Latest News
-
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).
-
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.
-
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.
-
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)
-
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.
-
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
-
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.
-
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.
RPT, the aunt of Trafigura Mongolia's boss, ran its main partner company
Trafigura’s top executive for Mongolia has been suspended pending an investigation into a fraud scheme worth billions of dollars at the Swiss trading firm. The executive, however, lent more than $500 million from Trafigura to a company owned by his aunt.
Lex Oil is Trafigura’s main counterparty in Mongolia. According to three sources and a document, it belonged to Erdenetuul who is the aunt of Trafigura’s suspended local boss Jononbayar Erdenesuren.
Trafigura announced last October it had suffered a loss of $1.1 billion after an internal investigation found that employees within its Mongolian petroleum product supply business engaged "serious misconduct". This included manipulating documents and data to inflate the amounts paid by Trafigura, and concealing overdue receivables.
Trafigura's principal counterparty, the company stated, owes Trafigura a "substantial portion" of money. However, the company did not identify the counterparty nor any individuals because the investigation is still ongoing.
Sources claim that Jononbayar sold and lent hundreds of millions to his aunt's business.
Sources interviewed by Trafigura said that the risk department at Trafigura should have looked into family connections to determine if there were any conflicts of interest. This cast doubts over the level of oversight in one of the largest traders of energy and commodities.
Trafigura has been briefed on the concerns of two banking sources. They are concerned that Trafigura will uncover further fraud.
The reporting was based on the three sources familiar with Trafigura's Mongolia operations. It also included the two banking sources and an undated document issued by the Department of State Registration in Mongolia that showed Lex's ownership information.
A spokesperson for Trafigura said that an external investigation is ongoing. The company refused to respond to questions about the status of an investigation, which staff members have been terminated or suspended, and whether they were aware of Jononbayar’s links with its main trading partner.
According to three sources familiar with Trafigura, Jononbayar joined Trafigura in 2012, as his LinkedIn profile reveals.
According to sources familiar with the situation, he is one of a few, unspecified employees who were placed on suspension last year.
Jononbayar's aunt Lex Oil and an attorney for the firm have not responded to comments sent via LinkedIn or by email. I was unable identify the lawyer who represents Jononbayar.
CUSTOMS LINK
The three sources claimed that in addition to Erdenesuren's work at Erdenetuul, Erdenesuren's mother also worked for the Customs General Administration of Mongolia, which supervises fuel imports.
Trafigura was Mongolia's largest fuel supplier by 2014, said the same sources. The sources claim that Erdenesuren was employed by the CGAM risk department from 2014 until 2018.
Erdenesuren or CGAM didn't respond to requests for comments on LinkedIn or via email.
Trafigura did not name any employees when it made its statement on the issue. It said in an October statement that they were taking "appropriate discipline action".
Three sources confirmed that Trafigura's internal investigation found no evidence to support the claim that Lex or Trafigura was treated preferentially by the CGAM.
Trafigura announced in October that it had conducted a review of the risks associated with its global network. It identified locations at higher risk, but did not identify them. The review revealed no significant findings.
EARLIER SCANDAL
The banking sources reported that Trafigura's bank traders were rattled by the $1.1 billion loss in one of the company's smallest markets, particularly as the incident followed a nickel fraud in Singapore, which cost the company nearly $600 million.
Trafigura released very few details regarding the latest incident but determined that the serious misconduct of individuals in Trafigura's Mongolian business occurred between 2019 and 2023.
According to its website and three trading sources, Lex Oil was established in 2019. It formed a partnership Trafigura.
According to two trading sources, Lex received credit for Trafigura, with which it gave credit to local fuel consumers so that they could purchase diesel imported by Trafigura and Lex from Russia and Singapore. Trafigura did not loan money to Lex, according to documents.
In 2020, the COVID pandemic halted Mongolian coal exports to China. This affected the mining sector and its fuel demand. Lex Oil, however, continued to blend fuel and lend to local companies, accumulating debts to Trafigura.
Trafigura reported in its December annual report that it had discovered evidence of "deliberate manipulating of data and documents, and concealment overdue receivables". In its annual report in December, Trafigura said it had found evidence of "deliberate manipulation of data and documents and concealment overdue receivables".
According to a screenshot from the ownership document, Erdenetuul will sell Lex Oil to Dashnyam chinbat in 2022. He did not reply to a comment request. The records were removed from the website of the government, but the ownership changes are still visible on the non-profit Mongolian database OpenDataLab which tracks government disclosures.
According to a source in the Mongolian government, the new government elected last year has launched an investigation, but it is too early for the findings to be revealed.
Trafigura's annual report stated that the company had "increased its scrutiny" over the past few years.
It said: "We are building and extending on this work urgently." (Reporting Dmitry Zhdannikov; additional reporting Marwa Rashad, editing by Jason Neely).
(source: Reuters)