Ukraine: Government Websites Down after a Hacking Attack

The national flag of Ukraine flies over the town of Kramatorsk, Ukraine November 25, 2021. Picture taken with a drone on November 25, 2021. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
The national flag of Ukraine flies over the town of Kramatorsk, Ukraine November 25, 2021. Picture taken with a drone on November 25, 2021. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
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Ukraine: Government Websites Down after a Hacking Attack

The national flag of Ukraine flies over the town of Kramatorsk, Ukraine November 25, 2021. Picture taken with a drone on November 25, 2021. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko
The national flag of Ukraine flies over the town of Kramatorsk, Ukraine November 25, 2021. Picture taken with a drone on November 25, 2021. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko

A number of government websites in Ukraine were down on Friday after a huge hacking attack, Ukrainian officials and media reports said.

“As a result of a massive hacking attack, the websites of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a number of other government agencies are temporarily down. Our specialists are already working on restoring the work of IT systems,” spokesman of Ukraine's Foreign Ministry Oleg Nikolenko wrote on Facebook on Friday.

According to the Ukrainskaya Pravda newspaper, websites of the country's Cabinet, seven ministries, the Treasury, the National Emergency Service and the state services website were unavailable as the result of the hack, The Associated Press said.

The report also said that the Foreign Ministry's website contained a message in Ukrainian, Russian and Polish, saying that Ukrainians' personal data has been leaked to the public domain. “Be afraid and expect the worst. This is for your past, present and future," the message read, in part.



PKK Disarmament to Take a Few Months in Iraq, Türkiye Ruling Party Says

Türkiye's European Union Affairs Minister Omer Celik speaks during an interview with Reuters at the Turkish Embassy in London, Britain, September, 14, 2017. REUTERS/Will Russell/File photo
Türkiye's European Union Affairs Minister Omer Celik speaks during an interview with Reuters at the Turkish Embassy in London, Britain, September, 14, 2017. REUTERS/Will Russell/File photo
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PKK Disarmament to Take a Few Months in Iraq, Türkiye Ruling Party Says

Türkiye's European Union Affairs Minister Omer Celik speaks during an interview with Reuters at the Turkish Embassy in London, Britain, September, 14, 2017. REUTERS/Will Russell/File photo
Türkiye's European Union Affairs Minister Omer Celik speaks during an interview with Reuters at the Turkish Embassy in London, Britain, September, 14, 2017. REUTERS/Will Russell/File photo

The handover of weapons by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in Iraq, following its decision to disband, should be completed within a few months, a spokeperson for Türkiye's ruling AK Party said late on Wednesday.

Speaking to broadcaster NTV, Omer Celik said a confirmation mechanism, including officials from Turkish intelligence and the armed forces, will oversee the handover process.

"The disarmament ... process (in Iraq) needs to be completed within three to five months... If it exceeds this period, it will become vulnerable to provocations," Celik said on NTV, Reuters reported.

The PKK, which has been locked in a bloody conflict with the Turkish state for more than four decades, decided in May to disband and end its armed struggle.

PKK militants are set to begin handing over weapons in the northern Iraqi city of Sulaymaniyah on Friday as part of the peace process with Türkiye.

Since the PKK launched its insurgency against Türkiye in 1984 - originally with the aim of creating an independent Kurdish state - the conflict has killed more than 40,000 people, imposed a huge economic burden and fuelled social tensions.