NEWS OF THE DAY
From Around the World
Missile test: The Russian military says it has conducted a successful test of a nuclear-capable hypersonic missile capable of sneaking through enemy defenses. A video posted by the Defense Ministry showed a MiG-31 fighter jet launching a Kinzhal (Dagger) missile during a training flight. The ministry said the missile, which carried a conventional warhead, hit a practice target in southern Russia. President Vladimir Putin named Kinzhal this month among the new nuclear weapons he claimed would bolster Russia’s military capability and render U.S. missile defense useless. Putin said Kinzhal flies 10 times faster than the speed of sound, has a range of 1,250 miles and can carry a nuclear or a conventional warhead.
Ukraine sanctions: The European Union has prolonged sanctions against senior Russian officials, lawmakers and military officers for a further six months over alleged meddling in Ukraine. EU headquarters said in a statement Monday that “an assessment of the situation did not justify a change in the sanctions regime.” Those targeted are accused of “actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.” The EU imposed sanctions three years ago after Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.
Slovakia resignation: Interior Minister Robert Kalinak announced Monday that he would resign amid the crisis following the slayings of an investigative journalist and his fiancee. Kalinak’s resignation was a key requirement of a junior party in the government if it is going to remain in the ruling coalition. The move comes after tens of thousands of protesters demanded the resignation of the government and an investigation into the shooting deaths of Jan Kuciak and Martina Kusnirova. Kuciak’s last, unfinished story was about the activities of Italian mafia in Slovakia and their ties to people close to Prime Minister Robert Fico.
Britain deportations: Three far-right figures say they have been deported from Britain after being detained when trying to enter the country. Austrian Martin Sellner of the Generation Identity group, American commentator Brittany Pettibone and Canadian activist and YouTube personality Lauren Southern tweeted Monday that they were denied entry. Britain’s Home Office said in a statement that the border force “has the power to refuse entry to an individual if it is considered that his or her presence in the U.K. is not conducive to the public good.” Sellner said in a video posted on Twitter that he and Pettibone were detained for three days and deported. He said he had planned to give a speech at “Speakers’ Corner” in London’s Hyde Park. He said, “That was my crime.” Kashmir violence: A gunbattle between Indian troops and rebels Monday killed three insurgents in disputed Kashmir and triggered more anti-India protests and clashes, officials said. The fighting began after government forces raided a cluster of homes in a village in southern Anantnag district on a tip that rebels were hiding there and came under fire from them, police said. Troops retaliated and in the fighting three militants were killed, police said. As news of the killings spread, protests and clashes against Indian rule broke out in several areas. Officials ordered schools closed and clamped a curfew on some parts of Kashmir’s main city of Srinagar, the center of protests and clashes against Indian rule. Rebels have been fighting Indian rule since 1989, demanding Kashmir be made part of Pakistan or become an independent country.