Putin blames the West for the invasion of Ukraine
Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday slammed the West over a week-long incursion by Ukrainian troops into Russia's Kursk region, a sign that the cross-border attacks have rattled the Kremlin, whose troops continued their offensive into eastern Ukraine as Moscow scrambled to respond, military officials in Kiev said.
“The West is fighting us with the hands of Ukrainians,” Putin said in a televised meeting with senior officials, adding: “The enemy will get what they deserve and all our goals will be achieved without a doubt.”
The acting governor of Kursk told Putin that 28 towns and villages were under Ukrainian control. He said Ukrainian forces had advanced nearly 12 kilometers into Russian territory, but the head of the Ukrainian military claimed they controlled more than double that amount, “about 1,000 square kilometers.”
background: Analysts say Ukraine's latest move has two main aims: to draw Russian troops away from the frontline in eastern Ukraine and to seize territory that could be used as bargaining chip in future peace talks, and Putin has stressed that the attack will not weaken his negotiating stance.
On the ground: The Times visited one of the sites where Ukrainian forces surged into Russia, surprising the defenders, and its reporters were greeted by scenes of ruin.
Israel prepares for attack from Iran
The Israeli military said yesterday it was in “highest state of readiness” for retaliation from Iran and its proxies in the region. The US military is moving guided missile submarines to the region. A White House spokesman said US intelligence suggests an attack on Israel “is becoming increasingly likely as soon as this week.” Here's the latest update.
Biden spoke with the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Italy about de-escalating tensions and efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, a spokesman said. In a joint statement, the leaders voiced their support for a ceasefire and called on Iran to “cease its continuing threats” against Israel.
Following the killing of a top Hamas leader in Tehran last month, Iran has vowed revenge and many in Israel fear an attack is imminent. Nearly two weeks have passed and no major response has materialized, leaving the region on edge. Analysts say Iran is trying to avoid all-out war while crafting a response that will ensure assassinations at home do not go unpunished.
More news from the region:
🇺🇸 2024 US Election
With less than 90 days until the presidential election, here's what we're focusing on.
Elon Musk interviews Donald Trump
Donald Trump was interviewed on X by the platform's owner, Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, but the conversation offered little new information about Trump's views. Earlier in the day, the former president posted on the platform for the first time in nearly a year. His latest post was:
The speech, which lasted more than an hour and a half, was part of Trump's efforts to regain momentum lost since President Biden ended his reelection campaign and handed power to Vice President Kamala Harris, who is riding a wave of Democratic enthusiasm into the party's national convention, which opens in Chicago on Monday.
Once owned by Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels, this villa is too expensive to maintain and too risky to sell: No one knows what to do with it, but keeping it would cost Germany 280,000 euros (about $306,000) a year.
Lost Fragments of an Ancient Epic
Generations of researchers have tried to unravel the complete Epic of Gilgamesh, written more than 3,000 years ago. Fragments of the story have been found on clay tablets at archaeological digs, in museum storerooms, and on the black market. But with so few people familiar with ancient cuneiform writing, many of these documents remain unread, and even more unpublished.
Now, an artificial intelligence project called Fragmentarium is helping fill in some of those gaps. The team is using machine learning to piece together the digitized pieces of the tablets. So far, the project has helped researchers discover new parts of the epic poem, as well as hundreds of missing words and lines from other works.
