Ukraine Destroys 25 of 38 Drones in Russian Attack

A Ukrainian serviceman belonging to the attack drones battalion of the Achilles, 92nd brigade, launches a mid-range reconnaissance type drone, Vector, for flying over positions of Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in a Kharkiv region, Ukraine June 19, 2024. REUTERS/Inna Varenytsia
A Ukrainian serviceman belonging to the attack drones battalion of the Achilles, 92nd brigade, launches a mid-range reconnaissance type drone, Vector, for flying over positions of Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in a Kharkiv region, Ukraine June 19, 2024. REUTERS/Inna Varenytsia
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Ukraine Destroys 25 of 38 Drones in Russian Attack

A Ukrainian serviceman belonging to the attack drones battalion of the Achilles, 92nd brigade, launches a mid-range reconnaissance type drone, Vector, for flying over positions of Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in a Kharkiv region, Ukraine June 19, 2024. REUTERS/Inna Varenytsia
A Ukrainian serviceman belonging to the attack drones battalion of the Achilles, 92nd brigade, launches a mid-range reconnaissance type drone, Vector, for flying over positions of Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in a Kharkiv region, Ukraine June 19, 2024. REUTERS/Inna Varenytsia

Ukrainian forces destroyed 25 Russian attack drones out of 38 launched overnight, Ukraine's air force chief said on Thursday.
"Last night, the enemy used 38 Shahed-131/136 attack drones, attacking Ukrainian infrastructure in several areas, including the south of Odesa region and central Ukraine," Mykola Oleshchiuk said.
The air force chief said three other drones "were lost after crossing the state border with Romania". He gave no more details, Reuters said.
Romanian territory is just a few hundred meters from the Ukrainian Danube port of Izmail, in Odesa region, which was attacked by drones for the second night in a row.
Odesa governor Oleh Kiper said two people were wounded when drone debris hit a private house in Izmail district.
Authorities in the capital Kyiv and in the Zhytomyr region said those regions had also been targeted.
Zhytomyr's governor said that air defense systems hit most of the 10 aerial targets overnight, but drone debris damaged 10 private houses and one infrastructure facility.
The head of Kyiv's military administration, Serhiy Popko, said that drones attacked the capital from different directions, but all of them were destroyed by air defense forces on the approaches.
Popko said there were no reports of damage or casualties in Kyiv.
Authorities in the southern region of Kherson said that a man had been killed in the street in a separate attack after a drone dropped explosives on him.
Ukrainian troops regained control of much of the Kherson region in late 2022, but Russian forces still shell Ukrainian-held areas from positions on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River and launched drones.



France Accuses Iran of ‘Repression’ in Sentence for Nobel Laureate

People cross an intersection in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP)
People cross an intersection in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP)
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France Accuses Iran of ‘Repression’ in Sentence for Nobel Laureate

People cross an intersection in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP)
People cross an intersection in downtown Tehran, Iran, Monday, Feb. 9, 2026. (AP)

France accused Iran on Monday of "repression and intimidation" after a court handed Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi a new six-year prison sentence on charges of harming national security.

Mohammadi, sentenced Saturday, was also handed a one-and-a-half-year prison sentence for "propaganda" against Iran's system, according to her foundation.

"With this sentence, the Iranian regime has, once again, chosen repression and intimidation," the French foreign ministry said in a statement, describing the 53-year-old as a "tireless defender" of human rights.

Paris is calling for the release of the activist, who was arrested before protests erupted nationwide in December after speaking out against the government at a funeral ceremony.

The movement peaked in January as authorities launched a crackdown that activists say has left thousands dead.

Over the past quarter-century, Mohammadi has been repeatedly tried and jailed for her vocal campaigning against Iran's use of capital punishment and the mandatory dress code for women.

Mohammadi has spent much of the past decade behind bars and has not seen her twin children, who live in Paris, since 2015.

Iranian authorities have arrested more than 50,000 people as part of their crackdown on protests, according to US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).


Iran's Supreme Leader Urges Iranians to Show 'Resolve' against Foreign Pressure

Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei on (File Photo/Supreme Leader's website).
Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei on (File Photo/Supreme Leader's website).
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Iran's Supreme Leader Urges Iranians to Show 'Resolve' against Foreign Pressure

Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei on (File Photo/Supreme Leader's website).
Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei on (File Photo/Supreme Leader's website).

Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei on Monday called on his compatriots to show "resolve" ahead of the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution this week.

Since the revolution, "foreign powers have always sought to restore the previous situation", Ali Khamenei said, referring to the period when Iran was under the rule of shah Reza Pahlavi and dependent on the United States, AFP reported.

"National power is less about missiles and aircraft and more about the will and steadfastness of the people," the leader said, adding: "Show it again and frustrate the enemy."


UK PM's Communications Director Quits

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivers a speech at Horntye Park Sports Complex in St Leonards, Britain, February 05, 2026. Peter Nicholls/Pool via REUTERS
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivers a speech at Horntye Park Sports Complex in St Leonards, Britain, February 05, 2026. Peter Nicholls/Pool via REUTERS
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UK PM's Communications Director Quits

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivers a speech at Horntye Park Sports Complex in St Leonards, Britain, February 05, 2026. Peter Nicholls/Pool via REUTERS
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivers a speech at Horntye Park Sports Complex in St Leonards, Britain, February 05, 2026. Peter Nicholls/Pool via REUTERS

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer's director of communications Tim Allan resigned on Monday, a day after Starmer's top aide Morgan McSweeney quit over his role in backing Peter Mandelson over his known links to Jeffrey Epstein.

The loss of two senior aides ⁠in quick succession comes as Starmer tries to draw a line under the crisis in his government resulting from his appointment of Mandelson as ambassador to the ⁠US.

"I have decided to stand down to allow a new No10 team to be built. I wish the PM and his team every success," Allan said in a statement on Monday.

Allan served as an adviser to Tony Blair from ⁠1992 to 1998 and went on to found and lead one of the country’s foremost public affairs consultancies in 2001. In September 2025, he was appointed executive director of communications at Downing Street.