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North Korean troops in Ukraine will ‘surely return in body bags’, US warns – live

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North Korean troops in Ukraine will ‘surely return in body bags’, US warns – live

Ukraine video claims to show North Korean soldiers lining up to collect Russia military gear

The US and South Korea have called on North Korea to withdraw its troops from Russia that are reportedly already inside Ukraine.

“Should DPRK’s troops enter Ukraine in support of Russia, they will surely return in body bags. So I would advise Chairman Kim to think twice about engaging in such reckless and dangerous behaviour,” Robert Wood, US envoy to the UN, said.

South Korea and its allies have claimed that North Korea has sent at least 11,000 soldiers to Russia, with more than 3,000 of them now deployed close to the frontlines in Ukraine, a presidential official in Seoul said on Wednesday.

The US said some of the North Korean soldiers were in Kursk, a border region where the Russian forces have been fighting off a Ukrainian incursion since August. A couple of thousand more were heading there, the Pentagon said.

This came as Ukraine drafted 160,000 more people in anticipation of grinding warfare and a frozen battle zone in the upcoming winter, the third such under Russian invasion.

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North Korean soldiers ‘should not be underestimated’

Thousands of North Korean troops could already be in Donetsk to join up with Russian forces, according to the Center for Countering Disinformation.

Andriy Kovalenko said the engineer soldiers have not yet participated in the war against Ukraine – but they will be used soon.

“These North Korean soldiers will be in Russian uniforms, with Russian documents, mixed with Kalmyks and Buryats, and try to prove that they are DPRK military.

“The Russians are counting on this,” Kovalenko said.

“At least we are aware of such plans of the enemy to do so, first in the Donetsk sector,” he said.

“10-12,000 DPRK troops in one direction will help withdraw Russians from that direction and throw them to the east, in particular to Kharkiv region. Therefore, the threat from the DPRK military should not be underestimated”, he added.

Koreas Tensions
Koreas Tensions (KCNA via KNS)

Barney Davis31 October 2024 14:30

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Russian Hurricane rocket launcher fires at Ukrainian position

In this photo taken distributed by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Wednesday a Russian self-propelled multiple rocket launcher fires toward at Ukrainian position at an undisclosed location.

It came as Russians struck a nine-story residential building in the Saltovsky district of Kharkiv with a guided aerial bomb on Wednesday night.

The death toll has risen to three including a 15-year-old boy, local authorities said.

(Russian Defense Ministry Press Service)

Barney Davis31 October 2024 13:29

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Witnesses testify to the abuse Ukrainian civilians suffer in Russian detention

Ambassador Neil Holland delivered a speech to the UN outlining the fate of two Ukrainians being held by Russia.

He shared harrowing details from witness testimony at an event in London and urged Russia to release all Ukrainian citizens it has arbitrarily detained.

He recounted the story of Hryhorii Holovko detained by Russian forces in Kherson in October 2022.

He said: “Russian forces tortured and intimidated him, including beatings and electric shocks and by carving Russian symbols into his body. Russian guards made threats against his wife and child and forced him to sing the Russian national anthem.”

Hryhorii was released in May 2023, having been forced to sign papers to align with the Russian state.

He spoke of the family of 26-year-old Iryna Navalnaya who are worried she will die whilst being unlawfully detained.

He added: “Two months passed before Iryna’s family discovered she was being held in a prison in Donetsk. Women who have been released from this prison have shared accounts of the beatings and other barbaric treatment Iryna has experienced during interrogations, leaving her covered in bruises.”

Ambassodor Holland said the “UK stands in solidarity with them and Ukraine” and called on Russia to release the prisoners.

“We call on Russia to fully cooperate with international mechanisms investigating these abuses, grant immediate access to humanitarian organisations to all facilities where Ukrainian civilians are being held, and uphold its obligations to protect civilians and respect human rights.”

Neil Holland
Neil Holland (Gov.uk)

Barney Davis31 October 2024 13:26

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Who are the three North Korean generals sent to fight with Russia?

The Ukrainian government has named three North Korean generals it says are accompanying the thousands of Korean People’s Army troops deployed to Russia in aid of Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

Ukraine named Colonel General Kim Yong Bok, a senior general with command of special forces troops, including the XI Corps, also known as the Storm Corps, which the South Korean intelligence service said has been dispatched to Russia.

Michael Madden, a North Korea leadership expert with the U.S.-based Stimson Center, said Kim’s role appears to be larger, running the KPA Light Infantry Training Guidance Bureau that includes the XI Corps as well as light infantry units deployed to KPA corps units and seconded to special missions for the Reconnaissance General Bureau, North Korea’s main spy agency.

“This is a large and almost unprecedented deployment for the KPA,” said Madden, who believes the general is in Russia as a representative of Kim Jong Un.

“As such, there are a number of administrative and liaison tasks so Kim Jong Un has sent in Kim Yong Bok as a proxy decision-maker until the KPA unit presence is fully stood up.”

Kim Yong Bok may eventually defer command to a subordinate KPA officer of a senior colonel or major general rank, Madden added.

Other top officers identified by Ukraine include Colonel General Ri Chang Ho, Deputy Chief of the General Staff and head of the Reconnaissance General Bureau, and Major General Sin Kum Cheol, head of the Main Operational Directorate.

As head of North Korea’s main intelligence service since about 2022, Ri has been sanctioned by South Korea, which alleged that he oversaw major cyber hacking efforts to steal technology and foreign currency.

Like Kim Yong Bok, Ri also accompanied leader Kim Jong Un to an unusually large number of events this year, including the inspection of an east coast navy base.

Madden said Sin’s career was unclear, but given his one-star rank, he was likely to assume command of the North Korean troops in Russia once Kim Yong Bok and Ri Chang Ho departed.

Barney Davis31 October 2024 12:36

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Ukraine starts paying out anti-corruption whistleblowers

When he was asked to approach Ukrainian investigators with a $5 million bribe on behalf of a former top official in 2020, businessman Yevhen Shevchenko would have been entitled to a cut as the middleman.

He finally received his money – but from the Ukrainian government, in exchange for reporting the kickback to anti-corruption police and setting up a sting operation.

Shevchenko is one of Ukraine’s first two whistleblowers to receive a state payout for their role in helping bring a crooked official to justice, part of a corruption crackdown that has taken on greater importance during the war with Russia.

Shevchenko, who had previously worked with Ukraine’s anti-corruption police as an informant, received the equivalent of around $320,000.

“There is a very large number of people who can help uncover crimes but don’t because they’re afraid, or for some other reasons,” he said.

More than 4,000 reports have been submitted since last year, though so far only a small fraction – 47 – were found to have involved concrete criminal or administrative violations.

(Reuters)

Barney Davis31 October 2024 12:15

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Lavrov to meet China envoy over Ukraine

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov will hold talks with Li Hui, China’s special envoy for Eurasian affairs and point person for Ukraine, later on Thursday on the sidelines of a security conference in Minsk, the state RIA news agency reported.

The meeting will take place as Russia’s war in Ukraine appears to have taken a dangerous new turn, with NATO and South Korea expressing alarm that North Korean troops could soon be joining Moscow’s side.

On Wednesday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi reaffirmed Beijing’s strong ties with Moscow at a meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko

UN General Assembly Russia
UN General Assembly Russia (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Barney Davis31 October 2024 11:15

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‘Good morning from the occupation’ Mayor’s advisor reports blast at Russian held Berdyansk

A large explosion has been reported in the port area of Russian-occupied Berdyansk.

Petro Andriushchenko, Advisor to the Mayor of Mariupol, said on Telegram: “Our drones have been attacking Berdyansk since six in the morning.

“The main one hits in the port area. Smoke from a large fire is visible above the port with a large number of ambulances and firemen.

“In addition, the local occupation administration, almost for the first time, acknowledged the hit, reporting an attack on the premises of the administration itself in the city

“In addition, the electricity supply has disappeared in some areas, and the work of official budget bodies has been canceled.

“Finally, good morning from the occupation.”

Viktor Dudukalov, deputy chairman of the Berdiansk District Council, told Espreso TV that at least six hits were counted in the city.

“Since 6am today, we [in Berdiansk] have been facing a very tense situation with Russian air defense. At least six hits have been counted, primarily in the port area.

“There is smoke, ambulances are on the scene, and certain streets in the city center leading to the port are blocked.

“The occupiers claim that everything is fine and under control, yet they have decided to take today off and are urging everyone to stay at home, despite ‘everything being under control’.”

(Telegram)

Barney Davis31 October 2024 09:59

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Pictures of devastation emerging from Kharkiv after airstrike killed one child, 11, and injured at least 34

A Russian glide bomb struck a Kharkiv apartment block with local authorities claiming a child was killed and 34 residents injured.

Chief of the regional military administration, Oleh Syniehubov wrote on Telegram: “Unfortunately, a child died. Despite all efforts, medics failed to resuscitate the boy.”

As a result of the impact, part of the nine-storey apartment block was almost completely destroyed.

He added at least two people including a child were still trapped under the rubble.

The body of the 11-year-old was retrieved from under the rubble with severe head injuries and fractures.

(AFP via Getty Images)
(AFP via Getty Images)
(AFP via Getty Images)

Barney Davis31 October 2024 09:29

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South Korea considers sending team to Ukraine to monitor North Korean troop deployment

North Korea has sent some 11,000 soldiers to Russia and over 3,000 of them have been moved close to the frontlines, Reuters quoted an unnamed South Korean official as saying.

The official said North Korea will gain military knowledge from its troops helping the Russian war effort which poses a military threat to South Korea. “So it is incumbent upon us to analyse and monitor the activities of North Korean troops against our ally, Ukraine,” the official added.

Shahana Yasmin31 October 2024 08:30

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One killed in Russian airstrikes in Kherson

One person was killed and six were injured after Russian strikes on buildings, buses and cars in Kherson over the past 24 hours.

Chief of the Kherson Regional State Administration Oleksandr Prokudin said on Facebook on Thursday: “Russian military targeted library and office premises and populated areas of the region, including damage to multi-storey buildings and 21 private buildings.

“The occupiers also [struck] garages, buses and private cars. Due to Russian aggression, one person died, six more got injured.”

Throughout the past day, Ukrainian Defense Forces said there were 145 recorded combat clashes at the frontline. They added their strikes had hit one Russian command post, two air defence systems, one artillery gun in firing position, two field ammunition depots, three clusters of enemy personnel and military equipment, and four enemy radar stations.

Barney Davis31 October 2024 08:18

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