Day: October 18, 2022

Russia has exchanged 108 Ukrainian women held as prisoners of war for 110 Russian captives held by Ukraine, officials on both sides say. Of the women, 37 were reportedly captured after surrendering at the siege of the Azovstal steel works in Mariupol, which ended in May. Most of the Russians freed are sailors from merchant ships held in Ukraine. They also include members of pro-Russian separatist military units from the Donbas in eastern Ukraine. Daylight photos were released of the Ukrainian women boarding coaches in an unspecified area and later of them arriving after dark in government-held territory in the southern region of Zaporizhzhia. IMAGE SOURCE,REUTERS Image caption, The freed Ukrainians were taken to safety in coaches...

At least four people, including a pregnant woman, were killed in the capital despite the attempts of security forces to down the slow-moving unmanned aircraft, which explode on impact. Four others also died in the northern region of Sumy in strikes reportedly targeting energy infrastructure. Calls went up in Ukraine and among EU leaders for sanctions to be slapped on Iran which continues to deny supplying Russia with the drones, in the face of all the evidence. We have this explainer on "kamikaze" drones. Despite Russian President Vladimir Putin's announcement last week that there was no need for further large-scale attacks for now, his military reported missile strikes on Ukraine's energy systems and military command facilities on Sunday. And fighting ...

Located 80 miles north of Alice Springs, the Nolans Project will be in one of the hottest and driest parts of the country. Despite the extreme conditions, Arafura believes the investment will be worth it. The planned mine and processing facility could satisfy up to 5% of global demand for neodymium and praseodymium (NdPr), which are used in high-power magnets. They are two of a group of so-called rare earth elements, that are essential to the electronics industry. NdPr, europium, terbium and other rare earth metals that were once barely heard of are now commonplace in the manufacture of phone touchscreens, wind turbines and other modern technologies. The mining of these minerals is an industry currently dominated by China, but geopolitical an...

Up to 30 former UK military pilots are thought to have gone to train members of China's People's Liberation Army. The UK is issuing an intelligence alert to warn former military pilots against working for the Chinese military. Attempts to headhunt pilots are ongoing and had been ramping up recently, western officials say. A spokesperson from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) said the training ​and the recruiting of pilots does not breach any current UK law but officials in the UK and other countries are trying to deter the activity. "It is a lucrative package that is being offered to people," said one western official. "Money is a strong motivator." Some of the packages are thought to be as much as £237,911 ($270,000). The retired Br...

Originally Germany planned to phase out all three by the end of this year. Mr Scholz's order overruled the Greens in his coalition, who wanted two plants kept on standby, to be used if needed. Nuclear power provides 6% of Germany's electricity. The decision to phase it out was taken by former chancellor Angela Merkel after Japan's Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011. But gas prices have soared since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February, which disrupted Russia's huge oil and gas exports to the EU. In August Russia turned off the gas flowing to Germany via the Nord Stream 1 undersea pipeline. After relying so heavily on Russian gas Germany is now scrambling to maintain sufficient reserves for the winter. The crisis has also prompted i...