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5:17 p.m. : No radioactive leak was detected after the strikes which targeted today the nuclear power plant of Zaporijjia, the largest in Ukraine and Europe, affirmed an official of the pro-Russian occupation administration.
4:47 p.m. : Russian journalist Marina Ovsiannikova has been placed under house arrest, a Moscow court has announced. She is accused of having “discredited” the army during a solitary protest action in mid-July, when it had, near the Kremlin, brandished a sign accusing the Russian forces of committing abuses in Ukraine.
4:28 p.m. : New artillery strikes targeted the perimeter of the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, on Thursday, a pro-Russian occupation official said, accusing kyiv forces of having fired. The Ukrainian operator of the plant has when to him mentioned “five Russian strikes”.
3:00 p.m. : Russia has announced that it has refused to allow Switzerland to represent Kyiv diplomatically on Russian territory. Moscow felt that Bern had “lost its neutral status” by sanctioning Moscow for its military offensive against Ukraine. Yesterday, the Swiss Foreign Ministry announced that Ukraine wanted Switzerland to represent its interests in Russia.
2:18 p.m. : It’s time to take stock of the news.
Eight major fires are burning in the territory, in Gironde, Maine-et-Loire, Jura, Drôme, Aveyron and Lozère… Not to mention countless smaller fires starting every day from North to South . Follow our live.
The EU has sent four planes from its firefighting fleet to France, from Greece and Sweden, announced the European Commission. Earlier in the day, Emmanuel Macron had announced that Germany, Romania, Poland and Greece and Austria would send firefighters to fight the fires in France.
The firefighters of Landes and Gironde, where Elisabeth Borne arrived, continue to face “extreme climatic conditions” in their fight against the fire, where nearly 6,800 hectares of pine forest went up in smoke. In Aveyron, the fire which broke out on Monday being still active, 500 holidaymakers and residents were evacuated last night.
The bombardments continued overnight on the front line in Ukraine, including not far from the Zaporijjia nuclear power plant which will be on the menu of a meeting of the UN Security Council during the day. Follow our live.
1:25 p.m. : “Take advantage of isolation to reconnect with our traditions”: increasingly cut off from the Western world because of its offensive in Ukraine, Russia has launched a “cultural revolution” conservative with the appearance of artistic purification. Explanations.
12:06 : Let’s take a look at the news:
Germany, Greece, Poland, Romania and Austria will come to the aid of France, affected by multiple fires, announces Emmanuel Macron. Eight major fires are burning in the territory, in Gironde, Maine-et-Loire, Jura, Drôme, Aveyron and Lozère… Not to mention countless smaller fires starting every day from north to south . Follow our live.
The firefighters of Landes and Gironde, where Elisabeth Borne arrived, continue to face “extreme climatic conditions” in their fight against the fire, where nearly 6,800 hectares of pine forest went up in smoke. In Aveyron, the fire which broke out on Monday being still active, 500 holidaymakers and residents were evacuated last night.
The bombardments continued overnight on the front line in Ukraine, including not far from the Zaporijjia nuclear power plant which will be on the menu of a meeting of the UN Security Council during the day. Follow our live.
11:32 am : The UN Security Council will meet urgently this afternoon to discuss the war in Ukraine and in particular the situation at the Zaporijjia nuclear power plant. Moscow and kyiv accuse each other of being responsible for the strikes, which no independent source has been able to verify.
(ED JONES/AFP)
11:17 a.m. : “They are counting on the fact that this nuclear power plant represents a great danger, a great risk if ever it were hit (…) for the Ukrainian army to hold back its blows”.
For a few days, Zaporizhia meet again at the heart of the Ukrainian conflict. In Russian hands since March, it is located opposite territory still held by the Ukrainian army. A site from which the Russians are accused of hitting the Ukrainians on the other side. Shooting from here, they’d be using the nuclear power plant as a shield.
07:21 : We start with a point on the news:
After a trying month of July, thousands of firefighters are struggling in France against new blazes in completely dried up forests by heat waves and the historic lack of rain in a summer that will go down in history. Last night, eight major fires were burning in France, in Gironde, Maine-et-Loire, Jura, Drôme, Aveyron and Lozère… Not to mention countless smaller fires starting each day from the north South.
It is in Gironde that the fire is the most spectacular: it has already devoured 6,000 hectares, a resumption of the monster fire which had blackened 14,000 hectares exactly one month ago. In total, 10,000 people were evacuated, including 2,000 in the Landes, some for the second time.
In Maine-et-Loire, “the fire is finally set”, announced last night the mayor of Baugé-en-Anjou. In total according to the aedile, “1,540 hectares have been destroyed”. He also wanted to thank the “600 firefighters, farmers, volunteers and residents for their solidarity”.
Russian shelling killed at least 14 civilians overnight Tuesday-Wednesday in central-eastern Ukraine, local authorities say, not far from the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant that Moscow and kyiv accuse each other of having bombarded.
• Serena Williams was eliminated by Belinda Bencic in the second round of the WTA 1000 in Toronto, beaten 6-2, 6-4 by the Swiss Belinda Bencic, world 12. The 40-year-old American will be due next week in Cincinnati ahead of the US Open at the end of the month, which she has won six times and which seems to be the designated place for farewell.