes of war breakthrough slim whoever wins US election


Anastasiia Malenko and Tom Balmforth
Fri, November 1, 2024 


FILE PHOTO: Aftermath of a Russian air strike in Kharkiv

By Anastasiia Malenko and Tom Balmforth

KYIV (Reuters) - For many Ukrainians, the outcome of the U.S. election next week and its impact on the war with Russia feels less likely to be pivotal than it once did.

Even with the Democrats' unprecedented military and financial aid, battlefield losses have accelerated in the east and Ukraine has grown impatient with President Joe Biden's reluctance to let it unleash Western weapons on targets deep inside Russia.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, meanwhile, has criticised the level of U.S. support for Kyiv, refused to say he wants Ukraine to win the war and promised, if elected, to end the conflict before he takes office in January, without explaining how.

That has led some ordinary Ukrainians and officials to be less categorical about who they want to win the White House - Trump or Democratic contender Kamala Harris.

"If Harris wins, it will be a continuation of the sham assistance to Ukraine, which means that they will talk and do nothing," said Viktor Tupilka, 70, a former coal miner from the eastern region of Donetsk.

"If Trump wins, he will most likely push for an end to the war and give away a share of Ukraine's territory," Tupilka added, speaking in Kyiv.


"In either case, Ukraine loses (something). All our hopes are not to look at the election, but to think about how to provide for ourselves both through internal resources and otherwise."

The United States has given Ukraine tens of billions of dollars in military and financial assistance - more than any other ally - since Russia launched its full-scale war on Ukraine in February 2022.

That assistance has provided Ukraine with a lifeline for its much smaller army, but President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said throughout the conflict that U.S. and Western support has been too little, too late to turn the tide in Ukraine's favour.

A senior European diplomat based in Kyiv said Ukrainian officials were less worried about a Trump victory than some might expect, in part because Ukraine was losing territory even with the military and economic support it receives.

"At least Trump might shake things up a bit," the diplomat told Reuters.

Trump's stated intention to try to force an end to the war in Ukraine before taking office would almost certainly require Washington to say or give something to Kyiv that is threatening to Russia, the diplomat added.

But the uncertainty over what Trump would do to try to end the war is causing considerable unease.

Volodymyr Fesenko, a Kyiv-based political analyst, said that while Trump could increase aid to Ukraine and use economic leverage to force Russia to the negotiating table, he could also threaten to cut off aid to Ukraine.

"The main problem is that Trump promises to initiate negotiations on ending the war in Ukraine immediately after his victory, but we do not know on what terms," Fesenko said.

COURTING BOTH CAMPS

Zelenskiy and his government have been careful to avoid publicly siding with one candidate over the other, wary of alienating the eventual winner. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on Thursday Ukraine was confident of continued U.S. support regardless of who wins the election.

Following a visit to the U.S. in September, during which he met Harris and Trump, Zelenskiy said the Nov. 5 election would be likely to have an impact on Russia's readiness for negotiations even before the winning candidate assumed office.

"The United States will demonstrate the policy very quickly, after the elections, in my opinion. And from this information that I have received from the candidates, this is a positive from my meetings with them," he said.

Moscow says it wants peace, but has set conditions Kyiv regards as unacceptable. Zelenskiy has also underlined the need for a fair resolution to the war and talked of a summit later this year that could include a representative from Moscow.

Fesenko saw promises of continued support from Harris' camp as good news for Ukraine, but warned that were she to win the election the future shape of U.S. support was unclear.

"Almost no one doubts that she will continue Biden's policy of supporting Ukraine, but will this policy be more decisive or will Kamala Harris, for example, also be inclined to initiate negotiations to end the war?"

In addition to pushing for permission to use Western missiles against targets inside Russia, Ukrainian officials have publicly pointed to problems with prompt delivery of approved American aid and urged allies to deliver more air defences.

Vitaliy Novak, 53, a commercial director in the media industry, felt the significance of the outcome of the U.S. election was more clear-cut than some other Ukrainians.

"Our future depends on what happens on Nov. 5, no more, no less," he said. "This will be a pivotal moment in how events unfold - whether they will continue along the same path or we will see radical change."

But amid the debate, many Ukrainians agree it is hard to see a quick fix to the war after territorial losses in the past year, heavy military and civilian casualties, and relentless Russian attacks on energy infrastructure before winter.

"On the one hand, a horrible end is better than a horror without an end," said 20-year-old Hlib Astahov, referring to Trump's promise of a swift end to hostilities.

"On the other hand, I would not want this ongoing war - with so much effort and the lives of the best of us already spent - to simply end in some kind of fudged peace because of our Western partners."

(Tom Balmforth reported from London; additional reporting by Olena Harmash; Editing by Mike Collett-White and Timothy Heritage)
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