Europe

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine struck the headquarters of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet in a missile attack Friday that left a serviceman missing and the main building smoldering, according to military officials on both sides of the war and images from the scene in Crimea.

The Russian Defense Ministry initially said one servicemember was killed but then issued a subsequent statement saying he was missing following the attack in the port city of Sevastopol.

20 September 2023; MEMO: The Swiss Parliament passed legislation on Wednesday making it illegal to cover one’s face, including wearing a niqab – a Muslim woman’s face veil – with a fine of 1,000 Swiss francs (approximately $1,114), Anadolu Agency reports.

The “burqa ban” law was approved by the upper chamber of parliament, known locally as Nationalrat, by a vote of 151 to 29, public broadcaster, SRF, reported.

20 September 2023; MEMO: The EU announced, Wednesday, that it will release €140 million (nearly $150 million) in aid for education, healthcare, agriculture and women’s economic advancement in Afghanistan, Anadolu Agency reports.

The funds had been frozen in December 2022 due to the interim Taliban administration’s ban on women working in non-governmental organisations, the bloc said in a statement.

21 September 2023; MEMO: The Welsh Government has announced that it is formally opposing Michael Gove’s anti-boycott bill, which grants special protection to Israel and recommended the Welsh Senedd withhold legislative consent. This follows months of campaigning by rights groups, including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), demanding the Welsh government and Senedd oppose the bill.

MOSCOW, September 21. /TASS/: There are no meetings with US officials on the itinerary of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told Soloviev Live TV channel.

"No, our itinerary does not include any meetings [with the US side]," Zakharova said, replying to a question on the matter.

MOSCOW, September 21. /TASS/: Russia has introduced restrictions on the export of gasoline and diesel fuel from September 21, the press service of the government reported on Thursday.

According to the government decree to that effect, the restrictions are temporary and begin on September 21 "from the date of its official publication," but the document does not specify the expiration date of the restrictions.

MOSCOW, September 21. /TASS/: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin has apologized and expressed deep condolences over the death of the Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh on September 20, the Kremlin press service reported.

"Russian President Vladimir Putin and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev held a telephone conversation at the initiative of the Azerbaijani side," the press service said.

VELIKY NOVGOROD, September 21. /TASS/: The Direct Line with Russian President Vladimir Putin may take place in some format before the end of the year, but its exact date has still not been set, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

"No, not yet. We expect to have it in some format by the end of the year," he said when asked about the prospects of holding the traditional Direct Line question-and-answer session.

MOSCOW, September 21. /TASS/: Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolay Patrushev has accused the Anglo-Saxons of unleashing genocide against the Russian-speaking population in Ukraine.

"Having brought a neo-Nazi terrorist regime to power in Ukraine as a result of a bloody coup, the Anglo-Saxons have unleashed genocide against the Russian population. Thus, since 2014, the population of Donbass, which is mostly Russian, has been subjected to violence and physical destruction," he said, answering the reporters’ questions.

PARIS, Sept 21 (NNN-AGENCIES) — People in poorer countries are disproportionately suffering from air pollution spewed from the increasing scourge of fires in forests and fields around the world, according to new research published Wednesday.

Landscape fires include blazes in forests, shrub, grass, pastures and agricultural lands, whether planned or uncontrolled such as the wildfires that have ravaged countries including Algeria, Canada and Greece this year.