Russia launched a long-awaited new military offensive in eastern Ukraine on Friday two weeks before the anniversary of Moscow’s invasion. Ukraine’s air force said 61 out of 71 Russian cruise missiles had been shot down, but Energy Minister Herman Galushchenko admitted that power facilities in six regions had been hit with missiles and drones, causing blackouts across most of the country.
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Tourists warned against travelling to Maui in wake of disaster
Officials in Hawaii have urged tourists to avoid traveling to Maui, as many hotels prepared to house evacuees and first responders on the island after wildfires killed more than 90 people and destroyed hundreds of homes.
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Tajikistan: Decree bans funerals for alleged “terrorists”, denies relatives bodies
On 28 April, Tajikistan President Emomali Rahmon signed into law a Decree imposing the Procedure for burying the bodies of terrorists neutralised in the course of a counterterrorism operation. In the regime’s parlour, this means the bodies of those killed and/or assassinated. The new procedure denies the families of those killed in what the regime calls anti-terrorism operations the possibility of burying the dead in a place they want, knowing where the dead are buried, investigating how the death occurred, and burying the dead with the religious or other rites the dead or the family would have chosen.
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Myanmar junta attack on village killed around 100 people
Around 100 people, including women and children, have been killed after Myanmar’s military junta bombed the Kant Balu township in the Sagaing region on Tuesday. The National Unity Government (NUG)’s Ministry of Labour said in a statement, the attack resulted in the “loss of scores of innocent civilians and injuring many more, including children and pregnant women,” and describing it as a “heinous act” that constitutes “a war crime.” Local news outlet The Irrawaddy reported that a junta aircraft dropped two bombs and fired on the village while people were gathered for the opening of a new town office.
