Free Republic

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ousted the country’s navy chief after a series of humiliating Ukrainian attacks decimated Moscow’s Black Sea Fleet, according to multiple reports. Admiral Nikolai Yevmenov, 61, Russia’s navy commander-in-chief since May 2019, has been replaced by Northern Fleet Cmdr. Alexander Moiseyev, reported several Russian outlets, including the St. Petersburg news service Fontanka and the pro-Putin Izvestia newspaper. Moiseyev, 61 — who holds the country’s highest honorary title, “Hero of Russia” — was said to have been tapped as acting navy commander-in-chief and will soon be appointed on a permanent basis. The Russian navy’s rank-and-file have reportedly...

DUBAI — The ongoing strikes on ships in the Red Sea by Iranian-backed Houthi militias took their first lives on Thursday, with two sailors aboard the commercial vessel MV True Confidence killed by incoming fire. It’s a tragic, but almost inevitable, step in the Houthi campaign of launching missiles against commercial ships, as the Yemeni group attempts to disrupt trade and commerce in the region. But the worst could still be coming, experts say, thanks to the impressive technological leaps the Houthis have shown in the realm of ballistic missiles. The Houthis already made history in becoming the first group...