Israeli troops inspect the ravaged site of the attack on the Supernova desert music festival on October 10, 2023 [Jack Guez/ AFP]
Hamas fighters who attacked a music festival in Israel on October 7, killing hundreds, likely did not know in advance about the event and decided to target it on the spot, Israeli media has reported citing police and security sources.
According to a copy of the first Israeli police report into the attack, obtained this week by Israel’s Channel 12, Palestinian fighters had originally intended to attack nearby kibbutz Re’im as well as other villages near the Gaza border. They found out about the music festival with drones and from the air as they parachuted into Israel.
Some 4,400 people had reportedly been at the event that Saturday when Hamas broke through Israel’s high-security barrier – which includes radar system and underground sensors – and attacked military posts and villages in southern Israel, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli authorities.
This Saturday, Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that the “growing assessment in Israel’s security establishment” based on the police investigation and on interrogations of captured Hamas members, is that the group had not planned to target the event.
While police found maps of the target locations on the bodies of killed Hamas members, none was of the festival location. An additional finding supporting the assessment, according to Haaretz, was that Hamas militants did not approach the festival from the direction of the border but from a nearby highway.
In addition, the event had originally been scheduled to take place on Thursday and Friday, with Saturday added to the programme only on Tuesday that week.
The report also found that most of the festival goers had managed to leave the event by the time Hamas showed up and the massacre began
"The large majority of (people who were at the event) managed to flee following the decision to disperse the event made four minutes after the rocket attack,” according to a senior police source quoted by Haaretz.
The police investigation also found that an Israeli military helicopter opened fire on the assailants but also hit some people attending the festival. No further details were provided, Haaretz reported.
“An investigation into the incident revealed an [Israeli military] combat helicopter that arrived at the scene from the Ramat David base fired at the terrorists and apparently also hit some of the revelers there,” the news report cited an unnamed police official as saying.
The police report also revised the death toll from the attack to 364, including 17 police officers, up from 270. It put the number of kidnapped festival-goers at 40.
In response to the Hamas attacks, Israel launched a ground and air assault on the Gaza Strip that has killed more than 12,000 Palestinians, including 5,000 children, according to Palestinian health authorities. Much of the Gaza Strip lies in ruins and a total blockade that Israel has imposed on the territory has left its residents unable to get enough food, water, fuel and medical supplies, all now at critically low levels
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has said that US President Joe Biden’s latest opinion piece for the Washington Post once again highlighted the essence of Washington’s security doctrine, which is to provide for America’s interests at the expense of others.
The US supposedly makes itself safer by pouring money into “its own military industry” and starting “wars on other continents,” Medvedev said Sunday in a post on X (formerly Twitter), calling it “the essence of the American security doctrine.”
“That's why our commitment to Ukraine today is an investment in our own security,” Biden said in his piece published on Saturday. Medvedev, who now serves as deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, responded to this by saying that the US essentially considers “money” and “blood” together as a “good investment.” “How very American. No comment,” he added.
“Others, surely, don’t matter,” the former Russian leader said, commenting on the article in which Biden once again reaffirmed US support to Ukraine and Israel. The US leader also argued in the piece that Russia and the Gaza-based Hamas militants should not be allowed to have their way.
“Out of great tragedy and upheaval, enormous progress can come,” Biden wrote. He claimed that the US is “the essential nation” with a “duty of leadership.”
On the topic of Ukraine, the US president also admitted that the conflict “draws America in directly.” Washington has openly supported Kiev since armed hostilities with Moscow began in February 2022. The US has provided Ukraine with military equipment worth billions of dollars together with its allies in Europe and elsewhere.
Moscow has repeatedly argued that sending arms to Kiev would only prolong the military operation and extend human suffering. Russia also repeatedly accused the US and its allies of planning to make Kiev fight “to the last Ukrainian.”
Ample Western military supplies, including heavy armor, such as tanks and infantry fighting vehicles, have so far not helped Ukraine to achieve any significant success in its closely-watched summer offensive, which has failed to bring about any meaningful changes to the frontlines over several months since the start of the operation in early June. Ukrainian forces have suffered heavy losses in both personnel and material, including the Western-supplied equipment, during the assault, however.
In early November, the Pentagon warned it potentially had only $1 billion remaining for Ukraine military aid and would have to ration arms packages in the future.
President Vladimir Putin will take part in a virtual G20 summit on Wednesday that has been organized by India, Russian state media channel Rossiya-1 reported on Sunday.
The Russian leader had skipped the 'Group of 20' summit in New Delhi in September, as did Chinese President Xi Jinping.
“Next week, a virtual G20 summit will be held and Vladimir Putin is expected to attend,” the national broadcaster reported, adding that the event may be “the first occasion in a long time” that the Russian president and Western leaders would co-participate.
Putin was not invited to the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit held earlier this week in San Francisco. According to Marat Berdyev, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s ambassador-at-large and a senior official at APEC, the US said that, as host of the event, “it was not going to invite a number of leaders due to the fact that they are subject to sanctions restrictions.”
In October, Putin attended a Belt and Road forum in China, where he personally met with a European leader, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, for the first time since Russia’s simmering disputes with Ukraine turned to fighting in February 2022. Following this, ambassadors to Hungary from NATO member states held an unscheduled “emergency meeting” in Budapest.
Putin did not attend the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) economic summit in South Africa in August, despite being invited, due to an arrest warrant having been issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
In March, the ICC issued an ‘arrest warrant’ for the president, stating that he was “allegedly responsible for war crime” and formally accusing him of abducting Ukrainian children. Moscow has dismissed the allegations as false and called the ICC politically compromised. Russia’s Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case against the ICC’s chief prosecutor and the judges who ruled against Putin.
The ICC decision became the first time an international court issued an arrest warrant for the leader of one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.
Kecelakaan maut kereta tabrak minibus elf di Lumajang Jawa Timur.
Sumber :tvOne
Peristiwa maut kereta api menyambar sebuh mobil tersebut terjadi sekitar pukul 19.38 WIB. Kereta menabrak di pintu kereta api yang tidak terjaga, lebih tepatnya km 138 Petak Jalan Randuagung.
Minibus Elf tersambar Kereta Api Probowangi di Lumajang, Jawa Timur, pada hari Minggu, 19/11/2023.
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Berdasarkan informasi yang kami terima jumlah korban mencapai 15 orang, dengan menewaskan 11 orang dan sisanya luka-luka.
Tampak, kursi mobil ringsek, kaca pecah, dan ban serep terlepas dari mobil. Tampak juga beberapa korban tergeletak di samping rel.
6 orang korban kecelakaan yang meninggal dunia di tempat langsung dievakuasi dari tempat kejadian perkara.
3 orang tampak dibawa menggunakan mobil patroli polisi. Sedangkan, 3 lainnya dibawa menggunakan 3 mobil ambulans.
Suyid, salah seorang warga sekitar mengatakan, elf melaju dari arah selatan dengan kecepatan tinggi.
Saat melintasi rel kereta, mobil langsung ditabrak kereta Probowongi yang tengah melaju dari arah timur.
"Mobilnya kencang, keretanya kencang juga, langsung ditabrak," kata Suyid.
Kapolres Lumajang AKBP Boy Jeckson Situmorang mengatakan, jumlah korban meninggal dunia sebanyak 11 orang.
"11 orang meninggal dunia, 4 luka berat sedang di Puskesmas," jelasnya.
Sampai berita ini ditulis, polisi tengah melakukan olah TKP untuk menemukan korban lainnya.
On November 19, the Russian Armed Forces celebrate the Day of Missile Troops and Artillery. How are these weapons used in the Russian special military operation zone? Sputnik explores.
It’s safe to say that Russian artillery and missile forces currently play an extremely important role in the Ukraine conflict, Alexei Podberyozkin, a military expert and director of the MGIMO University Center of Military and Political Studies, told Sputnik.
“For the Russian Armed Forces, this is the most significant military branch that is being used in the special military operation in Ukraine,” he pointed out.
When asked about the missions this branch of the army implements in the special operation zone, Podberyozkin mentioned: “High-precision weapons that destroy fortified areas” of the Ukrainian troops.
These include enemy infantry hiding in trenches and dugouts, which are wiped out by Russian artillery and missile systems, according to the expert.
He was echoed by Earl Rasmussen, a retired US Army Lieutenant Colonel and International Consultant, who told Sputnik that he thinks “The Russian artillery and missile capabilities have been exceptional."
Reports by Russia’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) indicate that in the course of the special operation, Russian forces use various types of artillery and missile equipment with the Ground Forces.
These include self-propelled and towed howitzers and mortars, multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS) of all calibers, as well as operational-tactical missile systems (OTMS) fitted with ballistic and cruise missiles.
Cannon Artillery
Also known as non-rocket artillery, it includes the 152 mm howitzers Msta-B, Giatsint (Hyacinth)-B and D-20, as well as the 122 mm howitzer D-30 and the 100 mm anti-tank gun Rapira (Small Sword).
In addition, Russian forces use the self-propelled artillery systems Gyatsint-S, Akatsia (Acacia) and Msta-S of 152 mm caliber, as well as the 122 mm Gvozdika (Pink) and the 120 mm 2S9 Nona systems.
Also in place in the special operation zone are the self-propelled 203 mm 2S7 Pion (Peony) cannons and its modernized version 2S7M Malka, plus the world's only 240 mm self-propelled mortars 2S4 Tulpan (Tulip), which is equipped with 130 kg projectiles and has a range of 18 km (11 miles).
Podberyozkin touted the Tulpan as a mortar with “fantastic accuracy," saying: “When I used to fire it, I managed to place one funnel next to another.”
MLRS Systems
The multiple launch rocket systems include the 122 mm Grad (Hail) MLRS and its highly upgraded version, the Tornado-G, which has an increased range of 40 km (24 miles). The system also features automated aiming and navigation equipment.
Podberyozkin told Sputnik that Russian troops stationed in the special operation zone also use the Tornado-S - “A unique and perfect long-range MLRS with a range of 120 km (72 miles).”
Rasmussen, for his part, called the Tornado-S “a little bit more accurate than the [US-made] HIMARS [High Mobility Artillery Rocket System].”
Apart from the Grad, the Tornado-G and the Tornado-S, Russian troops use the 220 mm BM-27 Uragan (Hurricane) MLRS, which a range of 34 km (21 miles). Also being used in the special operation zone is the 300 mm Smerch (Twister) MLRS with a range of 70 km (43 miles).
OTMS Systems
This includes the Iskander-M mobile short-range ballistic missile system, which is designed to destroy enemy command posts, communications nodes, tactical aircraft parked on airfields and other critical targets at a distance of up to 500 km (310 miles).
The system is equipped with two main types of missiles: the quasi-ballistic 9M723 with electronic warfare modules for radio interference and the ability to control the entire flight path, and the cruise missile R-500, capable of automatically sweeping around the terrain when flying at low altitude, which gives it low-vulnerability to enemy air defense systems.
Kinzhal Complex
The Kh-47M2 Kinzhal (Dagger) is a Russian hypersonic air-launched ballistic missile, with a range of up to 2,000 km (1,240 miles) and speed of up to Mach 10.
The missile can carry either conventional or nuclear warheads and can be launched by the Tu-22M3 bombers or the MiG-31K interceptors.
“It's a very impressive weapon system,” which is “very accurate, powerful and almost indestructible,” Rasmussen said, adding that thanks to its speed, the Kinzhal is “very difficult to intercept.”
Watch Russian Kamikaze Drones Hit Ukrainian Troops and Equipment
Russian troops used kamikaze drones with high-impact munitions against Ukraine’s manpower and military equipment in the special operation zone.
The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) has released footage showing troops deploying loitering munitions (often referred to as kamikaze drones) against the enemy’s positions in the Donetsk People’s Republic.
Kamikaze (or ‘suicide’) drones have increased combat capabilities and are able to carry out high-precision surgical strikes. The drone can passively wait in a target area, looking for its prey, and then attack once the target is identified and located.
Such munitions are also capable of selective targeting, i.e. aborting or re-directing the strike during combat missions.
Russia’s Lancet Drones Become ‘Scourge on the Battlefield’ for Ukraine – Report
The drones are used in the Russian special operation zone to target various Ukrainian military assets, including howitzers, armored vehicles, and multiple launch rocket systems, as well as command and observation posts and troops.
A sophisticated version of Russia’s Lancet kamikaze drone – also referred to as loitering munition – is becoming an increasing threat to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, a US media outlet has reported after analyzing a video released by the Russian Armed Forces.
It appears that the newer Lancet's warheads blow up in the air before firing explosively formed penetrators, such as slugs of molten metal, toward the target, something that helps the Russian unmanned aerial vehicle to evade Ukrainian defenses, according to the outlet.
2. Russian Lancet suicide drones hitting Bradley infantry fighting vehicles of the Armed Forces of Ukraine i pic.twitter.com/6nearUhhdC
“Russia's Lancet drones have become a scourge on the battlefield in Ukraine, and have been advancing in their range and capabilities.”
An informed source earlier told Sputnik that their ZALA AERO manufacturer had recently unveiled a range of revolutionary upgrades for the Lancet's hardware and software systems.
“These advancements enable the flexible deployment of kamikaze drones even in situations where targets are not directly visible. Separately, new design-related solutions were also used,” the source added.
The Lancets, alongside various other types of drones, are widely used in the Russian special military operation zone to tackle Kiev’s counteroffensive, which Russian President Vladimir Putin called "more of a failure than a stalemate."
