International
Russia launches Ukraine’s “biggest attack on the energy industry”
At least three people have died and three others are missing as a result of the massive attack with missiles and drones launched by Russia against numerous regions of Ukraine.
According to the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenski, there have been almost 90 missiles and more than 60 Shahed drones aimed at power plants and transmission lines, a hydroelectric plant and residential buildings.
“It is important to understand the cost of delays and postponed decisions,” Zelenski said on his Telegram account, after giving his condolences to those killed in the attack, referring to the request he made to the European Council on Wednesday for more air defense systems to better protect the entire Ukrainian territory from Russian attacks.
For his part, the Minister of Energy, German Galushchenko, has assured on his social networks that this morning is the largest attack recently launched by Russia against the Ukrainian energy sector.
“The enemy is carrying out the biggest recent attack against the Ukrainian energy industry,” Galushechenko wrote early Friday morning. The minister added that “the Russian goal” “is not only to damage, but to try to provoke again a large-scale collapse of the country’s energy system.”
Galushchenko reported power cuts in several regions of the country as a result of the attack. One of the affected areas is the northeastern city of Kharkov, whose authorities have reported that the city has run out of light.
In addition, the authorities have confirmed that one of the projectiles has hit the largest hydroelectric plant in the Zaporiyia region, in southeastern Ukraine.
According to the company in charge of this installation, Russia seeks to “create a new ecological disaster” by hitting the infrastructure of the plant and the dam from which it is fed with water.
Ukraine is receiving electricity from Romania, Slovakia and Poland to maintain the supply after the massive attack on its energy system.
The explosions were recorded after the Ukrainian Air Force reported the detection of Russian cruise and ballistic missiles that were heading for Ukrainian territory under Kiev’s control.
The Ukrainian defenses managed to destroy 55 of the 63 Shahed kamikaze drones and 37 of the 88 missiles of different types launched by Russia, according to the balance sheet of the Ukrainian Air Force.
“During the early morning of March 22, the enemy launched a combined air attack against critical infrastructures in Ukraine,” it reads the Kiev military report, which reports that Russia used, among other types of projectiles, 7 Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and 12 Iskander-M ballistic missiles in the attack.
Ukrainian air defenses shot down 35 of the 45 cruise missiles fired by Russia, but could not intercept any of the Kinzhal or the Iskander-M.
Ukraine can intercept ballistic and hypersonic missiles such as the Kinzhal in Kiev, but it is vulnerable to this type of Russian weaponry in almost the rest of the country.
In addition, Russia has launched 49 retaliatory attacks for Ukrainian incursions in the border regions of Belgorod and Kursk during the last week.
“From March 16 to 22, in response to the bombing of our territories, the attempts to raid and capture Russian border localities, the Russian Armed Forces launched 49 retaliatory attacks with long-range aerial weapons, including Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and drones,” the Russian Ministry of Defense reported today in its daily war report.
The military department indicated that as a result of the attacks, “decision-making centers of the Ukrainian Army, airfields, weapons repair workshops, air and nautical drone warehouses, supply bases and site areas for Ukrainian military and foreign mercenaries” were reached.
Russia has been reporting daily for several days of the shooting down of drones and missiles in border regions with Ukraine, in particular in Belgorod, where it has suffered several incursions by militias of Russian volunteers fighting on the Ukrainian side.
During the last ten days, at least 21 Russian civilians have lost their lives as a result of these attacks.
International
Study finds COVID-19 vaccines prevented 2.5 million deaths worldwide
COVID-19 vaccines prevented an estimated 2,533,000 deaths worldwide between 2020 and 2024, according to an international study led by Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Italy and Stanford University in the United States, published in the journal JAMA Health Forum. Researchers calculated that one death was prevented for every 5,400 doses administered.
The analysis also found that the vaccines saved 14.8 million years of life, equivalent to one year of life gained for every 900 doses given.
The study, coordinated by Professor Stefania Boccia, revealed that 82% of the lives saved were people vaccinated before becoming infected with the virus, and 57% of deaths avoided occurred during the Omicron wave. In addition, 90% of the beneficiaries were adults over 60 years old.
“This is the most comprehensive analysis to date, based on global data and fewer assumptions about the evolution of the pandemic,” explained Boccia and researcher Angelo Maria Pezzullo.
International
Trump administration blasts judge’s ruling reinstating TPS for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump criticized a federal judge’s ruling on Friday that reinstated Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua, stressing that the immigration program was never intended to serve as a “de facto asylum system.”
On Thursday, Judge Trina Thompson extended protections for about 7,000 Nepalese immigrants, whose TPS was set to expire on August 5. The ruling also impacts roughly 51,000 Hondurans and nearly 3,000 Nicaraguans, whose TPS protections were scheduled to end on September 8.
Immigrants covered by TPS had sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), alleging that the program’s termination was driven by “racial animus” and stripped them of protection from deportation.
DHS Deputy Undersecretary Tricia McLaughlin issued a statement saying the decision to end TPS was part of a mandate to “restore the integrity” of the immigration system and return the program to its original purpose.
“TPS was never conceived as a de facto asylum system; however, that is how previous administrations have used it for decades,” McLaughlin emphasized.
She also criticized Judge Thompson, calling the ruling “another example” of judges “stirring up claims of racism to distract from the facts.”
McLaughlin added that DHS would appeal the decision and take the legal battle to higher courts.
The Trump administration has also terminated TPS protections for approximately 160,000 Ukrainians, 350,000 Venezuelans, and at least half a million Haitians, among other immigrant groups.
International
Trump to build $200M ballroom at the White House by 2028
The U.S. government under President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that it will begin construction in September on a new 8,000-square-meter ballroom at the White House.
The announcement was made by Karoline Leavitt, the administration’s press secretary, during a briefing in which she explained that the expansion responds to the need for a larger venue to host “major events.”
“Other presidents have long wished for a space capable of accommodating large gatherings within the White House complex… President Trump has committed to solving this issue,” Leavitt told reporters.
The project is estimated to cost $200 million, fully funded through donations from Trump himself and other “patriots,” according to a government statement. Construction is scheduled to begin in September and is expected to be completed before Trump’s term ends in 2028.
The Clark Construction Group, a Virginia-based company known for projects such as the Capital One Arena and L’Enfant Plaza in Washington, D.C., has been selected to lead the project.
The new ballroom will be built on the East Wing of the White House, expanding the iconic residence with a space designed for state dinners, official ceremonies, and large-scale events.
Study finds COVID-19 vaccines prevented 2.5 million deaths worldwide
Trump administration blasts judge’s ruling reinstating TPS for Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua
Costa Rica faces historic vote on lifting presidential immunity for Rodrigo Chaves
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
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