Russia, Ukraine Trade Major Attacks Ahead of Kremlin's WWII Celebrations

A site of a Russian air strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine May 5, 2026. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Zaporizhzhia region/Handout via REUTERS
A site of a Russian air strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine May 5, 2026. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Zaporizhzhia region/Handout via REUTERS
TT

Russia, Ukraine Trade Major Attacks Ahead of Kremlin's WWII Celebrations

A site of a Russian air strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine May 5, 2026. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Zaporizhzhia region/Handout via REUTERS
A site of a Russian air strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine May 5, 2026. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Zaporizhzhia region/Handout via REUTERS

Russia and Ukraine launched major attacks on each other on Friday, with a two-day unilateral ceasefire that Moscow had declared around its World War II commemorations appearing to be in tatters.

"On the Russian side, there was not even a token attempt to cease fire on the front," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, as Ukraine's air force reported downing 56 drones in the last hours.

"As we did over the past 24 hours, Ukraine will respond in kind today as well," Zelensky wrote on X.

Russia lobbed "more than 850 strikes with drones of various types" along with more than 140 strikes on Kyiv's frontline positions, Zelensky said.

Russia's defense ministry said it had downed 264 Ukrainian drones overnight, the first hours of the Kremlin's unilateral two-day ceasefire.

Ukraine had blasted Russia's temporary truce as a propaganda measure to protect the victory parade on May 9 -- one of the most important patriotic events for Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Hours before Russia's ceasefire began, Zelensky warned allies of Russia against attending the parade.

"We have also received messages from some states close to Russia, saying that their representatives plan to be in Moscow... A strange desire... in these days. We do not recommend it," Zelensky said.

"They want from Ukraine a permit to hold their parade so that they can go out onto the square safely for one hour once a year, and then go on killing," the Ukrainian leader added.

Zelensky had earlier proposed a counter-truce from May 6 that has gone unheeded.

With Moscow doubling down on its attacks on Ukraine in the last days, Kyiv has struck back.

The Russian defense ministry had, in turn, urged residents and diplomats to leave Kyiv, threatening a potential retaliatory strike in case of a Ukrainian attack during its ceasefire.

"We remind the civilian population of Kyiv and staff at foreign diplomatic missions once again of the need to leave the city in good time," AFP quoted the defense ministry as saying in a statement.

Britain's foreign office said Moscow's threats were "unwarranted, irresponsible and completely unjustified", adding that any attack on a diplomatic mission would be a further escalation in the war.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told Bloomberg TV that Berlin will not pull its embassy staff out from Kyiv.

Zelensky will also stay "in Kyiv" over the weekend, a senior source close to the Ukrainian president told AFP on condition of anonymity.

During the truce, Russia's defense ministry said it would "completely" halt fire along the frontline and stop long-range strikes on military infrastructure.

If Ukraine did not follow suit, Moscow would respond "in kind", the ministry said.

Russia marks World War II Victory Day each year on May 9 with a massive military parade through Red Square.

Putin has made memory of the war a central narrative of his 25-year rule and invoked it to justify his invasion of Ukraine.

In recent weeks, Kyiv, which has expanded its drone capabilities, has stepped up strikes on Moscow and deep inside Russia, hitting targets hundreds of miles from Ukraine.

The attacks have created unease in Russia ahead of the parade, normally a grand show of force displaying tanks and missiles, which marks the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany.

Moscow has said it will omit military hardware from the procession for the first time in almost 20 years.

The number of foreign guests has also shrunk -- only the leaders of Belarus, Malaysia and Laos will attend, alongside leaders of two Russia-backed Georgian breakaway republics not recognized by the UN, according to the Kremlin.

Moscow has also started intermittent city-wide internet shutdowns lasting until Saturday.

Talks on ending what has spiraled into Europe's worst conflict since World War II have shown little progress and have been sidelined by the Iran conflict.

Moscow is demanding that Ukraine withdraw from four regions it claims as its own -- terms seen as unacceptable to Kyiv.



Google Maps Will Show ‘Lake America’ in US, not ‘Lake Ontario’

A sign reading "Lake Ontario, Now and Always," unveiled by Ontario Premier Doug Ford at Fifty Point Conservation Area, after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America," near Grimsby, Ontario, Canada, August 29, 2026. (Reuters)
A sign reading "Lake Ontario, Now and Always," unveiled by Ontario Premier Doug Ford at Fifty Point Conservation Area, after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America," near Grimsby, Ontario, Canada, August 29, 2026. (Reuters)
TT

Google Maps Will Show ‘Lake America’ in US, not ‘Lake Ontario’

A sign reading "Lake Ontario, Now and Always," unveiled by Ontario Premier Doug Ford at Fifty Point Conservation Area, after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America," near Grimsby, Ontario, Canada, August 29, 2026. (Reuters)
A sign reading "Lake Ontario, Now and Always," unveiled by Ontario Premier Doug Ford at Fifty Point Conservation Area, after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order renaming Lake Ontario as "Lake America," near Grimsby, Ontario, Canada, August 29, 2026. (Reuters)

Google Maps has changed the ‌name of "Lake Ontario" to "Lake America" for US users to reflect President Donald Trump's executive order renaming the lake, according to a Google statement.

Trump announced on Thursday that he was changing the name of the smallest of the five Great Lakes, part of an escalating trade feud with Canada that has prompted the two countries to impose reciprocal tariffs on billions of dollars in goods.

The president's order affects the US Geographic Names Information System (GNIS), which sets ‌the standards for ‌official US maps. It does not have ‌any ⁠impact on Canadian ⁠naming conventions or how the rest of the world refers to the lake.

"Since we update Google Maps to reflect name changes in official government sources, which is GNIS for the US, people using Maps in the US will see 'Lake America,' those in Canada will continue to see 'Lake ⁠Ontario,' and those outside of the US and ‌Canada will see both names," ‌Google said in a blog post issued on Saturday.

The White ‌House, Carney's office and Ford's office did not immediately comment ‌on Sunday on Google's decision.

Google Maps made a similar change to the Gulf of Mexico last year, labeling it the "Gulf of America" following Trump's executive order on his first day ‌in office renaming the body of water.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney immediately rejected the lake's name ⁠change on ⁠Thursday. Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul of New York, which shares a long border with Canada, declared that "New York won't be calling it that," while Phil Scott, the Republican governor of neighboring Vermont, called Trump's decision "petty and disappointing" on social media.

The premier of Ontario, Doug Ford, on Saturday unveiled a large lakeside sign that reads, "Lake Ontario: Now and Always," in both English and French.

"President Trump can call it whatever he wants, but I can tell you, the rest of the world will always call it Lake Ontario," Ford said.


Trump Says US Will Refill Strategic Petroleum Reserve Using Venezuelan Oil

An oil tanker sails off the coast of Maracaibo, Venezuela, 29 August 2026. (EPA)
An oil tanker sails off the coast of Maracaibo, Venezuela, 29 August 2026. (EPA)
TT

Trump Says US Will Refill Strategic Petroleum Reserve Using Venezuelan Oil

An oil tanker sails off the coast of Maracaibo, Venezuela, 29 August 2026. (EPA)
An oil tanker sails off the coast of Maracaibo, Venezuela, 29 August 2026. (EPA)

US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that oil from a recently struck deal with Venezuela will be used to replenish the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which has been drawn down sharply in recent years to respond to global supply disruptions ‌and high ‌fuel prices.

Trump said in ‌a ⁠social media post ⁠that the "topping out" process will begin shortly, describing the Venezuelan oil as a “Gift from Venezuela to the People of the United States.”

It is unclear ⁠how quickly the Venezuela ‌deal could ‌provide oil for the reserve or deliver ‌any near-term benefit to US motorists. ‌

The agreement Trump announced on Friday is aimed at reviving Venezuela's battered oil industry, but it will ‌require significant investment and infrastructure work before production can rise substantially.

The ⁠reserve ⁠held about 290 million barrels as of August 21, near a 44-year low, after the United States drew down its stockpile under both the Biden and Trump administrations in response to global supply disruptions, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the conflict with Iran.


Saved by a Lunch Break: Nepal Floods Destroyed Many Schools, but Students at This School Survived

 Mud covers the floor of a classroom damaged in the recent flash floods at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP)
Mud covers the floor of a classroom damaged in the recent flash floods at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP)
TT

Saved by a Lunch Break: Nepal Floods Destroyed Many Schools, but Students at This School Survived

 Mud covers the floor of a classroom damaged in the recent flash floods at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP)
Mud covers the floor of a classroom damaged in the recent flash floods at the Shree Bagheswori Madhyamik School in Galchhi, Dhading district of Nepal Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. (AP)

In one of the areas worst hit by Wednesday’s catastrophic floods in Nepal, a group of schoolchildren managed to survive when they happened to leave their classroom for their lunch break.

Children attending other classes at the school in Dhading also escaped because teachers told them to quickly evacuate their classrooms shortly before the waters came crashing in.

“The teachers said, ‘There is a flood and you should leave bags and tiffins,’” said Lakshmi Shrestha, the mother of a student attending the school. “That’s how they managed to survive.”

Shrestha was among mothers and children who began to return to their school on Sunday to find the kids' belongings and see what could be salvaged. The majority of the children at the school appeared to have survived the floods, the families said.

Thick brown and gray mud coated the surfaces of school benches, walls and notebooks while the school’s courtyard was filled with sediment. Lines on the walls showed how high the water rapidly rose. A pile of small mud-caked backpacks, some with colorful key chains, were on the benches and floors, waiting to be claimed.

Kopila Mizar, the mother of a student, was unable to find her son’s backpack, but remained positive.

“My son is alive, that is my biggest happiness,” she said.

At least 69 schools in Nepal’s flood-devastated districts have been destroyed or damaged, putting education at risk for nearly 19,000 children, according to the nonprofit Save the Children. Those numbers are likely to rise as rescue teams reach more areas, they said.

The government ordered schools and universities to shut down for three days following torrential rains that triggered severe flash floods and landslides across parts of the country. University exams were also paused.

With communities still receiving constant flood warnings advising them to move to higher, safer areas, it’s unclear when classes will be able to resume.

Nepal’s disaster agency said Sunday the death toll had climbed to 788 with 2,502 missing, while Chinese authorities reported 16 deaths and 546 missing on the Chinese side of the border.

The missing include hundreds of people from over a dozen countries who were in the region to work, visit the mountains or make a pilgrimage to a peak. On Sunday, Chinese state media said 261 foreigners were missing in Tibet, including over a hundred Nepalis and others from around the world.