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World Monthly Headline News August 2024
Story by John Varga & Emily Hodgkin

The leader of a Russian private militia has openly called for the military to topple Vladimir Putin, marking what could be the most significant threat of rebellion the Kremlin has encountered since last year's Wagner mutiny.

Georgy Zakrevsky, who founded Paladin PMC, a group similar to the now-defunct Wagner militia and with loose ties to the Kremlin, has made a scathing attack on Putin in a video message.

Paladin PMC, which boasts about 300 fighters, has been involved in conflicts globally, including in Syria and Africa.

In his video outburst, Zakrevsky held Putin personally responsible for the military blunders in Ukraine.

He further accused Putin of being the root cause of Russia's economic and societal problems, calling on the military to overthrow the tyrannical leader and liberate the nation, reports the Express.

"Our country is not just on the brink of disaster or already right next to it, our country is already in trouble - in big trouble," Zakrevsky declared.
Story by Camilla Jessen

Nearly two years after the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines were damaged by explosions in the Baltic Sea, investigators are now focusing on a Ukrainian suspect believed to be involved in the sabotage.

The German Attorney General has issued an arrest warrant for the individual, who was last known to be in Poland but has since gone into hiding.

This development was reported by Die Zeit, Kurier, and ARD.

The Explosions and Aftermath
On September 26, 2022, several explosions hit the Nord Stream pipelines, causing major damage and stopping the flow of natural gas from Russia to Germany.

The blasts occurred near the Danish island of Bornholm, leading to the discovery of four leaks in three of the four pipeline lines.

At the time, Nord Stream 1 was active, but Nord Stream 2 had not yet started operations due to the political tensions following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The World Health Organization (WHO) declared mpox to be a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) on Wednesday

"Today, the Emergency Committee met and advised me that in its view, the situation constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. I have accepted that advice," said WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus during a media briefing on Wednesday.

In the U.S, there have been 1,634 cases of mpox reported so far this year, according to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

That's more than double the number of national cases seen at the same time last year but significantly lower than those seen during a U.S. mpox outbreak in 2022, CDC data shows.
Story by Jake Smith

North Korea is sending hundreds of nuclear-capable weapons to its border as it refuses to ramp down tensions with the U.S. and the West, state media reported on Monday.

The weapons — 250 tactical ballistic missile launchers — are being delivered to southern North Korea along South Korea’s border, according to KCNA Watch. A ceremony featuring North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un was held on Sunday to celebrate the delivery of the missile launchers.

“We are now witnessing a moment of the course of our state’s defense capability increasing day by day,” Kim said during a speech at the ceremony, according to KCNA Watch. “Those weapons, lining up in columns in front of us, will be transferred to our army now and will play an important military role in the border areas of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.”
Steve Rosenberg

It’s something Vladimir Putin does rarely: go to the airport to meet people off a plane. Personally.

But he was there last night: on the tarmac at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport to meet and greet those Russians whose release he’d secured from foreign jails; part of the largest prisoner swap between Russia and the West since the Cold War.

Out of the plane and down the steps came 10 people, including spies, sleeper agents and a convicted assassin.

“Congratulations on your return to the Motherland!” he told them.

You could tell that the Kremlin believes it has something to celebrate.

For the returning Russians there was a red carpet reception and a guard of honour. There were bouquets of flowers and - for some - hugs from the president. Mr Putin embraced Vadim Krasikov, the FSB hitman who’d been serving a life sentence in Germany for assassinating a Georgian-born Chechen dissident.

President Putin promised them all state awards.

“I would like to address those of you who have a direct connection to military service,” he continued. “Thank you for your loyalty to your oath and your duty to your Motherland, which has never forgotten you for a moment.”
Vadim Krasikov, who was returned to Russia in the big prisoner swap, received a hero’s welcome from President Putin, along with others who were freed.
By Ivan Nechepurenko

The convicted assassin who was the linchpin of the biggest prisoner swap in decades is a member of the most powerful security agency in Russia, the Kremlin acknowledged on Friday, and had served in a special unit with some agents who now guard President Vladimir V. Putin.

The ties help explain Mr. Putin’s determination to free the assassin, Vadim Krasikov, from the German prison where he was serving time for murder. The effort culminated on Thursday when Mr. Krasikov and seven other former prisoners returned to Moscow after an exchange with Western nations that involved 24 adults and seven countries.

This was the first time that Moscow had admitted that Mr. Krasikov had been working for the Russian state in the Federal Security Service, or F.S.B., an agency that is a successor to the Soviet K.G.B., in which Mr. Putin served in the early stage of his career. The F.S.B. was also the agency that was at the center of the negotiations with the C.I.A. about the swap, Dmitri S. Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said.
"Sinwar is the guy,' said retired Marine Col. Stephen Ganyard.
By Bill Hutchinson

With the senior leadership of Hamas shattered by a recent series of assassinations allegedly carried out by Israel, Yahya Sinwar, one of the key architects of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, now appears to be the de facto boss of the terrorist organization, experts said.

The 61-year-old leader of Hamas in Gaza is also among the top targets sought by Israel, which placed a $400,000 bounty on his head following the Oct. 7 surprise attack on Israel that left more than 1,200 people dead and 240 taken hostage.

"The real guy that the Israelis want to get and will likely eventually get is Sinwar and he's in a tunnel likely somewhere in Gaza, still running the show within Gaza," said ABC News contributor Stephen Ganyard, a retired Marine colonel and a former deputy assistant secretary for the U.S. State Department.

Israeli officials announced Thursday that they killed Mohammed Deif, commander of Hamas' military wing, in a "precise, targeted strike" on July 13 in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis. Deif and Sinwar were allegedly the masterminds of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
Daniel Estrin

TEL AVIV, Israel — The Israeli military says the top commander of Hamas’ military wing is dead.

The announcementcomes following a series of recent assassinations of top Hamas and Hezbollah leaders in the region.

Israel targeted Mohammed Deif, leader of Hamas’ Qassam Brigades, in a July 13 airstrike. That strike was on an area Israel had declared as a safe zone for civilians and killed 90 people, including women and children, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.

Now Israel’s military says the Hamas commander was killed in that strike. The military told NPR its conclusion is based on new intelligence, and wouldn’t elaborate. Hamas has not officially confirmed Deif’s death.
By Arden Farhi, Olivia Gazis, Camilla Schick

After a historically complex, monthslong negotiation involving more than six countries and two dozen prisoners, the Biden administration on Thursday announced it had secured the release of three American citizens from Russia, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, Marine veteran Paul Whelan and Russian-American radio journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, all of whom are expected to arrive on American soil by nightfall.

The three will return to the United States as part of a 24-person prisoner swap — one of the largest since the end of the Cold War — among the U.S., Russia, Germany and three other Western countries.

The deal is a significant and hard-fought win for the Biden administration, which has secured the release of more than 60 hostages or wrongful detainees from around the world over the past three years. Few cases have received a similar level of prominence or scrutiny as the ones in Russia, a longstanding geopolitical rival of the U.S. with a history of taking — and trading — foreign detainees.

"All have endured unimaginable suffering and uncertainty. Today, their agony is over," President Biden said in a statement.
The exchange was happening Thursday.
By Shannon K. Kingston and Mary Bruce

Russia and the United States have agreed to swap prisoners in an extraordinary multipart deal, according to a senior Biden administration official.

The swap will allow the two wrongfully detained American citizens held by Moscow, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, to return home.
Axel Muganwa Rudakubana has also been charged with 10 counts of attempted murder, Merseyside Police confirmed
By Becca Longmire

A 17-year-old boy has been charged with the murder of the three young girls who died following a stabbing at a Taylor Swift-themed dance and yoga class in Southport, England.

In the early hours of Thursday, Aug. 1, Merseyside Police confirmed in a news release obtained by PEOPLE that the teen has been charged with killing Bebe King, 6, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, in the knife attack, which took place around 11:50 a.m. local time on Monday, July 29.

The 17-year-old has also been charged with 10 counts of attempted murder, and possession of a bladed article, per the news release.

A reporting restriction over the name of the suspect was lifted in court on Thursday, with the teen being named as Axel Muganwa Rudakubana, per BBC News, The Guardian and The Telegraph. He is due to turn 18 on Aug. 7.
By Reuters
MOSCOW, Aug 1 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Thursday that Russian forces would shoot down U.S.-built F-16 fighter jets sent to Ukraine, and that the F-16s would have no significant impact on the course of the war.

Lithuanian and U.S. officials confirmed on Wednesday that Ukraine had received the first order of long-awaited jets, which are equipped with a 20mm cannon and can carry bombs, rockets and missiles.

Asked about the F-16s, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "If I'm not mistaken, rewards (for Russian forces to shoot them down) have already been offered."
Jewish-American journalist could be released alongside artists, activists and former senior staffers of late dissident Alexei Navalny
By Jackie Hajdenberg

JTA — A prisoner swap involving as many as 30 people held by Russia, possibly including jailed Jewish-American journalist Evan Gershkovich and Jewish dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza, could be underway.

If it comes to pass, the exchange would be the largest prisoner swap between Russia and the United States since the end of the Cold War. Signs of an approaching prisoner swap have been reported by independent Russian media as well as international press.

Gershkovich, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal arrested in March 2023 on allegations of espionage, was sentenced in July to 16 years in a maximum security prison. He, his employer, and the United States government vehemently deny the charges.

Security experts have long considered a prisoner swap to be the best bet for returning Gershkovich to the United States. Senior officials at the Kremlin have said that talks over a swap that would include his release are underway.
What a response looks like and when it comes is now anyone’s guess.
By Matt Rivers

The assassination of Ismail Haniyeh has the entire Middle East on an absolute knife’s edge.

When we wrapped up our ABC News coverage on Tuesday night, Israel had just announced they had killed a senior Hezbollah leader in Beirut, their targeted response to the Golan Heights rocket attack.

The question was when and how Hezbollah would respond, but the overriding sense was that both sides were likely to find a way not to escalate to all-out war.

That’s now been completely upended.

An attack in Tehran, the heart of Iran, killed the political leader of Hamas not long after he attended the inauguration of Iran’s new president at the invitation of the country’s supreme leader. Haniyeh was in their care. This is a huge deal.
Story by Dan Ladden-Hall, Anna Conkling

American Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former U.S. marine Paul Whelan were released from imprisonment in Russia on Thursday as part of a prisoner swap deal, according to sources familiar with the matter.

The pair were freed after days of intense speculation that Russian President Vladimir Putin was preparing to free high-profile prisoners, though it remained unclear exactly who would be freed—and who the Kremlin would want in return. The full details of the deal to free Gershkovich and Whelan have not been made immediately available.

The release of Gershkovich comes the month after he was sentenced to 16 years in a maximum-security penal colony after being convicted on espionage charges.
He was arrested by Russia’s FSB security service in March 2023 during a reporting trip to the eastern city of Yekaterinburg and accused of gathering secret information about a Russian tank factory on behalf of the CIA. The Journal and the Biden administration vehemently denied the allegations, accusing Russia of conducting a sham trial.

Whelan, meanwhile, was detained in Moscow in 2018 and similarly sentenced in 2020 to 16 years’ imprisonment after his conviction on contested espionage charges. He figured in the last U.S. prisoner swap with Russia, in December 2022, in which WNBA star Brittney Griner was exchanged for the Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
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