World Top News Now

During a firearms training session, two men opened fire on a group who had volunteered to fight in Ukraine, state-owned news agency Ria reported. The attackers were from a former Soviet republic, the Russian defence ministry said, but did not give further details. They were also shot dead during the incident in the Belgorod region of Russia, which borders Ukraine. A further 15 people were wounded. "During a firearms training session with individuals who voluntarily expressed a desire to participate in the special military operation [against Ukraine], the terrorists opened fire with small arms on the personnel of the unit," Ria cited a defence ministry statement as saying. "As a result of the shooting, 11 people were fatally wound...

Videos shared online show flames and smoke at the site in Tehran, and gunshots and explosions can be heard. An official quoted by state media said the situation was under control, but video footage appeared to show the fire continuing after this. Iran has been gripped for weeks by anti-government protests. They first erupted last month after the death of 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian Mahsa Amini in police custody. Officials said she died of a heart attack, but her family disputed this, saying she was beaten by morality police. BBC Persian's Rana Rahimpour said it is not yet known whether the situation at the prison is linked to the recent demonstrations. But this could easily be the case, Rana said, as hundreds of the protesters have...

Ian Bremmer, head of the Eurasia Group political risk consultancy, alleged that Mr Musk had personally told him about the conversation with Mr Putin. But Mr Musk has now refuted this. "I have spoken to Putin only once and that was about 18 months ago. The subject matter was space," Mr Musk tweeted. Last week, the Tesla CEO asked his 107.7 million followers to vote on ways to resolve the Ukraine war. The suggestions included a proposal to hold votes in parts of Ukraine occupied by Russia that the Kremlin says it has annexed. His comments were welcomed by Moscow. The multi-billionaire said: "Russia leaves if that is will of the people." President Putin has already declared four Ukrainian regions to be part of Russia, fol...

The move came as it emerged the star had shared a series of comments based on racist conspiracy theories in a separate interview with Fox News. Fox removed those segments before broadcast, but the footage was leaked to technology website Motherboard. West has not commented on either case. The BBC has asked both him and Fox News for a response. The star, who is legally known as Ye, was previously suspended from Instagram and Twitter for making anti-Semitic comments. Those posts came in response to a backlash against his show at Paris Fashion Week, where he wore a t-shirt carrying the slogan "White Lives Matter". The Anti-Defamation League has called the phrase "hate speech" and attributed it to white supremacists, who...

Russia has not delivered gas to Europe via the Nord Stream 1 line since August, and Nord Stream 2 was halted after Russia invaded Ukraine. The February invasion led to gas price hikes, and EU customers face record tariffs this winter. But Germany quickly rejected Mr Putin's offer to send gas via Nord Stream 2. At the same time, a government spokesman in Berlin said Nord Stream 1 - which is not under sanctions - was an option, but gas was not flowing "because Russia did not deliver". Russia has been accused of using gas supplies as a weapon against the West since the invasion of Ukraine - a charge repeatedly denied by the Kremlin. "The ball, as they say, is now in the European Union's court - let them just open the tap," Mr Putin ...

General Sergei Surovikin, nicknamed General Armageddon, is President Vladimir Putin's new tactic in the war against Ukraine. His appointment was announced hours after the attack on the Crimea bridge. And the new leader's first day at work saw Ukraine hit by a huge wave of Russian missiles - one of the widest series of strikes witnessed for months. But Gen Surovikin is not actually new to the faltering war effort. He's been commanding troops on the front in southern Ukraine and, the day before the war began, was sanctioned by Europe for his military influence and relationship with President Putin. This appears to be the first time Russia has officially named a commander for its entire military operation in Ukraine - before that, there were media reports ...