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Three Ukrainians jailed for Russia-linked sabotage in Poland

Three Ukrainians jailed for Russia-linked sabotage in Poland
Three Ukrainians have been jailed in Poland for belonging to a gang accused of committing and preparing "acts of sabotage and terrorism" in Europe on Russia's behalf, prosecutors said on Friday. (Reuters/File)
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Updated 19 sec ago

Three Ukrainians jailed for Russia-linked sabotage in Poland

Three Ukrainians jailed for Russia-linked sabotage in Poland
  • The conviction of the three men is part of a wider investigation
  • The group operated in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine and Russia

WARSAW: Three Ukrainians have been jailed in Poland for belonging to a gang accused of committing and preparing “acts of sabotage and terrorism” in Europe on Russia’s behalf, prosecutors said on Friday.
The conviction of the three men is part of a wider investigation, notably into fires at two shopping centers in Warsaw and an IKEA store in Vilnius, the capital of neighboring Lithuania, last year.
The Warsaw fire in May 2024 was “the result of an act of sabotage, perpetrated by members of an organized crime group acting on behalf of the intelligence agencies of the Russian Federation,” a statement read.
The group operated in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Ukraine and Russia, it added.
The three men were sentenced to one year and four months, 2.5 years and 5.5 years at a court in Warsaw.
Their actions consisted of “setting fire to large-scale retail centers situated in European Union member states, with the intention of causing the severe intimidation of a large number of people, and consequently, influencing public opinion,” prosecutors said.
On Tuesday, the Polish authorities said 55 people suspected of acting on behalf of Moscow had been detained since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Poland has since then repeatedly accused Russia of being behind a number of acts and attempted acts of sabotage, including fires across the country and in the capital.
Russia has consistently rejected those claims.
In retaliation, Poland has imposed restrictions on the movements of Russian diplomats on its soil and ordered the closure of two Russian consulates, in the western city of Poznan, and in Krakow, in the south.
Poland, an EU and NATO member, has borders with Ukraine, as well as Kremlin ally Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad exclave, and is one of the main countries through which Western powers ship arms and ammunition to Kyiv.


Dutch man to appear in court for death threats to politicians

Updated 7 sec ago

Dutch man to appear in court for death threats to politicians

Dutch man to appear in court for death threats to politicians
The man wrote to a politician in a private message on Instagram
An investigation into his phone showed he had also threatened to kill another party leader

AMSTERDAM: An 18-year old Dutch man is set to appear before a fast-track judge on Monday after he made death threats against two leaders of political parties ahead of a general election, Dutch prosecutors said on Friday.
The man, whose identity was not disclosed, wrote to a politician in a private message on Instagram that if he encountered him, “he would knock him out, drag him into a van, hang him, and cut him open,” the prosecutors said.
An investigation into his phone showed he had also threatened to kill another party leader on September 24, the prosecutors said.
Details about the party leaders were not disclosed to protect their privacy, they added.
Many politicians in the Netherlands have reported threats ahead of the October 29 election.
Earlier this week, another man was detained by the police over threats posted on TikTok.
Far right leader Geert Wilders, who has been living under tight security for over 20 years due to death threats, this month briefly suspended his campaign citing a new threat.

Zelensky calls for sanctions on all Russian oil companies, shadow fleet, oil terminals

Zelensky calls for sanctions on all Russian oil companies, shadow fleet, oil terminals
Updated 4 min 53 sec ago

Zelensky calls for sanctions on all Russian oil companies, shadow fleet, oil terminals

Zelensky calls for sanctions on all Russian oil companies, shadow fleet, oil terminals
  • “Peace is born from pressure on the aggressor,” Zelensky said

KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Kyiv’s allies on Friday to introduce sanctions against all Russian oil companies, its shadow fleet and oil terminals to disrupt Moscow’s ability to fund its war in Ukraine.
Zelensky, speaking in London beside some of the leaders of the so-called “Coalition of the Willing,” said Russia — which has been attacking Ukrainian energy facilities — was trying to use the coming winter as a tool to put pressure on Ukraine.
“Peace is born from pressure on the aggressor,” Zelensky said.


Security Council’s legitimacy at stake as it marks its 80th anniversary, UN chief warns

Security Council’s legitimacy at stake as it marks its 80th anniversary, UN chief warns
Updated 14 min ago

Security Council’s legitimacy at stake as it marks its 80th anniversary, UN chief warns

Security Council’s legitimacy at stake as it marks its 80th anniversary, UN chief warns
  • Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urges members to recommit to founding principles and reform the council to better reflect modern geopolitical realities
  • ‘The time has come to open the doors of the chamber and let in the light. Without a Security Council fit for purpose, the world is in grave danger,’ he says

NEW YORK CITY: The UN’s secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, warned on Friday that the Security Council’s “legitimacy is fragile.”
He urged member states to recommit to the founding principles of the UN Charter and take urgent action to reform the council so that it better reflects the geopolitical realities of today.
“Too often, we have seen members of this body act outside the principles of the Charter, principles we have all freely agreed to as sovereign nations,” Guterres said.
“When that happens, it not only stalls action in the moment, it erodes trust in the entire United Nations project. It also puts us all in great danger.”
Speaking from Hanoi, he was addressing a Security Council open debate convened by Russia, which holds the rotating presidency of the council this month, to mark the 80th anniversary of the UN. It was titled “The United Nations Organization: Looking Into the Future.”
The council remains a “vital necessity and a powerful force for good,” Guterres said. He credited it with helping to end apartheid in South Africa, restore peace in post-genocide Cambodia, and prevent a major-power war for eight decades.
But he cautioned that there was now a risk that these achievements would be undermined by paralysis, geopolitical rivalries and a lack of representativeness.
Reform of the Security Council, Guterres said, is “imperative and long overdue.”
He called for an expansion of its membership, noting that nearly half of all UN peacekeeping missions are deployed in Africa, yet the continent still lacks a permanent seat on the council. Latin America and the Caribbean also remain underrepresented, while the Asia-Pacific region, home to more than half of the world’s population, has only one permanent seat.
“Expanding the membership is not only about justice, it is also about results,” he said. “It has the potential to undo deadlocks and offer stability in our increasingly multipolar world.”
Guterres welcomed proposals by France and the UK to voluntarily limit the use of the power of veto held by them and the other permanent members of the council (Russia, China and the US). Such a measure has long been debated as a way to ensure the council can be more responsive to crises, including conflicts such as those in Ukraine, Gaza and Sudan.
“The Security Council is not about hegemons and empires,” he said. “It is about parents who have lost their children, refugees flung far from their homes, soldiers who have sacrificed their limbs.”
Calling for a renewed moral purpose and greater inclusivity, Guterres added: “The time has come to open the doors of the chamber and let in the light. Without a Security Council fit for purpose, the world is in grave danger.”


Killer who dumped bodies in suitcases jailed for 42 years

Killer who dumped bodies in suitcases jailed for 42 years
Updated 52 min 31 sec ago

Killer who dumped bodies in suitcases jailed for 42 years

Killer who dumped bodies in suitcases jailed for 42 years
  • Sentencing him to life with a minimum term of 42 years, Judge Joel Bennathan said the murders had been “premeditated and thoroughly wicked“
  • Mosquera took their bodies to the southwestern city of Bristol in two suitcases

LONDON: A UK judge on Friday jailed for 42 years a man who decapitated and dismembered two people before dumping their bodies in suitcases on a landmark UK bridge.
Colombian national Yostin Mosquera murdered Albert Alfonso, 62, who was originally from France, and Paul Longworth, 71, last year at a flat the couple shared in west London where he had been staying with them.
A court earlier this year found the 35-year-old guilty of murdering both men.
Sentencing him to life with a minimum term of 42 years, Judge Joel Bennathan said the murders had been “premeditated and thoroughly wicked.”
“It was their tragedy that you, Yostin Mosquera, came into their lives,” he said, adding he was “sure” Mosquera had intended to try to sell their flat after killing them.
Mosquera filmed himself having sex with Alfonso and stabbing him to death after killing Longworth, who was struck with a hammer on the back of the head, prosecutors told the court earlier.
Police found the couple’s severed heads in a freezer at the flat, while Mosquera took their bodies to the southwestern city of Bristol in two suitcases where he left them on the Clifton Suspension Bridge.
An analysis of Mosquera’s computer showed he had looked up the value of the couple’s west London home, copied documents containing Alfonso’s online banking details, and searched the web for “serial killers of London” and “Jack the Ripper film.”
Alfonso, a swimming instructor, and Longworth, a retired maintenance worker, became civil partners in 2023.
Judge Bennathan described Alfonso as “a hardworking man who had shown (Mosquera) kindness and generosity.”
Longworth was a “harmless, amiable person who had done (the defendant) no wrong,” he added during a sentencing hearing at London’s Woolwich Crown Court.
After the killing, Mosquera traveled to Bristol where a cyclist spotted him on the bridge with a large red suitcase and a silver trunk.
Questioned by bridge staff about something leaking from the red suitcase, Mosquera told them it was oil.
When they shone their torches on the suitcases, he fled.
Bennathan said he was sure the defendant’s aim had been to “throw the cases full of body parts off the bridge in an attempt to dispose of them.”
Mosquera received two life terms which will be served concurrently along with a 16-month sentence for possessing child pornography.


Turkmenistan renews call for gas pipeline to Europe

Turkmenistan renews call for gas pipeline to Europe
Updated 24 October 2025

Turkmenistan renews call for gas pipeline to Europe

Turkmenistan renews call for gas pipeline to Europe
  • The idea of a Trans-Caspian gas pipeline to Europe has been discussed since the 1990s
  • Turkmenistan sends most of its gas exports to China

ASHGABAT: Turkmenistan renewed its call Friday for the creation of a pipeline linking its vast gas fields to Europe, a long-mooted project that would require significant foreign investment.
The idea of a Trans-Caspian gas pipeline to Europe has been discussed since the 1990s but has been hindered by financial and logistical hurdles.
“We’re always interested in diversifying export routes, including the Trans-Caspian route to Europe,” the chair of state-owned gas company Turkmengaz, Maksat Babayev, told AFP.
Turkmenistan sends most of its gas exports to China, but it is increasingly courting interest from European countries looking to end their dependence on Russia over the war in Ukraine.
The former Soviet republic is one of the five largest holders of natural gas reserves in the world.
The pipeline, which would run under the Caspian Sea to an existing terminal in Azerbaijan, has faced opposition from Russia as well as questions over its financial viability.