A grocery store (or cafe) in the village of Hroza, near Kupyansk in northeast Ukraine, was hit by shelling today; at least 48 people were killed, according to @ZelenskyyUa. t.me/V_Zelenskiy_of…

fascinating, granular details in this FBI affidavit unsealed last night about a Russian intel agent who created a false Brazilian identity, enrolled at @SAISHopkins, tried to get a @IntlCrimCourt internship, and is now in jail in Brazil (awaiting extradition) When Brazilian police last year arrested the guy, Sergey Cherkasov, he had "multiple electronic devices"-- thumb drives, cell phones. They found a dead drop in Rio for comms equipment, all of which was turned over to the FBI. (sure seems like some super bad spycraft ops)

.@tv2danmark adds new details to the Nord Stream investigation. For still unexplained reasons, Greek tanker Minerva Julie drifted over the explosions site, with its engine on/off, in early Sept. 2022, then continued on to St. Petersburg. Two weeks later, the blast was reported. full link to story by @pmolpmol here: nyheder.tv2.dk/udland/2023-03…

Now opening in Boston federal courthouse (literally this hour): opening statements in the trial of Russian businessman Vladislav Klyushin, arrested in Switzerland in March 2021, and extradited some months later on a U.S. arrest warrant. U.S. prosecutors have charged him and several co-conspirators with (essentially) hacking and insider trading. Klyushin has pleaded not guilty. He’s been sitting in a Massachusetts cell since arriving in the U.S., after a judge denied bail, deeming him a flight risk.

Petr Pavel wins landslide victory in Czech presidential elections theguardian.com/world/2023/jan…

Ukrainian flags reportedly being raised this morning in Kherson City's central square. (i think this is the original source: t.me/jurnko) more from the central square; you can see the EU flag clearly. (same source).

⚡️⚡️⚡️Oleg Deripaska has been indicted by the @TheJusticeDept for conspiring to evade U.S. sanctions and obstruction of justice. lots of details in this indictment about Deripaska's two children, born to his alleged girlfriend Yekaterina Lobanova (also indicted) in the United States allegedly in order to ensure they had U.S. citizenship

Putin has just granted Edward Snowden Russian citizenship. According to his lawyer, Snowden will not be mobilized: "Since Edward did not serve in the Russian army, he does not have either the practice or experience of military service, so he is not subject to conscription,” Anatoly Kucherena told @interfaxonline t.me/interfaxonline…

Gennady Zyuganov, the leader of Russia's Communist Party, says enough is enough: the "special military operation" in Ukraine is a war. "There is a war going on, and we have no right to lose it." He calls for complete mobilization of the country. duma.gov.ru/multimedia/vid… Геннадий Зюганов: «Идет война, а не спецоперация. Нужна всеобщая мобилизация» theins.ru/news/254986

Senior U.S. @DeptofDefense official on the Ukrainian offensive: "In the vicinity of Kharkiv, we assess that Russian forces have largely ceded their gains to the Ukrainians and have withdrawn. To the north and east many of these forces have moved over the border into Russia." @DeptofDefense U.S. officials: "In the vicinity of Kherson, we continue to see deliberate and calibrated operations by the Ukrainians to include some moderate forward movement."

newest statement from Ukrainian military command. not alot of specifics on the Kharkiv counteroffensive (or Kherson): Kupyansk captured; fighting for settlements in Izyum region continues. Also an alleged plan for full mobilization of all men in Russian-occupied territories. Ukraine's commander-in-chief, General Valery Zaluzhny, describing the situation today: "we're advancing not only south and east, but also to the north. There are 50 kilometers to the [Russian] border." Villages of Bayrak, Nova Husarivka, Shchurivka, Vilkhuvatka are recaptured.

per senior U.S. @DeptofDefense official as of July 29: Ukrainians are definitely making (small) advances against Russian positions in/near Kherson. U.S. official: Russians are being creative in trying to bolster troop levels in Ukraine, but it's not going well in some cases.

Alexander Ionov, a Russian who headed a FSB-backed organization called the Anti-Globalization Movement that promoted political secession movements around the world (including in Texas) has been indicted for being an unregistered agent of the Russian government. Several unindicted co-conspirators who are U.S. citizens are listed here. Unclear who they are.

Ukrainian armed forces claiming another Russian general killed in battle: Major General Roman Kutuzov, of the 29th Army. (awaiting further confirmation.) If true, I think this puts the number of confirmed killed Russian generals close to 12. t.me/zsuwar/16007 H/t @atanessi

Russia's Duma abolishes the age limit for contract soldiers in the armed forces, allowing men over 40 (and under 18) to now serve. t.me/interfaxonline… the new law also expands eligibility for foreigners to serve in the Russian military.

President Vladimir Putin now speaking on Red Square, for Victory Day ceremonies. Putin congratulates WWII veterans ... and then quickly pivots to rhetoric about NATO plotting to attack Russia via Ukraine Nazis and "Banderites"

This from @DeptofDefense today: "while the Pentagon does not dispute offensives [in the Donbas] are occurring, it believes they are a prelude to larger offensives.... The Russians continue to conduct 'shaping operations' and refit and resupply forces north of Ukraine." other tidbits yesterday from @PentagonPresSec, asked if there have been changes in status of Russia's nuclear weapons: "We have seen no reason to change our strategic deterrent posture."

The Netherlands is expelling 17 Russian diplomats for espionage

https://twitter.com/NOS/status/1508801520053239821

Belgium is also expelling Russian diplomats, according to the Belga news agency: 21.

latest satellite imagery from 📸 @Maxar of devastated Ukrainian cities. Image 1: burning Mariupol theater and surrounding buildings (taken 21 March) Images 2-3: deployed Russian artillery near Mariupol. Images 4-6: burning apartment buildings, drama theater in Mariupol (taken 19 March)

In Kherson, Russian forces reportedly opened fire on (near?) protesters demonstrating against the Russian occupation. Unclear if casualties. Another angle of the shooting at the Kherson protest today. Source: t.me/vgorunews

a Russian pro-government rally in Izhevsk today. Lots of Russian flags, and lots of "Z's" (За мир. За Россию. За Президент). source: t.me/sotavision meantime at Moscow's Luzhniki stadium, there is a sizable crowd gathered for a pro-government rally. Some Russian and foreign media say public-sector employees were forced to attend

https://twitter.com/the_ins_ru/status/1504778909539315712?s=20&t=hryz6G3wi5KjN_iX-LONoQ