Free Republic

Ukraine’s Zelensky wouldn’t be included in proposed talks, as Russia’s leader seeks to negotiate end to war favorable to Moscow Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed that he, President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping meet next month to talk about Ukraine in an attempt to negotiate an end to the four-year conflict that would favor Moscow, said people familiar with the discussions. The plan represents an effort by Putin to capitalize on warming ties between Trump and the Russian leader that have alarmed Ukraine and its allies in Washington and Europe. Such a summit—one without the involvement of Ukrainian...

Jean-Luc Mélenchon and the left see an opening to take the presidency next year. The riots in France turned even uglier on the weekend, spreading across the country and including brazen acts of violence. We’ve explained the underlying fiscal and political woes behind the crisis, but the news this time is the pre-election play by far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon. Heretofore Mr. Mélenchon, head of the far-left Indomitable France party, had taken a somewhat detached attitude to the protests. But this weekend he participated in protests in Paris. He also blamed police for “unleashing” on protesters, while condemning looting and arson....

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Monday that a state of emergency could be imposed "if needed", while adding that curfews were a better solution to the crisis over violent protests. With six months to go before France elects a successor to President Emmanuel Macron, the country was rocked over the weekend by some of its worst street violence in years. The unrest came after weeks of student demonstrations demanding better conditions in schools. "I am absolutely determined to restore order," Lecornu said after a crisis meeting, adding he did not rule out imposing a state of emergency. "If...

AP Photo/Thibault Camus The Fake News Media's purpose isn't to make us pay attention to what matters. It's to tell us not to believe "our lyin' eyes." Such is the case with the France riots, which have turned into an immigrant-driven orgy of violence, mayhem, arson, vandalism, and looting. Of course, that is extremely problematic for The Narrative™️that importing millions of people from impoverished, Third World nations is "cultural enrichment," even if the ungrateful, military-age foreigners inevitably riot for more handouts from their gullible host country. It just so happens that this suits the far-left. Since the Western socialist left...

“Ayesha, Mohammed, Moinnuddin, Jasmeen, Saida, Sameena, Yaseen and the list goes on,” said 60-year-old Mohammed Baba Sharfuddin, as he listed 17 family members and 13 neighbours who he said were deleted from draft voter rolls this month. Sharfuddin’s family has lived in the same property in a Muslim area of Hyderabad in southern India since before independence from Britain in 1947. But their names were removed from the country’s voter register, with polling agents saying they had “permanently shifted” from their residence — part of a mass revision that has resulted in about 130mn people being struck from the rolls....

More than 1,100 Bengali Muslim families have been rendered homeless in a two-day eviction drive across Assam’s Nagaon, Hojai and Golaghat districts, with authorities demolishing homes and reportedly razing more than 10 mosques, some of them over 50 years old. According to media reports, on Sunday, the second day of the operation, authorities demolished the homes of more than 600 Muslim families in the Lutumari Longjap Reserve Forest in Nagaon district, claiming that the structures had been built on encroached forest land. A day earlier, 547 families were evicted under tight security across the three districts — 336 in Nagaon,...

Anthony Albanese says Independent MP Helen Haines was attacked outside her electoral office. A major police investigation is underway and a suspect is in custody, the Prime Minister told reporters at a press conference in Sydney on Monday night. This afternoon Helen Haines was attacked outside her electoral office in Wangaratta,” Mr Albanese said. “Our thoughts remain with Helen Haines at this very difficult time.” Mr Albanese confirmed the Australian Federal Police, Victorian Police, and ASIO were working together on the case. He also confirmed authorities would check the history of the 43-year-old man being treated as a suspect in...

After riots erupted this weekend in cities across France, its centrist government blamed the main far-left party, accusing its politicians of inciting the violence. That party blamed the government, accusing it of stirring public anger through years of bad governance and heavy-handed policing. What did the main far-right party do? It blamed both, and launched into campaign mode. “We are paying for decades of being soft on crime, of weak authority, of the moral, psychological, and material disarmament of our internal security forces,” Jordan Bardella, the president of the far-right National Rally party, said after emerging from a police station...

Romanian F-16 fighter jets have shot down two drones over the country's territorial waters in the Black Sea. The two drones were jet-powered, belonging to the Geran-family of attack drones frequently used by Russia to blow up targets in Ukraine, according to Romania's Defense Ministry. The Ministry did not specify which nation the drones belonged to. People living in Tulcea County, which borders Ukraine, were woken by an alert message sent by the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations at 1.54am warning of the aerial threat, The Ministry of National Defense reported that no intrusions into Romanian national airspace were reported...

Gas line reportedly hit during a training exercise, triggering a large blaze in Alberta At least four people have been killed and dozens more injured after a large explosion at one of Canada’s busiest military bases. A gas line was hit during a live-fire training exercise at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright, in Alberta, at 4pm on Saturday, according to reports. Mark Carney, the Canadian prime minister, called the incident “one of the worst tragedies for Canadian forces on Canadian soil in peacetime”. At an address on Sunday, Mr Carney said: “Four service members have lost their lives and their...

My decision on Russia is a very simple one. I am in the process of negotiating Peace in the war between Russia and Ukraine, and don’t want to do anything that will drive, foolishly, Russia away from the bargaining table. Great progress is being made, and that includes current hostage negotiations! Signing that document at this time will do that, and I can sign it later, or any time that I want! Perhaps more importantly, Russia is doing very little, if anything, to help the Islamic Republic of Iran, compared to what they could be doing, and I want to...

Prime Minister Mark Carney tries to rally oil-rich province to stick with country SUNDRE, Alberta—This town nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains is known for its annual pro rodeo in June, which includes a parade of cowboys and cowgirls on horseback, school marching bands and colorful floats celebrating the heritage of rural Alberta.This year, a feud erupted over a proposed parade float festooned with Alberta provincial flags. Volunteer parade organizers rejected the idea as too political amid campaigning around a referendum on Alberta staying in Canada or moving toward independence—and were then met with an onslaught of harassment...

Italy, like France, witnessed a day of protests on Saturday — several turning violent — as some Italian politicians blamed the extreme left for the lawlessness. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni took to social media to condemn the unrest and back law enforcement. Meloni wrote on X: "Once again, the women and men of the Law Enforcement Forces have had to face the violence of criminals who, even through organized groups, exploit demonstrations to seek confrontation and sow chaos," she posted.

US President Donald Trump endorsed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, nine days before Israel's October 27 election, praising his leadership and warning that the United States would have to confront Iran without Israel's support if Netanyahu were replaced, he said in a Truth Social post on Sunday. "To the great people of Israel," Trump began, "Bibi Netanyahu has been a Great Warrior Prime Minister, and an even greater Partner for Peace in combating the Islamic Republic of Iran, with its 51-year-old chant, “Death to Israel, Death to America! We will destroy the Little Satan and the Big Satan."The endorsement marks a...

Ukrainian attacks set an oil export terminal ablaze in St. Petersburg on Sunday, as Kyiv launched more than 1,000 drones across Russia in one of its largest ever aerial bombardments. The attack comes amid deepening tensions between Ukraine and Washington, with U.S. President Donald Trump criticizing Kyiv for its strikes on Russian oil infrastructure. One person was killed and five more were wounded in the attack, which sparked fires at both the Petersburg Oil Terminal and the city’s Ruchi oil depot, said local Gov. Alexander Beglov. A logistics center belonging to Russian retailer Ozon and a data center for local...

Australia and New Zealand have been ranked among the two fastest growing electric vehicle markets in the world since the start of the Iran war in late February triggered a fossil fuel supply crisis that is still being felt across the globe. The European energy and climate think tank Ember this week published a new analysis that shows that in the six months since the Hormuz energy crisis erupted, electric car fleets in oil-importing countries are estimated to have displaced 200 million barrels of crude oil, with a value of $US20 billion ($A29 billion). Fully electric cars (BEVs) are responsible...

The European anarchy has set the stage for a particularly disturbing scene in Milan, Italy, as one of Christianity's most recognizable landmarks became the backdrop for violent unrest. Flames rose from makeshift barricades, fireworks exploded, and thick smoke filled the square outside Milan Cathedral, the magnificent Gothic church that has stood at the heart of the city for centuries.Italy like France. Outside Milan Cathedral. A symbol of Christianity under siege. Fires, clashes, and devastation beneath its spires. This is no celebration — it is a collapse. They are burning the heart of Milan while everyone watches and records it. This...

Pope Leo spoke by phone Oct. 16 from Rome’s Gemelli Hospital with Russian President Vladimir Putin, highlighting concern for communities in a Russian-occupied Ukrainian city suffering from worsening food scarcity. “During the conversation, the Holy Father expressed his deep concern about the grave humanitarian situation in the city of Oleshky, in the Kherson region, and called for a ceasefire to allow the delivery of food and medical assistance, and the voluntary and safe evacuation of the civilian population,” the Holy See Press Office stated Oct. 16. While speaking with Putin, Pope Leo also “reaffirmed the Holy See’s commitment to promoting...

The roof collapsed onto lower floors as anti-government protests over cost of living entered their fourth week across France ... A historic building in the French town of Limoges, about three hours south of Paris, has been "largely lost" after it was set on fire by rioters as demonstrations continue across France. The Limoges Town Hall was built in 1883, and was made a historic landmark in 1975. "The roof has collapsed onto lower floors, except the west wing, and two-thirds of the exterior has already disappeared," ... Macron leaves office in six months. ... Masked groups also attempted to...

The French government has accused the far-left of stoking the riots that engulfed the nation on Saturday, resulting in widespread clashes with police, looting of shops, as well as vandalism and arson of government buildings. What began last month as a small protest over teacher shortages at a school in the Créteil suburb of Paris has become a full-on national revolt, with various leftist unions and other organisations also taking to the streets in cities across the country on Saturday, with an estimated 550,000 demonstrators. At a press conference in Paris, Minister of the Interior Laurent Nuñez said that unlike...