The head of Russia’s Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov has blasted Muslim leaders over their failure to address numerous Quran-burning incidents in the West, vowing to do his best to “deal with” the culprits after the end of the Ukraine conflict.
In a statement on Telegram, Kadyrov said that the continued desecration of Islam’s holy book in Europe poses an “unprecedented challenge” to the Muslim world, and that the stunts “predictably bring the situation to the point of no return.”
“Where are the leaders of Muslim states at this time? Why are they allowing our Holy Scriptures to be openly violated and not taking any significant steps to protect Muslims and the Islamic religion? Do they really fear backlash and American and European sanctions more than the wrath of Allah Almighty?” he asked.
At present, Russia stands alone against Western “aggressive atheist colonial policy” while fighting “for our sacred and sacrosanct values” in Ukraine, the Chechen leader argued.
“I’m 100% certain of victory. When we finish with Ukraine, we will go to those countries that have desecrated the Quran,” Kadyrov noted, adding that there were many Muslims in Russia who would not ignore the incidents.
He recalled that some 10,000 Chechen fighters are now in action in Ukraine, with another 15,000 ready to step into the fray. “There are another thirty, forty, fifty thousand volunteers. We have weapons, heavy equipment… We will show [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky what happens when he sells his nation. And we’ll show the ramifications to those who support all this,” he stated.
Kadyrov went on to say that if “Satan’s servants” are not stopped, “tomorrow they will be in our mosques.” “They will indoctrinate our children that prayer is not fashionable and turn our peoples into a faceless mass of consumers for whom the dollar will become their god,” he said.
In recent weeks, Denmark and Sweden have seen a string of public protests in which anti-Muslim activists desecrated the Quran, prompting outrage among Islamic believers across the globe. While the two Nordic countries deplored the incidents, they said that they could not prevent them, citing freedom of expression. However, faced with pushback and heightened security risks, both Copenhagen and Stockholm have signaled a readiness to address the issue.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has condemned the Quran burnings as a “crime” and an attempt to incite sectarian division.
The Kiev government is hushing up its military failures in the Kupyansk area, Russian First Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Dmitry Polyansky has told a Ukraine-themed meeting of the UN Security Council.
"The Russian military have made significant advances in the Kharkov region and are preparing to liberate Kupyansk," Polyansky said on Thursday.
"While keeping the population silent about this disadvantageous dynamic, the Kiev regime has nevertheless announced forced evacuation of 37 settlements, including Kupyansk itself. This is not surprising: a significant part of the local population feels sympathy for Russia and would prefer to wait for the arrival of Russian troops."
At the same time, the Ukrainian counter-offensive has failed, the Russian diplomat continued.
"For three months now, we have been watching the agony of the Kiev regime in the context of Ukraine's so-called strategic counter-offensive, which, according to Western propagandists, was supposed to bring a military victory," he said. "The entire NATO military machinery was thrown in for this purpose, spending billions of Western taxpayers’ money. But as the famous saying goes, it was just ‘a mountain in labor.’"
He added that even military equipment supplied by the West was unhelpful in this regard.
"The only result of the Ukrainian counter-offensive that even the West had to recognize, was tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers who were killed and hundreds of items of costly Western equipment that were destroyed," he said. "The world saw clearly that this equipment was not 'unique and inviolable' for Russian weapons. What’s more, in many cases it cannot compete even with Soviet equipment manufactured 50 years ago.".
Russian defense ministry reports attempted Ukrainian drone attack on Moscow, no casualties
A Ukrainian drone attempted to attack targets in Moscow and the surrounding Moscow Region on Friday, but was shot down by the Russian air defenses and fell near the Russian capital’s Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment, causing no casualties or fire, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
"At around 4:00 a.m. Moscow time, the Kiev Regime attempted to carry out another terror attack with the use of an unmanned aerial vehicle, which targeted facilities in Moscow and the Moscow Region," the ministry said.
"After being hit by the air defenses, the drone changed its flight path and fell on a non-residential building near Moscow’s Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment," it said. "(The incident caused) no damage or fire."
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin reported earlier on Friday that a drone had been shot down while flying towards the Russian capital. Its fragments fell on the premises of the Expocenter exhibition complex in downtown Moscow, causing no significant damage to the building. Emergencies services told TASS that a section of the building’s outer wall had collapsed at an area of around 30 square
Russian forces delivered a missile strike, destroying a Ukrainian military train with ammunition in the Dnepropetrovsk Region over the past day in the special military operation in Ukraine, Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant-General Igor Konashenkov reported on Thursday.
"A missile strike at the unloading area destroyed a military train with ammunition at the Mezhevaya station in the Dnepropetrovsk Region," the spokesman said.
Russian forces destroy 125 Ukrainian troops in Kupyansk area over past day
Russian forces improved their forward edge position in the Kupyansk area, eliminating roughly 125 enemy troops over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the Kupyansk direction, units of the western battlegroup improved their forward edge position in active operations supported by aircraft and artillery fire. As many as 125 Ukrainian personnel, two armored combat vehicles, two pickup trucks, a Tyulpan self-propelled mortar, a US-manufactured M777 artillery system and a US-made M109 Paladin artillery gun were destroyed in the past 24 hours," the spokesman said.
During the last 24-hour period, Russian forces repulsed six attacks by assault groups of the Ukrainian army’s 14th mechanized, 25th airborne and 95th air assault brigades in areas near the settlements of Olshana and Sinkovka in the Kharkov Region and Novosyolovskoye in the Lugansk People’s Republic, the general reported.
Russian forces eliminate 55 Ukrainian troops in Krasny Liman area over past day
Russian forces struck Ukrainian army units in the Krasny Liman area, eliminating about 55 enemy troops over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"As many as 55 Ukrainian personnel, two armored combat vehicles, three motor vehicles, an Akatsiya motorized artillery system and two D-30 howitzers were destroyed," the spokesman said.
Russian forces also repulsed a Ukrainian army attack in that direction over the past 24 hours, the general reported.
Russian forces advance in Donetsk area over past day
Russian assault teams conducted successful offensive operations in the Donetsk area and improved their forward edge position over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"Assault teams of the Russian battlegroup conducted successful offensive operations [in the Donetsk direction] and improved their forward edge position," the spokesman said.
Russian forces repel four Ukrainian attacks in Donetsk area over past day
Russian forces repelled four Ukrainian army attacks in the Donetsk area, eliminating about 310 enemy troops over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the Donetsk direction, units of the battlegroup South in close interaction with aircraft and artillery repelled four Ukrainian army attacks in areas near the settlements of Zaliznyanskoye, Staromikhailovka and Krasnogorovka in the Donetsk People’s Republic. The enemy’s losses in that direction over the past 24 hours amounted to 310 Ukrainian personnel, a tank, three armored combat vehicles, nine motor vehicles and a D-20 howitzer," the spokesman said.
Russian forces destroy over 175 Ukrainian troops in south Donetsk area over past day
Russian forces destroyed over 175 Ukrainian troops in the south Donetsk area over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"The enemy’s losses amounted to over 175 Ukrainian personnel, two tanks, three armored combat vehicles, two motor vehicles, a D-20 howitzer and two Gvozdika motorized artillery systems," the spokesman said.
In the south Donetsk direction, units of Russia’s battlegroup East, aircraft and artillery inflicted damage by combined firepower on Ukrainian troops near the settlements of Priyutnoye in the Zaporozhye Region, Staromayorskoye and Rovnopol in the Donetsk People’s Republic, the general specified.
Russian forces destroy 195 Ukrainian troops in Zaporozhye area over past day
Russian forces struck Ukrainian army units in the Zaporozhye area, eliminating roughly 195 enemy troops over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the Zaporozhye direction, the enemy’s losses amounted to 195 Ukrainian personnel, four Stryker armored personnel carriers, two infantry fighting vehicles, three motor vehicles, a US-made M777 artillery system, a UK-manufactured FH70 gun, two Msta-B howitzers and a D-20 (howitzer)," the spokesman said
Units of the Russian battlegroup supported by aircraft, artillery and heavy flamethrowers repelled an enemy attack and inflicted damage by combined firepower on assault groups of the Ukrainian army’s 46th air mobile brigade near the settlement of Rabotino in the Zaporozhye Region, the general reported.
Russian forces destroy 30 Ukrainian troops in Kherson area over past day
Russian forces destroyed roughly 30 Ukrainian troops in the Kherson area over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"In the Kherson direction, Ukrainian troops lost as many as 30 personnel, three motor vehicles and a D-30 howitzer," the spokesman said.
Russian air defenses down 18 Ukrainian military drones over past day
Russian air defense forces intercepted a rocket of the US-made HIMARS multiple launch rocket system and shot down 18 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"Air defense capabilities intercepted a rocket of the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system. In addition, they destroyed 18 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles in areas near the settlements of Zhitlovka in the Lugansk People’s Republic, Soledar, Nikolayevka, Zarya and Orlinskoye in the Donetsk People’s Republic, Mirnoye in the Zaporozhye Region and Olshana in the Kharkov Region," the spokesman said.
Russian forces wipe out two Ukrainian UAV control posts, ammo depot in DPR
Russian forces destroyed two Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) control posts and an ammunition depot in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) over the past day, Konashenkov reported.
"Near the settlements of Lastochkino in the Donetsk People’s Republic and Ivanovskoye in the Zaporozhye Region, two control posts of Ukrainian army unmanned aerial vehicles were destroyed. Near the settlement of Serebryanka in the Donetsk People’s Republic, a command/observation post of a unit from the Ukrainian army’s 67th mechanized brigade and an ammunition depot were eliminated," the spokesman said.
During the last 24-hour period, operational/tactical and army aircraft, missile troops and artillery of the Russian groupings of forces struck Ukrainian manpower and military hardware in 138 areas, the general reported.
In all, the Russian Armed Forces have destroyed 459 Ukrainian warplanes, 246 combat helicopters, 5,805 unmanned aerial vehicles, 431 surface-to-air missile systems, 11,349 tanks and other armored combat vehicles, 1,144 multiple rocket launchers, 5,918 field artillery guns and mortars and 12,289 special military motor vehicles since the start of the special military operation in Ukraine, Konashenkov reported.
Nirmala Azis, Ketua RT 04 Kelurahan Bukit Biru, Kecamatan Tenggarong, Kabupaten Kutai Kartanegara, Kalimantan Timur, memanjat tiang bendera untuk memperbaiki tali yang terputus saat Upacara HUT ke-78 RI di Kelurahan Bukit Biru, Kamis (17/8/2023). (Instagram @Eka Mardyana)
Nirmala Azis, Ketua RT 04 Kelurahan Bukit Biru, Kecamatan Tenggarong, Kabupaten Kutai Kartanegara, Kalimantan Timur langsung sigap memanjat tiang bendera saat melihat tali pengibaran terputus dalam upacara Hari Ulang Tahun (HUT) ke-78 RI di kelurahan setempat.
"Insiden tali bendera terputus sempat menghambat prosesi upacara Peringatan HUT ke-78 Republik Indonesia di kelurahan kami," ujar Lurah Bukit Biru, Miseri di Kabupaten Kutai Kartanegara, Kamis.
Miseri menjelaskan tali tiang bendera Merah-Putih terputus saat angin kencang menggoyang tiang. Saat Pasukan Pengibar Bendera hendak menaikkan bendera Merah-Putih, tali yang menarik bendera putus pada posisi di puncak tiang.
Mengetahui tali bendera putus, Azis yang juga menjadi salah satu peserta upacara langsung memanjat tiang bendera dan mengambil tali yang terputus.
“Ya itu. Saya juga khawatir takut apa-apa karena ukuran tiangnya agak kecil. Tapi ada yang bantu juga dari bawah,” kata Miseri.
Aksi Nirmala Azis, sebagaiman terdapat pada video yang viral di media sosial, disambut meriah oleh peserta upacara. Miseri pun memberikan ucapan terima kasih kepada Azis.
Miseri mengatakan pelaksanaan Upacara HUT ke-78 RI di Kelurahan Bukit Biru sempat terhenti sebentar saat Azis memperbaiki tali. Upacara kembali berlanjut hingga selesai setelah perbaikan itu.
“Insiden kayak gitu tidak terduga. Tapi ya Alhamdulillah bisa selesai dengan lancar,” katanya.
Aksi Azis yang langsung naik tiang dan memperbaiki tali bendera, lanjut Miseri, menunjukkan semangat patriotisme dan kebersamaan dari warga setempat.
“Kami sangat berterima kasih kepada Pak RT yang langsung naik ke tiang bendera. Itu adalah contoh nyata dari rasa cinta Tanah Air dan gotong royong yang masih hidup di masyarakat kita,” ujar Misteri.
Selain upacara bendera, Kelurahan Bukit Biru Kecamatan Tenggarong, Kutai Kartanegara juga menggelar sejumlah perlombaan untuk memeriahkan momentum Peringatan 17 Agustus.
Beberapa lomba yang digelar antara lain lomba makan kerupuk, lomba balap karung, dan lomba tarik tambang.
“Kami ingin menyemarakkan suasana kemerdekaan dengan menggelar lomba-lomba yang sudah menjadi tradisi kita,” kata Miseri.
Ukraine has lost up to 310 soldiers in the Donetsk region over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Thursday.
The assault detachments of Russian troops carried out successful offensive operations and improved their position along the front line in the Donetsk direction. In total, they repelled four attacked by Ukraine in the Donetsk direction, one in the Krasny Liman region, six in the Kupyansk direction and one in the Zaporozhye direction.
"Enemy losses in this [Donetsk] direction per day amounted to 310 Ukrainian military, a tank, three armored combat vehicles, nine vehicles, and a D-20 howitzer," the ministry said in a statement.
Kiev also lost up to 125 military in the Kupyansk direction and up to 195 military in the Zaporozhye direction, the ministry said.
"In the South Donetsk direction, the professional actions of the units of the Vostok group of troops, air strikes and artillery fire inflicted a complex fire defeat on the enemy in the areas of... the Donetsk People's Republic [DPR]. Enemy losses amounted to more than 175 Ukrainian military, two tanks, three armored combat vehicles, two vehicles, a D-20 howitzer, and two Gvozdika self-propelled artillery mounts," the statement read.
Additionally, Russian troops have hit two command posts of unmanned aerial vehicles of the Ukrainian armed forces — one in the DPR and one in the Zaporozhye region, the ministry said.
Russian Air Defenses Down Ukrainian Strike Drone Over Belgorod Region - MoD
Russian air defense systems have snuffed out a Ukrainian strike drone over the Belgorod Region at about 9 a.m. Moscow time (06:00 GMT) on Thursday, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
"Today, at about 9:00 Moscow time, an attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out a terrorist attack by an aircraft-type unmanned aerial vehicle on objects in Russia was thwarted. By means of air defense, a Ukrainian strike UAV was detected and destroyed over the territory of the Belgorod region," the ministry said in a statement, adding that there were no casualties or damage.
According to the Defense Ministry, there were no casualties or damage as a result of the foiled attack.
Ukraine launched its much-touted counteroffensive in early June after multiple postponements. Citing the counteroffensive's needs, Kiev pushed its Western donors to step up the military and financial aid.
Ukraine scrambling to avoid Russian strikes on airbases – FT
Russia has ramped up attacks on airbases used by Kiev to launch long-range missile attacks, forcing Ukrainian personnel and aircraft to constantly be on the move to avoid being struck, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing sources.
Ukrainian officials told the paper that Kiev and its backers believe that Moscow’s recent attacks on airbases and pilot training facilities in western Ukraine are aimed at decimating its fleet of bombers used to fire British Storm Shadow and French Scalp missiles.
Ukraine is “racing to move around crucial weaponry and its skilled personnel” across dozens of airbases and commercial airports, the report said.
Ukraine’s Air Force Command spokesman, Yury Ignat, acknowledged the issue, claiming to the FT that Moscow was trying to undermine the country’s air power because “our pilots are bothering them… (and) causing a lot of trouble.”
Meanwhile, Yury Sak, an adviser to Ukraine’s defense minister, called on the West to provide Kiev with more air defense systems as well as to speed up pilot training and deliveries of F-16 fighter jets. Ukrainian officials have been asking for US-made advanced jets for months, but do not expect them to arrive until 2024.
In May, the UK supplied Ukraine with Storm Shadow missiles with a range of about 250km. France followed suit by sending Scalp missiles capable of reaching targets at the same distance. After receiving the deliveries, Kiev used Storm Shadow missiles to attack civilian facilities and infrastructure in the Russian city of Lugansk and on the Crimean Peninsula.
Reports of intensified attacks on Ukrainian facilities storing long-range assets come after the Russian Defense Ministry said last week that it had conducted high-precision strikes on a military airbase in Ivano-Frankovsk Region in the western part of Ukraine, successfully hitting all the designated targets.
Moscow has repeatedly warned the West against supplying Ukraine with weapons, arguing that this will only prolong the conflict. Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov has cautioned that the Russian military would take adequate countermeasures.
Despite being flooded with cash donations and delivery of military equipment from NATO and its allies, Ukraine's counteroffensive, launched in early June after a much-hyped campaign, has been treading water. Russia’s ZALA Lancet drones have emerged as one of the biggest threats to forces of the Kiev regime.
Russia’s unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are a constant headache for Ukraine’s military amid Kiev's failing counteroffensive.
“The military informed me about problems created by Russian unmanned aerial vehicles, including Lancet strike drone and Orlan surveillance drone. This threat must not be ignored. I took note of this information," the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Andriy Yermak, wrote on Telegram.
He added that Ukraine’s servicemen had complained to President Volodymyr Zelensky about the UAVs during a meeting on Tuesday.
Lancet drones are used against armored vehicles, air defense systems, and radar stations, while the Orlan UAV detects Ukrainian positions and adjusts fire, Yermak clarified.
Ukrainian experts have been researching these UAVs, the Zelensky aide said, sharing intel about their electronic components with Western donors to NATO's ongoing proxy war against Russia. Ukraine has already imposed sanctions against Alexander Zakharov, the owner and designer of ZALA Aero Group (a Kalashnikov Concern subsidiary based in Izhevsk) that manufactures the UAVs, the head of Zelensky's office said. He added that Kiev would seek Western sanctions against Zakharov.
Over the months, the Lancet loitering munition/kamikaze attack drone has wreaked havoc on Ukrainian forces attempting to mount their much-heralded, but spectacularly failing, counteroffensive.
The Lancet dual X-wing drones boast a flight range of between 40 and 70 kilometers, an endurance time of about one hour, and a weapons payload of between three and five kilograms. The Lancet-1 and Lancet-3 loitering munition/kamikaze drones are capable of conducting reconnaissance, and then hovering in the air, waiting for the moment to strike a detected target, according to the Rostec website.
The drones, easily distinguishable by their X-pattern wings, can target troops, light and heavy armor, fortified positions, and even heavy attack UAVs. They come in several configurations, but all feature a camera-guidance head/nose section with optical-electronic and TV guidance systems. The UAVs are powered by low-noise electric motors.
Back in July, Ukraine's Defense Ministry grudgingly called the Russian' Lancet' drones a "good piece of equipment" that poses a danger to their military units. Military experts also noted that it is much more expensive to shoot down a drone than to produce it. For comparison’s sake, the Lancet, according to The Economist, costs less than $50,000 to manufacture, while weapons funneled to Ukraine from the West, like the US-made M777 howitzer, costs close to $4 million.
The Lancet flies at a low altitude and slow speed, which makes it difficult for radar systems of conventional air defense systems to detect. Ukraine would need to get additional anti-aircraft self-propelled guns like the German Gepard from its Western patrons if it wants a chance at destroying the Russian drones, Yuriy Sak, adviser to Ukraine's defense minister, told Western media.
However, while Ukraine's military tries (and fails) to dodge the indefatigable Lancet and Orlan UAVs, Russian drone manufacturers are already unveiling a number of new creations to serve as the next step in the evolution of the Lancet.
Four Ukrainian Saboteurs Killed as Trying to Cross Into Russia's Bryansk Region - FSB
The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Wednesday that it had prevented an attempt by a Ukrainian sabotage group to cross into the Bryansk Region, adding that four saboteurs were killed during the operation.
"Russia's FSB and ... forces of the Russian Defense Ministry in the border Starodubsky district of the Bryansk region prevented an attempt to penetrate the territory of Russia by a Ukrainian sabotage and reconnaissance group. Four saboteurs were destroyed," the FSB said in a statement.
These saboteurs could be preparing provocations, the statement said, adding that they had FPV drones with stickers saying "Property of the FSB of Russia" with symbols of Russia.
These saboteurs could be preparing provocations, the statement said, adding that they had FPV drones with stickers saying "Property of the FSB of Russia" with symbols of Russia.
The Russian Armed Forces skillfully use unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), completing assigned tasks without losses in military personnel. High-precision strikes leave Ukrainian troops no chance of continuing their so-called “counteroffensive.” While drone operators are far away, UAVs stream a first-person view (FPV) of the environment.
Russia's Defense Ministry has published a clip showing two FPV drones wreaking havoc on Ukrainian servicemen and a tank.
Amid the much-touted failing counteroffensive of the Kiev regime, Ukrainian troops are suffering heavy losses and are unable to retake the initiative. NATO-supplied military equipment is of little help to Ukrainian forces, who are struggling to attack and unwilling to sacrifice themselves for the corrupt Kiev regime.
