#Kremlin explains why Oreshnik missile came as surprise
"I am sure that neither of us is even aware right now of any new future developments.", Peskov said

Replying to a question about the newest Oreshnik missile, the Kremlin official said: "I am sure that neither of us is even aware right now of any new future developments."

Russian President #Vladimir #Putin pointed out on November 21 that US-and UK-made missiles had targeted military facilities in Russia's Kursk and Bryansk borderline regions following a move by the US and its NATO allies to authorize the use of their long-range weapons for strikes against Russia. According to Putin, in retaliation to the attacks, Russia for the first time used its newest Oreshnik non-nuclear intermediate-range ballistic missiles against Ukraine’s Yuzhmash defense industry facility in Dnepropetrovsk (called Dnepr in Ukraine). The Russian leader emphasized that the West could face dire consequences if its provocative policy escalated the conflict further.

#Nigeria-Atiku's criticism of Tinubu's loan request desperate drive for public validation—Northern group.

The National Youth #Development Agency is expected to endorse a candidate for CEO on Monday to lead the entity which has attracted R4 billion in investments.

#Halalisani Nchunu, 27, was arrested last week in connection with the murder of Sipho Masuku, a prominent RBM contractor, and found in possession of three AK-47s and a 9mm pistol.#SouthAfrica

#News, #Trump still performing well, right now he still the 🏆

#KYIV, Ukraine -Ukrainian troops have for the first time engaged with North Korean units that were recently deployed to help Russia in the war with its neighbour, Ukraine's defence minister said Tuesday.

Another #Kyiv official said Ukraine's army fired artillery at North Korean soldiers in Russia's Kursk border region.

The comments were the first official reports that Ukrainian and North Korean forces have engaged in combat, following a deployment that has given the war a new complexion as it approaches its 1,000-day milestone.
Neither claim could be independently confirmed.

The Ukrainian and North Korean troops engaged in “small-scale” fighting that amounted to the start of Pyongyang’s direct involvement in Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II, Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov told South Korea’s public broadcaster KBS in an interview.

North Korean soldiers are mixed with Russian troops and are misidentified on their uniforms, Umerov was quoted as saying by KBS. That makes it hard to say whether there were any North Korean casualties, he said.

Umerov reportedly said he expects that five North Korean units, each consisting of about 3,000 soldiers, will be deployed to the Kursk area.

Meanwhile, Andrii Kovalenko, the head of the counter-disinformation branch of Ukraine’s Security Council, said “the first North Korean troops have already been shelled, in the Kursk region.”

He provided no further details.

Western governments had expected that the North Korean soldiers would be sent to Russia’s Kursk border region, where a 3-month-old incursion by the Ukrainian army is the first occupation of Russian territory since World War II and has embarrassed the Kremlin.

U.S., South Korean and Ukrainian intelligence assessments say up to 12,000 North Korean combat troops are being sent by Pyongyang to the war under a pact with Moscow.

The Pentagon said Monday that at least 10,000 North Korean soldiers were in Russia near Ukraine’s border.

More troops from North Korea’s 1.3-million-strong army may be slated for deployment in Russia, according to an analysis published Tuesday by the European Council on Foreign Relations, an international think tank.

The ramifications extend far beyond Europe, it said.

The #Nigerian president and the UK prime minister held discreet talks at 10 Downing Street in early October. Since July, Britain's new Labour government has stepped up its contacts with Nigeria, where the UK foreign secretary is expected on 4 November.

#Botswana president concedes election defeat, BDP loses power after 58 years

President Mokgweetsi Masisi says he will ‘step aside’ after shock outcome for the governing Botswana Democratic Party.

#NAIROBI, October 21. The Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which take part in the conflict in Sudan, could have downed a cargo #plane, which supposedly carried Russian #citizens, having mistaken it for a military plane, the Sudan War Monitor website reported.

According to the report, one RSF commander said on a video, published by the militia, that it downed an "Egyptian Antonov plane" using "guided missiles." The website points out that, previously, RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo accused Egypt of engaging its planes in the conflict - an allegation rejected by Cairo.

The Sudan War Monitor claims that an Il-76 plane was downed instead, with one crew member allegedly having an ID of Viktor Granov - chief engineer or Airline Transport Incorporation FZC, based in the UAE and affiliated with Kyrgyzstan. Another crew member had a Russian passport. No survivors have been reported, and the bulk of the plane has burned, the report says.

Previously, the Russian embassy in Sudan said that it is investigating the circumstances of the crash of a plane that could have potentially carried Russian citizens. According to the embassy, the "situation is complicated by the fact that the crash site is located in the region of Darfur, which is currently engulfed in fighting.".