Video Paris blast - At least 37 hurt, sniffer dogs pick up scent under rubble

Smoke billows from rubbles of a building at Place Alphonse-Laveran in the 5th arrondissement of Paris, on June 21, 2023. (ABDULMONAM EASSA/AFP via Getty Images)

At least 37 people have been injured after an explosion sounded off in Paris, France, on Wednesday, rocking the city’s left bank and causing at least one building’s facade to completely collapse.

Another four people are in critical condition as a result of the explosion, with rescue workers adding that at least two people may still be trapped in the rubble, according to reports.

What is being reported as a gas explosion called for about 270 firefighters to arrive on the scene to battle a massive fire that erupted in Paris’ fifth arrondissement, which is also known as the city's Latin Quarter

A blast ripped through a street near Paris' historic Latin Quarter on Wednesday and rescuers were searching for two missing people feared buried under the rubble of a building that partially collapsed in the explosion.

2 people reported missing, at least 24 injured in Paris gas explosion - BFM pic.twitter.com/bfwlPKYWQm

— BNO News (@BNONews) June 21, 2023

#Explosion in #Paris. Shook my entire apartment. I hope all inside are okay, police and fireman showed up soon afterwards. Media has my permission to use if desired. pic.twitter.com/H35toQv0Sx

— Amanda (@merybrodie) June 21, 2023

The explosion tore through Rue Saint-Jacques, which runs from the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral to the Sorbonne University, in the late afternoon, injuring at least 37 people, four of whom were fighting for their lives in hospital.

Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said that sniffer dogs had picked up a scent under the mound of masonry left strewn across Rue Saint-Jacques.

"It is possible tonight that we will find bodies or perhaps survivors," Darmanin told reporters at the scene of the blast.

The blast destroyed the facade of a building housing the Paris American Academy design school popular with foreign students.

The explosion occurred in the building of the American Academy fashion design school on Saint Jacques Street, said Darmanin. The school, which was partially destroyed in the blast, is attended by many students from the US and is located near the historic Val de Grace military hospital. The building was founded in 1965.

Kent State University, a school in the state of Ohio, said that all of their students who were at the academy are safe and accounted for, according to one report.

Officials were able to contain the fire, but have not yet been able to extinguish it, according to reports. First responders have shut down the city to address the blast, including the city's annual music festival which is used to celebrate the summer solstice.

“It’s possible that we will find dead bodies tonight, or we will find them alive,” French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said from the scene of the explosion.

Darmanin, who said no alarm was sent out before the incident, added that investigators are still trying to figure out what caused the explosion. “The explosion was extremely violent,” said Mayor Florence Berthout.

Another report adds that many of the victims’ injuries were sustained due to being lifted off their feet by the blast.

French police secure the area as firefighters work after several buildings on fire following a gas explosion in the fifth arrondissement of Paris, France, June 21, 2023. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

Witnesses described a deafening explosion and a giant fireball that rose several stories high.

Soldiers helped secure a safety cordon around the scene.

The Paris prosecutor's office said it was too early to say what caused the blast.

But the local deputy mayor, Edouard Civel, referred to a gas explosion in a Twitter post and witnesses told BFM TV there had been a strong smell of gas moments before the blast.

"The shop shook violently, it felt like bomb blast," said Rahman Oliur who manages a food shop a few doors down the street from the American Academy.

Bar worker Khal Ilsey said he heard a "huge explosion" before running out and seeing a violent blaze at the end of the street.

RUBBLE AND FIRE

The blast occurred at 4:55 p.m. (1455 GMT), just as workers were heading home. The area is frequented by tourists and foreign students in the early summer but there was no immediate indication that any foreigners were among the victims.

Several nearby building were evacuated. More than two hours after the explosion, first responders were still treating residents for shock. One woman fainted in the street.

Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau said early indications were that the blast originated inside the collapsed building. Investigators would look into whether building conditions were in breach of regulations or if an individual had acted without due care, he added.

More than 300 firefighters were involved in bringing the blazes under control.

Rue Saint-Jacques runs through the Latin Quarter - famed as the home to many expatriate and French writers, musicians and artists over the years - to the Val de Grace military hospital and is a few blocks from the popular Jardin du Luxembourg

"I was at home writing ... I thought it was a bomb," said art historian Monique Mosser, adding that many of the windows in her building had been blown out by the blast's shockwave.

"A neighbour knocked on the door and told me that the fire brigade were asking us to evacuate as quickly as possible. I grabbed my laptop, my phone. I didn't even think to take get my medication."

In January 2019, a gas leak caused an explosion that killed 4 people and injured 66 in the 9th arrondissement. In April that year, a fire broke out in the Notre-Dame Cathedral, destroying much of the roof and causing other damage before it was extinguished.

US dragging feet on Ukrainian conflict, instigating third world war — Russian envoy

Russia's Ambassador to the USA Anatoly Antonov
©Valery Sharifulin/TASS

Supplying weapons to Ukraine, the US is dragging out bloodshed and instigating a third world war, Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov said on Wednesday answering a media question.

"It is striking how easily the Americans are wasting money on Ukrainian charges," he said. "The Pentagon can afford ‘overestimating’ the cost of military supplies to Kiev and be out in calculations by several billion dollars," Antonov was quoted as saying by the embassy’s press service.

"Amid unprecedented funds being allocated to buy arms for the Kiev regime, the poorest African, Latin American, Asian countries remain unaddressed. There are places on the planet where people starve to death," the diplomat noted. "Meanwhile, the United States considers it a more relevant task to drag out bloodshed and instigate a third world war due to the West’s de facto participation in the conflict," he added.

Special operation, 20 June. Main :

▪️Since June 4, Kyiv has launched 263 attacks on Russian positions in the South Donetsk, Zaporozhye and Donetsk directions, all of them were repulsed, Shoigu said;

▪️Ukraine plans to launch strikes on Crimea with Storm Shadow missiles, Russia's response will be strikes on decision-making centers, the Russian Defense Minister said;

▪️In Kiev, their prisoners were divided into categories: first, it is necessary to return the fighters of the Azov terrorist group banned in the Russian Federation and scarce specialists, the last on the list were ordinary wounded Ukrainian soldiers, follows from the document at the disposal of RIA Novosti;

▪️The EU is preparing a package of assistance to Kyiv in the amount of about 50 billion euros, writes Bloomberg;

▪️If NATO says that it is against freezing the conflict in Ukraine, then they want to fight, Russia is ready for this, Lavrov said;

▪️Russian Su-34 bombers received protection for the SVO from electronic warfare equipment of both Ukrainian and Western production, a source told RIA Novosti;

▪️The Russian Federation is working towards making July 18 the last day of the grain deal, said Deputy Foreign Minister Vershinin.

Putin's statements at a meeting with graduates of military universities:

▪️Strengthening the army remains a priority, we will continue to improve the armed forces.

▪️The creation of the latest models of armored vehicles, strike combat systems and air defense will continue.

▪️The authorities will continue to supply attack drones to the troops, they will force them.

▪️In the near future, Sarmat with a new heavy missile will take up combat duty, about half of the units of the Strategic Missile Forces are equipped with Yars complexes.

▪️The armament of the Russian nuclear triad makes it possible to maintain a global balance of power in the world.

▪️It is important to remember that respect and officer authority are earned by one's own example and tireless work.

❗️Russian MoD briefing on the progress of the special military operation in Ukraine:

▪️Russian forces destroyed one tank, an infantry fighting vehicle, and three armored fighting vehicles close to the Vremevsky salient;

▪️In the Kupyansk direction, Russian forces destroyed up to 40 Ukrainian troops, one armored fighting vehicle, a US-made M109 Paladin self-propelled howitzer, and a Polish Krab self-propelled howitzer. The actions of three Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups were thwarted. One Ukrainian serviceman surrendered;

▪️In the Krasny Liman direction, Russian forces neutralized up to 135 Ukrainian personnel, one infantry fighting vehicle, two armored fighting vehicles, three Gvozdika self-propelled howitzers, and one D-30 howitzer. Eight Ukrainian servicemen surrendered. The actions of three Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups were thwarted;

▪️In the Donetsk direction, Ukrainian losses amounted to over 400 troops, one tank, and two armored fighting vehicles; ▪️In the South Donetsk and Zaporozhye directions, Russian forces destroyed over 200 Ukrainian troops, eight tanks, six infantry fighting vehicles, 13 armored fighting vehicles, one Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer, one Msta-B and two D-20 howitzers, and a Grad multiple rocket launcher combat vehicle. The actions of three Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance groups were thwarted;

▪️In the Kherson direction, Russian troops neutralized up to 60 Ukrainian servicemen, one Akatsiya self-propelled howitzer, two Msta-B howitzers, and one US-made M777 artillery system;

▪️Several ammunition depots were destroyed in the DPR, Kharkov, and Zaporozhye regions;

▪️Air defenses shot down seven HIMARS and Uragan projectiles, as well as 12 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles in the DPR, Zaporozhye, and Kharkov regions.

Special operation, 21 June. Main:

▪️Two drones fell in the suburbs, no damage or casualties, said the governor of the region Vorobyov;

▪️The Ministry of Defense, commenting on the incident, reported that Kyiv tried to carry out a terrorist attack using drones on objects in the Moscow region, all devices were suppressed by electronic warfare;

▪️Putin assessed the work of aviation in the special operation zone, saying that the means of destruction are good, but the pilots also work flawlessly;

▪️The creation of the latest models of armored vehicles, strike combat systems and air defense will continue, the Russian president noted;

▪️Putin said that the Ukrainian troops are suffering serious losses in personnel and equipment, now there is a lull;

▪️In the course of attempts to attack in three directions, Ukrainian troops lost about 600 servicemen, the Russian Defense Ministry said;

▪️The Russian military destroyed Ukrainian ammunition depots in the DPR, Zaporozhye and Kharkiv regions, the Ministry of Defense reported;

▪️In the Donetsk direction, ten enemy attacks were successfully repelled in various areas, the Defense Ministry said.

Lauren Boebert is trying to impeach President Joe Biden

US Representative Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.), joined by members of the House Freedom Caucus, speaks on the debt limit deal outside the US Capitol in Washington, DC, on May 30, 2023. (Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)

US Congresswoman Lauren Boebert has introduced a long-shot privileged resolution to impeach President Biden over his "dereliction of duty" and "abuse of power" in handling the migrant crisis at the border with Mexico.

House Democrats are expected to move to table the resolution, which would block the measure from coming up for a vote.

Rep. Lauren Boebert, R-Colo., introduced articles of impeachment against President Joe Biden over his handling of the southern border Tuesday evening.

Boebert, a member of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus, brought the impeachment articles to the floor as a privileged resolution to force a vote on the matter later this week. She is seeking to impeach Biden for his administration's immigration policies.

In a speech on the House floor, Boebert said Biden's handling of the southern border demonstrates that he has "acted in a manner grossly incompatible with the rule of law."

"The American people can no longer be subjected to a President who refuses to secure our borders," Boebert wrote in a tweet. "He is not fit to remain as Commander in Chief."

White House spokesperson Ian Sams dismissed Boebert's decision to bring articles of impeachment against Biden as a stunt that distracts from working for her constituents.

"Instead of working with @POTUS on the issues that matter most to Americans, like jobs and inflation and health care, extreme House Republicans are staging baseless political stunts that do nothing to help real people, just to try to get attention for themselves," Sams wrote on Twitter.

Republicans have frequently targeted the Biden administration over the southern border, but until now they have mostly focused their ire on Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas. House Republicans launched an investigation into Mayorkas' handling of the border last week.

Boebert introduced the articles of impeachment against Biden just hours after his son, Hunter Biden, struck a deal with the Justice Department to plead guilty to two misdemeanor tax charges and participate in a pretrial program to resolve a firearm offense. Many Republicans have criticized the plea deal as being too lenient.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., has also pledged to force votes on her efforts to impeach Biden. Greene is also seeking to impeach Mayorkas, FBI Director Christopher Wray, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, and U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew Graves.

Rep. Lauren Boebert stated: “Joe Biden willfully abandoned his duty as President of the United States and violated his constitutional oath to ‘take care that the laws be faithfully executed’ by failing to ensure the national security of the United States and its citizens. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris handed over billions of dollars of American-made weapons to the very scum of the earth that we spent $2 trillion fighting. The Biden regime is not being held accountable. There have been no resignations, no indictments, no investigations, no congressional oversight, no outcry from the mainstream media, and no apologies—so I’m stepping up to hold Biden and Harris accountable by filing articles of impeachment for giving aid and comfort to America’s enemies and colluding with the Taliban.

“And let me be clear, Vice President Harris is complicit in all of this. She can’t hide as the incompetent Border czar, and she can’t hide from her moral and legal duty to remove Joe Biden via the 25th Amendment due to his clear inability to ‘discharge the powers and duties of his office.’ Biden is supposed to be the commander-in-chief, but he forgot the name of the Pentagon, the Department of Defense, and the Secretary of Defense. His indecision, incompetence, and mental failings cost American lives, and Kamala had a duty to step up and remove Biden from office. She failed, and now 13 American servicemembers are dead. One way or another, Kamala needs to be impeached for her failure to step up and stop this avoidable catastrophe.”

Bocoran Ujian Praktik SIM C Akan Direvisi

membuat SIM motors (Foto: Antara)

Pada saat Upacara Wisuda STIK Tahun 2023, Kepala Kepolisian Negara Republik Indonesia (Kapolri) Jenderal Listyo Sigit Prabowo, meminta jajarannya untuk memperbaiki materi ujian praktik dalam pembuatan Surat Izin Mengemudi (SIM) untuk motor alias SIM C.

"Saya minta Kakorlantas tolong untuk lakukan perbaikan, yang namanya angka 8 itu masih sesuai atau tidak, yang melewati zig-zag itu sesuai atau tidak. Kalau sudah tidak relevan tolong diperbaiki," kata Sigit, dalam paparannya, hari Rabu, 21/06/2023.

Sigit menambahkan, jangan membuat ujian praktik SIM C terkesan hanya untuk mempersulit dan ujung-ujungnya di bawah meja alias menyogok. Pemohon SIM tidak ujian praktik, tapi malah lulus, dan menurutnya ini harus dihilangkan.

Pada ujian praktik SIM C, memang ada beberapa materi yang diujikan yang sudah diatur dalam Peraturan Kapolri Nomor 9 Tahun 2012 tentang Surat Izin Mengemudi.

Dalam Pasal 62, disebutkan materi ujian praktik untuk sepeda motor, meliputi uji pengereman/keseimbangan, uji slalom (zig zag), uji membentuk angka delapan, uji reaksi rem menghindar, dan uji berbalik arah membentuk huruf U (U-turn).

Dalam ujian praktik tersebut, pemohon SIM akan dinyatakan tidak lulus apabila kaki menyentuh dan menjatuhkan patok pada setiap materi ujian, serta kaki menginjak lapangan atau tidak melakukan pengereman pada materi ujian yang dilarang.

• Uji Pengereman dan Keseimbangan
  
  Pemohon SIM akan menjalankan sepeda motor dengan kecepatan persneling stabil 30 km/jam dengan persneling 2 berhenti pada garis Stop dengan teknik pengreman kombinasi yang lebih dominan rem tangan bersamaan dengan rem belakang (kaki) untuk mengimbangi rem depan, kaki kiri turun dan palingkan kepala ke kanan belakang konfirmasi keselamatan.
  
  Jarak dari start sampai finish adalah 9 buah patok dari ukuran panjang kendaraan uji tambah 1/2 panjang kendaraan uji (1,5 meter) sedang lebar patok yang dilintasi adalah 2 kali lebar kendaraan bermotor uji untuk lebar lintasan pengereman.









• Uji Slalom atau Zig Zag
  
  Pemohon SIM harus menjalankan sepeda motor zig-zag melintasi patok (kerucut) dengan kecepatan 10 km/jam, jarak antar patok 1,5 kali panjang kendaraan bermotor uji dan jari-jari tangan tidak menekan tangkai kopling/pengereman sebelum titik berhenti yang ditentukan.
  
  Kemudian dilanjutkan zig-zag dengan kecepatan stabil, jarak patok satu dengan yang satu 3 kali panjang kendaraan bermotor uji dan berhenti pada garis Stop, dengan teknik pengereman kombinasi rem depan lebih dominan dan rem belakang mengimbangi asumsi (70 persen / 30 [ersen), kaki kiri menapak di jalan, kepala memalingkan ke kanan belakang konfirmasi keselamatan.



• Uji Membentuk Angka Delapan
  
  Pada ujian ini, pemohon SIM akan diminta menjalankan sepeda motor di dalam lingkaran 3 kali membentuk angka 8, mengikuti petunjuk arah, tidak berhenti dan kaki tidak menginjak lapangan serta jari-jari tangan tidak menarik kopling/rem. Di atas garis angka delapan diletakkan patok, dengan jarak antar masing-masing patiok 1,5 kali panjang kendaraan bermotor uji.



• Uji Reaksi Rem Menghindar
  
  Peserta ujian diharuskan untuk melakukan konfirmasi keselamatan pada saat menjalankan sepeda motor dengan kecepatan stabil persneling 2 atau 3.
  
  Kemudian melakukan pengereman pada Garis Kuning atau patok, lepas rem pada patok atau garis hijau, lalu membelok sesuai petunjuk dari petugas, serta berhenti pada garis stop dengan teknik pengereman kombinasi untuk rem belakang mengimbangi dan untuk rem depan dominan kaki kiri turun dan palingkan kepala ke kanan belakang.



• Uji Berbalik Arah Membentuk Huruf U
  
  Sebelum melakukan balik arah, peserta ujian harus mengonfirmasi keselamatan dengan menengok ke kanan belakang. Kemudian, memutar dengan membentuk huruf U di jalan sempit yang lebarnya 2 kali panjang kendaraan bermotor uji, tanpa menginjakkan kaki ke lapangan dan pandangan tertuju ke arah yang akan dituju.

Palestinian killed as Israeli settlers attack West Bank village

Palestinian firefighters try to extinguish a fire set by Jewish settlers in the West Bank town of Turmus Ayya, Wednesday, June 21, 2023. Israeli settlers entered the town, setting fire to Palestinian cars and homes after four Israelis were killed by Palestinian gunmen in the northern West Bank on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed) The Associated Press

A Palestinian has been shot dead in a West Bank village that was attacked by settlers, a day after Hamas gunmen killed four Israelis as violence ramps up in the occupied territories.

Omar Qattin, 27, was killed as hundreds of Israeli settlers stormed the village of Turmus Ayya on Wednesday and set fire to dozens of cars and homes

Qattin was a father of two children and worked as an electrician for the local municipality.

Israeli settlers rampaged through Palestinian towns in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday (June 21), torching buildings and cars in apparent retaliation for the killing by Hamas of four Israelis near a settlement the day before, residents and officials said.

“He was just standing there, innocent. He is such a kind-hearted kid. He had no stones. He was totally unarmed. He was at least half a mile [1km] away from the military,” said Khamis Jbara, his neighbour. “He works from 6am to 6pm. He is a peaceful man.”

It was not clear whether Qattin was killed by a settler or a soldier. Witnesses told local media that a number of settlers fired live rounds at village residents as a large contingent of Israeli troops stormed in.

The Red Crescent Society told the Palestinian Wafa news agency a number of settlers prevented ambulances from reaching the town to treat the wounded

‘Government-supported terrorism’

Palestinian residents and human rights groups have long complained about Israel’s inability or refusal to halt settler attacks. In Wednesday’s rampage, residents in Turmus Ayya said about 400 settlers marched down its main road, setting cars, homes and trees ablaze

Mayor Lafi Adeeb told Wafa that 12 residents were wounded by live fire and more than 60 vehicles and 30 homes were set on fire.

“The attacks intensified in the past hour even after the army came,” he said.

Settlers also set fire to vast areas of farmland, Adeeb added

He called on the international community to provide protection for Palestinians, noting that Turmus Ayya is surrounded by a number of illegal settlements and is exposed on a daily basis to settler attacks.

Under international law, Israeli settlements are illegal. However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced plans to build 1,000 new housing units in the settlement of Eli in response to the deadly shooting neaby of four Israelis by two Palestinian gunmen on Tuesday. The suspected assailants were later killed.

"Our answer to terror is to strike it hard and to build our country,” Netanyahu said, whose far-right government is dominated by settler leaders and supporters.

His statement came days after the government gave far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich sweeping powers to expedite the construction of illegal settlements, bypassing measures in place for 27 years.

‘Clearing the way’

Tuesday’s violence followed a bloody incursion a day earlier by Israeli forces at the Jenin refugee camp, where seven Palestinians were killed and at least 90 were wounded in scenes not seen since the second Intifada uprising more than 20 years ago.

In Jenin on Wednesday, girls in school uniforms carried the body of their classmate who was killed in the Israeli army raid. Sadil Naghnaghiya, 15, died from gunshot wounds suffered during the hours-long attack, the Palestinian health ministry said.

Palestinian residents of Turmus Ayya, known for its large number of US citizens, were seething and in shock after the settler violence.

Streets were littered with uprooted trees, charred yard furniture and skeletons of burned-out vehicles. At least one house was completely engulfed in flames, the living room blackened, and furniture reduced to ashes.

“It was terrifying. We just saw mobs of people in the streets, masked, armed,” said Mohammed Suleiman, a 56-year-old Palestinian American who lives in Chicago and was visiting his hometown.

He said his brother, who is currently in Chicago, owns one of the burned homes.

Suleiman blamed the Israeli military for failing to de-escalate the situation, saying soldiers turned their weapons on Palestinian residents instead of rioters marching into the town with guns and petrol bombs, throwing fuel and setting alight everything in their path.

“(The army) was literally clearing the way for them,” Suleiman said.

Abdulkarim Abdulkarim, 44, a resident of Ohio, said his family’s four cars were destroyed and their house damaged. “We feel totally unsafe,” he said, visibly shaken. “They call us terrorists, but here you have terrorism supported by the government.”

‘Heinous crime’

The settler attacks brought back memories of a rampage in February in which dozens of cars and homes were torched in the town of Huwara after the killing of two Israeli brothers by a Palestinian gunman.

Palestinian organizations condemned the violence in Turmus Ayya.

“The attack by flocks of heavily armed terrorist settlers on our Palestinian villages and towns and terrorising the unarmed citizens constitutes a dangerous escalation and a heinous crime that is carried out with incitement and support of the fascist occupation government, which bears full responsibility for its repercussions,” Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, said in a statement.

For its part, the Fatah party, which leads the Palestinian Authority, called on Palestinians “to confront the systematic settler attacks that are carried out with the complicity of the occupation army”, stressing that the violence demonstrates the escalatory aims of the Israeli government, which is made up of “hardened settlers and extremists”.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad spokesman Jihad Selmi said illegal settlements are a “legitimate target for the resistance” and described the Israeli attacks as “escalating terrorism”.

The Israeli military had no immediate comment.

WWF declared ‘undesirable’ in Russia

In this photo illustration a World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) logo seen displayed on a smartphone.
©Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Russia’s Prosecutor-General on Wednesday declared the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), also known as the World Wildlife Fund, “undesirable.” Moscow accused the Switzerland-based nonprofit of working on behalf of the US against Russia’s economic and security interests, especially in the Arctic.

The Prosecutor-General’s Office said that the WWF used environmental and educational activities “as a cover for implementing projects that pose security threats in the economic sphere.”

Specifically, “under the pretext of preserving the environment, the WWF is carrying out activities aimed at preventing the implementation of (Russia’s) policies for the industrial development and exploration of natural resources in the Arctic territories, while developing and legitimizing restrictions that could serve as a basis for transferring the Northern Sea Route into the exclusive economic zone of the US.”

The NGO is especially targeting large enterprises engaged in the energy sector, the oil and gas industry, and also the mining of mineral deposits and precious metals, according to Russian officials. The Prosecutor-General’s Office in particular objected to the WWF’s use of the ESG (Environmental/Social/Governance) scores to rate Russian companies, which are based solely on the “subjective standards and criteria developed by the WWF.”

The WWF has provided material and other support for several Russian NGOs that have been included in the registry of foreign agents, such as ‘Friends of the Baltic’ and the ‘Sakhalin Environmental Watch’. The Russian Ministry of Justice declared the WWF itself a foreign agent in March this year.

Being declared undesirable is an effective ban on the organization. It must shut down its offices in Russia, and doing business with it is punishable with a fine or jail in case of repeat offenders. The first organization to be designated so was the US Congress-funded National Endowment for Democracy (NED), in 2015.

Another environmentalist NGO, Greenpeace, was declared unwelcome last month after allegations it had sought destabilization and change of government in Russia “through unconstitutional means.”

The global organization, which promotes wildlife preservation and works to reduce human impact on the environment, encourages activities that are “a cover for the implementation of projects that pose security threats in the economic sphere,” the Russian prosecutor-general's office said, according to Russian news reports

“Under the pretext of preserving the environment, WWF is carrying out activities aimed at preventing the implementation of the country’s political course for the industrial development of the Arctic, natural resources in the Arctic territories,” it said.

Last month, the environmental pressure group Greenpeace was forced to close its Russian division after Moscow declared it to be an undesirable organization.

In recent years, Russia has methodically targeted people and organizations critical of the Kremlin, branding many as “foreign agents”, declaring some as “undesirable” and prosecuting those found to have discredited the military's war in Ukraine.

Now the work of environmentalists in Russia has finally been made impossible. Accounts are blocked, buying or renting real estate is prohibited. All offices must be closed. No more members may be recruited, no information material distributed and certainly no protest actions may be carried out. In May, prosecutors banned Greenpeace’s work in Russia. WWF has worked in Russia to protect and preserve the habitats of endangered animal species. These include Amur tigers, polar bears, snow leopards and many other species. According to WWF Russia, the main goal is to preserve biodiversity on earth.

The Global Echo website makes an opinion claim that :

WWF has been working in Russia to protect and preserve the habitat of endangered animal species. These include the Amur tiger, polar bear, snow leopard and many other species. According to WWF Russia, the main goal is to preserve the biodiversity of the earth.

According to its own information, the decades-long work of the WWF in Russia was supported by 1.5 million people. In the past, Russian President Putin liked to pose as an animal rights activist. When planning the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, there was even a short phase of cooperation: the WWF was supposed to act in an advisory capacity, but quickly withdrew because all suggestions had been ignored, it was said.

Of course, Vladimir Putin did this, because he thought that WWF's goal was purely for preservation, before WWF's guise was uncovered.