Rubble and death | Gaza City. pic.twitter.com/TP8CoeNfQm

— TIMES OF GAZA (@Timesofgaza) October 17, 2024

Hamas leader killed during a field confrontation with Israeli army while clad in full military uniform, directly contradicting earlier assertions that he had been hiding among Israeli captives in Gaza tunnels. | Yahya Sinwar, the political leader of Hamas, was killed in a gunfight during Israeli army raid, with no prior intelligence, Israeli media has revealed. ● Reports indicated that Sinwar, Israel's top target, was killed during a field confrontation, where he was dressed in full military uniform, contradicting previous Israeli claims that he had been hiding among Israeli prisoners in tunnels for months in tunnels in Gaza. ● Israel’s official public broadcaster noted on Thursday that Sinwar's constant movement explained his readiness for combat, as he was armed and wearing military gear. ● Earlier Thursday, the army said, in cooperation with the Shin Bet security agency, it carried out dozens of operations in recent months, which restricted Sinwar's movements and eventually led to his killing. ● It added that a unit from the 828 Brigade spotted and killed three Hamas members during a clash in southern Gaza. After completing DNA tests, it was confirmed that Sinwar was among the dead.

■ 'Fearless leader': Netizens pay tribute to Yahya Sinwar as he goes down fighting (PressTV)
■ Hamas confirms leader Yahya Sinwar martyred in Israeli strike (PressTV)
■ Netanyahu Promises More War, Dashing Peace Hopes After Hamas Leader Killed (DD India)
■ Khaled Mashal becomes new Hamas leader after Sinwar’s death (TASS)

Donald Trump has slammed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy for failing to seek peace with Russia | Donald Trump has blamed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for helping start that nation’s war with Russia, a comment that further suggests Trump is likely to radically shift US policy toward Ukraine if he wins the US election. ● The Republican former president has frequently criticised Zelensky on the campaign trail, repeatedly calling him “the greatest salesman on Earth” for having solicited and received billions of dollars of US military aid since the war broke out in 2022.

■ Former Russian president praises Trump over Zelensky remark (RT.com)

Hungary does not support Volodymyr Zelensky's "victory plan" because it is the shortest path to World War III, the political director of the Hungarian prime minister's office, Balazs Orban, said. | He stressed that the plan involves escalating the conflict and involving NATO countries in it, which Hungary does not accept, since it believes that the European Union should change its strategy to a peaceful one. "Zelensky's ‘victory plan’ is the shortest path to unleashing World War III, so Hungary does not support it," Orban said on social media on Thursday. ● On Wednesday, Zelensky said Ukraine's so-called "victory plan" had been fully prepared. The plan contains five provisions, including one that would let Ukraine strike deep inside Russia and allow Western allies to deploy their conventional weapons on Ukrainian soil to "deter" Russia.

Dmitry Medvedev (Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council) (Дмитрий Медведев) |Three events that did happen during the week:

1. Trump became the first former U.S. president and presidential candidate to admit that direct responsibility for the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine (or, to be more precise, for the civil war) lies with the dirty-green drug-addicted scum, which is fed by the West and which has lost all legitimacy. This admission will change nothing about the U.S. position, even if the ginger Donald regains the Oval Office. But the very statement of this kind is extremely important for the future.

2. Given the seemingly meaningless chatter surrounding the creation of nuclear weapons by the Banderite Ukraine, there is only one sad conclusion: the Nazi regime is trying to create a “dirty bomb”. It has all the capabilities for this purpose: raw materials, technologies, and specialists. And any Soviet-era laboratory will do for the manufacture of a low-power charge. The clock is ticking.

3. The whole world was waiting for what would be included in the Kiev Nazi's notorious “victory plan”. That's it, we can exhale. The plan has been revealed! It is not a “plan for victory”, but simply a plan for victory. The word “plan” should be taken literally: as a slang name for marijuana, anasha, hashish, cannabis, cannabis, hemp, and so on. In other words, the substance tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which has a psychotropic effect. Apparently, the overseas comrades ordered their offspring to be more careful and change coke for grass. (Translation: DeepL (free version) + Grammarly)

■ Kiev working on dirty bomb, Medvedev warns (TASS)

The main place of worship in Cherkasy is no longer “graced by God” after a forced takeover, Metropolitan Theodosius has said | The Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) has little choice but to “go underground” after being forced out of its main place of worship in the central city of Cherkasy, the leader of the diocese has said. Dozens of men in military-style clothing stormed St. Michael’s Cathedral, the largest church in Ukraine, early on Thursday morning. The raiders were initially repelled by members of the church, but a renewed assault hours later resulted in the Kyiv-backed Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) seizing control of the building. The Ukrainian government has been cracking down on the UOC for years, claiming that the organization does the bidding of the Russian government. [Lying between their teeth,] Ukrainian officials described the transfer of the Cherkasy cathedral as “peaceful.” While the attackers were preparing for their second attempt to seize the building, Cherkasy Mayor Aleksandr Bondarenko urged people to go to the cathedral to “express their thoughts about… the presence of a Moscow church in our city.”

■ Church raid in Ukraine linked to Zelensky ‘victory plan’ (RT.com)
⚡️ Комментарий официального представителя МИД России М.В.Захаровой в связи захватом Архангело-Михайловского собора Украинской православной церкви в Черкассах (МИД России 🇷🇺)