Russian missiles hit infrastructure in Kyiv
- Air raid sirens sounded in Kyiv as Russian missiles hit critical infrastructure in the Ukrainian capital, officials say.
- Kyiv’s military administration says critical infrastructure has been hit, but did not elaborate.
Russian ex-President Medvedev says Japanese PM should disembowel himself
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has accused Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of shameful subservience to the United States and suggested he should ritually disembowel himself.
The comment followed a meeting on Friday between Kishida and US President Joe Biden, after which the two leaders said any use of a nuclear weapon by Russia in Ukraine would be “an act of hostility against humanity”.
Medvedev, who was once seen as a Western-leaning reformer but has reinvented himself as an arch-hawk since Russia invaded Ukraine last year, accused the Kishida of having “betrayed the memory of hundreds of thousands of Japanese who were burned in the nuclear fire of Hiroshima and Nagasaki” after the US dropped atomic bombs.
He said such shame could only be washed away by committing seppuku – a form of suicide by disembowelment, also known as hara-kiri – at a meeting of the Japanese cabinet after Kishida’s return.
Multiple strikes hit Ukraine, alert ends in Kyiv: AJ correspondent
Al Jazeera’s Natasha Butler, reporting from Kyiv, said four explosions were heard distinctly at around 9:30am (7:30 GMT) in the Ukrainian capital.
Air sirens were not heard prior to the blasts but were quickly triggered after the explosions. The alert has now ended, Butler said.
“It seems that there were also strikes in other parts of the country, in the north in Chernihiv and Sumy, in the east in Kharkiv and also in the south around Zaporizhia, Kherson,” she added.
No casualties have been reported.
Deployment of Black Sea Fleet unlikely to be in preparation for attack: UK
The British defence ministry has said the deployment of a group of at least 10 vessels of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet (BSF) on January 11 was unlikely to be in preparation for amphibious assault operations.
The BSF “continues to prioritise force protection over offensive or patrol operations,” the ministry said in its latest intelligence update.
Tensions remain high in Ukraine as officials expect Russia to step up its “special military operation” as it hits the one-year mark.
Top UN political affairs official says ‘no end in sight’ for Ukraine war
The head of UN Political and Peacebuilding Affairs has told the Security Council that the fighting and suffering in Ukraine continues “with no end in sight”.
“It has created a humanitarian and human rights catastrophe, traumatised a generation of children, and accelerated the global food and energy crises”, Rosemary DiCarlo told ambassadors on Friday. “And yet, this grave damage could pale in comparison with the consequences of a prolonged conflict.”
DiCarlo said the UN human rights office (OHCHR) had verified 18,096 civilian casualties since the invasion began.
