Latest news with #Barbarossa
The Irish Sun
09-07-2025
- The Irish Sun
It's official: the world's best island is in Europe and I visited this summer – it's stunning but has one big downside
PAROS has been voted the world's best island, and it happened to be where I went on holiday this year. It's got everything you want from a Advertisement 7 Paros has everything you'd expect from a Greek island - beautiful views and great food Credit: Chloe Penwill 7 Phoenix (left) and I took a trip to Paros and found some hidden gems Credit: Chloe Penwill The island is known for having Inspired by Instagram, I booked the tickets, confirmed an Airbnb, and was on my way. The journey wasn't an easy one I'll admit, my friend, Phoenix and I flew to Advertisement Read More on Euro Breaks It was much cheaper than flying though, ferry trips to the island can be as little as €20 (£17.23). But if you're in a rush, you can fly from the UK to Of course, the island's major downside - how difficult it is to get there - is why it's also so wonderful, as it means that it has evaded the overtourism that has plagued some of the other pretty Greek islands. I was staying in the second largest town on the island, Advertisement Most read in Beach holidays Parikia was chaotic, it's where you'll find the port and it's the hub of the island. Phoenix and I were ushered into a taxi by a very friendly local who drove for 20 minutes across the island to Naoussa where we found paradise. It was completely different to Parikia, the streets were quiet, there were incredible beaches and I could hear the chatter of stall owners at the local shops selling jewellery, linen dresses and souvenirs. The unknown European island that is the -new Mykonos- but with cheap hotels and quiet beaches 7 Monastiri Beach Club was my favourite stop - we were there all day Credit: Chloe Penwill Advertisement 7 Water activities are popular, like boat parties and snorkelling Credit: Chloe Penwill But unlike other places I've visited, the locals were friendly, didn't push me to buy anything and instead simply smiled. As I said, my trip was Instagram-inspired so there were already some pre-planned stops on holiday. The first was to Advertisement It's one of those places that you'd only end up at if you know about it beforehand as it's tucked away on the north of the island. We took a Deciding to spend our day there, we rented out two sunbeds which were more like memory foam mattresses and a sun umbrella for €60 (£51.20). It was lively with a DJ and tasty cocktails available to order from the bar. Advertisement Something I found about the island was that it remained quiet until 1am. We often booked to have dinner between eight and nine o'clock and it would still be peaceful with the bars not filling up until the early hours of the morning. That's when I discovered another Instagram hotspot on the island was called Barbarossa. Advertisement It's a famous I wouldn't say cocktails were cheap, but they weren't too expensive either, the average I spent on a drink was €17 (£14.65). 7 Seafood risotto was a popular dish in Paros Credit: Chloe Penwill 7 Luaz was a popular dinner spot and right on the beach Credit: Chloe Penwill Advertisement The food on the island was delicious, particularly the seafood - there were lots of sushi and fish risottos. Some of our favourites were Almond, Tsachpinis-Ouzeri ton Nautikon and Fotis All Day Bar. Luaz was especially popular as you get to eat dinner right on the water's edge which is particularly impressive during golden hour. As for activities, being an island, the Advertisement We joined Captain Ben's Cruise which took us around the island, it stopped five times for us to dive into the water. On the way we stopped by the Blue Lagoon and a sea cave as well as Despotiko Island where we lazed about on The tickets were €110 (£94.77) each, that included the tour as well as breakfast, lunch, snacks, ice cream, and five alcoholic drinks throughout the cruise. My favourite part was when everyone dived into the water and had Prosecco in the water which bobbed around on an inflatable table. Advertisement One thing I loved about the island is that it has everything you want out of a holiday. Whether that's a quiet spot on a sandy beach to relax, head off on a wild boat party, or eat authentic I'm so happy that Paros has been recognised for its beauty and everything it has to offer, but I'll be sad that it will no longer be the quiet gem I discovered. And here is another Advertisement Plus, the four 7 I visited Paros - which is now the world's best island Credit: Chloe Penwill
Boston Globe
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Russian forces expand fighting to new region of eastern Ukraine
Still, both goals are likely to further widen the battlefield in a war now grinding through its fourth year. An officer with the call sign 'Barbarossa' from Ukraine's 72nd Brigade, which is currently fighting off Russian assaults into Dnipropetrovsk, said that Russia had accumulated 'a lot of forces' in the area, and that he expected them to push deeper into the region. Advertisement Like other officers quoted in this article, he asked to be identified by his first name or call sign only, in keeping with military protocol. Advertisement Russia's Defense Ministry first claimed on Sunday that some of its forces had reached the administrative border between Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk and were 'continuing their offensive.' Ukraine's top military command has so far denied that Russian troops have entered Dnipropetrovsk. The Ukrainian officers said Russian forces had advanced, at most, along a few tree lines into Dnipropetrovsk and had yet to capture any settlement. Whether they can secure their advance, capitalize on the breach and push deeper into the region remains to be seen. Still, by pushing into Dnipropetrovsk, Russian forces are taking the fight to a region that many Ukrainians thought would remain untouched by ground fighting. Dnipropetrovsk is one of Ukraine's largest regions, with a major industrial base and about 3 million residents. Those people include many who fled there from cities under attack in Donetsk, meaning the Russian advance could force some to flee for a second time. Russia's push also comes amid cease-fire talks that are taking place even as both sides have tried to demonstrate that they have the ability to keep fighting. Should Russia capture a sizable portion of the Dnipropetrovsk region, it could complicate Ukraine's position in any negotiations to trade land. Controlling the border area between Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk would also give Russia a stronger foothold to complete its takeover of Donetsk, around 70 percent of which it already controls. In particular, it would facilitate an assault on Pokrovsk, a Ukrainian stronghold in Donetsk it has so far failed to capture. The advance also highlights Russia's momentum on the battlefield. Last month, Russia captured over 200 square miles of territory in Ukraine, more than double its gains in April and the second-highest monthly advance since the first year of the war, according to the Black Bird Group, a Finland-based research organization tracking battlefield developments. Advertisement Months of slow but steady gains lie behind the push into Dnipropetrovsk. It took Russian forces a year of grinding combat to advance roughly 30 miles and finally cross into the region. Along the way, Russian forces captured town after town, shifting tactics from the meat-grinder approach seen in the brutal battle for Bakhmut to a more adaptive strategy, using small assault squads to look for weaknesses and punch through Ukrainian lines. 'The enemy uses small-group tactics — two to four, sometimes six soldiers, moving from tree line to tree line or building to building,' said Barbarossa, from Ukraine's 72nd Brigade. The Russian advance is reflected in the retreat of medics from Ukraine's 33rd Mechanized Brigade, who treat wounded soldiers at so-called stabilization points, small field hospitals typically set up several miles behind the front line. Since the fall, the medics have relocated their stabilization point westward four times. They crossed into Dnipropetrovsk late last year, setting up in a building in Novopavlivka, near the administrative border between the two regions. As Russian forces advanced in recent weeks, the medics were forced to move deeper into Dnipropetrovsk, according to soldiers from the 33rd Brigade. The building they were using in Novopavlivka, which a New York Times team visited this year, was later heavily damaged in a Russian strike. Viktor, a Ukrainian army officer fighting in the area, said he expected Russian forces to try to capture Novopavlivka, which sits on strategically advantageous high ground, before pushing north toward Mezhova, the main town in the area. Securing that stretch of land, he said, would allow Russia to carve out a roughly 6-mile-deep buffer zone to protect its flanks in neighboring Donetsk, and set the stage for a new assault on Pokrovsk. Advertisement This article originally appeared in
New York Times
13-06-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Russian Forces Expand Fighting to a New Region of Eastern Ukraine
Pressing ahead with a new summer offensive, Russian forces have entered the Dnipropetrovsk region of eastern Ukraine for the first time in three years of war — signaling their capacity to keep expanding the fight as cease-fire talks show little signs of progress. Advancing west from the Donetsk region, the main theater of the ground war today, small squads of Russian soldiers began crossing into neighboring Dnipropetrovsk last weekend, according to three Ukrainian officers fighting in the area. A battlefield map by the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War, based on verified combat footage, now shows that Russian forces have secured a tiny foothold in the area. Russia is unlikely to try to seize the new region, which it has signaled in the past that it has no intentions of doing. Instead, military analysts and Ukrainian soldiers view the push as both symbolic — aimed at denting Ukrainian morale by breaching a new region — and strategic, designed to bolster its defenses in neighboring areas where it has already dug in. Still, both goals are likely to further widen the battlefield in a war now grinding through its fourth year. An officer with the call sign 'Barbarossa' from Ukraine's 72nd Brigade, which is currently fighting off Russian assaults into Dnipropetrovsk, said that Russia had accumulated 'a lot of forces' in the area, and that he expected them to push deeper into the region. Like other officers quoted in this article, he asked to be identified by his first name or call sign only, in keeping with military protocol. Russia's Defense Ministry first claimed on Sunday that some of its forces had reached the administrative border between Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk and were 'continuing their offensive.' Ukraine's top military command has so far denied that Russian troops have entered Dnipropetrovsk. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
