Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova warned Saturday that Moscow reserves the right to respond, including “symmetrically,” if Ukraine continues attacks on Russian energy infrastructure. Zakharova accused Ukraine of violating a US-brokered understanding that aimed to prevent attacks on energy facilities.”Despite the agreement, which Kiev seemed to have officially supported, treacherous attacks on Russian territory continue,” she said, describing the Ukrainian government as a “Nazi regime” and alleging it also targets civilian sites.
Russian drones kill 3 in Zaporizhzhia despite talks
Three people were killed and 12 others injured in a Russian drone strike on the Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, Ukrainian officials reported Saturday. The attack came despite a recently announced limited ceasefire, raising questions about its scope and enforcement. Regional governor Ivan Fedorov said fires broke out in residential areas, damaging homes, vehicles, and social infrastructure. Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 179 drones and decoys overnight, of which 100 were intercepted and 63 likely jammed. Debris also caused fires in the Kiev and Dnipropetrovsk regions. Russia claimed it shot down 47 Ukrainian drones in a separate attack.
Yemen’s Houthis have officially claimed responsibility for the ballistic missile that was intercepted earlier by Israel, Al Jazeera reported. Houthi spokesman Yahya Saree stated during a television address that the projectile was intended for the Ben Gurion Airport which is located near Tel Aviv. Additionally, Saree said that the group launched more than one attack against the United States aircraft carrier USS Harry S Truman in the Red Sea, though the US military has not yet confirmed the incident.
Syrian media reports Israeli airstrike near Damascus
Syrian state media on Saturday reported that Israel carried out an airstrike near the town of Najha, just south of Damascus.The strike occurred in the afternoon, though no details were immediately provided about casualties or the specific targets hit. Najha is located near several military facilities and has previously been cited in reports of Israeli strikes.
A fresh explosion has intensified a fire at a Russian oil depot in the Krasnodar region, days after a Ukrainian drone strike hit the site, regional authorities said on Friday. The blast occurred due to tank depressurization during firefighting efforts, leading to a burning oil spill. The fire expanded to cover 10,000 square meters near the village of Kavkazskaya, with over 450 firefighters involved and two injured. The Russian Foreign Ministry previously accused Ukraine of violating a proposed ceasefire, while Kiev claims Moscow is also attacking civilian targets.
NN: maybe the drone did not get the memo abot the peace deal
Russia: Sudzha station seriously damaged
A Russian investigative committee said on Friday that the gas measuring station in the town of Sudzha in the Kursk Oblast sustained significant damage. Russia accused Ukrainian forces of carrying out a terrorist act at the station, claiming it caused a “deliberate explosion” and opening a criminal case. Meanwhile, the Ukrainian military said the Russian government is “escalating a discrediting campaign against Ukraine.” It alleged that Russian forces repeatedly shelled the station, including last summer, blaming Ukraine for the attacks. The incident follows partial ceasefire negotiations, in which both Russia and Ukraine agreed in talks with the United States to a 30-day pause in attacks on energy infrastructure.
nn: i guess ceasefire translates different in Russian
The price of Bitcoin fell 3.5% on Thursday and continued its downward trajectory from earlier this week despite United States President Donald Trump’s call for the US to become the “undisputed Bitcoin superpower.”
Investors remained focused on the impact of Trump’s tariffs on the economy and the renewed tensions in the Middle East.
Bitcoin slumped 3.55% at 12:47 pm ET and sold for $83,811.210, while Ethereum sank 5.01% at the same minute to sell for $1,954.4662.
Oil prices continued to follow an upward trend on Thursday after the United States imposed fresh sanctions targeting Iran’s oil sector in the latest round of economic escalation. The sanctions heightened investor worries about the situation in the Middle East where the US has stepped up airstrikes against the Yemeni Houthis and amid the breakdown of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
West Texas Intermediate sold for $68.34 per barrel. Brent for the same month’s settlements sold for $71.78 per barrel.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its partners, known as OPEC+, revealed on Thursday an updated compensation cuts plan that will run through June 2026.
Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, and Oman have all committed to oil production cuts, OPEC shared in a statement. The compensation cuts will stand at between 189,000 barrels per day and 435,000 barrels per day, depending on the month.
Previously, only Iraq, Kazakhstan and Russia have shared that they would cut supply to make up for the overproduction in 2024.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said it downed a missile launched from Yemen before it entered Israeli airspace. The missile triggered sirens across central Israel before it was downed. There have been no reports of injuries or damage. The Yemen-based Houthis claimed responsibility for the attack, saying they were targeting the Ben Gurion Airport. On Tuesday, the Houthis launched a ballistic missile toward Israel which was also shot down before crossing the border.
Trump says Iran will suffer ‘dire’ consequences for any more Houthi attacks
President Donald Trump on Monday said that further attacks or retaliation by the Houthis would be considered an attack by Iran and it would face “dire” consequences. Trump’s threat comes after the United States launched a new series of airstrikes against the Yemeni group beginning Saturday. The Houthis on Sunday claimed to have thwarted “a hostile attack the enemy was preparing to launch against our country.” A U.S. official told ABC News that the Houthis fired 11 drones and one ballistic missile at the USS Harry S Truman aircraft carrier group in the Red Sea on Saturday, none of which came close to hitting any U.S. vessels.In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump called the Houthis “sinister mobsters and thugs” said their attacks “emanate from, and are created by, IRAN.”
Trump said Iran is “dictating every move, giving them the weapons, supplying them with money and highly sophisticated Military equipment, and even, so-called, ‘Intelligence.'”
“Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN, and IRAN will be held responsible, and suffer the consequences, and those consequences will be dire!” Trump said.
Nick Note: Its put up or shut up time. Donald Trump promised yesterday that if there’s any more Houthis attacks Iran would be held responsible and suffer dire consequences. All hell would break loose. Don’s been promising a lot of hell breaking loose and the problem is it sounds like bullshit to me. He’s bluffing and around the world his is being called out. He told Hamas if they didn’t release all of the hostages in 24 hours all hell would break lose. Nothing happened. He promised peace in the Ukraine nothing happened. In fact the drone attacks ae increasing. He published on truth social media, were inquiring minds get their news, any further attacks by the Houthis using Iranian weapons all hell would break lose,,,…. well i am still waiting. I’m afraid don is losing credibility. Hs is becoming an embarrassment. He better do something and soon otherwise he’s going to become the laughing stock of mankind. If you promise all hell’s going to break loose then it better happen.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Bird flu has devastated poultry and dairy farms, and sent the price of eggs soaring in the United States since it was first detected in North America in late 2021. But what has been the toll on wild birds? More than 170 species of North American wild birds – including ducks, geese, gulls, owls, eagles and others – have been infected with bird flu.
Take precautions around sick or dead wild birds, experts recommend. But you can keep your bird feeder up. Despite the spread in birds and other wild animals, scientists say the threat to the general population is currently low.
Which wild birds can get bird flu?
More than 12,000 individual birds have tested positive since the virus began spreading, according to the U.S. Agriculture Department. The count is a “gross underestimate” because most dead birds are never taken to a lab for testing, said Bryan Richards at the U.S. Geological Survey’s National Wildlife Health Center in in Madison, Wisconsin.What does the bird flu outbreak mean for backyard bird feeders? AP correspondent Jennifer King reports. Dabbling ducks, such as mallards and blue-winged teal, can carry the virus with few symptoms because “these viruses co-evolved in waterfowl,” said Richards. But ducks can also shed the virus in their feces or saliva, sometimes infecting other birds or mammals like foxes.
Birds without natural immunity that migrate or roost together in large flocks, such as geese, are most likely to die in large numbers. A recent bird flu outbreak among migratory eared grebes in Utah killed between 15,000 and 25,000 birds near Great Salt Lake, state wildlife officials said in early February.Seabirds, which tend to roost in large numbers, are also highly impacted. Songbirds such as Northern cardinals, blue jays or chickadees — the kind of birds that might visit bird feeders — can also become infected and die, but their populations appear to fare better since they don’t gather closely in large groups where the virus could spread, said Michael J. Parr, president of the American Bird Conservancy.
Symptoms vary, but may include lack of coordination, inability to fly and respiratory distress. “If people see a wild bird acting weird, the best thing they can do is call their local wildlife rehabilitator” and avoid handling it directly, said Dr. Dana Franzen-Klein, a veterinarian and medical director at the University of Minnesota’s Raptor Center.If you must handle an infected bird, it’s best to wear gloves and a mask as a precaution. Experts say bird feeders are generally safe and aren’t a notable source of spreading bird flu. But if you also keep backyard chickens, Parr of the American Bird Conservancy recommends taking the bird feeder down to prevent possible transmission to poultry. Birdfeeders and nesting boxes should also be cleaned regularly.The risk of spread to people from bird feeders “is very, very low,” he said. In the case of critically endangered California condors, scientists organized a vaccination program after some birds became infected. But that’s not a realistic option for most wild bird species. Instead, experts recommend giving wild birds the best chance by taking other steps to protect habitats and reduce various risks that species face, such as exposure to pesticides or lead ammo. Bald eagles, which are federally protected but no longer endangered, are scavengers that will eat dead animals. “That first year, we lost a lot of eagles” likely from bald eagles eating infected ducks or bringing them to their nests, said Richards. Scientists also documented an unusually high number of eagle chicks that didn’t survive into adulthood during the first breeding season after the virus appeared in North America, likely because the chicks got the virus or sick parents weren’t able to adequately feed and care for them. But over time, the number of confirmed infections in eagles nationwide has declined from 427 in 2022 to 48 last year. That may mean that eagles that survived the first year now have some acquired immunity, said Franzen-Klein. This past migration season, researchers counted a record number of bald eagles migrating through northern Minnesota.
NN: Its time to follow Bird Flue another China genetically engineered virs
Crude oil inventories in the United States saw an increase of 1.7 million barrels during the week ending March 14,
according to new data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration released on Wednesday. Crude oil prices were trading down prior to the crude data release by the U.S. Energy Information Administration after the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported on Tuesday a build of 4.593 million barrels in U.S. crude oil inventories amid a strong gasoline draw. The Brent benchmark was trading down 0.14% at 10:05 a.m. ET at $70.46 —essentially unchanged from this same time last week. The WTI benchmark, meanwhile, was trading down 0.25% at $66.73—down roughly $.50 from last week’s level. For total motor gasoline, the EIA estimated that inventories decreased by 500,000 barrels for the week to March 14, with production averaging 9.6 million barrels daily. This compares with a large inventory decrease of 5.7 million barrels for the previous week and an average daily production of 9.6 million barrels daily. For middle distillates, the EIA estimated another inventory decrease, this time of 2.8 million barrels, with production increasing to an average of 4.6 million barrels daily. This compares to an inventory dip of 1.6 million barrels in the week prior, when production stood at an average 4.5 million barrels daily. Distillate inventories are now 6% below the five-year average for this time of year. Total products supplied over the last four weeks were down week over week, averaging 20.6 million barrels per day—a 2.5% increase over this time last year. Distillate products supplied over the last four weeks are up 8.3% compared to this time last year, while gasoline products supplied were on par with levels from the same period last year. Oil prices began trading up shortly after release.
President Vladimir Putin refused to give Donald Trump the 30-day ceasefire in Ukraine he and his team had demanded on the path toward ending the three-year conflict. It was still good enough for the US president.The agreement that came out of the two leaders’ phone call on Tuesday was a disappointment for US officials who had insisted the only acceptable outcome was a halt in the fighting to make way for a permanent peace.Instead, Putin agreed only to limit attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure while demanding that the US and other nations stop the flow of weapons and intelligence to the neighbor his military invaded.Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he’d agree to such an idea provided the US plays the role of middleman. And Trump, never one to admit defeat, hailed the result as a victory — and as a possible first step toward a bigger deal. “Many elements of a Contract for Peace were discussed,” Trump said in a social media post about the call, in which the two leaders also agreed to start a negotiating process toward a larger ceasefire. “That process is now in full force and effect, and we will, hopefully, for the sake of Humanity, get the job done!” Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, who met with Putin to help set the stage for the leaders’ call, said in a Fox News interview that a US delegation led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz will go to Saudi Arabia for further talks on granular details aimed at moving toward a ceasefire. Even the faint progress on Tuesday for Trump’s high-profile but controversial ceasefire proposal could be enough to silence some criticism that he’s selling out the Ukrainians. It may even constitute a political win at a time when some analysts feared Trump might formally recognize Russia’s sovereignty over Ukraine’s Crimea region or make some other concession.“I was expecting the worst,” retired Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, the former commanding general of US Army Europe, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. “The fact we did not hear those is better than if we had. But we have to be very clear — I think Vladimir Putin has zero interest in any true long-term settlement as long as he remains in power, and his objective still remains the destruction of Ukraine.”Witkoff said the agreement to reduce hostilities stretches beyond energy infrastructure to infrastructure in general — even though the Russian summary of the call didn’t say that — and that there was consensus on those two issues between Trump and Putin. He also said he hopes Ukraine will agree to a maritime ceasefire in the Black Sea. “And I think it’s a relatively short distance to a full ceasefire from there,” he added.
nn: this is se sik shit! “Today, Putin effectively rejected the proposal for a full ceasefire,” the Ukrainian leader said in a post on X in English. “It would be right for the world to respond by rejecting any attempts by Putin to prolong the war Although Ukraine was the focus of the call with Putin, Trump signaled he also has his eye on broader geopolitical and economic gains from a renewed relationship with Russia. The next big question is whether European allies will see things the same way as Trump. So far, they suggested they won’t. UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said the UK and European Union are in talks to accelerate arms shipments to Ukraine ahead of a potential full ceasefire, not stop them as Putin demanded. Lammy said he discussed the possibility of sending more military support to Ukraine before any broad cessation in fighting is implemented at a meeting in London with the EU’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, on Tuesday. The idea was also raised at the Group of Seven meeting of foreign ministers in Canada last week, he said. Crude oil prices dipped on the news of the partial ceasefire, as they do on any positive news about progress towards peace in the Ukraine, since peace would likely mean the lifting of U.S. sanctions in Russian energy, facilitating the access of Russian oil to international markets.
