Europe

Aug 17 (Reuters) - U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Thursday that it was tracking a new, highly mutated lineage of the virus that causes COVID-19.

The lineage is named BA.2.86, and has been detected in the United States, Denmark and Israel, the CDC said in a post on messaging platform X.

"As we learn more about BA.2.86, CDC's advice on protecting yourself from COVID-19 remains the same," the agency said.

MOSCOW, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- Russian air defense forces have shot down a drone that attempted to fly over Russia's capital early Friday, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said on his social media channel.

The debris fell in the area of the Expocentre, causing partial damage to one of its pavilions, he said.

There were no casualties and the city's emergency services were working at the scene.

MADRID, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- The wildfire that began in the north-west of the Spanish holiday island of Tenerife late on Tuesday night continues to burn out of control and has doubled in size in just over 24 hours, devastating almost 3,300 hectares of forest in at least eight municipalities.

Around 7,000 residents have either been evacuated or told to stay at home as the perimeter of the fire has extended to 41 km from 22 km late on Wednesday night.

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s controversial commission for examining Russian influence in Poland that is seen as targeting the opposition ahead of Oct. 15 parliamentary elections will not be formed before that vote, a prominent member of the ruling party said Friday.

The European Union and Poland’s ally the U.S. have strongly criticized the law calling for the commission, saying it would interfere with the democratic process in Poland. The EU has launched legal action against member country Poland over the contentious law.

SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Canary Islands (AP) — Firefighters in Spain’s Canary Islands are battling dense smoke and high temperatures to try to control the worst wildfire in decades on the main tourist island of Tenerife, officials said Friday.

The fire started late Tuesday in the north of the island and has forced authorities in eight municipalities to order the evacuation of more than 4,500 people and the confinement of thousands more. Confinement means residents are strongly advised to stay indoors with windows closed.

No injuries have been reported so far.

MOSCOW (AP) — A Moscow judge has formally arrested and detained one of the leaders of a prominent independent election monitoring group on suspicion of being involved with an “undesirable” organization, his lawyer said Friday.

The case against Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of Russia’s leading election watchdog Golos, is the latest in the monthslong crackdown on Kremlin critics and rights activists that the government ratcheted up after sending troops into Ukraine.

STOCKHOLM, Aug. 17 (Xinhua) -- The terrorist threat level in Sweden has been raised from "elevated" to "high," the Swedish Security Service (SAPO) said on Thursday.

The threat posed by "violent Islamist actors has increased over the past year," Director General of the Swedish Security Service Charlotte von Essen said in a press release.

"Sweden has gone from being considered a legitimate target for terrorist attacks to being considered a prioritized target. In our assessment, this threat will remain for a long time," von Essen said.

MOSCOW (AP) — The Russian authorities have opened a criminal investigation into one of the leaders of a prominent independent election monitoring group, his lawyer said Thursday.

The case against Grigory Melkonyants, co-chair of Russia’s leading election watchdog Golos, is the latest step in the months-long crackdown on Kremlin critics and rights activists that the government ratcheted up after sending troops into Ukraine.

KUBINKA /Moscow Region/, August 16. /TASS/: The West is not interested in negotiations on a peace settlement in Ukraine, because it is keen to make as much money as possible for its military-industrial complex, Deputy Chairman of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev told the media.

MOSCOW, August 16. /TASS/: Russia’s Luna-25 automatic lunar station has entered the orbit of the Earth’s natural satellite, firing its thrusters twice, the State Space Corporation Roscosmos reported on Wednesday.

"The Luna-25 automatic station engineered at the Lavochkin Research and Production Association (part of the state corporation Roscosmos) has entered the orbit of the Moon’s artificial satellite," Roscosmos said in a statement.