Zaluzhnyi sostituito. Avdiivka sotto attacco. 🗞️ Rassegna del 09/02/2024

Israele

(Al Jazeera) Netanyahu orders troops to prepare to enter Rafah

• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered troops to prepare to enter the overcrowded Gazan city of Rafah.

• UN chief Antonio Guterres warned a military push into Rafah "would exponentially increase what is already a humanitarian nightmare".

• More talks aimed at achieving "calm" in Gaza and a prisoner-hostage exchange are set to open.

Ucraina

(Washington Post) Zelenskyy replaces military chief, naming Syrskyi top commander

• Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrsky will be Ukraine’s next military chief after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Thursday night that he had replaced Gen. Valery Zaluzhnyi

• Zelenskyy said other commanders are being considered for promotions, as several generals are expected to ousted along with Zaluzhnyi. Zelensky said he’s asked Zaluzhnyi to remain as part “of the team of the Ukrainian state of the future.

• In posts on both Zelenskyy’s and Zaluzhnyi’s social media accounts, the two men posed shaking hands and smiling. “A decision was made about the need to change approaches and strategy,” Zaluzhnyi wrote.

(Reuters) 

Russia

(Deutsche Welle) Russia bans anti-war candidate Nadezhdin from election

• The commission justified its decision on Thursday, citing a large number of incorrect signatures from supporters.

• Nadezhdin obtained significantly more signatures than the required 100,000, submitting his bid at the end of January. However, from a random sample of 60,000 signatures, the commission said 9,147 were declared invalid.

• Along with Russian President Vladimir Putin, only three other candidates appear likely to now run in the election. The three are widely seen as an opposition in name only, in reality being backed by the Kremlin and with no chance of defeating the incumbent.

Europa

(The Guardian) 'Shame on you': Polish prime minister hits out at US Republicans

• Poland’s prime minister, Donald Tusk, has issued a sharp public rebuke to American Republicans.

• In a post on social media this morning, the centre-right politician said “Dear Republican Senators of America. Ronald Reagan, who helped millions of us to win back our freedom and independence, must be turning in his grave today. Shame on you.”

• The unusually strong critique of politicians from Warsaw’s most important bilateral security partner came after the US Senate blocked a bipartisan $118bn bill on US-Mexico border and Ukraine. The bill would have provided $60bn in military assistance for Kyiv.

Politica internazionale

Nord America

(Reuters) US Senate advances $95 bln Ukraine, Israel aid bill after failed border deal

A $95.34 billion bill that includes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan advanced in the U.S. Senate on Thursday after Republicans blocked compromise legislation that included a long-sought overhaul of immigration policy.

Senators backed a procedural motion by 67-32, exceeding the 60-vote threshold to advance the bill. Seventeen Republicans voted in favor.

America Latina

(Reuters) Brazil police to seize Bolsonaro passport as net tightens in coup probe

Brazil's federal police on Thursday sought to confiscate former President Jair Bolsonaro's passport and arrest some of his closest aides, sources said, as part of an investigation into an alleged coup attempt after he lost the 2022 election.

The operation reflects a tightening net around Bolsonaro, his family and some of his most powerful allies for actions before and after his unsuccessful reelection effort. The confiscation of his passport represents an escalation in the probe against the former president, a far-right firebrand who cast himself as a Brazilian version of former U.S. President Donald Trump.

Asia e Pacifico

(Reuters) Five killed as violence mars Pakistan election; mobile services suspended

• At least five people were killed in militant attacks in Pakistan on Thursday as the country voted in a general election after temporarily suspending mobile phone services and closing some land borders to maintain law and order.

• The interior ministry said it took the steps after at least 26 people were killed in two explosions near electoral candidates' offices in the southwestern province of Balochistan on Wednesday. Islamic State later claimed responsibility for those attacks.

(Reuters) Chinese firm behind ‘news’ websites pushes pro-Beijing content globally, researchers find

• Chinese company Haimai is linked to a network of websites spreading conspiracy theories and attacking Beijing's critics, according to researchers from Citizen Lab.

• The websites mimic local news outlets, including one called Roma Journal, which was not legally registered as a news outlet in Italy. IMPORTANTE!

(Reuters) North Korea scraps all economic cooperation with South Korea

• North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly has voted to eliminate laws about economic relations with South Korea, including the legislation governing the Mount Kumgang tourism project.

• The decision to scrap agreements on promoting economic cooperation between the two Koreas is part of North Korea's shift in inter-Korea policy, causing further deterioration in their relations.

• South Korea's Unification Ministry responds by stating that the North's action is not surprising and will deepen its isolation, while President Yoon Suk Yeol expresses confusion about the move.