Ukraine Says Another Sweeping Cyberattack Underway as State Websites and Banks Hit

Residents carry Ukrainian national flag as they gather in the Olympic Stadium to mark the Unity Day, in Kyiv, Ukraine, February 16, 2022. (Reuters)
Residents carry Ukrainian national flag as they gather in the Olympic Stadium to mark the Unity Day, in Kyiv, Ukraine, February 16, 2022. (Reuters)
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Ukraine Says Another Sweeping Cyberattack Underway as State Websites and Banks Hit

Residents carry Ukrainian national flag as they gather in the Olympic Stadium to mark the Unity Day, in Kyiv, Ukraine, February 16, 2022. (Reuters)
Residents carry Ukrainian national flag as they gather in the Olympic Stadium to mark the Unity Day, in Kyiv, Ukraine, February 16, 2022. (Reuters)

The websites of Ukraine's government, foreign ministry and state security service were down on Wednesday in what the government said was the start of another massive denial of service (DDoS) attack that began at around 4 p.m. (1400 GMT).

Ukrainian authorities said this week they had seen online warnings that hackers were preparing to launch major attacks on government agencies, banks and the defense sector.

Ukraine has suffered a string of cyberattacks that Kyiv has blamed on Russia. Moscow, which is caught up in a mounting confrontation with the West over Ukraine, has denied any involvement.

"At about 4 pm, another mass DDoS attack on our state began. We have relevant data from a number of banks," said Mykhailo Fedorov, Minister of Digital Transformation, adding that the parliament website was also hit.

He did not mention which banks were affected and the central bank could not immediately be reached for comment.

The online networks of Ukraine's defense ministry and two banks were overwhelmed last week in a separate cyberattack. The US company Netscout Systems Inc later said the impact had been modest.

Internet blockage observatory NetBlocks posted a tweet on Thursday that showed a drop-off in connections to the Ukrainian government websites.

"We've observed that the current network disruption has partial impact on the network layer to multiple defense and ministerial websites in Ukraine," NetBlocks director Alp Toker told Reuters.

"The spread of outages is similar but distinct from the recent DDOS attack targeting defense and banking platforms, with the latter not impacted in this instance," he added.



Seven Killed in Gold Mine Accident in Eastern China, State Media CCTV Reports

Gold mine in China (archive-Reuters)
Gold mine in China (archive-Reuters)
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Seven Killed in Gold Mine Accident in Eastern China, State Media CCTV Reports

Gold mine in China (archive-Reuters)
Gold mine in China (archive-Reuters)

Seven people were killed in a gold mine accident in China's eastern Shandong province, and authorities were investigating, state-run CCTV reported, sending shares of the mine owner, Zhaojin Mining Industry, down 6% on Tuesday, Reuters said.

The accident occurred on Saturday when a cage fell ‌down a mine ‌shaft, CCTV reported ‌late ⁠on Monday ‌night.

The emergency management and public security departments were investigating the cause of the accident, and whether there had been an attempt to cover it up, the ⁠report added.

The mine is owned by ‌leading gold producer Zhaojin ‍Mining Industry, according ‍to the Qichacha company registry. Shares ‍of the company were down 6.01%, as of 0525 GMT. A person who answered Zhaojin's main phone line told Reuters that the matter was under investigation and ⁠declined to answer further questions.

China's emergency management ministry on Monday held a meeting on preventing accidents during the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday. It announced inspections of mines, chemical companies, and other hazardous operations. Also on Saturday, an explosion at a biotech company ‌in northern China killed eight people.


Still a Long Way to Go in Talks on Ukraine, Russia's Lavrov Says

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with Tanzanian Minister of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Mahmoud Thabit Kombo (not pictured), in Moscow, Russia, 09 February 2026.  EPA/RAMIL SITDIKOV / POOL
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with Tanzanian Minister of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Mahmoud Thabit Kombo (not pictured), in Moscow, Russia, 09 February 2026. EPA/RAMIL SITDIKOV / POOL
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Still a Long Way to Go in Talks on Ukraine, Russia's Lavrov Says

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with Tanzanian Minister of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Mahmoud Thabit Kombo (not pictured), in Moscow, Russia, 09 February 2026.  EPA/RAMIL SITDIKOV / POOL
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a meeting with Tanzanian Minister of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation Mahmoud Thabit Kombo (not pictured), in Moscow, Russia, 09 February 2026. EPA/RAMIL SITDIKOV / POOL

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that there was no reason to be enthusiastic about US President Donald Trump's pressure on Europe and Ukraine as there was still a long way to go in talks on peace in Ukraine, RIA reported on Tuesday.

Here are ‌some details:

The ‌United States has ‌brokered ⁠talks between Russia and Ukraine ‌on various different drafts of a plan for ending the war in Ukraine, but no deal has yet been reached despite Trump's repeated promises to clinch one.

* "There is still a long way to go," Lavrov ⁠was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.

* Lavrov said that ‌Trump had put Ukraine ‍and Europe in their places ‍but that such a move was ‍no reason to embrace an "enthusiastic perception" of the situation.

* Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said that any deal would have to exclude NATO membership for Ukraine and rule out the deployment of foreign troops in Ukraine, Izvestia ⁠reported.

* At stake is how to end the deadliest war in Europe since World War Two, the future of Ukraine, the extent to which European powers are sidelined and whether or not a peace deal brokered by the United States will endure.

* Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 after eight years of fighting in eastern Ukraine, triggering the biggest confrontation between ‌Moscow and the West since the depths of the Cold War.

 


Iran Warns of 'Destructive' Influence on Diplomacy ahead of Netanyahu's US Trip

FILE PHOTO: Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani speaks after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon August 13, 2025. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani speaks after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon August 13, 2025. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo
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Iran Warns of 'Destructive' Influence on Diplomacy ahead of Netanyahu's US Trip

FILE PHOTO: Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani speaks after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon August 13, 2025. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani speaks after meeting with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, in Beirut, Lebanon August 13, 2025. REUTERS/Aziz Taher/File Photo

The secretary of Iran's top security body arrived in Oman on Tuesday, amid Iranian warning of  "destructive" influence on diplomacy ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Washington for talks expected to focus on US negotiations with Tehran. 

"Our negotiating party is America. It is up to America to decide to act independently of the pressures and destructive influences that are detrimental to the region," said Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei in a weekly press briefing. 

"The Zionist regime has repeatedly, as a saboteur, shown that it opposes any diplomatic process in our region that leads to peace." 

Ali Larijani, who heads the Supreme National Security Council, is expected to hold talks with Haitham bin Tariq, the Sultan of Oman, and Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad al-Busaidi, Iran's state news agency IRNA reported.  

They will discuss the latest regional and international developments as well as economic cooperation between Iran and Oman, the news agency said. 

Tehran and Washington resumed talks in Muscat on Friday, months after earlier negotiations collapsed following Israel's unprecedented bombing campaign against Iran last June, which triggered a 12-day war. 

During the conflict, Israel targeted senior Iranian military officials, nuclear scientists and nuclear sites, as well as residential areas. 

The United States later joined the campaign, launching its own strikes on key Iranian nuclear facilities. 

Iran responded with drone and missile attacks on Israel and by targeting the largest US military base in the Middle East, located in Qatar. 

"The June experience was a very bad experience. Therefore, taking these experiences into account, we are determined to secure Iran's national interests through diplomacy," Baqaei said. 

He insisted that Iran's focus would remain strictly on the nuclear file in return for sanctions relief. 

Tehran has repeatedly said it rejects any negotiations that extend beyond that issue. 

On Saturday, Netanyahu's office said in a statement that the Israeli premier "believes any negotiations must include limitations on ballistic missiles and a halting of the support for the Iranian axis" -- referring to Iran's allied armed groups in the region. 

The talks followed threats from Washington and the deployment of a US aircraft carrier group to the region after Iran's deadly crackdown on anti-government protests last month. 

Iranian authorities said the protests, which erupted in late December over the rising cost of living, began as peaceful demonstrations before turning into "riots" involving killings and vandalism, which they said were inflamed by the United States and Israel.