Kremlin says Zelensky can come to Moscow for talks any time
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky can come to Moscow any time if he wishes to hold talks, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Thursday.
Zelensky published a letter earlier Thursday proposing a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the participation of Europe and the United States, to discuss the peace process.
Zelensky also called for setting a clear date for the meeting and said that Ukraine stands prepared for a full ceasefire for the duration of the negotiations.
U.S. imposes sanctions on Cuban president in latest pressure campaign
The United States imposed sanctions on Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and several other individuals and entities on Thursday to ramp up pressure on the island country.
The U.S. Treasury Department has added Diaz-Canel, four other individuals and five entities, including Cuba's Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, to the Specially Designated Nationals List, according to an update posted on the department's website.
Diaz-Canel, 66, succeeded Raul Castro as Cuban president in 2018.
Hezbollah leader says resistance will continue as long as Israeli occupation persists
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said on Thursday that resistance against Israel will continue and Israeli settlements will remain unsafe as long as the occupation and attacks on Lebanese territory persist.
"We are concerned only with a comprehensive end to the aggression, a ceasefire, and Israel's withdrawal. As long as the occupation exists, the resistance will continue," Qassem said in a televised speech.
He warned that any agreement making disarmament of the resistance its primary objective would "eliminate Lebanon's strength, threaten its existence, and allow Israel to achieve through politics what it failed to achieve through war."
DR Congo Ebola cases rise to 381, with 63 deaths
Confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have risen to 381, including 63 deaths, Health Minister Roger Kamba said Thursday evening.
Speaking at a press briefing in Kinshasa, Kamba said about 233 patients are currently hospitalized in health facilities, either for isolation while awaiting test results or for treatment after developing the disease.
The minister said the country's testing capacity has improved significantly following the arrival of more than 4,000 testing kits from the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and additional international support, allowing health authorities to test almost all samples received and provide results within 24 hours.
At least 9 killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza City
At least nine Palestinians were killed and several others injured early Thursday in a series of Israeli airstrikes that targeted residential areas in Gaza City, according to medical sources and eyewitnesses.
Medical sources at the Gaza City-based Al-Shifa medical complex told Xinhua that at least nine people were killed, while others sustained varying degrees of injuries. Rescue teams continued search operations for missing persons under the rubble.
Eyewitnesses said Israeli warplanes carried out strikes on multiple locations across Gaza City, targeting apartments and residential buildings in northern and western neighborhoods.
S. Korea's ruling party wins sweeping victory in local elections
South Korea's ruling liberal Democratic Party won a sweeping victory in the local elections, election watchdog data showed Thursday.
With almost all votes counted, the Democratic Party won 12 out of 16 races for metropolitan mayors and provincial governors, including Gyeonggi province, the western port city of Incheon, the southeastern port city of Busan, as well as South Jeolla Province and North Jeolla Province, home turf for the liberal bloc, according to the National Election Commission.■
