Section: The Gulf Today (United Arab Emirates)
Russia puts Ukraine film director on trial for ‘terror’
MOSCOW: A Ukrainian film director went on trial on terror charges in southern Russia on Tuesday, after Moscow held him for more than a year in a case decried by Kiev, rights groups and prominent film directors across the globe. Oleg Sentsov flicked a victory sign at several dozen supporters and reporters as he filed into the defendant cage in a...
Three killed, hospital shelled in east Ukraine
KIEV: Two civilians and a soldier have been killed in the latest fighting in eastern Ukraine, pro-Russian rebels and the government said on Sunday, with Kiev warning of a “deteriorating” situation in the rebel-held city of Donetsk. A man was killed during shelling Saturday night in Donetsk and a female doctor was injured when a shell hit the...
Putin orders new military reserve force formation
MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered the creation of a new reserve armed force as part of steps to improve training and military readiness at a time of international tensions with the West over Ukraine. The new reserve force has been discussed for several years and was first ordered by Putin in 2012 shortly after his re-election...
Ukraine points finger at Russia as families mark downing of MH17
HRABOVE: Ukraine’s president accused Russia’s military on Friday of ordering the missile strike that brought down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 one year ago, as relatives gathered from the Netherlands to Australia to remember the 298 passengers and crew. “MH17, where 298 victims were killed for no reason, was shot down by a Russian...
Russia, US agree fishing ban in Arctic
OSLO: The United States, Russia and other Arctic nations signed an agreement on Thursday to bar their fishing fleets from fast-thawing seas around the North Pole, an agreement delayed more than a year by tensions over Ukraine. The accord, also signed in Oslo by the ambassadors of Canada, Norway and Denmark, is a response to global warming, which...
Ukraine passes draft bill on autonomy
KIEV: Ukraine’s parliament took the first step on Thursday towards granting temporary self-rule to pro-Russian rebels under a change to the constitution the West hopes can end one of Europe’s deadliest wars in recent years. The divisive issue came to the floor on the day lawmakers also vote on belt-tightening measures needed for the...
8 soldiers killed in eastern Ukraine
KIEV: Eight Ukrainian troops have been killed and 16 wounded in the war-torn east as pro-Russian rebels launched one of their fiercest attacks since the signing of a shaky ceasefire deal, Kiev security officials said on Wednesday. “Over the past day there was one of the most intense bombardments of Ukrainian territory since the signing of the...
Dutch remember MH17 victims
NETHERLANDS: Dutch flags will fly at half-mast on Friday as families remember those killed when flight MH17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine a year ago, with all efforts now focused on catching those responsible. Around 2,000 grieving relatives are expected at a private ceremony in the central Netherlands, with Prime Minister Mark Rutte and...
Poroshenko faces new crisis in western Ukraine
KIEV: President Petro Poroshenko confronted a fresh crisis on Monday as a deadly stand-off continued between interior ministry units and armed Ukrainian ultra nationalists in a western enclave near Hungary. The EU-backed leader planned to convene his “military cabinet” of top generals Monday to try and diffuse tensions between two forces vital to...
Two soldiers killed in fresh Ukraine clashes
KIEV: Two soldiers have been killed in fighting in eastern Ukraine, a Kiev military spokesman said on Sunday, reporting heavy shelling by separatist forces despite a four-month truce. “We have lost two soldiers in fighting and acts of provocation, five have been wounded,” Ukraine army spokesman Andriy Lysenko told reporters. He accused rebels of...
