Ukrainian air strikes have damaged a key hub for Russia's intercontinental ballistic missiles over the past month, officials say, damaging a hangar and other infrastructure. On Feb. 8, the General Staff released further details, confirming damage to a technical facility used for servicing medium-range ballistic missiles, an assembly building, and a logistics warehouse. Kapustin Yar is a Soviet-built airfield that has long served as hub for Russia's ballistic missile program. The Oreshnik is a much-ballyhooed intermediate-range ballistic missile that seems to be a modification of the surface-to-surface Rubezh missile, itself a modification of various ballistic weapons designed by the Soviet Union. It remains a largely experimental weapon, with Russia's stockpiles the subject of much speculation, though certainly limited. Russia's rare deployments of Oreshniks typically accentuate political statements. British intelligence referred to the Lviv strike as retaliation for alleged Ukrainian attacks on Russian President Vladimir Putin's residence, and that Russia "highly likely only has a handful of Oreshnik missiles." Fire Point has also been a major recipient of funding from European benefactors, and is currently trying to kick off production of its own rocket fuel at a plant in Denmark. Evidence of successful strikes have been relatively scarce, however, leaving manufacturer Fire Point under persistent scrutiny. Based in Kyiv, he covers weapons production and defense tech. Originally from western Michigan, he speaks Russian and Ukrainian. His work has appeared in Radio Free Europe, Fortune, Breaking Defense, the Cipher Brief, the Foreign Policy Research Institute, FT's Sifted, and Science Magazine. Explosions were heard in Kyiv around 5:30 p.m. local time on Feb. 8 amid a ballistic missile threat, The Kyiv Independent's journalists on the ground reported. Zelensky also announced the upcoming production of Ukrainian drones in Germany. “We don't know what happened with that particular general — maybe it was their own internal Russian infighting,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said. Ukraine's energy system remains under severe strain, and nuclear plants are still partially discharged as of Feb. 8 following Russia's mass attack on Ukraine's power grid overnight on Feb. 7. In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, the Kyiv Independent's Anna Belokur examines SpaceX's move to curb Russia's illegal use of Starlink satellite internet — a technology that has been vital to Ukraine's defense since 2022. Russian forces launched 101 drones at Ukrainian cities overnight, according to Ukraine's Air Force. "The Armed Forces of Ukraine attacked our region using long-range Neptune missiles and HIMARS multiple rocket launcher systems," Bryansk Oblast Governor Alexander Bogomaz claimed. "As a result of the attack, power supply was disrupted in seven municipalities." Blackouts and heating outages were reported in the Russian city of Belgorod on Feb. 7 after alleged attacks on a local thermal power plant and electrical substation. "This is a level of attack that no terrorist in the world has ever dared," President Volodymyr Zelensky said the following evening. The controversy erupted after promotional photos appeared on social media showing models styled as schoolgirls in a classroom setting, wearing outfits widely perceived as sexualized versions of high school uniforms. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban criticized Ukraine for calling on the EU halt imports of cheap Russian energy. Millions read the Kyiv Independent, but only one in 1,000 supports us financially. One membership might not seem like much, but to us, it makes a real difference. If you value our reporting, consider becoming a member — your support makes us stronger.

Valeria Chomsky says Epstein had deceived them and they were ‘careless' not to thoroughly research his background Noam Chomsky and his wife, Valeria, made a “grave mistake” and were “careless” not to thoroughly research the background of Jeffrey Epstein, Valeria Chomsky said in a lengthy statement on Saturday, adding also that Epstein had deceived them. “What the vultures dearly want is a public response, which then provides a public opening for an onslaught of venomous attacks, many from just publicity seekers or cranks of all sorts,” Noam Chomsky wrote in the message. Noam Chomsky is one of several prominent people who were revealed to be in friendly communication with Epstein even after his 2008 guilty plea. Many now face renewed scrutiny over their ties to the disgraced financier. Some of Noam Chomsky's communications with Epstein took place after the Miami Herald published a bombshell story in 2018 detailing how Epstein preyed on underage girls and received an unusually lenient plea deal in 2008. “We were careless in not thoroughly researching his background. “It was deeply disturbing for both of us to realize we had engaged with someone who presented as a helpful friend but led a hidden life of criminal, inhumane, and perverted acts.” Valeria Chomsky is the linguist's second wife; they married in 2014. She said Chomsky's 2019 advice to Epstein on rehabilitating his image should be understood “in context”. “Epstein had claimed to Noam that he [Epstein] was being unfairly persecuted, and Noam spoke from his own experience in political controversies with the media. “It is now clear that it was all orchestrated, having as, at least, one of Epstein's intentions to try to have someone like Noam repairing Epstein's reputation by association. “Noam's criticism was never directed at the women's movement; on the contrary, he has always supported gender equity and women's rights. What happened was that Epstein took advantage of Noam's public criticism towards what came to be known as ‘cancelling culture' to present himself as a victim of it,” she added. Another message from Noam Chomsky released by the House oversight committee last year showed Chomsky saying it was a “most valuable experience” to have “regular contact” with Epstein (it's unclear if the message was ever sent to anyone). Other messages released by the justice department show Epstein sharing a phallic joke with Chomsky, and Chomsky “fantasizing about the Caribbean island”. Valeria Chomsky said that the couple attended dinners at Epstein's townhouse in New York City, stayed at his apartments there and in Paris, had dinner at his ranch in New Mexico, and attended multiple academic gatherings with him. She said they “never went to his island or knew about anything that happened there”. She said Epstein presented himself as a philanthropist interested in science. “By presenting himself this way, Epstein gained Noam's attention, and they began corresponding. Epstein acted solely as a financial advisor for this specific matter. To the best of my knowledge, Epstein never had access to our bank or investment accounts.” She said neither of them – individually or as a couple – had investments with Epstein's office.

Jeff Bezos's axing of more than 300 jobs at the storied newspaper has renewed fears about the resilience of America's democracy to withstand Trump's attacks It came at a tough time for the reporter: Russia had been repeatedly striking the country's power grid, and just days before she had been forced to work out of her car without heat, power or running water, writing in pencil because pen ink freezes too readily. The body text said: “Your position is eliminated as part of today's organizational changes,” explaining that it was necessary to get rid of her to meet the “evolving needs of our business”. Johnson's response may go down in the annals of American media history. The Washington Post's Ukraine correspondent may have been rendered speechless over Wednesday's move by Jeff Bezos, the Amazon billionaire and Post owner, to cut more than 300 newsroom jobs. The bloodletting, which has raised renewed fears about the resilience of America's democracy to withstand Donald Trump's attacks, swept away the paper's entire sports department, much of its culture and local staff and all of its journalists in such arid news zones as Ukraine and the Middle East. “I am crushed,” was the lament of Bob Woodward, one-half of the paper's double act with Carl Bernstein that exposed Watergate. Not one to mince his words, Baron castigated Bezos for his “sickening efforts to curry favor with President Trump”, saying it left an especially “ugly stain” on the paper's standing. Several hundred people rallied in front of the Post's offices on Thursday, voicing support for their laid-off colleagues. They don't seem to give a damn about this institution and the people that make it run,” said Patrick Nielsen, an engineer at the paper. Howls of dismay were also uttered by prominent Post alumni in interviews with the Guardian. Robert McCartney, a 39-year veteran of the Post until he retired five years ago, said it was a “tragedy and an outrage”. Like many Post insiders, McCartney has been astonished by the stark contrast between Bezos's handling of the newspaper during Donald Trump's first term in office and his conduct now in Trump 2.0. McCartney was a senior journalist on the paper during Bezos's initial eight years of ownership, through Trump's first presidency. Back then, he, like many others, was grateful for Bezos's tutelage. Fast-forward to 2026, and a very different Bezos has emerged. That wording still runs proudly beneath the masthead. Marcus Brauchli, the Post's executive editor until 2012 who now runs investment firm North Base Media, said that this was a terrible moment to be hammering one of the country's great custodians of public accountability: “These are historic times, given the cyclone bearing down on the world order and American system of government. I mean, laying off reporters in Ukraine, now.” It is not as though Bezos needs the money. As Peter Baker, the chief White House correspondent for the New York Times, pointed out, Bezos could cover five years of the Post's $100m annual losses by dipping into his earnings from a single week. Yet there he was, earlier in the week, beaming broadly as he welcomed Trump's defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, to the Florida headquarters of his space company, Blue Origin. On Saturday night, however, Lewis abruptly resigned, acknowledging “difficult decisions” as he praised Bezos's leadership of the paper. Bezos sank $75m into that pile of “gilded trash” yet, unlike the Post, seems unfazed by the film's paltry return on investment. “What Bezos did for Melania while gutting his own newspaper,” wrote the historian Simon Schama, will come to be seen “as the most glaring symptom of cultural collapse in a democracy hanging on to truth by the barest of threads”. This fateful juncture has been looming for a while. “This layering of dogma undermined critical thinking,” Porter recalled. “It turned the Post into something more akin to a church, with tight constraints on thought.” This week's day of the long knives has left many people desperately seeking explanations. There were clearly business motives at play: you don't get to be a gazillionaire like Bezos without caring about profit lines, and the Post has been battered in recent years by harsh industry headwinds. McCartney thinks back to 2019 when Amazon lost a $10bn Pentagon cloud-computing contract during Trump's first term. Amazon complained in a lawsuit that this was a blatant act of retaliation by Trump, punishing Bezos for the Washington Post's piercing coverage of his administration. Could it be that the bruising experience led Bezos to change tack, concluding that shining a light in defense of American democracy came at too high a price for the jewels in his business empire, Amazon and Blue Origin? “It's very likely that the desire to appease Trump, to placate him, is playing a role in these decisions,” McCartney said. And it is set against the already parlous state of US media. Since 2000, some 3,500 newspapers have closed shop, abandoning one in four Americans who now live in news deserts with no local newspaper. It was founded in 1786, three years before George Washington donned the mantle of first president. While many papers have been folding, others have fallen into the hands of a new breed of super-wealthy tech and venture capitalist owners who, like Bezos, see journalism as an asset to monetize: the Los Angeles Times was acquired in 2018 by a biotech billionaire, Patrick Soon-Shiong. Like Bezos, Soon-Shiong has displayed symptoms of Trump Appeasement Syndrome. Historic newspapers brought low, news deserts proliferating: this is fertile ground on which misinformation and the Maga pestilence can grow. Long hostile towards what he calls the “fake news media”, Trump has taken his vendetta against truth-seekers to a new level. Paramount settled for $16m, even though the suit was widely ridiculed as spurious. Front of Paramount's mind, no doubt, was its upcoming merger with Skydance Media that required federal – ie Trump's – approval. Following the merger, David Ellison became CEO of Paramount Skydance. Weiss, who came to the job with no TV industry experience, has swiftly confirmed their fears. She pulled a 60 Minutes segment on the notorious Cecot mega-prison in El Salvador to which the Trump administration had been deporting immigrants. Among her early hires as CBS News contributors are a Trump loyalist and former US marine, a prominent vaccine skeptic buddy of the health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr, and fellow anti-woke firebrand Niall Ferguson. It can't be exclusively blamed for Trump's excesses. There are plenty of other willing accomplices and capitulators, including universities like Columbia, corporate law firms and the gung-ho conservative activists who now control the supreme court. But from Trump's perspective, a media on its knees surely helps. He feels so comfortable in his regal skin that he can berate a respected female CNN reporter questioning him on the Epstein files for never smiling. He can peddle unashamedly in racism, posting a video depicting the first Black president and his first lady as monkeys. He can send a masked paramilitary into the streets of Minneapolis, resulting in Americans getting killed for exercising their first amendment rights.

The chief of staff to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer resigned on Sunday over the scandal around Peter Mandelson's appointment as UK ambassador to the US, despite his links to disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. “The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself,” Morgan McSweeney said in a statement to reporters on Sunday. McSweeney said he took “full responsibility” for advising Starmer to make the appointment last year, adding “in the circumstances, the only honourable course is to step aside.” “While I did not oversee the due diligence and vetting process, I believe that process must now be fundamentally overhauled. This cannot simply be a gesture but a safeguard for the future,” McSweeney said. Starmer thanked the outgoing chief of staff for his service and commitment to the Labour Party. “It is largely thanks to his dedication, loyalty and leadership that we won a landslide majority and have the chance to change the country,” the prime minister said in a statement. The most recent tranche of Epstein files released by the US Justice Department triggered a police investigation into Mandelson, who has been accused of passing on market-sensitive government information that was of clear financial interest to Epstein following the 2008 financial crisis. Police raided two of Mandelson's properties on Friday as part of their investigation into misconduct in public office. CNN has been unable to contact Mandelson this week. The Mandelson scandal has plunged Keir Starmer's government into crisis and raised questions about the prime minister's political judgment. Starmer appointed Mandelson as ambassador last year, despite his well-known friendship with Epstein, which continued after the financier was convicted in 2008 for soliciting prostitution from an underage girl.

Demonstrators clash with police during a protest against the environmental, economic and social impact of the Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics Games in Milan on Saturday.PIERO CRUCIATTI/AFP/Getty Images Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni condemned recent anti-Olympics protests in Milan and alleged sabotage of train infrastructure, calling those responsible “enemies of Italy and Italians” early Sunday. After others cut the railway cables to prevent the trains from leaving,” Meloni said in a statement on Facebook, adding that thousands of Italians are working to keep the Games running smoothly, many of whom are volunteers. “Solidarity, once again, with the police, the city of Milan, and all those who will see their work undermined by these gangs of criminals,” she said. No one has claimed responsibility, Italian news agency ANSA reported. Protesters rally in Milan against U.S. ICE presence ahead of opening ceremony The alleged sabotage first hit the central Bologna hub, which governs rail traffic between northern and southern Italy, around 6 a.m. Saturday when it was still dark out, ANSA reported. It then struck Pesaro-area trains along the Adriatic coast. The transport ministry didn't provide details, but said it would seek millions of euros in compensation from the perpetrators. Thousands of passengers were impacted by the hourslong delays. The skirmish comes days after Meloni's government approved a security decree that allows police to detain people for up to 12 hours when there are reasonable grounds to believe they may act as agitators and disrupt peaceful protests. Opposition lawmakers criticized the measure as an attack on freedom of expression. Peaceful protest is legitimate, but “we draw a line at violence,” International Olympic Committee spokesperson Mark Adams said during the IOC's daily media briefing. By then, the larger peaceful protest, including families with small children and students, had dispersed. At the earlier, larger demonstration, which police said numbered 10,000, people carried cardboard cutouts to represent trees felled to build the new bobsled run in Cortina. Homeland Security Investigations, an ICE unit that focuses on cross-border crimes, frequently sends its officers to overseas events like the Olympics to assist with security. Like last week, demonstrators Saturday said they were opposed to ICE agents' presence, despite official statements that a small number of agents from an investigative arm would be present in U.S. diplomatic territory, and not operational on the streets. Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following. © Copyright 2026 The Globe and Mail Inc. All rights reserved.

This website uses cookies to collect information about your visit for purposes such as showing you personalized ads and content, and analyzing our website traffic. By clicking “Accept all,” you will allow the use of these cookies. The Liberal Democratic Party looked certain to secure a single-party majority in the 51st House of Representatives election on Sunday, according to exit polls jointly conducted by The Yomiuri Shimbun, NHK and Nippon TV-affiliated stations. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who is also LDP president, had aimed to win a majority for the ruling coalition. With the election victory, Takaichi is expected to advance policies that she touted in the election campaign, such as measures for “responsible and proactive public finances,” claiming that her administration has obtained a public mandate. LDP Secretary General Shunichi Suzuki expressed the party's intention on Sunday night to advance discussions on reducing the consumption tax on food and beverages for a limited period of two years, as pledged in its campaign promises. “I believe we received support due to expectations for the responsible proactive fiscal policy that Prime Minister Takaichi aims to pursue, as well as for strengthening defense and diplomatic capabilities.” Yoshihiko Noda, coleader of the Centrist Reform Alliance, was asked about stepping down. “I have made up my mind, but I will talk to other party executives as the results are not all out yet,” he said. This was also the first national election for Takaichi since taking office. Sanseito and Team Mirai were projected to make gains. Sanseito held two lower house seats before the chamber's dissolution. Mirai was expected to win its first seats in the lower house. Sanseito leader Sohei Kamiya said that support for the party in Sunday's election was not likely to surpass that in last year's House of Councillors election. “I gave the previous [national] election a score of about 120 points, but compared to that, I think our score this time is around 75 points,” Kamiya said Sunday night in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo. Team Mirai's leader Takahiro Anno credited his party's stance on the consumption tax for its projected strong showing in the election. “On the key issue of consumption tax cuts, we took a different stance from other parties,” Anno said at a press conference in Tokyo on Sunday night. Other parties called for reducing the consumption tax in their campaigns, but Mirai did not include such tax cuts in its platform. In single-seat constituencies, 1,119 people competed for 289 seats, while the proportional representation segment was contested by 914 candidates. By winning 243 seats, which is called a “stable majority,” the ruling bloc will be able to hold half of all seats in the lower house's 17 standing committees and also dominate chairperson posts in all committees. During street campaign speeches, the prime minister emphasized, “Other parties hold [chairperson posts] in all key committees [in the lower house].” Winning 261 seats or more would enable the ruling bloc to dominate all committee chairperson posts and also have a majority in all standing committees. When the upper house votes down or does not vote on a bill within 60 days after it has been passed by the lower house, the bill can be passed by two-thirds or more ballots among attending members in a second vote in the lower house. Heavy snow changed the operating hours at voting stations for the House of Representatives election in Shimane and Tottori prefectures. The opening of a voting station in Daisen, Tottori Prefecture, was delayed by two hours to 9 a.m. because officials in charge of it could not get there on time. Our weekly ePaper presents the most noteworthy recent topics in an exciting, readable fomat.

Top Senate Republicans are ratcheting up pressure on President Donald Trump to pick a side in the party's nastiest primary battles before it's too late, with anxiety spiking as the midterm cycle threatens to turn sour for the GOP. GOP leaders are making a last-ditch push for Trump — who has relished his status as kingmaker for nearly a decade — to get off the sidelines and save potentially hundreds of millions of dollars set to be spent on a mission to save Sen. John Cornyn in Texas and to help clear the field in Georgia, according to a half-dozen Republican lawmakers and campaign operatives. The rising concerns come as Republicans stare down mounting midterm problems across their Senate map, with the party now forced to defend traditionally red turf in states like Alaska and even Iowa. Meanwhile, the party has watched Trump pick sides in other contested primaries that have caused internal tensions, like in Louisiana, where he endorsed against the Senate GOP incumbent over a personal grudge. And if he loses, senior Republicans fear it could cost at least $200 million to defend the seat in Texas if state Attorney General Ken Paxton emerges as the party's nominee, according to multiple GOP sources. “It's a very difficult race, and one that's going to be a lot more expensive to hold the seat,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune told CNN about the impact of Trump remaining neutral. But there's also growing concern over Georgia, where Republicans at all levels have privately urged Trump to defuse a three-way battle to take on Jon Ossoff, the lone Senate Democrat running in a state Trump won in 2024. Even in Kentucky, several GOP candidates are urging the president to weigh in on a race they fear could, with the wrong candidate, elect a second statewide Democrat. The fight over a Trump endorsement for marquee races has gotten so intense that one House Republican running to become Tennessee's next governor threatened to prolong last week's government shutdown to receive a personal assurance that the president would not publicly back his GOP opponent. The warnings have been a topic in multiple meetings with top Republicans in Washington since then, including one in which the Senate GOP's campaign chief, Sen. Tim Scott, laid out national headwinds across the map, according to an attendee. He also presented internal polling to stress that Cornyn needed to win the primary in Texas or risk costing the party gobs of cash. Scott, Thune and other top senators have repeatedly warned the president, both publicly and privately, about what could happen if he stays out, multiple sources told CNN. “The issue of a runoff is more money that's spent there is money that's not spent in other places, which is why I'm supporting Sen. Cornyn and plan to see him win on the first ballot,” Barrasso told CNN. Cornyn himself said he approached Trump again last week about an endorsement, after that Democratic upset in a deep-red slice of Texas that sent shockwaves through Washington. “I think if Republicans nominate the attorney general, I think they absolutely do,” Cornyn said when asked whether Democrats had a chance of flipping the seat. “At minimum … we'd have to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to salvage that seat that could be used in places like Georgia, Michigan and New Hampshire and elsewhere.” In response to Cornyn's remarks, Paxton adviser Nick Maddux told CNN that the Texas attorney general won statewide by 10 points in 2022 despite heavy spending against him “and the same thing is going to happen in 2026 because Republican voters are fired up to go to the polls and support him.” “We must be laser-focused on turning out low-propensity, Trump-supporting America First voters. John Cornyn is the worst possible choice on that front,” Maddux said, arguing that “$50+ million's been lit on fire to help” Cornyn instead of going to battleground races. Trump has helped avoid Republican infighting in other key races this cycle. He also helped out the House GOP by weighing in for an establishment-approved candidate in a crowded Georgia special election next month — where many feared a pugnacious hardliner named Colton Moore could win the seat and cause huge problems for leadership. Buddy Carter, one of those three GOP candidates, pulled aside the president last week after a bill signing at the White House to speak about his race, telling CNN he made his case to Trump. Asked by CNN whether he sought the president's endorsement, Carter said: “You bet I did.” But in that 20-minute conversation, Carter said Trump suggested he didn't want to choose between Carter and fellow GOP Rep. Mike Collins — whose votes Trump needs to advance his agenda in the narrowly divided House. Carter suggested Trump can't risk alienating any House member with each vote in the chamber needed to pass legislation. Asked whether a contested primary — and possibly a runoff — made it harder for Republicans to beat Ossoff, Carter said: “You can make that argument, but you can't make that argument to a majority of one.” Collins, when asked about Carter's personal appeal to Trump, said he didn't fault his opponent for trying. I mean, anybody that's smart is gonna want the president's endorsement,” Collins quipped. But Trump has contributed to other headaches for the GOP. Cassidy is running aggressively on his legislative record, including bringing back money to his home state by supporting a Biden-era infrastructure bill — which Trump sought to sabotage and Letlow voted against. “I brought over $13 billion in infrastructure, much of which my opponents either opposed or voted against,” Cassidy said. “Much of that $13 billion, my opponents either opposed or criticized me for. “President Trump endorsed me because I've worked with him to advance an America First agenda, including delivering real infrastructure dollars for my district. Meanwhile Bill Cassidy worked with President Biden to pass an infrastructure bill full of Green New Deal Mandates — in the same year he voted to impeach President Trump.” And all I can say, brother is, you live your life forward.” CNN's Ted Barrett, Alison Main, Ellis Kim, Dalia Abdelwahab and Rebecca Legato contributed to this report.

MOSCOW, February 8. /TASS/. On Saturday evening, Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked his UAE counterpart, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, for the Emirati assistance in detaining a suspect in a recent attempt on the life of a senior Russian general, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "President Putin held a phone call with President of the United Arab Emirates Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan yesterday evening. President Putin thanked his Emirati counterpart for the fruitful cooperation between special services and the Emirati assistance in detaining a suspect in the terror attack on General [Vladimir] Alekseyev," Peskov said. According to him, the two leaders continued the discussion of issues that were raised during Al Nahyan's recent visit to Moscow.

Lindsey Vonn crashes into a gate during the women's downhill race on Sunday.Jacquelyn Martin/The Associated Press On a dramatic day in the women's downhill event at the Milano Cortina Olympics, Lindsey Vonn suffered a grizzly crash, while fellow American Breezy Johnson earned the gold medal. Vonn's fifth Olympics ended as many feared it would when she said she would race on a torn ACL – with the star American alpine ski racer being airlifted off the mountain on Sunday after a gruesome fall. Medics rushed to help Vonn before a lengthy delay in the event for a helicopter to fly her off the mountain. It was one of a few crashes in Sunday's event. Vonn's American teammate Johnson, who had already put down the blistering run of one minute and 36.10 seconds while racing in the No.6 bib that would earn her Olympic Gold, watched from the leader's seat. American Breezy Johnson (center) with silver medallist Emma Aicher of Germany (L) and bronze medallist Sofia Goggia of Italy (R). Germany's Emma Aicher earned the silver medal (1:36.14), while Italian Sophia Goggia took bronze (1:36.69). The three-time Olympic medalist was trying to make a comeback at age 41, after a retirement of some six years. She'd been having a dream season until she torn her anterior cruciate ligament racing in a World Cup event in Crans-Montana, Switzerland on Jan. 30, less than two weeks out from the Winter Games. Andorra's Cande Moreno and Austria's Nina Ortlieb also crashed during their runs. She'd been one of the marquee names in these Winter Games. The fog of the past few days at Tofane Alpine Ski Centre had passed, and it was an idyllic sunny setting. It was billed as one of the most competitive Olympic women's downhill races ever. The crash is likely to end Vonn's Olympic campaign in Italy, and it was possibly the last race of her storied career. “My heart is just hurting for her, because I grew up watching her, and I'm such a fan, and I really was rooting for her,” said Canadian skier Cassidy Grey of Calgary, who finished 26th on Sunday and was in the chairlift traveling to the start gate when she looked down and saw Vonn with the medical team. The other Canadian in Sunday's downhill, Ottawa's Valerie Grenier, 29 was disqualified from the event after a fluke mishap with one of her pole straps right before her race caused a late push out of the start gate. Follow our live daily coverage of the Winter Games Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following. © Copyright 2026 The Globe and Mail Inc. All rights reserved.

Please disable the ad blocking feature. To use this site, please disable the ad blocking feature and reload the page. This website uses cookies to collect information about your visit for purposes such as showing you personalized ads and content, and analyzing our website traffic. By clicking “Accept all,” you will allow the use of these cookies. Users accessing this site from EEA countries and UK are unable to view this site without your consent. We apologize for any inconvenience caused. The Yomiuri Shimbun 20:00 JST, February 8, 2026 The Liberal Democratic Party is set to win over 233 seats to gain a majority on its own in Sunday's House of Representatives election, according to exit polls by The Yomiuri Shimbun and others. The ruling coalition of the LDP and the Japan Innovation Party is expected to win over 300 seats. You may also like to read Related Tags Popular articles in the past 24 hours Popular articles in the past week Popular articles in the past month JN ACCESS RANKING The Japan News / Weekly Edition Our weekly ePaper presents the most noteworthy recent topics in an exciting, readable fomat. Read more eng jp © 2026 The Japan News - by The Yomiuri Shimbun

MOSCOW, February 8. /TASS/. Lyubomir Korba, a native of Ukraine's Ternopol Region, who attempted to kill a senior Russian general earlier this week acted on instructions from Ukrainian special services as he arrived in Moscow in December to carry out the attack, Investigative Committee Spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko said. "It was determined that Korba arrived in Moscow in late December on instructions from Ukrainian special services to carry out the terror attack," she said. According to Petrenko, the gunman flew from Russia to the UAE hours after the attempt on the life of Lieutenant-General Vladimir Alekseyev. He was detained in Dubai and extradited to Russia.

Meanwhile, with control equipment disabled, the front line in the area has created an opportunity for Ukrainian forces to circumvent signal jamming, Atesh claimed. "The tower served as a platform for electronic warfare antennas that suppressed drone signals. On Feb. 5, Russian forces were cut off from access to Starlink satellite internet across the front line with the introduction of a new "white list." Ukraine and SpaceX worked to block Russian access to the Starlink service within Ukraine using a mass registration scheme on the government services application Diia. Volodymyr Ivanyshyn is a news editor for The Kyiv Independent. He is pursuing an Honors Bachelor of Arts at the University of Toronto, majoring in political science with a minor in anthropology and human geography. Volodymyr holds a Certificate in Business Fundamentals from Rotman Commerce at the University of Toronto. Zelensky also announced the upcoming production of Ukrainian drones in Germany. “We don't know what happened with that particular general — maybe it was their own internal Russian infighting,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said. Ukraine's energy system remains under severe strain, and nuclear plants are still partially discharged as of Feb. 8 following Russia's mass attack on Ukraine's power grid overnight on Feb. 7. In the latest episode of Ukraine This Week, the Kyiv Independent's Anna Belokur examines SpaceX's move to curb Russia's illegal use of Starlink satellite internet — a technology that has been vital to Ukraine's defense since 2022. Russian forces launched 101 drones at Ukrainian cities overnight, according to Ukraine's Air Force. "The Armed Forces of Ukraine attacked our region using long-range Neptune missiles and HIMARS multiple rocket launcher systems," Bryansk Oblast Governor Alexander Bogomaz claimed. "As a result of the attack, power supply was disrupted in seven municipalities." Blackouts and heating outages were reported in the Russian city of Belgorod on Feb. 7 after alleged attacks on a local thermal power plant and electrical substation. The controversy erupted after promotional photos appeared on social media showing models styled as schoolgirls in a classroom setting, wearing outfits widely perceived as sexualized versions of high school uniforms. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban criticized Ukraine for calling on the EU halt imports of cheap Russian energy. Millions read the Kyiv Independent, but only one in 1,000 supports us financially. One membership might not seem like much, but to us, it makes a real difference. If you value our reporting, consider becoming a member — your support makes us stronger.

President Donald Trump announced Friday nearly $100 million in aid for Tennessee and Mississippi, following a series of severe winter storms that swept across large swathes of the country. The icy weather has persisted for many states since Winter Storm Fern hit the central and eastern portions of the United States in late January, with recovery efforts still ongoing in many areas after heavy snow, sleet, and freezing rain knocked out power for more than 1 million people and canceled tens of thousands of flights.

Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), India's state‑run defence‑aerospace company, had earlier signed an agreement with United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) to potentially manufacture the SJ‑100 jets in India. The models showcased were Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, Boeing 737 Max, Dhruv ALH-NG helicopter, A321 Neo, A220, Aurus Business Jet, Hindustan 228 aircraft, Diamond Da40NG Tecnam P 2006 and Tecnam P2010. Visitors thronged to see the two Russian regional airliners on static display. Both aircraft are presented with fully fitted interiors and passenger cabins. UAC's and HAL's presence at Wings India 2026 was beyond symbolism. The companies showcased their full civil aircraft portfolios, signalling readiness to compete with global American and European giants that currently dominate the civil aircraft market. It also greatly promotes tourism and cargo movement. India currently has 160 airports with scheduled flights, compared to 74 in 2014. The current airliner fleet of around 800 aircraft will more than double in five years, and is projected to reach 2,250 by 2035. The two largest Indian airlines, IndiGo and Air India, have announced plans to acquire over 500 aircraft each in the coming decade. HAL has been making the HS-748 ‘Avro' and Dornier D-228 aircraft in India under licensed production. Also, National Aeronautics Laboratory has designed and test-flown the ‘Saras' small transport aircraft. Meanwhile, a Tata consortium is building 40 Airbus C-295(formerly EADS CASA), twin-turboprop tactical military transport aircraft, as well as significant numbers of its sub-systems in India. There are more than 125 domestic MSME suppliers spread across different states supporting the project which is expected to also held the South Asian nation in pushing the development of its own its commuter aircraft. Tata Group is also working with GE to manufacture CFM International LEAP engine components in India. To collaborate on opportunities in aircraft manufacturing, supply chain, aftermarket services and pilot training, global aerospace leader Adani Defence & Aerospace, a defense wing of Adani conglomerate, has recently signed a memorandum with global aerospace leader Embraer to develop an integrated regional transport aircraft ecosystem in India. The potential partnership will leverage Embraer's deep engineering and aircraft manufacturing expertise alongside Adani's aviation value-chain footprint. India's HAL and Russia's UAC had signed a MoU on October 27, 2025, in Moscow to manufacture SJ-100 regional passenger jets in India. This partnership aims to produce the 103-seater twin-engine aircraft for domestic, short-haul routes under India's regional airport development initiative UDAN. India has been wanting to have its own Indian regional jet airliner program for some time. HAL estimates that there is a market for over 200 regional jets in India over the next decade, with a further 350 required by the Indian Ocean Region countries. The move is seen as a pivotal step toward self-reliance in civil aviation, potentially injecting competition into a market long monopolized by Boeing and Airbus, and to some extent by Embraer. UAC is currently under US, UK, and EU sanctions. India has said it does not subscribe to unilateral sanctions and has criticized the targeting of its ties with Moscow as unjustified and unfair, while accusing the West of double standards because the EU and US still buy billions of dollars' worth of Russian goods. In due course, the sanctions will be over. Regional jets have yet to make significant inroads in the Indian market, with carriers preferring larger narrow-body aircraft. India's major regional jet operator is Star Air, which operates seven Embraer E175s and two ERJ-145s. The SJ-100 currently has 71 firm orders, all from Russian carriers. UAC is meanwhile conducting certification tests of the SJ-100, with Russian Aviadvigatel PD-8 engines. Some airlines have been attracted by its low introductory price. The later variants will have winglets, and cabin density up to 108 seats. Undoubtedly, the SJ-100 has had its teething supply-chain troubles. But that is true for many airliners including the Boeing 737 Max. China remains dependent on Western aero-engines for its home-grown C919 and C929 airliners. However, overall, SJ-100 could be win-win for India and Russia. India is a rising economic power with soon-to-be the world's third largest economy. It also has the largest population with growing consumption. While Russia can bring in technology, India could set-up the manufacturing hub with local skilled-manpower, software, private sector strengths, bring in funding, and also global business best-practices. The civil aircraft production can be oriented for both Indian and Russian market as well as for rest of the world While 100% foreign direct investment has been cleared in most sectors of civil aviation, India has not yet leveraged large airliner orders. The country does have manufacturing and assembly skills, but lacks original design capabilities. India is now insisting that foreign OEMs set up assembly lines in India and give component orders to local manufacturers. Local MRO services currently only handle 15-20% of demand, according to industry data, with 80-85% outsourced, highlighting significant potential for domestic growth. A 2023 CRISIL report states that India's MRO sector still faces obstacles such as difficulty obtaining credit, inadequate infrastructure, high taxes, licensing and certification issues, and high rental costs. These include reducing taxes on MRO services from 18% to 5%, land lease policies for longer durations to lower rental costs, and discontinuing the 13% government-charged royalty on revenue. Setting up an MRO is highly capital intensive, with a long break-even time. The Indian government's top think-tank, NITI Aayog, has recommended an incremental approach, by first setting up joint ventures in India with global players, and gradually ascending the work-value chain. Ultimately, India must aspire to be an international-class MRO hub like Singapore. A surge in local MRO facilities will be good for airline operations, safety, and costs. Russians would also have to set up MRO facilities for SJ-100 with Indian partners in India. The agency must also drive building MRO facilities. India must insist on foreign OEMs to set up engine manufacturing through a joint-venture route. The National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) 2016, and its later versions, aim to create an integrated ecosystem for the growth of the Indian civil aviation sector, making flying more affordable and accessible, while also enhancing safety, security, and sustainability. The policy must be updated to incorporate India's thrust for developing local manufacturing. India is the next best destination for building and maintaining civil aircraft. India also has large land banks near airports, especially the newer greenfield ones. Government policies are becoming more attractive for promoting manufacture and shifting MRO to India. Finally, India has to invest much more in R&D. The Russia-India SJ-100 project could be great platform to make a beginning. The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.