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
Floods in Central Vietnam leave 28 dead, thousands displaced
The death toll from heavy rains and flooding in central Vietnam has risen to 28, with six people reported missing and 43 injured, local newspaper VnExpress reported Friday night.
More than 22,100 homes remain flooded, primarily in the cities of Hue and Da Nang. Floods and landslides have destroyed or swept away 91 houses and damaged another 181, the report added.
Around 245,000 households are still without electricity, particularly in Da Nang, where over 225,000 homes are affected.
Additionally, 80 stretches of national highways are blocked or disrupted due to landslides. Authorities expect the flooding to continue for another day or two in the region.
International
FBI foils ISIS-Inspired attack in Michigan, arrests five teens
Kash Patel did not provide further details, but police sources told CBS News that the potential attack was “inspired” by the Islamic State (ISIS).
“This morning, the FBI thwarted a potential terrorist attack and arrested several individuals in Michigan who were allegedly planning a violent attack during the Halloween weekend,” Patel wrote on X.
“Thanks to swift action and close coordination with our local partners, a possible terrorist act was prevented before it could be carried out,” he added.
CBS reported that five people between the ages of 16 and 20 were arrested on Friday. At least one of them was reportedly acquainted with a former member of the Michigan National Guard, who was arrested in May for plotting an ISIS-inspired attack on a U.S. military facility in the Detroit suburbs.
International
U.S. warns China over Taiwan during high-level defense talks in Kuala Lumpur
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth expressed concerns over China’s growing military activity near Taiwan during a meeting on Friday with Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun in Kuala Lumpur.
“It was a constructive and positive meeting,” Hegseth wrote on X. “I emphasized the importance of maintaining a balance of power in the Indo-Pacific and raised U.S. concerns about China’s actions around Taiwan,” the self-governed island that Beijing claims and does not rule out invading.
The meeting took place on the sidelines of the ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus, one day after U.S. President Donald Trump met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Busan, South Korea. According to Trump, Taiwan was not discussed during their talks.
“The United States does not seek conflict and will continue to firmly defend its interests, ensuring it maintains the capability to do so in the region,” Hegseth added in his message.
Friday’s encounter followed a September 9 video call between Hegseth and Dong. Their previously planned meeting at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore was canceled due to Dong’s absence from the event.
Trump’s sit-down with Xi — their first since 2019 — resulted in some trade agreements but avoided addressing the issue of Taiwan, a long-standing source of tension between the world’s two largest powers.
Trump has taken a more ambiguous stance on Taiwan’s future compared with former President Joe Biden, who repeatedly stated that Washington would support Taipei if China launched an invasion. The Republican president has also criticized Taiwan for “stealing” the U.S. semiconductor industry.
Floods in Central Vietnam leave 28 dead, thousands displaced
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U.S. warns China over Taiwan during high-level defense talks in Kuala Lumpur
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