U.S. Initiates $11.1 Billion Arms Sale to Taiwan Amid Rising China Tensions 
Taiwan Political Standoff Deepens as President Lai Urges Parliament to Withdraw Disputed Laws 
Sydney Bondi Beach Terror Attack Kills 16, Sparks Gun Law and Security Debate 
Republicans Raise National Security Concerns Over Intel’s Testing of China-Linked Chipmaking Tools 
Lukashenko Urges Swift Ukraine Peace Deal, Backs Trump’s Push for Rapid Resolution 
Dan Bongino to Step Down as FBI Deputy Director After Brief, Controversial Tenure 
UN Warns Gaza Humanitarian Aid at Risk as Israel Registration Rules Threaten NGO Operations 
Trump Administration Plans Major Increase in Denaturalization Cases for Naturalized U.S. Citizens 
Federal Appeals Court Allows Trump’s National Guard Deployment in Washington, D.C. to Continue 
Venezuela Seeks UN Security Council Meeting Over U.S. Oil Tanker Blockade 
Trump Attends Dover Ceremony Honoring U.S. Personnel Killed in Syria 
European Leaders Tie Ukraine Territorial Decisions to Strong Security Guarantees 
Honduras Election Recount Delayed Amid Protests and Political Tensions 
Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency 
Italy Supreme Court Upholds Salvini Acquittal in Migrant Kidnapping Case 
Ukraine’s military confirmed a series of drone strikes against key Russian infrastructure, including an oil refinery in Ryazan and multiple military-linked facilities, escalating tensions in the ongoing conflict.
According to Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces (USF), drones hit the Ryazan refinery, located about 180 kilometers southeast of Moscow, sparking a fire. The USF also reported strikes on the Annanefteprodukt oil storage facility in Russia’s Voronezh region, near Ukraine’s northeastern border. Although Ukraine did not specify the weapon type, the USF specializes in long-range kamikaze drones capable of carrying explosive payloads across hundreds of kilometers.
Ukraine’s SBU intelligence agency separately announced drone attacks on Russia’s Primorsko-Akhtarsk military airfield, a key launch site for drone operations targeting Ukrainian cities, and an electronics factory in Penza supplying Russia’s military-industrial complex. These strikes highlight Ukraine’s growing drone warfare capabilities, developed since Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion.
In response, Russia’s defense ministry claimed its air defense units intercepted 338 Ukrainian drones overnight but did not confirm damage to its facilities. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 45 out of 53 Russian drones launched toward Ukrainian territory during the same period.
On the eastern front, Russia reported capturing the village of Oleksandro-Kalynove in Donetsk. If confirmed, it would underscore Moscow’s continued advances in Ukraine’s east and south, where Russian forces currently occupy nearly 20% of Ukrainian territory.
The latest attacks signal an intensifying phase in the war, with both sides increasingly deploying drone technology to target strategic infrastructure and disrupt supply lines, raising concerns of further escalation near the Russian heartland.
