Death toll civil war

Tennis has always been a uniquely atomised and dysfunctional sport but this was the day it descended into outright civil war. Wimbledon's decision to ban Russian and Belarussian players sparked fury from the men’s and women’s tours, who labelled the move discriminatory and unfair, and leaves open the possibility of drawn-out and damaging legal battles. The first signals that this was going to be a tumultuous 24 hours for tennis actually came in the small hours of Wednesday morning, when news of the All England Lawn Tennis Club’s imminent announcement leaked out via a number of media organisations, including the New York Times. Telegraph Sport had previously predicted a swingeing ban for Russians and Belarusians at the start of this month. A flustered AELTC was forced into bringing forward their announcement, with media duly being briefed early in the afternoon that executives had been influenced by the horrific scenes in Mariupol and other Ukrainian cities. But if they … [Read more...] about How Wimbledon’s Russian ban plunged tennis into civil war

Evening briefing: Today's essential headlines Wagatha Christie | Coleen Rooney said Rebekah Vardy has a "desire to be famous" as she took to the stand for the first time in the "Wagatha Christie" case. When questioned about her remarks by Mrs Vardy's lawyer, Mrs Rooney said: "My view was she wants to be kept relevant within the press, within the public eye." Read the latest summary . Zaghari-Ratcliffe meets PM | 'I lived in the shadow of your words' Keir Starmer | Rebellion as local candidates snubbed for Remainers Bear attack | Paratrooper mauled to death during military training Joy for Queen | Pony takes first prize on first outing since March Jeremy Clarkson | 'I can’t get planning permission for anything' The big story: Covid civil service jobs first to face axe They have faced Brexit, a pandemic and a cost of living crisis. Perhaps it is little surprise to civil servants that there is another major challenge ahead - only this time it is … [Read more...] about Friday evening UK news briefing: Covid jobs in line of fire in civil service cuts

Boris Johnson unveiled plans to cut 91,000 civil service jobs on Thursday night as Whitehall opened a new front in their battle with ministers over working from home by seeking the right to work from abroad. The Prime Minister said the savings made from cutting “swollen” Whitehall departments would be ploughed back into helping people with the cost of living crisis, hinting it may be used to fund future tax cuts. At a Cabinet away day in Stoke-on-Trent on Thursday he gave each member of his top team one month to come up with plans for slimming down their own department as part of a drive to cut the overall number of officials by a fifth. “We have got to cut the cost of government to reduce the cost of living. Every pound the government pre-empts from the taxpayer is money they can spend on their own priorities, on their own lives”, he told the Daily Mail. The new policy, which No 10 says will shave £3.5 billion a year off the cost of running Whitehall, will take the civil … [Read more...] about Boris Johnson pledges to slash 91,000 Whitehall jobs after civil servants demand right to work from abroad

Published 29 January 2018 Share close Share page Copy link About sharing Turkish air strikes have seriously damaged an ancient temple in Syria's Kurdish-held Afrin region, the Syrian government and a monitoring group say. Pictures circulated online showed what appeared to be a crater in the centre of the Ain Dara site and rubble where there used to be carved basalt lions. The Neo-Hittite temple was built by the Arameans in the first millennium BC. Turkish troops and allied Syrian rebels launched an offensive to push a Kurdish militia out of Afrin nine days ago. The Turkish government says the People's Protection Units (YPG) is an extension of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has fought for Kurdish autonomy in south-eastern Turkey for three decades. 'We will never abandon our homes' How historical Afrin became a prize worth a war Why Turkey is targeting … [Read more...] about Syria war: Turkish air strikes ‘damage ancient Afrin temple’

That the conflict in Ukraine has become such a debacle for Vladimir Putin – whose sole responsibility it is – has surprised many in the West. For years we had instinctively believed much of the publicity from Russia about its power. Putin in his arrogance was, like us it seems, woefully ignorant of the real capabilities of Russia’s militar y. He was also poorly advised and briefed, and leader of a crew of pathological liars. His soldiers have been exposed as demoralised boy conscripts, with no idea they were expected to "liberate" Ukraine from "Nazidom" . Their weaponry was ill-deployed and often ineffective, their logistics inadequate. They became sitting ducks for highly-motivated, better-armed and above all hugely brave Ukrainians . Russia has inflicted huge damage on Ukraine, and terrible cruelties on its people, and continues to do so. However, a war that was supposed to lead to the capture of Kyiv within days has now lasted nearly three months. There is no … [Read more...] about How Putin’s disastrous war exposed the folly of Macron’s EU army

"Before the war started, I used to water my garden with it, but now it's unusable," said 82-year-old pensioner Lyudmila Ivanovna Tarasova, sighing as she gestured toward the Komyshuvakha River, where the flowing water is an unsettling orange. Tarasova lives in a little wooden house on the outskirts of Zolote, in eastern Ukraine. The Komyshuvakha that runs close by is a tributary of the Severskiy Donets River, itself the main freshwater source for the war-torn region of Donbas . In recent weeks, the easternmost part of Ukraine has found itself once again in the spotlight, with fears of a Russian invasion mounting following an unprecedented buildup of troops at the border. Retiree Tarasova lives by the polluted Komyshuvakha River, and can no longer use it to water her garden Home to some 6.5 million inhabitants, Donbas has long been Ukraine's biggest industrial hub and a major coal producer. Over 200 years, an estimated 15 billion tons of the fossil fuel has been … [Read more...] about Toxic waters in war-torn Ukraine: How not to phase out coal

Almost three months after Russia shocked the world by invading Ukraine, its military faces a bogged-down war, the prospect of a bigger Nato and an opponent buoyed by wins on and off the battlefield. Top diplomats from Nato met in Berlin with the alliance's chief and declared that the war "is not going as Moscow had planned”. “Ukraine can win this war,” Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said, adding that the alliance must continue to offer military support to Kyiv. He spoke by video link to the meeting as he recovers from a Covid-19 infection. On the diplomatic front, both Finland and Sweden took steps bringing them closer to Nato membership despite Russian objections. Finland announced Sunday that it was seeking to join Nato , citing how the invasion had changed Europe's security landscape. Several hours later, Sweden's governing party endorsed the country's own bid for membership, which could lead to an application in days. READ MORE: Ukrainians share grief, … [Read more...] about Ukraine ‘can win this war’ against Russia, says Nato chief

IT is very easy to spot people who don’t know what they’re talking about with the Northern Ireland Protocol. Politicians in the US and EU constantly talk about it as though what is at issue is “peace” within Northern Ireland . And that anyone who wants to repeal it is risking the peace. What they seem not to realise is that the Northern Ireland Protocol (signed in 2019) and the Good Friday Agreement (signed in 1998) are not the same thing. It was the 1998 agreement that assured peace on the island of Ireland. Whereas the 2019 protocol was something signed in order to ensure that this country actually acted on the 2016 Brexit vote. I can usually clear a room in about five minutes by talking about Northern Ireland. But it is important. And here’s the crucial thing. The UK only signed the protocol (which effectively put a customs border down the Irish sea) because we had no other option. Read more on the protocol BORIS BREXIT BID Boris … [Read more...] about The EU’s disgraceful threats of a trade war over the Irish Protocol is more proof they just want to punish us for Brexit

Russia placed its nuclear arsenal -- but also other heavy weapons, such as Kinzhal and Zircon hypersonic missiles -- on "special" alert, the highest form of combat readiness for these units. President Vladimir Putin ordered the ministry of defence to issue the alert on Sunday, citing sanctions and "aggressive statements" from NATO member states. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that the EU will buy and deliver weapons and equipment to Ukraine in what she said was "a watershed moment" on Sunday evening. More sanctions on top of the ones announced by the bloc on Saturday include "a prohibition on all Russian-owned, Russian registered or Russian-controlled aircraft" as well as an EU-wide ban of "the Kremlin's media machine", including RT and Sputnik. Additional sanctions were doled out against the Belarusian regime of Alexander Lukashenko, who von der Leyen said was "complicit with the vicious attack". Meanwhile, the office of the … [Read more...] about Ukraine war: Putin puts nuclear arsenal ‘on special duty’ as Zelenskyy agrees to talks

Ukraine has begun evacuating civilians from more areas after new "humanitarian corridors" were opened - as the number of people fleeing Russia's advance into the country reached two million. Ukrainian officials said people had started leaving the northeastern city of Sumy and the town of Irpin, near capital Kyiv, on Tuesday. Both areas have been under heavy Russian bombardment. NATO may have to fight Russia 'now or later' - Ukraine war live updates It followed agreement between Russian and Ukrainian officials around the establishment of "humanitarian corridors" to allow civilians out of some towns and cities besieged by Russia's forces. Russia's defence ministry said on Tuesday it had opened the routes to evacuate people from Kyiv, Cherhihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv and Mariupol, adding that Russian invading forces had introduced a "regime of silence" from 7am GMT. Previous attempts to lead civilians to safety have collapsed amid renewed attacks. However, on … [Read more...] about Ukraine war: Civilians fleeing bombarded regions hits two million