Russia’s Ministry of Defence confirmed on Sunday that it launched a strike targeting the Kremenchuk oil refinery, a key fuel source for Ukrainian troops in Ukraine’s Donbas region.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy slammed the attack as a “vile strike” on energy infrastructure, accusing Moscow of ignoring international appeals to de-escalate. Zelenskyy said the United States has asked Kyiv to refrain from targeting Russian energy sites.
Russia claimed to have seized control of the village of Malynivka in Donetsk, referring to it by its Soviet-era name, Ulyanovka.
Moscow reported making significant gains in Ukraine’s Sumy region, stating that its forces had pushed through enemy defences and caused major losses.
In a rare long-range operation, Ukraine said it struck a drone production site in Yelabuga, Tatarstan, about 1,000km (621 miles) inside Russia. The military said the facility had been used to launch attacks on Ukrainian civilians and energy infrastructure.
Tatarstan’s regional leader, Rustam Minnikhanov, said that a drone strike had hit a car factory near Yelabuga, killing one person and wounding 13. Ukraine claims the site is used to manufacture drones for Russian military use.
UK intelligence believes that more than 6,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed or injured while fighting alongside Moscow’s forces in Russia’s Kursk region. The United Kingdom said the figure represents more than half of the 11,000 North Korean troops originally deployed, highlighting Pyongyang’s growing role in supporting Moscow’s war effort.
Diplomacy
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for increased pressure on Russia to achieve a ceasefire, urging the Group of Seven (G7) nations to strengthen sanctions against Moscow when they meet in Canada on Monday. Zelenskyy will attend the meeting.
French President Emmanuel Macron said he plans to ask United States President Donald Trump if Washington is prepared to back stronger sanctions if Russia continues to refuse to agree to a ceasefire.
The White House confirmed that Trump would meet Zelenskyy for bilateral talks.
Russia has returned the bodies of 1,200 Ukrainians killed in the war, bringing the total number of bodies repatriated to Ukraine in a series of exchanges this week to more than 4,800.
Russia said it had not received a single Russian corpse in return, accusing Ukraine of not upholding the agreement reached in Istanbul, which would see both sides hand over as many as 6,000 bodies and to exchange sick and heavily wounded prisoners of war as well as those aged under 25.
Chemmani, Sri Lanka — Less than 100 metres (328 ft) from a busy road, policemen stand on watch behind a pair of rust coloured gates that lead to a cemetery in the outskirts of Jaffna, the capital of Sri Lanka’s Northern Province.
The officers are guarding Sri Lanka’s most recently unearthed mass grave, which has so far led to the discovery of 19 bodies, including those of three babies.
The discovery of the mass grave has reopened old wounds for Sri Lanka’s Tamil community, which suffered the worst violence of the island’s 26-year civil war between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a group that was seeking a separate homeland for Tamils.
Many Tamils were forcibly disappeared by the state, with a 2017 report by Amnesty International estimating that between 60,000 and 100,000 people have disappeared in Sri Lanka since the late 1980s. In the final stages of the war, which ended in 2009, the Tamil community alleges that nearly 170,000 people were killed, while United Nations estimates put the figure at 40,000.
Chemmani, in particular, has gripped the public imagination for more than 25 years, since the case of Krishanthi Kumaraswamy, a schoolgirl who was gang-raped by members of the Sri Lankan Army in 1996 before being killed. Her mother, brother and family friend were also murdered and the four bodies were discovered in Chemmani in 1996.
Former Army Corporal Somaratne Rajapakse, who was found guilty of Krishanthi’s rape and murder, alleged during his trial in 1998 that between 300 and 400 people had been buried in mass graves in Chemmani. Fifteen bodies were discovered the following year based on information he provided, two of which were identified as men who had disappeared in 1996 after being arrested by the army.
The discovery of the new mass grave has also revived an old question that has continued to haunt the Sri Lankan Tamil community in its quest for justice. Past excavations have not fully yielded answers to the questions about forced disappearances and killings during the war, in part because the government has not followed through on the findings, say archaeologists. Can mass graves like the one found in Chemmani really bring closure?
The road leading to the new mass grave discovered in Chemmali in Sri Lanka’s Northern Province, the country’s Tamil heartland [Jeevan Ravindran/Al Jazeera]
Babies younger than 10 months among the dead
In February, skeletal remains were discovered while a building was being constructed in Chemmani. A 10-day excavation began in mid-May.
Raj Somadeva, the archaeologist leading the excavation, told Al Jazeera that the 19 bodies discovered so far include three “neonatal” skeletons, or babies younger than 10 months old.
He said the bodies would eventually be analysed by doctors to try and determine their cause of death, and that he would use artefacts, such as cellophane wrappers bearing dates or clothes, to try and date the burials. If artefactual material is unavailable, then radioactive dating could be employed as an alternative, he said.
However, Somadeva told Al Jazeera that “less than 40 percent” of the burial site had been excavated so far and that he had already identified a second probable burial site within the cemetery using satellite images and drones to take high-altitude photographs.
“I have submitted an interim report to the court, saying it can be identified as a mass grave and further investigation is needed,” Somadeva said.
Ranitha Gnanarajah, a lawyer representing families of the disappeared, told Al Jazeera she was working with more than 600 people from the Jaffna area who were looking for their missing loved ones, the majority of whom went missing between 1995 and 2008. Many Tamils were displaced in 1995 from Jaffna, the capital of the Northern Province, the country’s Tamil heartland.
She said the families were “fully participating” in the excavation process and wanted the identification efforts to be carried out properly, given that previous excavation efforts had not led to a final conclusion. Family members of missing people are also helping the police in ensuring the security of the site.
In this photo taken on Wednesday, November 24, 2010, forensic experts and police officers investigate the mass grave found in a former rebel controlled area of Mullaitivu, Sri Lanka [Sanath Priyantha/AP Photo]
A history of failed investigations
However, the willingness on the part of the Tamil community to help excavators in unearthing clues from the Chemmani mass grave is tempered by past experiences.
Recent excavations of other mass graves in Sri Lanka have failed to lead to meaningful answers, setting off allegations of coverups.
Yogarasa Kanagaranjani, the president of the Association of Relatives of Enforced Disappearances (ARED), said she was fearful that Chemmani would follow the pattern of previous excavations in Mannar, Kokkuthoduvai and Thiruketheeswaram, all in the Northern Province.
“This could also be covered up like the other graves, with no justice or answers given,” said Kanagaranjani, whose son Amalan was part of the LTTE and disappeared in 2009 after she said he surrendered to the army. “If you ask the killers to give you justice, will they?”
The largest excavation of a mass grave was carried out in the northwestern region of Mannar. Starting in 2018, the digging was also led by Somadeva. In all, 346 skeletons were unearthed. The excavation was overseen by the Ministry of Justice and the Office of Missing Persons (OMP), established by the government in 2017.
However, Somadeva criticised the state’s handling of the Mannar excavation, saying he had received the artefacts unearthed only a week ago, three years after his initial request, and that he had still not been allocated a budget to analyse them.
He also told Al Jazeera that he had still not been paid “a single cent” for 14 months of work on the Mannar excavation, and had been forced to use his own money to cover his travel expenses.
“We can’t work under this type of circumstances. Nobody takes responsibility,” Somadeva said, describing the OMP as a “white elephant”.
An OMP representative told Al Jazeera it was participating in the Chemmani excavation solely as an observer but that it had facilitated the Mannar excavation alongside the Ministry of Justice. The representative said he believed there were no outstanding payments but was not certain, and declined to comment further in the absence of a formal complaint.
A Sri Lankan Tamil war survivor is consoled by another as she cries for her deceased family members during a remembrance ceremony on a small strip of land where thousands of civilians were trapped during the last stages of the country’s civil war in Mullivaikkal, Sri Lanka, Saturday, May 17, 2024 [Eranga Jayawardena/ AP Photo]
Demands for international oversight
A 2024 report by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) said it “remains concerned that there are insufficient financial, human and technical resources to conduct exhumations in line with international standards and encourages the Government to seek international support in this regard”.
The Jaffna-based Adayaalam Centre for Policy Research said that “the same defects that plagued the previous exhumations persist” in Chemmani, which it said was also “being undertaken without international observation or expertise”.
“If the government wants the Tamil community in general and families of the disappeared in particular to believe in the transparency and genuineness of the exhumation process, it must first adopt without undue delay a clear and comprehensive exhumation policy with adequate funding allocation, allow international participation, actively seek international expertise, and permit the families of the disappeared to participate and have a legal representation in the exhumation process,” Adayaalam said in a written statement to Al Jazeera.
The election of leftist President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in September had sparked hopes among Sri Lankan Tamils that he might support their search for justice. But Kanagaranjani, the ARED president, said that, so far, Dissanayake had failed to deliver.
“It’s now been more than eight months since the president has been in power, but he hasn’t taken the slightest notice of our problems,” she said. “Rulers change, but reality stays the same.”
Kanagaranjani told Al Jazeera that answers were vital for the families of the disappeared as would lead to “clarity”. Like the Adayaalam centre, she too said that the excavation needed “international oversight” and that “investigations [needed] to be carried out in accordance with international standards”.
Thyagi Ruwanpathirana, a South Asia researcher at Amnesty International, said calls for international oversight were “entirely legitimate” given that “there’s not been a single instance where exhumations have been seen through to the end – where remains found in mass graves have been identified and returned to family members for a dignified burial.”
Former Love Island star Molly-Mae Hague has shared an intimate family photo with Tommy Fury and their daughter Bambi in a sweet Father’s Day tribute
(Image: mollymae/Instagram)
Molly-Mae Hague has shared a touching tribute to Tommy Fury on Father’s Day – as she shared a sweet photo of the pair in bed with their two-year-old daughter Bambi. The influencer and former Love Island star, 26, who has recently rekindled with professional boxer Tommy, also 26, didn’t hold back in sharing her feelings in the adorable post.
After a tumultuous year, where Tommy moved out of their family home after the pair called off their engagement, they have come back together and now seem closer than ever. Taking to Instagram on Sunday night, Molly-Mae shared a gushing tribute to Tommy as she posted a photo of him in bed with Bambi.
“You are the most patient, calm, kind, and loving daddy ever. Watching the way you love our little girl is one of my favourite things in the world… it’s completely unconditional. You were truly made to be a dad. Happy Father’s Day,” Molly-Mae wrote alongside the sweet snap.
Molly-Mae Hague shared a touching tribute to Tommy Fury on Father’s Day (Image: Instagram)
Another photo showed Tommy and Molly-Mae back in bed together after rekindling their romance. In between them, Bambi could be seen resting on her dad’s shoulder as Molly joked that she was ‘third wheeling’ her daughter and Tommy. “I remember the days when I didn’t have to third wheel. Definition of a Daddy’s girl,” she joked.
The sweet tribute to Tommy comes after Molly recently admitted there are parts of her rekindled romance with him that she is still struggling with. The former Love Island pair stunned fans last August when they announced their shock split after five years together.
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However, the parents of Bambi have decided to give love another go and went public recently after keeping their reunion under wraps. Since announcing they are back together, the family of three have enjoyed several sweet trips, including a staycation in the Cotswolds earlier this month.
Molly joked that she was the third wheel between Tommy and Bambi(Image: Instagram)
However, the Maebe founder has admitted it’s not all smooth sailing. Speaking to her fans in her latest vlog update on YouTube, Molly-Mae confessed it has felt strange adjusting back to having their relationship in the open.
She candidly discussed how she struggled on the family’s recent trip to Disneyland Paris. She told the camera: “Disneyland was just like… I don’t want to say not enjoyable, because we had a lovely time. Disneyland was just, we went at the wrong time.”
Molly-Mae explained how the trio went to the park with loved ones during the school holidays. However, duo to their status, she revealed the family was constantly being filmed and photos being taken.
Despite trying to play down the situation, she said she noticed a number of people snapping them without permission. And it was that which was the hardest part of the trip as they had their young daughter in tow, Molly admitted.
Molly-Mae paid a gushing tribute to Tommy(Image: Instagram)
She went on: “At Disneyland, when I was with Bambi, it’s quite hard to navigate that. When you have a toddler, you’re out with your partner, and there’s already a little bit of a new thing that you’re back out together, and you’re trying to navigate that, and then you can see people looking and staring and filming.”
Molly-Mae added: “It was my birthday as well, and it was just like… kind of tricky to figure out if we were having boundaries, or there weren’t any boundaries.”
She admitted the incident has meant she won’t be rushing back to enjoy a family trip out in the open anytime soon. Despite saying “we should have known better,” Molly said their newfound relationship’s attention means they will “feel it more now”.
“It’s just a bit like new territory,” she said. “Because for people it’s a bit like taboo, I don’t know, but if people see us out, it’s like ‘oh, like let’s film!’ I don’t know – I just think I maybe felt it a bit more this time.”
As Gemma Atkinson pens a moving open letter to her late dad on her 24th Father’s Day without him, the TV and radio star reveals the heartwrenching question her little girl asks about dad Gorka
Gemma Atkinson was only 17 years old when she lost her much-loved dad David, who died of a heart attack at just 52. Marking her 24th Father’s Day without him, Gemma, in support of the palliative care and bereavement charity Sue Ryder, pens an emotional open letter in which she remembers the special person he was.
The star, who met her fiancé, Strictly professional dancer Gorka Marquez when she was a contestant on the show in 2017, opens up about how she and and their children, Mia and Thiago, keep his memory alive. -and reveals that her daughter Mia, 4, worries when her dancer dad is working away, and asks her famous mum when he’s coming home, adding devastatingly that hers, one day, never did.
READ MORE: 7-foot climbing Wisteria that blooms vibrant flowers twice a year plummets to under £60 in sale
Little Mia is very aware that one day, Gemma’s own father didn’t come home(Image: SUPPLIED)
“It’s funny how kids pick up on things. When Gorka’s away, working on Strictly, Mia asks me when Papa’s coming home. I tell her he’ll be back but twice now she’s said to me, “But your papa didn’t come home”, says Gemma. “I explain that her daddy is much fitter. That we have FaceTime and mobiles now. I let her know she can get hold of her papa anytime she wants. We often visit your grave but we always keep it positive. I don’t want to give her a fear of death. You wouldn’t want that. “
The star also reveals that she thinks her late dad would be ‘proud’ of the mother she’s become, but adds sadly: “I sobbed when I found out I was expecting Mia. Not because I wasn’t ecstatic – I was, but because you weren’t there to share our joy.”
She also says she keeps her dad’s spirit alive with her children by talking about him regularly. “I talk to Thiago and Mia about you all the time. They call you GanGan David. We’ve got a picture of you in the house and Mia thinks GanGan David lives on the moon and you can’t get out.
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“She always asks us how we can rescue you. When our dogs died it was devastating, but Mia took comfort in the fact you were looking after them somewhere. I really believe you are.”
“You’d adore Thiago too. He looks exactly like you did as a baby. That’s the first thing everyone said when he was born. People joke that Gorka has no genetics in our children whatsoever. It’s because both of them are so like me and you.
Gemma also confesses emotionally that she’d wish Gorka could have met him. “There have been many times where he would have benefitted from your advice. You travelled so much for work and Gorka needs to be away a lot too. I remember when Mia was born, he had to leave for a tour when she was three days old.
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“It broke his heart but I know you’d have helped him. I can hear your voice, saying, “I get it pal, I had to do the same. You’ll get through it.” I often feel sad that he never got to shake your hand. You only ever met my high school boyfriend. That’s hard for me.”
Palliative care and bereavement charity Sue Ryder offers a range of grief support. Visit sueryder.org/GriefDeservesBetter. Gemma Atkinson is the host of the Hits Drivetime show, airing weekdays at 4pm
Angry Ginge slammed Carlos Tevez as he showed off his bloody arm injury after the two clashed at Soccer Aid. The social media star took to Instagram after the match – in which England crumbled to the World XI in the second half – to reveal the aftermath of his run-in with the Argentine.
“Cheers Tevez. Twat,” fired the Manchester United fan as he showed off a bleeding cut on his leg from the changing room.
Tevez, who played for Man United and Manchester City during his professional career, bagged four goals before Big Zuu grabbed his team’s winner.
In a bid to stop the legendary striker, Angry Ginge bulldozed into him in a fierce tackle before Tevez jumped up from the ground and appeared to lunge at the YouTube star.
Despite being on the losing end, Angry Ginge was named Man of the Match for his performance at the back, which included a spectacular goal line clearance.
The 23-year-old dived across the goal to stop David Trezeguet equalising for the opposition. Internet star ‘Ginge’ – real name Morgan Burtwhistle – immediately rose to his feet and pumped his fists in the air towards the crowd at Old Trafford.
But it was his clash with Tevez that really got fans talking.
“AngryGinge smashes into Carlos Tevez to accomplish the dreams of every Manchester United fan,” joked one.
“Angry Ginge leaving one on Tevez, I asked for it and got it. He thinks it’s the champions league final,” added another. A third chimed in: “Not a big fan of YouTubers playing Soccer Aids. But obviously get their appeal with their fans etc. However I’m a massive fan of Angry Ginge clattering Tevez in a charity match.
The hotly anticipated match took place at the sold-out Old Trafford football stadium in Manchester to an audience of over 70,000 people. The match ended 5-4 to World XI FC, stealing the win back and keeping the overall lead with 8-6 wins since the inaugural 2006 match.
Kicking off the game, Sam Thompson officially completed his ‘Match Ball Mission’, which saw the ball travel over 270 miles by foot and by bike from Stamford Bridge last week and arrive safely at Old Trafford ready for the match today. During the show, the final total raised from Sam’s challenge was announced, at £ 2,075,564.46.
During half time, actor and Soccer Aid supporter Daniel Mays addressed the stadium crowd and viewers at home with a special speech, galvanising donations to UNICEF. Followed by an emotional and show stopping performance by Dermot Kennedy singing his hit song ‘Better Days’, supported with backing vocals from Hallé Children’s Choir.
It was another enthralling contest between England and the Soccer Aid World XI FC, as Lioness Jill Scott captained once again, leading the way for Team England, whilst Nemanja Vidic skippered for the Soccer Aid World XI FC for the first time.
Carlos Tevez celebrates his fourth goal for the World XI ( PA)
Team England started strong, as Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney scored the fastest ever goal in Soccer Aid history in the fourth minute. Not all was lost for World XI as Angry Ginge jumped to rescue goalkeeper Joe Hart with an unbelievable save in the 19th minute. Just before the half time whistle blew, Lioness Toni Duggan, in her Soccer Aid debut, snuck in an exceptional second goal for the England squad – ending the first half on 2-0 to England.
Going into the second half, former England striker Jermaine Defoe scored again for Team England, seamlessly flicked the ball into the left corner of the net, bringing the score to 3-0. Former professional footballer Carlos Tevez wowed the crowds by scoring an unbelievable two goals in rapid succession for World XI. As the 64th minute hit Defoe knocked the ball in for the second time for England – making him now the top scorer in Soccer Aid history.
Much to Paddy McGuinness’s dismay Carlos Teves scored another two times bringing the game to an even to 4-4. As the teams were neck and neck, Big Zuu secured his first ever Soccer Aid goal by sneaking the ball into the net bringing the game to a final score of 5-4 to World XI.
Shohei Ohtani is set to return to the mound as the starting pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the opener of a four-game series against the visiting San Diego Padres, the Major League Baseball (MLB) team has announced.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts originally told reporters on Sunday that Ohtani was set to pitch a simulated game in the coming days, but the team decided to give him the nod against the rival Padres on Monday.
“He’s getting very eager, very excited,” Roberts said. “I think the thought is that given where we’re at right now, anything he can give us is additive, even if it’s an inning or two innings on the front end.”
This will mark Ohtani’s first big league pitching appearance since August 23, 2023, and his first with the Dodgers. The two-way player had Tommy John surgery on his elbow in September 2023, three months before signing a 10-year, $700m contract with the Dodgers.
Ohtani has been ramping up for a return to the mound in June. On Tuesday, the right-hander threw 44 pitches over three simulated innings against minor leaguers from the Dodgers’ Arizona spring complex.
Ohtani’s return could not come at a better time for Los Angeles. Starters Roki Sasaki (right shoulder), Blake Snell (left shoulder) and Tyler Glasnow (right shoulder) are all on the injured list. Sasaki was recently forced to shut down his throwing programme after feeling discomfort this week. There is no timetable for his return this season.
In total, the Dodgers have 14 pitchers on the injured list – the most in the MLB.
Over his career in the majors, Ohtani is 38-19, with a 3.01 ERA in 86 career starts, all with the Los Angeles Angels. In 481 2/3 innings, he has compiled 608 strikeouts and 173 walks.
