Russian Attack Kills Two, Injures 11 in Ukraine’s Sumy, Authorities Say 

Ukrainian servicemen ride atop a tank after returning from Russia, near the Russian-Ukrainian border in the Sumy region, Aug. 17, 2024. (AP)
Ukrainian servicemen ride atop a tank after returning from Russia, near the Russian-Ukrainian border in the Sumy region, Aug. 17, 2024. (AP)
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Russian Attack Kills Two, Injures 11 in Ukraine’s Sumy, Authorities Say 

Ukrainian servicemen ride atop a tank after returning from Russia, near the Russian-Ukrainian border in the Sumy region, Aug. 17, 2024. (AP)
Ukrainian servicemen ride atop a tank after returning from Russia, near the Russian-Ukrainian border in the Sumy region, Aug. 17, 2024. (AP)

A Russian attack overnight damaged a factory in Ukraine's northern city of Sumy, killed two women and injured at least 11 people, Ukrainian authorities said on Friday. 

Ukraine's Prosecutor General's office said the factory manufactured packaging for baby food, juices and household products. 

One injured person died later in hospital, regional prosecutors said on Telegram, and the body of another victim was retrieved from the rubble. 

The airstrike caused a fire, prompting authorities to tell residents to stay inside and close windows because of air pollution. 

The northern Sumy region borders Russia's region of Kursk where Ukraine has made a major cross-border incursion since Aug. 6 while Moscow's troops press towards the strategic hub of Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine. 

Ukrainian border areas suffer from constant Russian attacks, and Kyiv said the Kursk operation was aimed at protecting its settlements. 

Separately, a drone attack hit an industrial facility in Poltava in central Ukraine without causing any casualties, regional governor Filip Pronin said. 

The Ukrainian air force said it shot down 12 out of 18 Russia-launched drones overnight over five regions. Four more drones fell over the Ukrainian territory. 

Russia also used an Iskander-M missile during the attack, the air force added. It did not give additional details. 

In the southern port city of Odesa, authorities reported an explosion on Thursday evening after a ballistic air alert without providing details. 

Russia denies deliberately targeting civilians but thousands have been killed and injured in its strikes during the war, which began when Russian troops invaded its neighbor in February 2022. 



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.