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Iranian authorities said they had shot down several drones and denied reports of an Israeli missile attack on the country. Earlier, Iranian media reported explosions in the area of the city of Isfahan in central Iran and the work of air defense in different regions.“Several drones were successfully shot down by the country’s air defense, but there is no information about a missile attack yet,” Iranian Space Agency spokesman Hossein Dalirian wrote on social media X.Earlier, CBS News and ABC News reported, citing American officials, that Israel launched missiles towards Iran. The White House and the Pentagon did not comment on this."We have no comment at this time," an Israeli army spokesman told AFP.Israeli officials previously warned they could retaliate after Iran fired hundreds of missiles and drones at Israeli cities last weekend. Almost all of them were shot down.The US has made it clear it will not join in a retaliatory strike on Iran, but on Thursday imposed sanctions on people and organizations involved in the production of Iranian drones in hopes of curbing the escalation.The FARS news agency previously reported that three explosions occurred in the area of the Shekari army airbase near Isfahan International Airport.According to the agency, an air defense system was activated in Isfahan, which detected the drone. The explosions shattered the windows of several office buildings.Broadcaster IRIB, citing “reliable sources,” reported that “the loud sounds heard in several regions of the country were the result of the air defense system being activated to combat several unidentified mini-drones.”There are several Iranian nuclear facilities located in the province of Isfahan, however, as the Tasnim agency reports, citing sources, no incidents have been recorded at nuclear infrastructure facilities.Flights over Tehran and other cities were temporarily suspended. In particular, Imam Khomeini International Airport in the Iranian capital did not accept or dispatch flights.Eight aircraft that were in Iranian airspace deviated from their course.

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Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Republican Mike Johnson, confirmed his intentions to introduce separate bills to help American allies, including Ukraine, and to hold a final vote on them before the evening of Saturday, April 20.Johnson wrote about this in a letter to members of the lower house of Congress on April 17, European Pravda reports with reference to Axios.According to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the texts of three separate bills on aid to Israel, Taiwan and Ukraine will be published by the end of Wednesday.Another bill would contain measures to force the sale of the Chinese app TikTok, the use of seized Russian assets and sanctions, and “other measures to counter Russia, China and Iran.”Responding to outrage from some Republicans who demanded measures to secure the US border with Mexico, the Speaker announced the introduction of another border bill.As Johnson explains in the letter, the four bills to help US allies and counter Russia, China and Iran will be procedurally combined, and their introduction on Wednesday will allow for discussion of possible amendments.“We expect the final vote to approve these bills on Saturday evening April 20,” writes the speaker of the lower house of Congress.The day before, House Speaker Mike Johnson unveiled his plan for approving foreign aid, which would include separate votes on aid to Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan and national security priorities.Democratic Majority Leader in the US Senate Chuck Schumer said he would consider House Speaker Mike Johnson's proposal for assistance to Ukraine and other American allies in separate bills.

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On the morning of April 17, drones of the Main Intelligence Directorate of Ukraine attacked the aircraft plant named after. Gorbunova in Kazan. Tu-22M and Tu-160M bombers are produced and repaired there.Sources in the special services told UNIAN about this. Explosions occurred on the territory of the aircraft plant at about 10 o'clock in the morning. Before the explosions, an air raid siren sounded in the area of the Kazan aircraft plant. At the same time, the evacuation of personnel from the territory of the enterprise began.During the attack, airports in Kazan, Nizhnekamsk and Nizhny Novgorod were closed. Footage of explosions near the plant appeared online.

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France recalled its ambassador to Azerbaijan for consultations due to Baku's actions. The French Foreign Ministry reported this.“France has decided to recall its ambassador to Azerbaijan for consultations due to the continuation of unilateral actions on the part of Azerbaijan in recent months, damaging relations between our two countries,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.French President Emmanuel Macron has already met with the ambassador. The head of the country “expressed regret about the actions of Azerbaijan” and called for “clarification of their intentions.” The French Foreign Ministry did not specify what actions Baku is talking about.The department recalled that France supports the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia in accordance with international law and the territorial integrity of both countries.At the end of March, the head of the State Security Service of Azerbaijan, Ali Nagiyev, said that France does not support peace in the South Caucasus, but incites Armenia to war, noting that Paris supplies Yerevan with weapons and ammunition. According to him, French intelligence services are forming a spy network that threatens the national security of Azerbaijan.The Armenian authorities have repeatedly stated that Azerbaijan wants to start a war, which, after seizing control of Nagorno-Karabakh and relocating most of the population of the unrecognized republic to Armenia, has repeatedly expressed territorial claims. Baku denies such plans.In December 2023, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry declared two employees of the French Embassy in Baku persona non grata and ordered them to leave the republic. Paris expelled two employees of the Azerbaijani embassy as a retaliatory measure.

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On Tuesday, April 16, Greece's largest journalists' union, the Union of Athens Daily Newspaper Editors, announced a 24-hour strike across all media sectors.The strike was declared from 5 am on April 16 to 5 am on April 17. ESIEA said it opposes "anarchic conditions and very low pay."The union said in a statement that private sector employers' refusal to begin developing collective bargaining agreements "has resulted in workers receiving meager wages."Salaries are said to be “insufficient to meet basic family and personal needs.”The union said low wages put pressure on journalism, professionals and reliable and free information, which is "the cornerstone of democratic functioning".Increasing inflation has made the problem worse. Athens weekly newspaper To Vima estimates that prices have risen by about 37% in the past two years.

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The Republican-dominated US House of Representatives could approve a massive aid package for Kyiv after months of standoffs. Assistance programs for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, as well as additional measures to strengthen national security, previously linked in one document, were separated into separate bills, and a decision on them could be made in the coming days, the speaker said lower house of the American parliament Mike Johnson from the social network X.“This week we will consider individual bills through a structured and appropriate amendment process,” he wrote after a meeting with House Republicans.As Politico notes, the fourth proposed bill is still being finalized and would include, among other things, a ban on the TikTok social network in the United States and a provision on the sale of assets confiscated from Russian oligarchs.At the same time, the publication does not rule out that Johnson will not have sufficient support to bring these bills up for consideration, since he will need almost unanimous support from fellow party members.

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A Georgian citizen is among those killed in the attack at a shopping center in Sydney. The information was confirmed by the Georgian Foreign Ministry. The agency reports that the Georgian Embassy is in contact with family members of the deceased and appropriate procedures are being carried out.“The Georgian side is aware of the death of a Georgian citizen (who also had Australian citizenship) as a result of an attack in a shopping center in Sydney. We express our condolences to the family members of the deceased, as well as the government and people of Australia for the victims of the incident. The Georgian side expresses concern about the incident. The Georgian Embassy is in contact with family members of the deceased, and the relevant procedures are ongoing,” notes the Georgian Foreign Ministry.Recall that as a result of an attack by a man armed with a knife in a shopping center in Sydney, six people were killed, including the attacker.The Guardian reports that Sydney police said the attacker was shot and killed by a police officer. The gunman who broke into Westfield Bondi Junction shopping center in Sydney acted alone, police say. He also reportedly had mental health problems in the past. There is no indication that his attack was motivated by any ideology. Several people injured in the attack were taken to hospital.

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Iranian state media reported the seizure of an “Israel-linked” merchant ship in the Strait of Hormuz. The container ship MCS Aries was captured by special forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and sent towards Iran, the Irna agency announced on Saturday, April 13.The ship, flying the Portuguese flag, was traveling from the UAE to India. It is reported that it may be associated with the Zodiac Group, owned by Israeli businessman Eyal Ofer.

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In Sydney, Australia, a man with a knife attacked visitors to a crowded Westfield shopping center in Bondi Junction, Australian media reported on Saturday, April 13. According to the latest data, at least six people have died, and more than five more have been hospitalized, including a 9-month-old child.Emergency services were called to Westfield Bondi Junction at around 4pm local time after receiving reports that several people had been stabbed. Media company ABC reports that some shoppers locked themselves in stores and utility rooms in the early minutes. According to one of the shoppers, who was in the shopping center with his children, he heard two shots, after which everyone ran.Presumably, there were two attackers, one was shot by police, the second is being sought, a representative of the ambulance service said. The motives of the attackers' actions are unknown; Australian law enforcement agencies are checking them for possible connections with radical Islamists.

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The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine approved the bill on mobilization as a whole. This was announced by the deputy head of the parliament’s financial committee, Yaroslav Zheleznyak.283 people's deputies voted for the adoption of the draft law "On amendments to certain legislative acts of Ukraine on certain issues of military service, mobilization and military registration."Prior to this, people's deputies voted to remove from the bill the norm on demobilization, which was in the first reading. It provided for the dismissal from service of military personnel who had served a total of 36 months during martial law. At the same time, their dismissal had to be carried out within the time frame determined by the decision of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief.227 people’s deputies voted for the removal of this provision from the mobilization bill. Now in the law on mobilization there is no specific deadline for the demobilization of those who have been defending Ukraine since the first days of the full-scale invasion.A new government bill on strengthening mobilization No. 10449 was registered in the Verkhovna Rada on January 30, 2024. It was adopted as a basis on February 7. On April 9, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence completed consideration of the bill for the second reading.

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At least 17 people were killed in road accidents in southwest Pakistan. Geo TV channel reports this.It was also reported that 38 people were injured as a result of the accident and were taken to a nearby hospital. The rescue operation lasted about two hours.The incident occurred on the night of April 11 when a passenger bus fell into a ravine in Pakistan's Hub district in Balochistan province. It is known that the passengers of the bus were about 70 pilgrims from the city of Thatta, heading to the shrine of Muslim Sufis - the Shah Nurani Temple.“The bus fell into a ditch near Shah Noorani, which led to an accident. The exact time of the accident cannot be known due to the lack of a mobile network signal,” one of the social workers told the TV channel.According to preliminary information, the driver lost control on a difficult road, causing the vehicle to overturn into a ravine.

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The water level in the Ural River in Orenburg rose overnight by more than half a meter, exceeding the 10-meter mark on the morning of Wednesday, April 10. This was stated by the Governor of the Orenburg Region Denis Pasler.A few hours earlier, the water level in the Urals near Orenburg was 978 centimeters, and the night before it was reported that the water level in the city exceeded the dangerous level, reaching 931 centimeters.The Orenburg administration indicates that the water level in the Sakmara River has risen by eight centimeters in a day and is now 813 centimeters, with a dangerous value of 870 centimeters.According to Orenburg Mayor Sergei Salmin, almost 300 people, 103 pieces of equipment and 46 watercraft are involved in eliminating the consequences of the flood. To date, 865 people have been evacuated from Orenburg, and in the region as a whole - more than 7,700 people, including 1,707 children. Local authorities called on residents of houses located in the flood zone to urgently leave their homes.In Orenburg, by morning, 2,392 household plots and 1,910 households were flooded, the mayor’s office reported. There are 58 city residents in temporary accommodation centers, including 22 children, and over one and a half thousand people in the Orenburg region.Due to the flooding of a transformer substation, water was turned off in four villages, Rosvodokanal of Orenburg reported, and authorities also cut off communications and electricity in the Dubovaya Roshcha sanatorium, located on the Ural River 20 kilometers from Orenburg.Meanwhile, in Orsk, where a dam was broken five days ago, according to the mayor of the city, Vasily Kozupitsa, the water level in the Urals began to fall the day before. 2,493 people, including 797 children, were evacuated from flooded houses in Orsk.