Author: DW

The death of Alexei Navalny has been confirmed by his spokesperson, but it remains unclear where the body of the Vladimir Putin critic is.Spokesperson Kira Yarmysh said in a post on X the most prominent face of the Russian opposition to Mr Putin was “murdered” at a remote Arctic penal colony. She said Mr Navalny’s mother, Lyudmila Navalnaya, was informed by authorities that her son had died on 16 February at 2.17pm, local time.Russia-Ukraine latest: Follow live updatesProminent Navalny ally Ivan Zhdanov added that prison officials told Mr Navalny’s mother that he had died due to “sudden death syndrome”. But…

The Egyptian foreign minister has denied reports his country is preparing for an influx of refugees as Palestinians in Rafah face an expected Israeli ground offensive.More than a million people sheltering around the southern Gazan city of Rafah, on the border with Egypt, are braced for an operation by the Israeli army, with nowhere left to flee inside the besieged territory.Satellite images taken last Thursday showed construction in progress along the Egypt-Gaza border, prompting suggestions Egypt was gearing up to accept Palestinian civilians. Image: Satellite images show land being cleared in an area near Egypt’s border with Gaza. Pic: Reuters/Maxar…

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny – a vocal critic of President Vladimir Putin – has died, according to the country’s prison service.The jailed dissident, who had campaigned against official corruption and led major anti-Kremlin protests, was 47.Mr Putin, who is running for re-election in a month, has been informed of his death, according to the state news agency TASS.Latest updates:Navalny’s wife holds Putin ‘personally liable’ Image: Alexei Navalny was serving a long prison sentence. Pic: Reuters While the cause of death remains unknown, Western leaders have made clear they hold the Russian regime ultimately responsible.The prison authorities said Mr Navalny…

Lord Cameron says he wants Ukraine’s allies to “do more” to help defeat Russia and that together they “outmatch” President Vladimir Putin’s regime.Speaking to Sky News at a security conference in Munich, the foreign secretary said Ukraine’s partners outmatched Russia “25 to one” and that they’ve “got to make that difference count”. Lord Cameron said: “What I’m clear about is that Britain is absolutely in the lead of providing support [to Ukraine]. The first to provide so many different weapons systems and, of course, first to give the new security guarantees to Ukraine. Now others are following that.”But most of…

Skip next section Estonia’s PM says all NATO members are equal02/17/2024February 17, 2024Estonia’s PM says all NATO members are equalEstonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has stressed that all NATO members are equal after US President Donald Trump said Washington might not defend some members. “There are big and small allies; everyone brings something to the table. That is what the alliance is all about,” she said. “Time is working in Putin’s favor and against the rules-based order. So, everybody is looking at the United States. The stakes are high,” Kallas said, referring to the stalled US aid to Ukraine. Earlier…

One firefighter has been killed and nine others were injured after an explosion in a house where they were investigating a gas leak, US officials say.Two civilians were also injured in the blast, which happened in Sterling, Virginia, at around 8pm local time on Friday (1am on Saturday UK time). The fiery explosion occurred about 30 minutes after fire crews were called to the property due to reports of a gas smell.It happened while firefighters were inside the building, James Williams, assistant chief of operations for Loudon County Fire and Rescue, said at a news conference. Image: First responders carry…

Skip next section Europe must strengthen ability to defend itself, Scholz says02/17/2024February 17, 2024Europe must strengthen ability to defend itself, Scholz saysOlaf Scholz called on Europeans to match the billions spent by the United States in military aid to UkraineImage: Wolfgang Rattay/REUTERSSpeaking at the Munich Security Conference, German Chancellor Olaf Scholzhas said Europe must strengthen its ability to defend itself to deter would-be aggressors regardless of who wins the upcoming US elections or how the war in Ukraine turns out. “We Europeans must take much more care of our own security, now and in the future,” Scholz said. Germany, Europe’s largest economy, has hiked its…

Former US president Donald Trump has been fined $354.9m (£281.6m) after a civil fraud trial in New York.With interest included, he will have to hand over at least $453.5m (£359.9m).The judge also banned Trump from running businesses in New York for three years. His sons, Eric and Donald Jr, received similar bans for two years.Trump and the Trump Organisation cannot apply for loans from any New York financial institution for three years.Read more: Analysis – The crown has slipped from the humiliated King of New York’s headJudge Arthur Engoron had already ruled in an earlier judgment that the former president…

A financially troubled former funeral home owner has been accused of keeping a woman’s body in a hearse for two years at a house where the cremated remains of at least 30 other people were discovered, according to police.Officers in the US state of Colorado have issued an arrest warrant for 33-year-old Miles Harford following the grim discovery at a property in the Denver suburb of Littleton earlier this month. Police said Mr Harford had experienced “financial trouble” in his funeral business and at times was unable to complete cremations to provide remains to their families.Denver Police Department Major Crimes…

The head of Ukraine’s army has announced his forces are retreating from the frontline city of Avdiivka.Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine’s newly appointed commander-in-chief, says military bosses have taken the decision to “avoid encirclement” and “preserve the lives and health of servicemen”. “Based on the operational situation around Avdiivka, in order to avoid encirclement and preserve the lives and health of servicemen, I decided to withdraw our units from the city and move to defence on more favourable lines,” he said in a post on social media.He said that, despite the withdrawal, Ukrainian soldiers had inflicted “significant losses on the enemy” in…