Latest news with #droneStrikes
Al Jazeera
5 days ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Russia and Ukraine swap drone attacks as ceasefire efforts remain stalled
Russia and Ukraine have swapped drone strikes, with at least three people reportedly killed by Moscow near the shared border. Strikes were reported overnight on Tuesday in several areas of Ukraine, as well as in Moscow. The attacks are the latest in a series of intensifying hostilities as the efforts of the United States to broker a ceasefire have stalled, with Russia appearing eager to take advantage, as global attention is dominated by the war between Israel and Iran. A Russian drone attack on a village in Sumy killed an eight-year-old boy and two adults, and injured another three people, the military administration of the region said. Drone strikes also wounded five people in Kharkiv and four others in the Dnipropetrovsk region, local authorities said. The attacks came a day after a 'massive' missile and drone strike on Ukraine's capital Kyiv killed at least 10 people. 'The strike took the lives of people from different families,' the military administration said on Telegram regarding the Sumy attack. 'They all lived on the same street. They went to sleep in their homes. But Russian drones interrupted their sleep – forever.' Ukraine has also stepped up its drone attacks on a wide range of targets in Russia in recent months. Russia said a Ukrainian drone had targeted a residential building in Moscow overnight, wounding two people, including a pregnant woman, and triggering a fire. Andrei Vorobyov, governor of the Moscow region, said that the drone started a fire on the 17th floor of the building in the town of Krasnogorsk, west of the capital. 'About 100 people were evacuated from the building, including 30 children,' Vorobyov said, adding that the injured were receiving treatment at a hospital. Russia's air defence units destroyed 20 Ukrainian drones overnight, including two over the Moscow region, local news agencies reported, citing Russian defence ministry data. Russia currently occupies about a fifth of Ukraine and claims to have annexed four Ukrainian regions as its own since launching its invasion in 2022 – in addition to Crimea, which it captured in 2014. US President Donald Trump had promised to swiftly end the war while on his campaign trail, but his diplomatic attempts have not resulted in a ceasefire so far. While Washington succeeded in bringing the two sides together for direct talks last month, little progress was made and no meetings have taken place in the last three weeks. Kyiv has accused Moscow of deliberately sabotaging a peace deal in order to prolong its full-scale offensive and seize more territory.
Telegraph
7 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
British bases on high alert for Iranian drone swarms
UK bases in the Middle East are on heightened alert for drone strikes after the US bombing of Iran. John Healey, the Defence Secretary, said UK Armed Forces protection was at its 'highest level' amid fears that the US action could escalate into a wider conflict. It is understood UK bases across the Middle East have increased security since the US action in the early hours of Sunday morning, with personnel on high alert for drone attacks as well as conventional rockets and missiles. It comes amid increasing fears over the security of British bases at home and overseas. On Saturday, a British man was arrested in Cyprus on suspicion of spying on an RAF base on behalf of Iran. On Friday, two pro-Palestinian protesters breached security at RAF Brize Norton and vandalised two planes. In a post on X on Sunday, Mr Healey said: 'The safety of UK personnel and bases is my top priority. Force protection is at its highest level, and we deployed additional jets this week.' Defence chiefs are likely to be concerned about the threat of drone attacks on UK bases after a swarm of Ukrainian drones damaged 40 Russian warplanes, including long-range nuclear-capable aircraft, at bases across the country. Russia has used Iranian-made Shahed drones to devastating effect in Ukraine, triggering blackouts and damaging key power facilities. The explosive charge of the Shahed-136 model was originally designed to destroy buildings but now also carries charges designed to kill via fragmentation or thermobaric bombs. Iran has also launched these drones against targets in Israel over the past weeks. Earlier this month, Sir Keir Starmer said he was sending more RAF jets to the Middle East to protect UK assets. British bases in the Middle East include RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, where 14 RAF jets are now based, naval bases in Bahrain and Oman, and shared airbases in Qatar and the UAE. Steps the bases could take to protect against Iranian threats could include increasing the number of guards on patrol, issuing more troops in bases with live ammunition and deploying more radar systems. It is understood British bases are not yet preparing for any specific imminent attack, with the high alert level encompassing a broad range of threats from rockets to improvised explosive devices. There have also been concerns about threats on UK soil. Last year, British troops were deployed to several US air bases across England amid reports of multiple unidentified drones flying over their airspace. Military sources said that while it was not known whether they were dealing with a 'troublemaker' or something 'more sinister' – such as Russian involvement – there were concerns that a state actor could be behind the disruption. Investment in drone technology was central to the Government's recent strategic defence review, with Mr Healey announcing more than £100 million to develop its land drone swarm programme. In a significant breakthrough, a recent British Army radio wave trial in Wales took down a drone swarm for the first time, using specially developed weaponry. It comes as serious questions have been raised about Britain's ability to secure its military bases after the break-in at RAF Brize Norton last week, with ministers urged to explain 'how on earth' the breach had been allowed to happen. It emerged on Friday that part of the eight-mile perimeter was protected only by a 6ft wooden fence. Stretching for around 170 metres, it skirts along the end of the runway and is protected from the road by only a small line of wooden and concrete bollards. Downing Street announced shortly after the incident that it was 'reviewing security across the whole defence estate'. Ministers were warned earlier this month about security risks at bases in the review, which singled out Brize Norton as a 'high priority for investment and improvement'. It said: 'The changing nature of the threat to UK and allied security means that RAF logistic support arrangements must be more resilient to disruption and military assault, requiring a different approach to fighting from air bases, and deeper, more dispersed stockpiles of munitions, spare parts, and fuel.' The review called on the RAF to 'drive greater productivity to enhance its resilience', adding that Brize Norton 'should be a high priority for investment and improvement'.
Malay Mail
19-06-2025
- Politics
- Malay Mail
‘Offering prayer': Relieved Pakistanis recall ‘horrifying nights' as Israel, Iran trade strikes
TAFTAN (Pakistan), June 20 — Mohammad Hassan anxiously returned to Pakistan from neighbouring Iran this week after witnessing drones, missiles, and explosions tear through Tehran's sky during what he called long, 'horrifying nights'. The 35-year-old University of Tehran student is one of about 3,000 Pakistanis who, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, have returned home since Israel launched its aerial war against its long-time enemy last week. Governments around the world are scrambling to evacuate their nationals caught up in the rapidly spiralling conflict as Israel and Iran trade missile and drone strikes. This picture shows the heavily damaged building of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) after it was hit a few days earlier in an Israeli strike, in Tehran, on June 19, 2025. — AFP pic 'I was in the city centre where most of the strikes took place and even one of the student dormitories was attacked and luckily no one was dead, but students were injured,' Hassan said. There are more than 500 Pakistani students at his university alone, he said, all of them on their way 'back home'. 'Those days and nights were very horrifying... hearing sirens, the wailing, the danger of being hit by missiles. As one peeped out the window in the night, you could see drones, missiles with fire tails,' he told AFP. Vehicles move along a street in central Tehran on June 13, 2025. — AFP pic Ghost town Pakistan and Iran have a shaky diplomatic relationship. They bombed each other's territory little more than a year ago, both claiming to target rebels using their neighbour's land to launch attacks. Yet they have never suspended trade, tourism and academic ties. Iranian consulates across Pakistan have stepped up efforts to promote their universities. Between 25 million and 35 million Pakistani Shiite Muslims also hope to make at least one pilgrimage in their lifetime to holy sites in Iran, foremost among them the sacred city of Qom. Mohammad Khalil, a 41-year-old petroleum engineer, left Tehran three days ago, the capital of the Islamic Republic looking like a ghost town as residents sheltered indoors and families fled. 'In the last two days, I saw people moving out of the city in different vehicles with necessary commodities,' Khalil said. Abdul Ghani Khan sells medical equipment in his hometown of Peshawar in north-west Pakistan and travels to Iran regularly for supplies. He had been in Tehran for a week when the first Israeli missiles fell on Friday. Iran and Israel have traded heavy missile fire in the days since, raising fears of a wider regional conflict. Pakistan is in a difficult position as the only Muslim-majority country with nuclear weapons. It, like Iran, does not recognise Israel but is also a major ally of the United States. Khan had to make the journey home by road because the airspace is now closed. Pakistan has also shut its border crossings with Iran to all except Pakistanis wanting to return home. 'We saw drones, red lights of anti-aircraft guns and I spotted one building catch fire,' Khan said. Pakistani pilgrims evacuated from Iran walk across the Pakistan-Iran border at Taftan, in Balochistan province on June 18, 2025, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran. — AFP pic 'Offering prayer' Mohammad Asif, a lawyer from Lahore in Pakistan's east, heard about the air strikes while on a pilgrimage in Qom. He wasn't initially afraid and continued his pilgrimage to Mashhad in Iran's northeast, home to the golden-domed Imam Reza shrine. That was until Israeli strikes hit the airport in Mashhad, nearly 1,000 kilometres from the Pakistani border. Samreen Ali was also in Mashhad but, like Asif, cut her trip short and returned with her husband and 15-year-old son. She was praying in a mosque in Mashhad when Israel struck the city. Ali said she had visited Iran nine times before on pilgrimages and never imagined witnessing war there. 'I was offering prayer when I heard two explosions,' she told AFP. She then noticed she wasn't receiving messages on her phone and assumed that 'communication was being restricted... because of the war'. Syed Saqib, 46, was in Qom and had to travel 500 kilometres by bus south-east to Yazd. 'We had to take alternative routes, spend an entire night waiting at a bus terminal,' Saqib said. They then boarded buses to Zahedan, a city near the border with Pakistan's Balochistan province. A relieved Saqib recalled making the border crossing at Taftan, surrounded by families carrying heavy luggage. — AFP
Khaleej Times
19-06-2025
- Politics
- Khaleej Times
Relieved Pakistanis recall 'horrifying nights' as Israel, Iran trade strikes
Mohammad Hassan anxiously returned to Pakistan from neighbouring Iran this week after witnessing drones, missiles, and explosions tear through Tehran's sky during what he called long, "horrifying nights". The 35-year-old University of Tehran student is one of about 3,000 Pakistanis who, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, have returned home since Israel launched its aerial war against its long-time enemy last week. Governments around the world are scrambling to evacuate their nationals caught up in the rapidly spiralling conflict as Israel and Iran trade missile and drone strikes. "I was in the city centre where most of the strikes took place and even one of the student dormitories was attacked and luckily no one was dead, but students were injured," Hassan said. There are more than 500 Pakistani students at his university alone, he said, all of them on their way "back home". "Those days and nights were very horrifying... hearing sirens, the wailing, the danger of being hit by missiles. As one peeped out the window in the night, you could see drones, missiles with fire tails," he told AFP. Ghost town Pakistan and Iran have a shaky diplomatic relationship. They bombed each other's territory little more than a year ago, both claiming to target rebels using their neighbour's land to launch attacks. Yet they have never suspended trade, tourism and academic ties. Iranian consulates across Pakistan have stepped up efforts to promote their universities. Between 25 million and 35 million Pakistani Muslims also hope to make at least one pilgrimage in their lifetime to holy sites in Iran, foremost among them the sacred city of Qom. Mohammad Khalil, a 41-year-old petroleum engineer, left Tehran three days ago, the capital of the Islamic Republic looking like a ghost town as residents sheltered indoors and families fled. "In the last two days, I saw people moving out of the city in different vehicles with necessary commodities," Khalil said. Abdul Ghani Khan sells medical equipment in his hometown of Peshawar in northwest Pakistan and travels to Iran regularly for supplies. He had been in Tehran for a week when the first Israeli missiles fell on Friday. Iran and Israel have traded heavy missile fire in the days since, raising fears of a wider regional conflict. Pakistan is in a difficult position as the only Muslim-majority country with nuclear weapons. It, like Iran, does not recognise Israel but is also a major ally of the United States. Khan had to make the journey home by road because the airspace is now closed. Pakistan has also shut its border crossings with Iran to all except Pakistanis wanting to return home. "We saw drones, red lights of anti-aircraft guns and I spotted one building catch fire," Khan said. 'Offering prayer' Mohammad Asif, a lawyer from Lahore in Pakistan's east, heard about the air strikes while on a pilgrimage in Qom. He wasn't initially afraid and continued his pilgrimage to Mashhad in Iran's northeast, home to the golden-domed Imam Reza shrine. That was until Israeli strikes hit the airport in Mashhad, nearly 1,000 kilometres from the Pakistani border. Samreen Ali was also in Mashhad but, like Asif, cut her trip short and returned with her husband and 15-year-old son. She was praying in a mosque in Mashhad when Israel struck the city. Ali said she had visited Iran nine times before on pilgrimages and never imagined witnessing war there. "I was offering prayer when I heard two explosions," she told AFP. She then noticed she wasn't receiving messages on her phone and assumed that "communication was being restricted... because of the war". Syed Saqib, 46, was in Qom and had to travel 500 kilometres by bus southeast to Yazd. "We had to take alternative routes, spend an entire night waiting at a bus terminal," Saqib said. They then boarded buses to Zahedan, a city near the border with Pakistan's Balochistan province. A relieved Saqib recalled making the border crossing at Taftan, surrounded by families carrying heavy luggage.
Bloomberg
16-06-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Israel-Iran Attacks Extend to Fourth Day With No Deal in Sight
Open hostilities between Israel and Iran entered a fourth day on Monday with no sign of easing, stoking fears of a wider war in the oil-rich region. Iran fired several waves of drones and missiles over the last 24 hours, while Israel hit the Islamic Republic's capital, Tehran, killing another key military official.
