The U.S. imposed sanctions on 43 citizens of Belarus in response to the sentencing of two journalists of Belsat TV channel, as well as crackdown on peaceful protesters, pro-democracy activists, and journalists.

The names of those sanctioned have not been published, but it is specified that they are "high-ranking justice sector officials; law enforcement leaders and rank-and-file personnel who detained and abused peaceful demonstrators; judges and prosecutors involved in sentencing peaceful …

Israel could provoke a new round of tensions in the Middle East, said the Special Representative of the Russian President for Syria, Alexander Lavrentyev, commenting on Israel’s strikes on targets in Syria.

"These strikes must stop, they are counterproductive. We hope that the Israeli side will understand our concerns, including concerns about the possibility of escalation of violence in Syria," Lavrentyev said, as quoted by the Russian news agency Interfax.

"Sooner or later, the cup of …

The Russian Interior Ministry says that almost 640,000 residents of the uncontrolled territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions have received Russian passports, reports Intefax with reference to the head of the Russian Interior Ministry's department for the Rostov region.

"To date, there are 639,000 people," Agarkov said.

Earlier, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs said that in 2020, almost 410,000 Ukrainians received Russian citizenship. In four years, according to their data, almost 90 …

Two journalists of the Belarusian TV channel Belsat, Katerina Bakhvalova and Daria Chultsova, were sentenced to two years in prison for live streaming protests from the Square of Changes in Minsk.

As reported by the news outlet TUT. BY, it took only three days for the Frunzen District Court of Minsk to hear the case. Bakhvalova and Chultsova were found guilty of "organizing and preparing actions that grossly violate public order".

On November 15, 2020, the Belsat journalists were broadcasting …

Russia has begun withdrawal of its military from the T4 airbase, which is located in Tiyas, Homs Province, reported Telegram-channel "The Military Observer" with reference to local media.

T4 is the largest airbase in Syria. In addition to the Russian military, the airbase is home to Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps units and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters. There is no information whether Iranian and Hezbollah forces are also leaving the airbase. The T4 airbase has been regularly …

The Kremlin is concerned about the fact that the Ukrainian army could use Turkish combat drones Bayraktar TB2 against pro-Russian militants in the Donbas, said the Russian ambassador to Turkey, Alexei Yerkhov, reports the Turkish news agency Hurriyet.

Yerkhov said that, according to Russian experts, the Turkish combat drones Bayraktar TB2 will turn into a "tool of superiority" if the Ukrainian army uses them against the Russian military and mercenaries in the Donbas.

Yerkhov stressed that the …

Rebels in the Central African Republic (CAR) killed several Russian mercenaries from the private military company the Wagner Group and took another hostage, reported the local newspaper Corbeau News citing a source.

According to the source, the Russian mercenaries together with the CAR soldiers dismantled an fence, which was earlier built by the rebels. A fire fight broke out because of that, during which Russian mercenaries were killed.

The newspaper notes that the Russian mercenaries are …

Chinese investors of the Ukrainian aircraft engine manufacturer, Motor Sich, increased the amount of arbitration lawsuit against Ukraine by $100 million dollars, to 3.6 billion dollars.

"The increase in the amount of preliminary claims is due to the fact that the initial group of plaintiffs was expanded to include several other Chinese shareholders, who also suffered significant losses as a result of Ukraine's actions in violation of its international obligations," reads the statement on Motor …