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The European Union has imposed sanctions on seven individuals and three entities it said are responsible for efforts to destabilise Moldova’s democracy, including through vote-buying and political bribery linked to the country’s 2024 presidential election and referendum on EU accession.

In a statement on Tuesday, the European Council said those sanctioned were engaged in “actions aimed at destabilising, undermining or threatening the sovereignty and independence as well as democracy, the rule of law and stability of the Republic of Moldova.”

Among those targeted are figures closely associated with Ilan Shor, the exiled pro-Russian Moldovan businessman and political figure already under EU sanctions. Shor is accused of funding political operations from abroad and leading efforts to spread disinformation.

The council named Shor’s Victory political bloc as one of the three entities sanctioned. It accused the bloc of running orchestrated campaigns to buy votes and spreading misinformation during the EU referendum.

In October 2024, Moldovans voted ‘yes’ to constitutionally codifying their goal to join the EU by a razor-thin margin amid accusations of Russian meddling.

Another group, the Cultural Educational Centre of Moldova, was listed for facilitating interference in the elections. The third entity, A7, was cited for its links to Russian political influence operations.

Those listed will face asset freezes and travel bans across the EU, the council said.

This is the second time the EU has used its special sanctions system for Moldova, which was set up in 2023 at the request of the Moldovan government. It comes as the country faces growing threats linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“The EU remains unwavering in its support for the Republic of Moldova and its peace, resilience, security, stability, and economic growth in the face of destabilising activities by external actors,” the council said, adding that destabilisation attempts would be met with firm measures.

With Tuesday’s announcement, a total of 23 individuals and five entities have been sanctioned under the Moldovan government. EU officials said the listings send a clear signal to actors attempting to undermine the country’s pro-European trajectory.

Two people have been killed in New Jersey following flash flooding in the northeastern United States that caused travel chaos, authorities said, as the region braced for more heavy rain.

Governor Phil Murphy on Tuesday noted the deaths occurred in the northern New Jersey city of Plainfield, where there were two storm-related deaths on July 3. A third person was killed in North Plainfield during that previous storm.

“We’re not unique, but we’re in one of these sort of high humidity, high temperature, high storm intensity patterns right now,” Murphy told reporters after touring storm damage in Berkeley Heights. “Everybody needs to stay alert.”

The names of the two latest victims were not immediately released Tuesday.

Flood warnings in states such as New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania began to expire on Tuesday morning as a torrential storm moved on, but some areas remain inundated with floodwater.

“A moisture-rich Summer-time airmass over much of the eastern/central US will continue to lead to areas of scattered to widespread thunderstorms capable of heavy downpours and flash flooding,” the National Weather Service said.

Videos show subway stations in New York City filling with fetid floodwater. Buses and cars in New Jersey were also stranded by flooding, and the state’s Governor Phil Murphy declared a state of emergency on Monday, warning residents to avoid unnecessary travel.

Rescue workers in New York’s Westchester County helped recover people stuck in their vehicles amid rising waters.

“At this time, residents are still strongly advised to avoid all travel unless fleeing an area that is subject to flooding, or under an evacuation order,” said Carolyn Fortino, a spokesperson for the county executive.

Emergency workers also rescued people from flooded basements and carried out 16 water rescues after severe flash flooding in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

“Intense rainfall dropped over 7 inches of rain in less than five hours,” the fire department for the county’s Mount Joy Borough said in a social media post.

The storms come amid growing debate about US disaster preparedness and predictive capacity following deadly floods in Texas that killed at least 131 people earlier this month, including dozens of children at a summer camp.

Critics have argued that sweeping cuts to numerous government agencies, including weather prediction and meteorological services, will hinder the country’s ability to anticipate and respond to incidents of extreme weather, which are becoming more frequent and severe due to climate change.

Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic Party’s nominee for New York City mayor, stated in a social media post that the flooding underscores the challenges that extreme weather driven by climate change will pose for existing and outdated infrastructure.

“We must upgrade our infrastructure for this new climate reality,” he said.

While rainfall is expected to diminish, weather services said that possible showers and thunderstorms could continue through the evening. They also warned that the region will face high temperatures in the coming days.

“After yesterday’s rainfall, today should be mainly dry. However, a few isolated showers or a thunderstorm is possible this afternoon/evening,” National Weather Service New York said in a social media post.

Brazil’s chief prosecutor has called for a guilty verdict in the case of far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro, who has denied accusations of leading an alleged coup plot.

“The evidence is clear: the defendant acted systematically, throughout his mandate and after his defeat at the polls, to incite insurrection and the destabilisation of the democratic rule of law,” Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet said in a 517-page document released late on Monday.

Bolsonaro is accused of seeking to overturn the 2022 election in which he was defeated by a left-wing rival.

“All the accusations are false. I never violated democracy or the constitution,” Bolsonaro said on X hours before Gonet submitted his final allegations. He said the trial was a “witch hunt”, echoing a term used by US President Donald Trump when he came to his South American ally’s defence last week.

The prosecution accuses Bolsonaro of leading an armed criminal organisation, attempting to stage a coup and attempting violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, aggravated damage and deterioration of listed heritage.

The defence will present its case shortly. Then the panel of Supreme Court justices that opened a trial against the former president will vote on whether to convict or acquit him. Experts expect that to happen in the second half of the year.

A coup conviction carries a sentence of up to 12 years. A conviction on that and other charges could bring decades behind bars.

The former president has repeatedly denied the allegations and asserted that he is the target of political persecution.

Trump last week imposed a 50 percent import tax on Brazil, directly tying the tariffs to Bolsonaro’s trial. The US president has described Bolsonaro as a friend.

Trump said that Brazil “is doing a terrible thing in their treatment” of Bolsonaro.

Gonet formally charged Bolsonaro and 33 others in February in connection with an alleged coup days after President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva took office.

The former president’s supporters stormed and ransacked the National Congress and other state institutions in January 2023 to reject Lula’s victory. After his defeat weeks earlier, Bolsonaro had declined to publicly concede his loss.

Police have accused Bolsonaro aides of attempting to disrupt the transfer of power to spark a military coup.

Before the election, Bolsonaro had suggested without evidence that the vote could be marred by fraud.

In his filing, Gonet said Bolsonaro’s actions “were not limited to a passive stance of resistance to defeat, but were a conscious effort to create an environment conducive to violence and a coup”.

He added that “the criminal organisation documented almost all of the actions described in the indictment through recordings, handwritten notes, digital files, spreadsheets, and exchanges of electronic messages”.

The prosecution is also seeking convictions for several close allies of Bolsonaro, including his running mate during the 2022 election, his former Defense Minister Walter Braga Netto; ex-Justice Minister Anderson Torres; and his aide-de-camp Mauro Cid.

Brazil’s Supreme Court president, Justice Luis Roberto Barroso, said the US “sanctions” — a reference to Trump’s tariffs — are based on “an inaccurate understanding” of events.

“For those who didn’t live through a dictatorship or don’t remember one, it’s worth remembering: there was a lack of freedom, torture, forced disappearances, the closure of Congress, and the persecution of judges. In today’s Brazil, no one is persecuted,” Barroso said.

On Monday, senior US diplomat Darren Beattie accused the Brazilian government of “attacks” on Bolsonaro and freedom of expression.