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Dozens Missing after Russian Missile Strike on Ukranian Mall Kills 18
Firefighters on Tuesday searched the rubble of a Ukrainian shopping mall where authorities said 36 people were missing after a Russian missile strike that killed at least 18, as a regional governor reported another “enemy attack” further east.
The attack in the central city of Kremenchuk and the reported strike in the Dnipropetrovsk region were far from any frontlines. The mall attack drew a wave of global condemnation, with France’s Emmanuel Macron calling it a “war crime”.
Ukraine said Moscow had killed civilians deliberately in Kremenchuk. Russia said it had struck a nearby arms depot and falsely claimed that the mall was empty.
The governor of Dnipropetrovsk said rescue workers were searching for people under rubble in the region’s main city, Dnipro.
The official, Valentyn Reznychenko, said Russia fired six missiles, three of which were shot down. Railway infrastructure and an industrial enterprise had been destroyed and a services company was burning.
“Mass enemy attack on Dnipropetrovsk region. Six missiles!!!” he wrote on the Telegram app.
Reuters could not independently verify the governor’s account. The Russian Defence Ministry did not immediately reply to an emailed request for comment.
At a summit in Germany, leaders of the G7 industrialised democracies announced plans for a price cap on Russian oil, designed to starve Russia of the resources for war without exacerbating a global energy crisis.
Next up is a NATO summit in Spain, at which the Western military alliance is expected to announce hundreds of thousands of troops shifting to a higher state of alert and an overhaul of its strategic framework to describe Moscow as an adversary.
Also bound to infuriate Russia, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Tuesday that Turkey had agreed to support Finland and Sweden joining NATO.
Turkey’s objections to the membership bids, which if successful would be the biggest shift in European security in decades, had threatened to overshadow a summit striving for unity against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Relatives of the missing in Kremenchuk were lined up at a hotel across the street from the wreckage of the shopping centre, where rescue workers had set up a base. Adults and children, some in tears, lit candles and laid flowers in a tribute to the dead.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy accused Russia of deliberately targeting civilians in “one of the most defiant terrorist attacks in European history”.
Russia’s defence ministry said its missiles had struck a nearby arms depot storing Western weapons, which exploded, causing the blaze that spread to the nearby mall.
Kyiv said there was no military target in the area.
“Russia’s goal is for as many Ukrainians as possible to close their eyes forever, for the rest to stop resisting and submit to slavery,” Andriy Yermak, chief of Ukraine’s presidential staff, said on Twitter.
Russia described the shopping centre as disused and empty. But that was contradicted by the relatives of the dead and missing, and the dozens of wounded survivors such as Ludmyla Mykhailets, 43, who had been shopping there with her husband when the blast threw her into the air.
“I flew head first and splinters hit my body. The whole place was collapsing,” she said at a hospital where she was being treated.
G7 leaders said the attack was “abominable”. Russian President Vladimir Putin and those responsible would be held to account, they said in a statement.
Russia denies intentionally targeting civilians in its “special military operation” that has destroyed Ukrainian cities, killed thousands of people and driven millions from their homes.
Ukraine endured another tough day on the battlefields of the eastern Donbas region following last week’s loss of the now-ruined city of Sievierodonetsk.
Russian forces are now trying to storm Lysychansk, across the Siverskyi Donets River from Sievierodonetsk, to complete their capture of Luhansk, one of two eastern provinces Moscow aims to conquer on behalf of separatist proxies.
Western countries have imposed economic sanctions on Russia, but so far have failed to curtail Moscow’s main source of income: oil and gas export revenue, which has actually increased as the threat of supply disruption has driven up global prices.
At the end of its annual summit, the G7 announced a new approach – leaving Russian oil on the market while imposing a cap on the price countries could pay for it.
“We invite all like-minded countries to consider joining us in our actions,” they said in a communique.
The United States also imposed sanctions on more than 100 new targets and banned new imports of Russian gold, acting on commitments made by the G7.
With summit action now shifting to NATO, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said a new strategic concept would “describe in stark terms the threat that Russia poses and the way in which it has shattered peace in Europe”.
That marks a departure from post-Soviet NATO policy which cast Moscow as a potential partner.
Dmitry Rogozin, a former Russian ambassador to NATO and now head of Russia’s space agency, responded by releasing satellite pictures and coordinates of the summit venue, the Pentagon, White House and other Western state buildings.
“Today, the NATO summit opens in Madrid, at which Western countries will declare Russia their worst enemy,” Rogozin wrote on social media. “Roscosmos publishes satellite photographs of the summit venue and the very ‘decision centres’ that support Ukrainian nationalists.”
There have been increasing Russian missile strikes a long distance from the frontline over the past few days.
In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest city where Russian troops were pushed back in a counter-offensive in May, authorities said nine people were killed by shelling that hit targets including apartment buildings and a school.
Headlines
NAPTIP to establish command in FCT to tackle violence, SGBV cases
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking Persons (NAPTIP) says it is proposing the establishment of a command in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to tackle cases of Violence against Persons (VAP).
The Director-General of the agency, Mrs Binta-Adamu Bello, disclosed this on Monday in Abuja during the 2024 stakeholder’s coordination meeting on implementation of the Violence Against Persons Prohibition (VAPP) Act 2015 and corresponding state laws.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting was supported by Ford Foundation to commemorate the first day of the 2024 Global 16 Days of Activism, an annual campaign to challenge violence against women and girls.
The NAPTIP boss said that the establishment of the FCT command would further solidify the agency’s commitment toward eradicating social menace, especially with the issue of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) in the nation’s capital.
According to the NAPTIP boss, it is expected that the command will enhance quicker response to SGBV cases, improve coordination among stakeholders, provide specialised support services for survivors and strengthen investigation and prosecution.
She said that the command would serve as a model for other states and strengthen stakeholders’ collective efforts to eradicate SGBV within the FCT, while inviting the stakeholders’ input and expertise in facilitating the move.
She said “I have strong conviction that we will leave here with renewed vision toward eradicating the ills associated with violence against persons and in turn, make the country safer and more habitable.
“It is gratifying to note that this meeting is holding on the first day of the Global 16 Days of Activism, which is an annual campaign to challenge violence against women and girls.
“The theme for this year is “Towards Beijing +30: Unite to End Violence against Women and Girls”, which resonates with the 30th anniversary review of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and platform for action.
“At this point, I must commend the efforts of Ford Foundation for graciously supporting this meeting under the project “Strengthening Government Approach in Preventing and Responding SGBV.”
She reiterated NAPTIP’s commitment to work with states, the mandate Secretary of the Women Affairs Secretariat of the FCT and Civil Society Organisations to implement laws that abhor
Violence against women and girls.
Mrs Tolulola Odugbesan, the acting Director, VAP Department, NAPTIP, said that the coordination meeting was an opportunity for stakeholders to connect, proffer guidance, reflect on concerns, review successes and identify gaps.
She added that the meeting was also to discuss challenges, assess the level and effectiveness of intervention efforts and proffer recommendations and far-reaching strategies associated with the implementation of the VAPP Act 2015.
Headlines
Plateau to organise free medical care for 200,000 residents
The Plateau Government says it has concluded arrangements to organise free medical care for 200,000 residents.
The Commissioner for Health, Dr Cletus Shukuk, made the disclosure on Monday in Jos at the official launch of “Project 10 Million; Know Your Number, Control Your Number.”
Shukuk explained that the free medical care was basically screening for hypertension and diabetes, which were non-communicable diseases.
The commissioner stated that the programme was a comprehensive intervention strategically in line with the national campaign of the Nigeria Health Commissioners Forum to combat the rising prevalence of non-communicable diseases.
According to him, the project would provide immediate counselling and referral and would also link newly diagnosed patients to treatment facilities.
Shurkuk further said that the increased public awareness would be carried out on hypertension and diabetes.
“The project would support the creation of a hypertension and diabetes register and, in turn, improve data collection, which would enhance health care policies and planning.
“The screening will be conducted in the 17 local government areas and will be done in selected primary and secondary health care facilities.
“I wish to call on the people of the state to avail themselves for the screening exercise to enable them to know their blood pressure and blood sugar level status,” he advised.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mrs Helen Mutfwang, the wife of the governor of Plateau, was made the ambassador of the “project 10 million.”
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Minimum wage: LG boss lauds Oyebanji for approving N70,000 for workers
Mrs Clara Bamisile, the Chairperson, Oye Local Government Area in Ekiti State has commended Gov. Biodun Oyebanji for approving the N70,000 minimum wage for workers.
Bamisile gave the commendation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Oye-Ekiti on Monday.
She described the governor’s decision as the right step in the right direction towards reducing financial burden for civil servants and making cost of living affordable for them.
According to her, Oyebanji has proved to all Ekiti indigenes that he is a good and compassionate leader, who cares for the wellbeing of his people.
“I want to commend our amiable governor, Mr Biodun Oyebanji, for approving the N70, 000 minimum wage for civil servants in Ekiti.
“He has proved to all Ekiti indigenes that he is worthy, passionate, caring and a good leader, who is ready to make his people happy as we approach yuletide.
“It is a testimony that our governor is ready to make cost of living affordable for our people, and he will not relent to do more if given a chance.”
She urged both Ekiti indigenes and residents to consider Oyebanji for a second term in office to continue his good works.
Bamisile enjoined the civil servants to be diligent in their various departments to justify the salary increment
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