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Russian drone strikes nuclear fuel storage facility near Chornobyl in Ukraine
Ukrainian officials said that a 'Russian drone' had struck a storage area for spent nuclear fuel near Ukraine’s now-disused Chornobyl plant. They added that the radiation levels remained stable. Separately, the Kyiv General Staff and state atomic agency stated that a container-receiving facility?had partially been destroyed, but no spent fuel had been stored at the time of?attack. The fire that resulted was put out and there were no reported injuries. Russia has not publicly commented on the alleged attack?on the facility which is located?around 15 km (9miles) away from the Chornobyl Plant, the site where the world's biggest nuclear disaster occurred. Andrii Sybiha, Ukrainian Foreign Minister, wrote on X: "This isn't the first time Russian forces have put Ukrainian nuclear facilities in danger." "Russia's nuclear blackmail and threats against nuclear safety are systematic, deliberate, and inacceptable." A Russian drone attacked a containment 'arch that was over the Chornobyl reactor in February 2025. The 'arch had been destroyed by the explosion and meltdown of April 1986. ?Russia denied responsibility. Kyiv has also accused Moscow of attempting to attack the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant located in southeast Ukraine. (Reporting and editing by Tomaszjanowski).
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Embraer observes that airlines are delaying their decisions about plane purchases due to the Iran war
Embraer CEO Francisco Gomes Neto said 'on Saturday that some airlines are delaying their decisions on whether or not to exercise their aircraft purchase options due to a lack of certainty over the war in Iran. This uncertainty has led to a rise in 'jet fuel prices. Gomes Neto, the Brazilian planemaker, noted that while there have been no requests to delay deliveries or slowdowns in active sales campaigns he was noticing a growing caution around incremental commitments. He said that some companies who could exercise previously signed options were delaying that to better understand the?evolution of the situation. Embraer has a commercial backlog of nearly five years worth of deliveries. The company is pursuing multiple sales campaigns to sell its E2 family and hopes to close some deals next month at the Farnborough airshow in the United Kingdom. Embraer wants to capitalize on recent agreements, including those with Finnair and Azorra. It believes that the E2 family's fuel-efficiency can increase demand. Gomes Neto stated that several campaigns are currently underway, and the timing of any potential deals is heavily dependent on the customers. "I'm not sure if the commercial aviation sector will have a strong year like last year, but I think it should be good." Embraer is aiming to increase its output. The company has set an internal goal of delivering between 95 and100 commercial aircraft by 2027. This year, the?outlook is between 80 and85 planes. Gomes Neto said that the goal is more dependent on smoother supply chains than it is on geopolitical tensions such as the Iran war being resolved. He said that the bottlenecks in the industry, which have been present since the pandemic, are slowly improving. He added, "It is about getting the?cadence correct." Embraer is also looking to improve margins within its commercial aviation division. Gomes Neto stated that the company has renegotiated older contracts with lower profitability, and is expecting a stronger demand for new agreements to support better pricing.
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Israeli forces kill a Palestinian child and injure his parents on the West Bank
The Palestinian Health Ministry reported that Israeli forces killed and injured a 7-month-old Palestinian child in the Tel Rumeida area south of Hebron, West Bank on Friday evening. The ministry identified the infant as Sam Fahd Abu Haikal, and stated that he died on the scene. His parents were moderately injured by gunshots. The grandmother of the baby said that the family stopped the car when they saw Israeli soldiers and military vehicles in the distance. She claimed that shots were fired at them which they first thought were warning shots. She said that "one bullet hit my grandson and lodged in his mother's cheek, after traversing his face, crossing his head and striking his mother's cheek." The bullet also grazed her father's finger and the mother is currently hospitalized. Israeli military claimed that during Friday's operational activity, soldiers in the Hebron region perceived a vehicle speeding toward them. One soldier fired a single shot at the vehicle. It said that three Palestinians had been injured and taken to hospital for treatment. The military stated that an initial investigation found that those injured were "uninvolved civilians" and that the incident is 'under review'. Tel Rumeida is an area in Hebron where Israeli settlers are under heavy military protection among Palestinian residents. It has been a hotbed of violence for many years, especially when it comes to the Israeli-occupied West Bank. According to a report by the European Union in 2024, more than 3 million Palestinians live in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, including over 700,000.
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Five killed in Russian attacks on Ukraine's Kherson region
The Kherson Governor said that three separate incidents occurred on Friday in which five people were killed by Russians in the southern Kherson region of Ukraine. Oleksandr Prokudin wrote in the 'Telegram' that a strike in a district in the main city of the region, also known as Kherson, had killed three elderly people. Their bodies were discovered in homes damaged by a bomb. Prokudin reported that an attack on a petrol station, north of the city, killed one person and injured seven others. A drone strike in the evening?killed an individual in a village, north of Kherson. Kherson was one of four regions annexed to Russia by Russia six months after the Russian invasion in 2022. Russian forces seized much of the area in the early stages of invasion. However, Ukrainian forces recaptured large stretches of territory including the city of Kherson. Russians are a frequent threat to Ukrainian-held territories. Local officials said that a Ukrainian drone, which is a common target for the Ukrainians, struck a car in the Belgorod region of western Russia, killing its driver. Could not independently verify the reports. Both Russia and Ukraine deny that they deliberately target civilians. (Reporting and editing by Ron Popeski)
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Trump promises to end the Iran war quickly while campaigning in Wisconsin for Republicans
U.S. president Donald 'Trump' on Friday pledged to end the Iran War quickly and remove an alleged source of high prices while campaigning in rural central Wisconsin. He was doing so in a bid for Republicans to keep control of Congress in midterm elections. The visit to Chippewa Falls highlighted the Republican strategy to retain control of the U.S.?House of Representatives. He said that progress could be made in the negotiations with Iran, but a deal to end this conflict is still elusive. He encouraged Wisconsin voters to be energized in preparation for the election. Trump stated at a roundtable in Chippewa Falls that "we're going out of Iran very soon and it's gonna be strong one way, or another." "Your fertilizer costs will go down dramatically, just as they did four months ago." Rain poured down on a line of people waiting outside to enter a smoky?farmbuilding. Some attendees were Trump fans while others viewed Trump's recent policy on Iran with more skepticism. Tom Paff, who is a data analyst from Boyd in Wisconsin, said he was "definitely a Trump fan" but added that he wasn't happy with the high gas prices. He said, "I don't believe we belong in the Middle East." Derrick Van Orden is the district's representative and closely aligns himself with President Trump. He touts the "Trump administration"s focus on rural America, as a "benefit". His narrow victory in the 2024 reelection has made him one of the top targets for national Democrats hoping to overturn the 217-212 Republican House Majority. Van Orden told the crowd at the rally, while standing in front of farm equipment, that Trump cares for farmers in America. If anyone disagrees with him, "you can look them in the eyes and tell them this is a pile manure." Rebecca Cooke, Van Orden’s Democratic opponent, said at the farm of her family in Eau Claire, Wisconsin that she believed?Republicans had brought Trump to her District because they saw her race as being tight. She also noted that Health and Human Services secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was in the district last week. Cooke says that Trump's policies hurt farmers. She said: "I believe that if you look at the farmers who Republicans see as an important part of their base, then they are being squeezed by tariffs. They're also getting squeezed because they have to pay for healthcare and inputs due to the war in Iran." Trump promised to reduce inflation during his presidential campaign in 2024, but the prices have increased since Trump's tariffs were implemented last year. Energy prices have risen since the Iran War began. According to the American Automobile Association, Wisconsin's average gasoline price this week of $4.04 is $1.08 higher than it was a year earlier. Trump said that the political implications of rising energy prices do not increase pressure on Iran to reach a deal. Many of Trump's Republican allies, however, are eager to focus on other issues than Iran. They want to prevent a Democratic takeover of Congress which would likely stymie Trump. Trump's Wisconsin visit is the fourth top-level administration official to have visited this district in the past year. The others were Vice President JDVance's visits in August and in February and Kennedy's most recent stop. Steve Holland, Renee Hickman and Nandita Bose; Steve Holland, Cynthia Osterman, David Gregorio and Sergio Non edited the article.
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The US IPO of Sinda by billionaire Kaplan is a way to mine the market recovery
The mining firm Sinda filed for a U.S. IPO on Friday, marking billionaire Thomas Kaplan's'second attempt' to enter the public markets, following Sunshine Silver's listing a 'day earlier', as 'interest in IPOs' rebounded. The filing did not reveal the terms of?the?offering. The U.S. IPO Market exploded in 2026. A variety of sectors were eager to list and take advantage of the excitement among investors for new listings. Elon Musk’s SpaceX will?start trading in New York in what is expected to be the largest IPO ever. Anthropic, a leading AI company, also filed a confidential application to go public last week. CopperTech Metals, a mining company, filed for a New?York?listing on Tuesday. Sunshine Silver Mining listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) on Thursday. The Electrum Group is a natural resource-focused investment company. Thomas Kaplan is the founder and chairman of the company. He is a prominent investor who specializes in precious metals, natural resources and other assets. Sinda has exploration and exploitation rights over?five adjacent mining concessions located in Mexico's historic Guanajuato Silver Belt, according to its filing. The project is described by the company as a large-scale, high-grade silver-gold discovery that has the potential to be of global significance. The IPO proceeds will be used for underground exploration, for?other project costs and for ongoing exploration. As exploration costs increased, the mining company's net loss was $11.6 million for the three-month period ended March 31. This is compared to a $2.6 million loss in 2013. Morgan Stanley, Scotiabank, and BMO Capital Markets are joint book-running managers for Sinda's offering. The company plans to list its shares under the ticker "SIND" on the NYSE. Reporting by Pritam Biwas in Bengaluru
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Texas ranchers are on alert after a screwworm parasite is detected in a calf
La Pryor, a quiet Texas cattle town, has become the center of the screwworm battle after the first U.S. instance in decades was discovered there. This prompted a?quarantine on livestock and put ranchers and pet-owners on edge. On Wednesday, a calf in a ranch was found to have?the meat-eating?parasite. It had a large hole around its umbilical chord. Since more than a decade, ranchers in South Texas are preparing for the arrival screwworm. The flies have moved from Colombia, through Central America and closer to the U.S. Border. The parasite can decimate local wildlife and cattle herds. U.S. Department of Agriculture secretary Brooke Rollins said that only one confirmed case had been reported, and the agency was working to prevent a spread of the parasite that threatens Texas' multi-billion dollar cattle industry. Rollins said that she would be traveling to Texas 'next week. She gave a speech at a rally on Friday with President Donald Trump, in Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District. This is an agricultural district where a race for the November midterm elections has become competitive. Rollins did not mention screwworm. USDA WORKERS LEADER CONTROL EFFORTS The USDA sent 28 workers to Zavala County in Mexico, near the border with Coahuila, on Friday. They set fly traps and released sterile flies?to stop their reproduction, as well as talking to ranchers. Rear Admiral Michael Schmoyer said that four more workers would be arriving soon. The major roads leading out of La Pryor are marked with?blinking-orange signs that urge vehicles with livestock to pull up to a checkpoint with state and sheriff's personnel who will inspect the animals to look for signs of screwworm. Marcel?Valdez is a retired educator and Texas A&M University extension agent. He recalled when screwworm was last seen in South Texas in the 1960s, as a young boy. He recalled the screwworm infested calves kicking and licking at their open wounds. The smell of rotting meat as hundreds of larvae devoured the animals alive. And the sharp smell from the black, tarlike medicine he had used to treat them. He is now most concerned about the younger cattle ranchers, who do not have experience in treating this pest. Also, he is worried about the large number of wild animals which could be vectors of the disease and the limited production of sterile flys. He said that the screwworm can quickly get out of control. TEXAS DECLARES A STATE OF DISASTER Greg Abbott, the Republican governor of Texas, declared Friday a disaster and asked that the federal government speed up completion of an sterile flies production facility. The plant was supposed to be operational by November 2027, after breaking ground in April. Abbott proposed that Texas pay for additional costs to speed up construction. Abbott stated at a recent press conference that "we need to get the large volume of sterile fly as soon as possible." It's crucial that the new facility, which is currently being built in Texas, be completed even quicker. The sterile male flies mate wild female screwworms in order to produce unfertile eggs. Abbott stated that the facility must be finished before summer 2027, because pests are more likely to spread in summer than winter. He said, "We can't make it through another summer." Some Texas politicians and ranchers, including some in Trump's Republican Party of Texas, have lambasted USDA efforts. Brent Smith, an attorney from Kinney County (near Zavala County) wrote in X: "The USDA had plenty of time to prepare, but they failed." Rollins stated on Thursday that it was predicted that screwworm would cross the border into the U.S. last year. The Trump administration's actions prevented this, giving time for the USDA to launch a rapid response. Fears of more infestations continued on Friday to shake markets, and extended a rally in U.S. Cattle Futures.
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Prices of oil fall amid rising hopes for a de-escalation of the US-Iran War
Oil prices dropped on Friday, as traders grew more confident that a renewed conflict between the U.S.A. and Iran is less likely. Brent crude futures fell $2.08 or 2.18% to $92.95 per barrel at 11:37 CST . Brent closed the previous session 2.84% down. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was $89.93 per barrel, down $3.11 or 3.34% after a loss of 3.1% on Thursday. Phil Flynn is a senior analyst with Price Futures Group. He said that the market does not see an escalation of tensions between the parties. Even though we haven't reached a deal, the market seems to be de-escalating. Petroleum Development Oman confirmed that operations at Mina al Fahal were not affected after three sources reported that oil loading was suspended due to an explosion near the port's mooring berths. Oman exports between 800,000 and 900,000 barrels of crude oil per day from its terminal. Brent was up 1.25 % and WTI by around 3.1%. Contracts rose earlier this week as fighting flared up in the Middle East, while U.S. and Iran war peace talks continued to drag on, while the Strait of Hormuz remained restricted, through which a fifth of world oil flows. Commerzbank analysts stated on Friday that "as hopes for a deal between the U.S.A. and Iran have been dashed yet again, the prices of Brent crude oil and European natural gases rose this week." Commerzbank said that Brent's gains were capped due to oil inventories remaining longer than expected, rerouted imports, and a falling demand. Hezbollah's leader Naim Qassem rejected a U.S. mediated agreement between Israel and Lebanon to stop the fighting on Thursday. Iran has demanded a ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese government in Lebanon as a precondition for any deal with Washington. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, said that he thought progress was being made in the relationship between Israel and Lebanon. He also stated on Thursday that Lebanon deserved peace. Tony Sycamore, IG's market analyst, said in a?"note" that "any optimism is heavily clouded due to a tangled net of headlines and anti-headlines." Haitham al Ghais, the Secretary General of OPEC, said that despite the Middle East conflict, and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the oil demand forecast for this year is 1.2 million barrels of oil per day. According to shipping data the U.S. naval blockade has largely been responsible for the decline in Iranian oil exports. However, weak demand from China has also contributed to the lower prices. Reporting by Erwin Seba, Robert Harvey, and Ahmad Ghaddar, in London; Florence Tan, and Sam Li, in Singapore. Editing by Sonali, Kim Coghill and Elaine Hardcastle.
Brazil's creative COP30 host, Brazil, has a love for motels and converted ferries.
After three years of the United Nations Climate Summit, also known as COP30 (the conference of world leaders addressing global warming) being held in countries that did not allow for full freedom for demonstrations, environmental activists around the world eagerly awaited Brazil to host the summit.
The so-called "People's COP", however, may not be as welcoming to visitors as they had hoped. Brazil's stated inclusion goal is threatened by the high cost of accommodation. The government is now racing to increase the 18,000 beds currently available in the Amazonian city of Belem. It has turned to motels for couples, ferry boats that usually ply rivers, and classrooms at schools to accommodate visitors. Luiz inacio Lula da silva said that he wanted to bring COP30 in the Amazon to draw attention to a forest which offers solutions to climate changes by locking up planet-warming CO2, but also suffers from its most severe consequences in the form wildfires, and drought. Many climate change activists have welcomed this focus. However, others have expressed concerns that the hosting of such a large event could strain the fragile region. This would compromise the success and outcome of the conference. Belem is a port town of 1.3 millions people on the edge the Amazon rainforest. It's dotted with construction sites. Brazilian government pours $1 billion in new infrastructure.
There is still much to do in order to accommodate the 60,000 plus visitors. Two global advocacy organizations who refused to be identified said that the scouts hired by them found that accommodation prices for November's conference were many times higher than those they paid in Baku, Azerbaijan last year. The cheapest rooms cost $400 and average $1,500 per night. Lula, who was in Belem recently, shrugged off the recent hotel shortage and suggested that those who could not find a room should "sleep looking at the sky" - this would be wonderful.
The question at the core of the issue is one that has become even more pressing as the annual U.N. Climate Summit has evolved from a gathering for world leaders and diplomats into a conference involving activists, business and government officials.
Tasneem E. Essop is the executive director of Climate Action Network. "The ability of a COP to solve the accommodation issues can make or brake a COP." Civil society groups claim that their ability to influence negotiators is crucial. They cite the role played by public advocacy, such as in the 2022 creation of the Loss and Damage Fund to funnel resources from wealthy countries to poorer nations in order to combat the destruction caused to them by climate change.
Essop stated, "Everyone has been waiting for Brazil's COP." "For civil society it's that moment where we will be back at the COP, with room for our actions."
FEW HOTELS, PLENTY OF CREATIVITY
Brazil has already moved the dates of the summit for the heads of state, in an effort to relieve pressure on Belem’s limited hotel supply. Two hotels are under construction and two cruise ships will dock in the nearby harbor for attendees.
The entrepreneurs are working hard to find other ways of accommodating the visitors.
Businessmen are re-designing ferries to include high-end suites. Developers want to repurpose shipping containers to build on unused land. The government has designated schools and churches to be used as hostels.
Advertisements for national delegations are promoting love motels, which rent rooms on an hourly basis. Yorann Cost, owner of Motel Secreto said that removing erotic seats would help to tone down his establishment's "more sensual atmosphere".
He said that he could not remove the ceiling mirrors or the poles.
He said that he found it difficult to set the right price because there was so much speculation about what people would pay. Valter Correia said that his office plans to launch a booking website in the next few weeks to organize this market. He also said that his office was looking at ways to discourage price-gouging.
Correia stated that the government anticipates that around 45,000 attendees will attend the COP, and that it has allocated enough accommodation to meet this demand. The People's Summit is a side event organized by activist groups and says that it expects 15,000 more people. The organizers say they plan to assist with accommodation by, for instance, building campsites.
Officials from the city and state encourage residents to rent their homes and travel. This has sparked a sort of gold rush in Belem. Renting apartments and houses during COP for hundreds of thousands of dollar is now common.
In interviews with landlords, tenants, and a building manager, dozens of cases were revealed of people being refused a renewal of their lease to allow landlords to prepare apartments for visitors from the COP who would pay ten or more times what they normally do. Rafaela Rodrigues is a businesswoman claiming she was denied renewal of her lease. She later discovered that the apartment she had rented for several times more than she paid before.
She said, "It was chaos." I had 10 days to find a new apartment, rent it, and move. (Reporting from Manuela Andreoni, Belem; Lisandra Paraguassu, Brasilia. Editing by Brad Haynes & Rosalba o'Brien.
(source: Reuters)