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Governor of Russia’s Belgorod Region Says 600,000 without Power, Heat, or Water After Ukrainian Strike

A residential building and cars during a power blackout, that according to local authorities was caused by a recent Ukrainian missile attack targeting the regional energy system, amid the Russia-Ukraine military conflict in Belgorod, Russia, January 9, 2026. (Reuters)
A residential building and cars during a power blackout, that according to local authorities was caused by a recent Ukrainian missile attack targeting the regional energy system, amid the Russia-Ukraine military conflict in Belgorod, Russia, January 9, 2026. (Reuters)
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Governor of Russia’s Belgorod Region Says 600,000 without Power, Heat, or Water After Ukrainian Strike

A residential building and cars during a power blackout, that according to local authorities was caused by a recent Ukrainian missile attack targeting the regional energy system, amid the Russia-Ukraine military conflict in Belgorod, Russia, January 9, 2026. (Reuters)
A residential building and cars during a power blackout, that according to local authorities was caused by a recent Ukrainian missile attack targeting the regional energy system, amid the Russia-Ukraine military conflict in Belgorod, Russia, January 9, 2026. (Reuters)

The governor of Russia's Belgorod region, which borders Ukraine, said on Saturday that 600,000 residents were without electricity, heating and water after a Ukrainian missile strike.

In a statement posted on Telegram, Vyacheslav Gladkov said that work was ‌underway to ‌restore supplies, ‌but ⁠that the situation ‌was "extremely challenging".

Footage filmed by Reuters in Belgorod city showed streetlights extinguished and locals finding their way using hand-held torches and car headlights.

Belgorod region, ⁠which adjoins Ukraine's Kharkiv region ‌and had a pre-war ‍population of ‍1.5 million, has come ‍under regular attack from Kyiv's forces since Russia ordered tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022.

Russia has frequently bombarded Ukraine's power infrastructure, causing ⁠rolling daily blackouts, and has also targeted heating systems this winter. An overnight strike on Thursday left about half of Kyiv's apartment blocks without heat.

Temperatures in most of Russia and Ukraine have been well below freezing in ‌recent days.

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World

North Korea’s Kim, Russia’s Putin Reaffirm Ties on Korean Liberation Day

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin during their visit to Beijing to attend China's commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two, in Beijing, China, September 3, 2025, in this picture released by the Korean Central News Agency. (KCNA via Reuters)
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin during their visit to Beijing to attend China's commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two, in Beijing, China, September 3, 2025, in this picture released by the Korean Central News Agency. (KCNA via Reuters)
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North Korea’s Kim, Russia’s Putin Reaffirm Ties on Korean Liberation Day

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin during their visit to Beijing to attend China's commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two, in Beijing, China, September 3, 2025, in this picture released by the Korean Central News Agency. (KCNA via Reuters)
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un speaks with Russian President Vladimir Putin during their visit to Beijing to attend China's commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two, in Beijing, China, September 3, 2025, in this picture released by the Korean Central News Agency. (KCNA via Reuters)

North ‌Korean leader Kim Jong Un reaffirmed the deepening of ties with Russia in a message to President Vladimir Putin as Pyongyang marked the anniversary of independence from Japan's colonial rule, KCNA state news agency said on Sunday.

Kim was replying to a message of congratulations from Putin marking Saturday's 81st anniversary of Tokyo's surrender in World War Two. The Russian leader said the bond was forged as Soviet soldiers fought against ‌Japan and that ‌cooperation would continue "in all the sectors".

The ‌North ⁠Korean leader expressed ⁠hope for the future of ties that had "carried forward the history of common struggle for justice and precious traditions of friendship".

Pyongyang and Moscow have grown closer since the reclusive state began deploying troops and weapons to support Russia's war against Ukraine in what ⁠has been Pyongyang's most significant involvement in a ‌war since the 1950s.

The ‌Russian ship Pallada arrived at Wonsan port for a goodwill ‌visit on Saturday tied to the liberation ‌anniversary, and was greeted by North Korean provincial officials and Russian embassy staff, KCNA said.

Also on Saturday, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called for talks with the rival ‌North aimed at peaceful coexistence, telling Seoul's Liberation Day ceremony that the two Koreas need ⁠safeguards ⁠to prevent conflict and should work to replace their armistice with a "peace regime".

Lee urged dialogue to formally end the 1950-1953 Korean War, which ended in a ceasefire but no peace treaty, and said the talks could explore ways to curb Pyongyang's nuclear program.

Pyongyang has rejected Lee's overtures and criticized US-South Korean military exercises as provocations.

On Thursday, Putin drew Tokyo's condemnation with a visit to an island off Hokkaido, claimed by Japan, that Moscow seized in the days after Japan's 1945 surrender.

World

Iran Executes Man Over Involvement in Winter Protests

An Iranian man passes with his bike next to a wall painting featuring slain Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in a street in central Tehran, Iran, 13 August 2026. (EPA)
An Iranian man passes with his bike next to a wall painting featuring slain Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in a street in central Tehran, Iran, 13 August 2026. (EPA)
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Iran Executes Man Over Involvement in Winter Protests

An Iranian man passes with his bike next to a wall painting featuring slain Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in a street in central Tehran, Iran, 13 August 2026. (EPA)
An Iranian man passes with his bike next to a wall painting featuring slain Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei in a street in central Tehran, Iran, 13 August 2026. (EPA)

Iran's judiciary announced the execution on Sunday of a man who was convicted of running over several police officers with his car during anti-government protests in January.

"Shahram Sadeghi, sentenced to death for having carried out an operational action in support of the Zionist regime and the United States, was executed this morning," the judiciary's Mizan Online website said.

It added that the man had run over several police officers with his car on January 8 in Karaj, west of Tehran, wounding seven of them.

A protest movement initially sparked in late December by the high cost of living rapidly evolved into widespread anti-government demonstrations that peaked on January 8 and 9.

Iranian authorities reported more than 3,000 deaths, attributing the violence to "terrorist acts" orchestrated by the United States and Israel, while rights groups based abroad maintain that security forces fired on protesters.

The number of executions in Iran has risen since the start of the Middle East war, which broke out on February 28 with US-Israeli strikes against Iran.

A large number of the executions have been linked to the protests.

The authorities executed at least 1,639 people last year, a record high since 1989, according to Iran Human Rights, an NGO based in Norway, and Together Against the Death Penalty (ECPM), which is headquartered in Paris.

According to Amnesty International, Iran conducts the second most executions of any country, after China.

World

Twelve Killed and at Least 10 Injured in Polish Bus Crash in Hungary

Cars driving on the M3 motorway on March 6, 2025, close to Budapest. (AFP/Getty Images)
Cars driving on the M3 motorway on March 6, 2025, close to Budapest. (AFP/Getty Images)
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Twelve Killed and at Least 10 Injured in Polish Bus Crash in Hungary

Cars driving on the M3 motorway on March 6, 2025, close to Budapest. (AFP/Getty Images)
Cars driving on the M3 motorway on March 6, 2025, close to Budapest. (AFP/Getty Images)

A dozen people were killed and at least 10 injured after a Polish bus overturned at night on a motorway in eastern Hungary, Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar said on Sunday morning in a Facebook post.

The ‌bus ran into ‌a ditch and ‌tipped ⁠over early on ⁠Sunday near the town of Mezokeresztes in eastern Hungary, police said, adding that the bus was heading towards the city of Nyiregyhaza on the ⁠motorway when the accident ‌happened.

State ‌news agency MTI said there were ‌57 passengers and two drivers ‌on the bus.

"A Polish-registered bus travelling on the M3 motorway towards Nyiregyhaza ... veered off the straight ‌stretch of road into a ditch and overturned. Preliminary ⁠information ⁠suggests the driver likely fell asleep," police said on their website.

Twelve people lost their lives and several others were injured in the accident, police said, adding that they were taking the bus driver into custody.

The injured have been taken to hospital.