Free Republic

Regardless of why Putin might have held off on this for so long, he’s now arguably motivated at least in part by the tantalizing possibility of reaching big-ticket resource deals with the US after the conflict ends, the details of which his and Trump’s envoys have been negotiating for over a year already. The New York Times cited allegedly intercepted Russian communications to report that Russia plans to obliterate Ukraine’s power, heating, and water systems this winter. While their claim can’t be confirmed, it aligns with Putin mildly “escalating to de-escalate” over the summer in response to Zelensky’s strike campaign,...

On Sunday, 4 October, Dmitry Medvedev threatened Armenia, saying that it “could transform into a second Ukraine”. This refers to the Armenians’ aspirations for closer ties with the European Union, which do not please Russia, as it wishes to keep Armenia within its sphere of influence. On Sunday, 4 October, Dmitry Medvedev gave an interview to Iranian state television. In it, he stated that the West is testing the “strength of the relationship” connecting Armenia and Russia, warning Yerevan against changing its political course. “The current Armenian authorities have decided to change direction. I am certain that this will not...

Sailors are reportedly being offered as much as $25,000 a trip to move trapped oil through the dangerous, war-rattled Persian Gulf – meaning producers are spending up to $40 million total for a multi-day trip... The jaw-dropping payments – sometimes worth two or three times a sailor’s typical monthly salary – are an attempt to convince crew members to risk the potentially deadly strikes... Fresh data on Monday showed the payouts are working, as crude exports through the Strait of Hormuz reached 16.5 million barrels per day in September – far above lows of 5 million barrels a day in...

Embassy of Poland U.S. @PolishEmbassyUS: Letter from CdA a.i. @BogdanKlich calling on @TuckerCarlson to publicly retract his outrageous statements and apologize for insulting Poles, British citizens, and, ultimately, the memory of the victims of the Shoah and all those who died in the fight against Nazism.

On Monday, President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House that the United States will help Russia after a laboratory worker died at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute in Siberia.While local media alleged the 28-year-old lab technician died from pneumonic plague, Russian officials stated postmortem tests found only 'pneumonia of undetermined aetiology' with no evidence of occupational pathogens.Authorities placed at least one hospital in Shelekhov under quarantine, with nearly 200 people under medical observation after potential exposure to the worker.U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the nation is monitoring closely and sees no 'cause for alarm,' while experts...

In a major upset for the ruling Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) party, the Parti Québécois (PQ) is shaking up the political landscape in Quebec. The party hasn’t been in power since 2014 and its leader, Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, has vowed to hold a third referendum on Quebec sovereignty in his first term.

The Justice Department is seeking to revoke the U.S. citizenship of two China-born men convicted in separate cases of working for the Chinese communist regime. The department filed a denaturalization case—seeking to revoke naturalized U.S. citizenship—against former U.S. Navy sailor Wei Jinchao in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California on Sept. 30 and a complaint against Florida technology worker Li Ping in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida on Oct. 1, according to an Oct. 5 Justice Department announcement. The two cases are among 40 denaturalization actions the Justice Department said it...

After years of overspending, the country has emerged as one of Europe’s weakest links. Investors are bracing for things to get worse.France is on the precipice of a dangerous financial spiral.The global surge in interest rates has exposed the country, once considered an oasis of relative stability in Europe’s financial markets, as one of the continent’s weakest links. France now pays more to borrow than former crisis hot spots like Greece and Italy. Its government is running a budget deficit surpassed only by the United States among its peers. Last week, a slow-burning selloff in France’s government bond market took...

Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell announced that Hasan will be just the second person since 2010 to be put to death by a firing squad Monday. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has recommended — and President Donald J. Trump has approved — death by U.S. Army firing squad for convicted terrorist Nidal Malik Hasan, the jihadist who opened fire on unarmed American soldiers at Fort Hood in 2009,' he wrote on social media. 'He killed 13 people and wounded 32 others while shouting 'Allahu Akbar' during the attack,' Parnell added. 'The Secretary of the Army will set the time and...

The United States wants a reactor on the moon by 2030. A Russian-Chinese alliance is working on one for 2036. Some leading scientists say the danger is great.In late August, NASA asked contractors to prepare to build a nuclear reactor that could survive a space voyage and run without maintenance near the moon’s south pole. That may sound like science fiction, but the agency wants it ready to be launched by December 2030.There is a reason for the rush. Russia aims to have a lunar reactor running by 2036 as part of a secretive partnership with China. NASA has already...

Prof. Chen Kugel says forensic evidence showed systematic killing methods across attack sites; he recalls burned and mutilated bodies, the race to identify every victim and the psychological toll that ultimately left him with PTSD; this article contains graphic images and descriptions that some readers may find disturbing. “Here we see the body of a person who was burned,” he says, pausing over one of the photographs. “We know he was burned alive: When we open his airway, we can see soot inside. That means he inhaled smoke while he was being burned.” Prof. Chen Kugel, director of the National...

Pedro Sánchez is the undisputed leader of the European Left. But his time is running out. The Spanish prime minister rolled the dice on a snap election that risks bringing the hard-Right Vox into national government for the first time. The poll-leading centre-Right Partido Popular (PP) will need Vox as coalition partners if it is to take power, which will mean the most Right-wing Spanish government since Franco. It’s a nightmare scenario for Mr Sánchez, who prides himself on his progressive policies. ================== But if Mr Sanchez’s gamble backfires this time, the already small number of centre-Left leaders in Europe...

U.S. officials are tracking a possible plague case in Russia, they confirmed on Oct. 5. “CDC is monitoring the situation closely with the State Department and our other interagency partners,” a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, the parent agency of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told The Epoch Times in an email. “The safety and security of U.S. citizens is our highest priority,” the spokesperson added. Russia’s consumer protection agency Rospotrebnadzor reported over the weekend that a worker at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Research Institute of Siberia and the Far East in southeastern Siberia was...

The FBI arrested a suspected Chinese agent at Los Angeles International Airport after she allegedly surveilled the Taiwanese president's U.S.-based son, law enforcement sources told CBS News. Wanying "Heather" Zhang, an Irvine, California, realtor, was cuffed by federal law enforcement on Sunday before she boarded a flight to Shanghai, China, from LAX, on a charge of acting as an unregistered agent of a foreign government. Zhang's husband Edric Ding, a realtor at the same firm, told CBS News when reached by phone Sunday: "I don't know anything yet," and declined to comment further. It was not immediately clear if Zhang...

The sale of Lukoil's international assets, worth around $20 billion, has moved from sanctions policy into the talks between Washington and Moscow, with a Boehly-led consortium backed by Gulf investors and a US state agency challenging Carlyle's earlier agreement. Lukoil announced an agreement to sell its international assets to the American group Carlyle on January 29, 2026, following US sanctions issued in 2025. American investor Todd Boehly has assembled a new consortium, including Gulf investors and the US International Development Finance Corporation, to compete for the acquisition. The sale involves energy assets worth approximately $20 to $22 billion, including oil...

Hamam al-Hammami, the copilot accused of trying to hijack and crash a flydubai aircraft bound for Israel, stated during interrogation that he had researched which airlines operate routes to Tel Aviv and consequently chose flydubai, an Israeli source told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday. "I tried to get hired by all the airlines. I planned the operation even before I was accepted by the company," the pilot said during interrogation. "The dream was to crash into Ben-Gurion Airport," Hammami added. In recent months, Hammami had been frequenting Ben-Gurion Airport in the course of his work as a pilot. One of...

Yemeni government forces claimed on Monday to have retaken control of key positions near the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a vital chokepoint for global trade, as they launch a renewed campaign to roll back recent gains made by the Iran-backed Houthi movement. Military spokesperson Majid Al-Nuzaili claimed on X that government forces “have succeeded in controlling Bab al-Mandeb,” adding that they have “cut off” and taken control of the road between Dhubab district, which overlooks Bab al-Mandeb, and the port town of Mocha, previously seized by the Houthis. CNN hasn’t independently verified the claim. Forces, which are backed by Saudi Arabia,...

Iran’s worsening economic crisis has opened an increasingly bitter argument over who is responsible, as the government points to outside pressure and market psychology while hardliners accuse Tehran’s own economic officials of making the situation worse. On Thursday, the end of Iran’s market week, the rial fell to another record low. Year-on-year inflation has reached almost 90 percent, with food prices rising even faster. The deterioration comes as US sanctions and a naval blockade squeeze Iran’s sources of revenue. The blockade has severely constrained oil exports, while Washington on Thursday expanded sanctions into the automotive and rail sectors, targeting some...

Flávio Bolsonaro defied the polls by finishing ahead of Lula, forcing an October 25 runoff as conservative candidates captured major victories across Brazil and strengthened their position in the nation’s Senate. ================================================================== WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW Flávio Bolsonaro led Lula 47.24% to 44.91% with 99% of reporting completed Sunday night. The presidential contest will proceed to an October 25 runoff after Flávio fell below the 50% needed for an outright victory. Conservative candidates scored major victories across São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Paraná, Rio Grande do Sul, and Santa Catarina. Michelle Bolsonaro won a Senate seat, while the Liberal Party...

Iran’s oil minister, Mohsen Paknejad, has resigned and been replaced by the country’s top oil executive, the president’s office says in a statement, amid a blockade on Tehran’s oil exports by the United States. “Following the acceptance of Mohsen Paknejad’s resignation, Hamid Bovard,” the CEO of the National Iranian Oil Company, “has been appointed as acting Minister of Oil by a decree from the president,” says the statement carried by state broadcaster IRIB. In a news bulletin on the minister’s resignation, state television runs an interview with an official from the Iranian presidential office who says Paknejad initially offered his...