RT News - June 29 2024 (early) Iran elections, Middle East conflict escalations

In Iran, the results of the election will soon be announced. Vote counting has been going on since the polls closed at midnight Iranian time (+ 3hrs 30 BST + hrs 30 EST) Mahdi Abbasian and Seyed Mostafa Khoshcheshm report from Tehran and discuss the two leading candidates. Extended reporting and latest news.
Two candidates (Masoud Pezeshkian and Saeed Jalili) are leading the count. Turnout is estimated at around 40%. Both candidates have different standpoints. Unconfirmed counting suggests (from State media reporting) that after counting over 19 million votes, Pezeshkian had 8.3 million and Jalili has 7.2 million. There were four candidates on the ballot: Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Jalili, Pezeshkian and Mostafa Pourmohammadi. ***
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The US "Presidential Debate" - Trump -v- Biden. Various commentaries are going around. Will Joe Biden drop out of the presidential race?
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Conflict/crisis in the Middle Eastern regions: Iran's mission to the UN has warned that Israel will face an obliterating war should Israel launch a full scale attack on Lebanon. IDF has continued to attack southern Lebanon overnight. Maria Finoshina reports from Haifa. Reem Hazzan (local MP) comments - says the Israeli leadership are pushing for war and that they don't care about civilians (from any side or part) at all. Local anti-war activist Gaia Dan says Israel .gov is pressing for further war but won't publicly admit it. The consensus of Haifa citizens is that they do not want extended war with anyone, including Lebanon.

*** stop press Iran’s presidential election heads to a run-off. Iran will hold a run-off between Pezeshkian and Jalili on July 5 after no candidates were able to secure a 50 percent majority in Friday’s poll, Iran's Interior Ministry has announced.
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Below: 1) Five people killed in Ukrainian drone strike on Russian region – governor
2) Zelensky preparing ‘plan to end war’
3) Russia builds houses for Palestinian refugees
4) Russia preparing to ban ‘extremist’ child-free ideology
5) Major EU airline introduces hefty ‘environmental charge’
6) German secret service ‘finally fit for war’ – Welt
7) US warned over ‘chronic fiscal deficit’
8) Iran count
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Short take: Vote counting is underway in Iran as the people choose a new president following last month’s death of Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash. The New York Times editorial board calls on Biden to drop out of the presidential race calling him a “shadow of a great public servant” after his train-wreck performance in the first debate with Donald Trump. Independent US Presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. argues that the nation deserves better than to choose between the lesser of two evils. People across the country are echoing this sentiment. Iran threatens Israel with a devastating war if Tel Aviv decides to embark on full-scale military aggression against Lebanon’s Hezbollah as Israel says it’s ready to open another front.
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1) Five people killed in Ukrainian drone strike on Russian region – governor 29 Jun, 2024 05:41

Two small children are among the victims of the attack on Kursk Region, Aleksey Smirnov has said

Five people have been killed in a Ukrainian drone strike on a settlement in Russia’s Kursk Region, local governor Aleksey Smirnov has said.

A quadcopter UAV dropped an explosive device on a residential building in the village of Gorodische, near the border with Ukraine overnight, Smirnov wrote on Telegram on Saturday.

“To our great sorrow, five people were killed as a result of the discharge, including two small children,” he said. Two more members of the same family were hospitalized in critical condition, he added.

On Saturday, Russia’s Defense Ministry said at least six attempts by “the Kiev regime to carry out terrorist attacks on Russian territory with the use of unmanned aerial vehicles” were intercepted overnight.

Russian air defenses destroyed two drones in Tver Region, one in Bryansk Region, one in Belgorod Region and two in Crimea, the statement read.

The Russian regions of Belgorod, Bryansk and Kursk, all of which border Ukraine, have been the targets of Ukrainian missile, mortar and drone attacks almost on a daily basis since the outbreak of the conflict between Moscow and Kiev in February 2022. The strikes have targeted energy infrastructure and residential areas, resulting in civilian deaths and injuries, as well as the destruction of property.

More details to follow
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2) Zelensky preparing ‘plan to end war’ 28 Jun, 2024 18:10

Kiev is taking heavy casualties and doesn’t have much time, the Ukrainian leader has said

Ukraine is preparing a “comprehensive plan” for ending the conflict with Russia that should be ready by the end of the year, Vladimir Zelensky has said.

Zelensky made the comments at a press conference in Kiev, after meeting Slovenian President Natasa Pirc Musar on Friday.

“We will also work out all other points of the Peace Formula and prepare a comprehensive plan that will be on the table before our partners,” Zelensky said. “It is very important for us to show a plan to end the war that will be supported by the majority of the world. This is the diplomatic path we are working on.”

The so-called peace formula is a ten-point document Zelensky unveiled in November 2022, which envisions Russia ceding all formerly Ukrainian territory, withdrawing all of its troops, paying reparations and submitting to war crimes tribunals, among other things. Moscow has dismissed it as unrealistic and “detached from reality”.

Ukraine “must be strong on the battlefield,” Zelensky added, because Russia only respects strength.

“These are two parallel things – to be strong on the battlefield and to develop a plan, a clear plan, a detailed plan. And it will be ready this year,” he told reporters.

Zelensky’s comment came after he signed a long-term security pact with the EU on Thursday, obligating the bloc to years of military and financial aid. The US and several of its allies have signed separate aid pacts with Kiev, also pledging to prop up Kiev “for the long haul.” Western diplomats have openly said that the purpose of such treaties was to protect the Ukraine policy in case Donald Trump wins the November US presidential election.

Speaking in Brussels, Zelensky had argued that Ukraine “does not want to prolong the war” and does not want the conflict to last “for years.”

“We have many wounded and killed on the battlefield. We must put a settlement plan on the table within a few months,” he said, without offering details.

Kiev has been coy about Ukrainian casualty figures, insisting instead that it has inflicted massive losses on Russian forces. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, Ukraine lost 35,000 troops in May alone and has lost close to 500,000 since the start of the conflict.
https://www.rt.com/russia/600174-zelensky-ukraine-peace-plan/
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3) Russia builds houses for Palestinian refugees 28 Jun, 2024 22:10

Some displaced Gazans have found a new home in Grozny, capital of Russia’s Chechen Republic

Over 200 Palestinians displaced from Gaza have been given apartments in a newly built neighborhood of Grozny, the capital of Russia’s Muslim-majority Chechen Republic, regional leader Ramzan Kadyrov has announced.

A foundation run by Kadyrov’s mother Aymani commissioned the construction of the five apartment buildings, to permanently house refugees welcomed to the Russian region last November.

“Congratulations to the Palestinian brothers and sisters on finding new comfortable housing! I wish them never to see war again, to live in plenty and prosper!” Kadyrov said in a statement on Friday.

The refugees, who were initially housed in at the Gorny Klyuch children’s resort southeast of Grozny will now move into a ‘cottage community’ in the Visaitovsky District of the Chechen capital, where 209 people will live in 40 new apartments, Kadyrov said.

According to the Chechen head, construction of the complex took about six months. During this time, 55 of the Palestinians found jobs, while their children and teenagers were placed in schools and universities. All of them have been studying Russian.

“Our immediate plans include the creation of a Palestinian community in the Chechen Republic so that refugees can preserve their national identity,” Kadyrov added.

The buildings were opened in a ceremony marking the 20th anniversary of the Akhmat Kadyrov Foundation, named after Ramzan’s father, who played a key role in ending the decade-long separatist insurgency and reintegrating Chechnya into Russia.

“The Chechen people, like no other, know all the hardships of war. We have all gone through terrible trials, we have seen hunger, cold, and the death of loved ones. Therefore, the grief that befell the Palestinians is very close to us,” Kadyrov said in the announcement.

The vast majority of Chechens are Muslim. Kadyrov has repeatedly voiced his support for the Palestinians in the ongoing Gaza conflict.

Over a million Palestinians have been displaced from their homes in Gaza since last October. Following a series of deadly raids by Hamas, in which some 1,200 Israelis died and 250 were taken captive, Israel declared war on the Palestinian militant group. Almost 38,000 Palestinians have died in the subsequent bombing and ground invasion of the enclave, according to the Hamas-run health authorities.
https://www.rt.com/russia/600180-palestinians-grozny-chechnya-kadyrov/
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4) Russia preparing to ban ‘extremist’ child-free ideology 27 Jun, 2024 14:51

The country needs tools to protects its traditional values, the deputy justice minister has said

Russian lawmakers have prepared a draft bill that would ban child-free ideology in the country, Deputy Justice Minister Vsevolod Vukolov has said.

The active promotion of childlessness has become increasingly common over the past decade, and is an “extremist ideology” that Russia should resist, Vukolov argued on Thursday in a speech at the St. Petersburg International Legal Forum.

“We are now actively preparing bills to prevent the spread of child-free ideology,” he said. One should not be able to promote ideas that “nowadays girls, especially young ones, do not need to give birth, they can do without children,” the official added.

A legislative system should be created to counter such negative social trends in Russia and other countries that share the same traditional values, the deputy minister argued. “These laws must be worked out and promoted. And they must become the tools to protect our values. This is the main task,” he explained.

Speaking to journalists after his speech, Vukolov confirmed that a bill banning the promotion of a child-free lifestyle has been put forward in the Russian parliament. The legislation will now be studied by experts in the field, he added.

The Justice Ministry will react when “concrete proposals” are presented, he stressed.

Vukolov added that the state should not only operate through bans, but also do more to create social conditions that encourage couples to have children.

In November last year, Russia’s Supreme Court outlawed the “international LGBTQ public movement” in the country, designating it an extremist organization. The move followed a law banning sex-change operations, signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier in 2024.

In February, the state statistics agency Rosstat revealed that only 1.264 million babies were born in Russia in 2023, the lowest number since 1999. According to the agency’s forecast, birth rates will only start growing after 2028. By 2046, the Russian population is projected to decline to 138 million.

During an address to the Federal Assembly in February, President Putin said that “a large family with many children should become the norm, the philosophy of social life, the guideline of the entire strategy of the state.” According to the Rusian leader, over the next six years, the population should achieve a sustainable increase in its birth rate.
https://www.rt.com/russia/600105-childfree-ban-values-vukolov/
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5) Major EU airline introduces hefty ‘environmental charge’ 28 Jun, 2024 19:58

Lufthansa has added a surcharge of up to €72 for plane tickets to comply with regulations

Germany’s flagship airline Lufthansa has announced a surcharge of up to €72 ($77) for plane tickets, as it seeks to offset the cost of complying with new EU rules on using more expensive sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

According to the company statement issued this week, the levy will be applied to all tickets issued by June 26 and for departures starting from January 1, 2025 onwards.

On short and medium-haul flights, fares will go up by up to €5 in economy and €7 for business class, Lufthansa told Reuters. On long-haul flights, travelers in business class will be charged between €18 and €36 extra while first class customers will be charged up to €72.

The additional cost will be applied to flights departing from any of the EU’s 27 member states, as well as the UK, Norway and Switzerland, Lufthansa said. All flights sold or operated by Lufthansa Group, which owns airlines including Lufthansa, Eurowings, Swiss and Edelweiss Air, and Austrian Airlines, will be subject to the charge.

“The surcharge is intended to cover part of the steadily rising additional costs due to regulatory environmental requirements,” Lufthansa said.

New EU regulations mandate that fuel suppliers ensure 2% of fuel at EU airports is SAF by 2025, rising to 6% by 2030 and 70% by 2050.

However, experts have been warning that the measures aimed at making flying less polluting could result in higher costs being passed on to customers.

In January 2022, Air France-KLM became the first EU airline to add extra biofuel charge to tickets. The company announced at the time it was adding up to €12 on business fares and up to €4 on economy fares.

Air France-KLM is now considering broadly similar measures to Lufthansa, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters, indicating the charges could rise further.
https://www.rt.com/business/600177-lufthansa-environment-ticket-fee/
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5a) Human waste could soon power planes 12 Apr, 2024 14:27

A world-first factory in the UK will convert sewage into sustainable aviation fuel

British biofuel company Firefly has reached an agreement with the low-cost airline Wizz Air to build a commercial refinery that will help convert sewage into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

According to Firefly, which has developed the conversion process, the fuel is still undergoing regulatory testing. If approved, it could be used to power aircraft, the company said this week.

The refinery, the first of its kind, will be built in Essex and could start delivering commercial supplies of SAF by 2028 to serve London’s airports. There is potential for two more such facilities in the UK, according to Firefly.

Wizz said it was investing by making a massive order for up to 525,000 tons of Firefly’s waste-based fuel over the next 15 years.

Meanwhile, utility company Anglian Water has announced it will provide Firefly with biosolids from its wastewater treatment process for a pilot facility.

Firefly chief executive James Hygate said biosolids are “kind of disgusting stuff” but “an amazing resource.”

“We’re turning sewage into jet fuel. I can’t really think of many things that are cooler than that,” he added.

SAF production uses 70% less carbon than conventional jet fuel, but is currently significantly more expensive to produce.

According to Paul Hilditch, Firefly’s chief operations officer, “there’s enough biosolids in the UK for more than 200,000 tons of SAF” – which he said is sufficient to satisfy about half of the mandated SAF demand in 2030.

Converted sewage should be cheaper and more abundant, and could provide 5% of the fuel needs of airlines in the UK, Hilditch claimed.

Under a government mandate, at least 10% of fuel used by airlines in the UK must be made from sustainable feedstocks by 2030.
https://www.rt.com/news/595805-human-waste-fuel-planes/
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6) German secret service ‘finally fit for war’ – Welt 28 Jun, 2024 17:23

The armed forces’ spy agency could soon receive more powers, according to a draft bill seen by the news outlet

Germany’s Military Counterintelligence Service (MAD) could soon be granted additional powers to protect itself from infiltration by perceived enemies, particularly Russia, the news outlet Welt reported on Friday.

Citing a draft bill on the expansion of MAD’s powers, Welt stated that the agency is looking to use its expanded intelligence capability outside German military bases during foreign missions. Additionally, it wants to be able to monitor not only its own soldiers, but also foreign nationals, by intercepting their communications and using informants.

The German Defense Ministry is reportedly seeking the additional powers in order to strengthen MAD for the “turning point” previously outlined by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, referring to the political situation in Europe and the perceived threat posed by Russia.

“The amendment grants the Military Counterintelligence Service the necessary powers to protect the Bundeswehr against espionage and sabotage by foreign powers, as well as against extremist attempts at infiltration from within its own ranks, even during foreign missions,” a ministry spokesperson told the outlet, noting that the new law is expected to take effect this year.

The reason for the German Defense Ministry’s push to pass the bill as soon as possible is that by the end of 2027, a “war-ready brigade” of nearly 5,000 troops is expected to be permanently stationed on NATO’s eastern flank in Lithuania, near the borders with Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad Region. In April, Germany sent an advance military team to the Baltic nation.

According to the ministry spokesperson, the current legal framework prevents MAD from being able to counter Russian infiltration attempts, as the secret service is only allowed to operate within German barracks, and only against its own soldiers during foreign missions.

Moscow has condemned German plans to establish a permanent presence in Lithuania, stating that such a move represents the “continuation of escalating tensions and creating pockets of danger” for Russia along its border, which would force the country to take “special measures to ensure our own security.”

Russia has also repeatedly stressed that it poses no threat to any NATO states and has no plans or interest in attacking any European nations. Russian President Vladimir Putin has called such suggestions “bulls**t” that is being touted by Western officials in order to exploit their own citizens.
https://www.rt.com/news/600176-germany-fit-for-war-russia/
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7) US warned over ‘chronic fiscal deficit’ 28 Jun, 2024 09:18

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has criticized Washington for the persistent “misalignment” of its fiscal policy

US budget deficits and soaring debt present a “growing risk” to the global economy and must be urgently addressed, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned on Thursday. *

The country's national debt is piling up, approaching $35 trillion, data shows. The US federal budget deficit jumped from $1.4 trillion in fiscal 2022 to $1.7 trillion last year, according to the IMF’s latest figures.

The Congressional Budget Office, the official fiscal watchdog in the US, predicted earlier this month that the deficit was likely to hit $1.9 trillion this year, representing around 7% of GDP.

“Such high deficits and debt create a growing risk to the US and global economy, potentially feeding into higher fiscal financing costs and a growing risk to the smooth rollover of maturing obligations,” the IMF said in a statement on its ‘Article IV’ review of US economic policies.

“These chronic fiscal deficits represent a significant and persistent policy misalignment that needs to be urgently addressed,” it added.

The US exceeded its debt ceiling, which was legally set at $31.4 trillion, in January 2023. After months of warnings regarding an imminent default from the US Treasury, President Joe Biden signed a debt bill in June 2023 that suspended the cap until January 2025. This effectively allowed the government to keep borrowing without limits through next year. Debt spiked to $32 trillion less than two weeks after the bill was approved, and has been ballooning ever since.

The IMF also directed harsh criticism toward Washington’s increasingly aggressive trade policies. In an apparent reference to escalating tensions with China, the watchdog said the country’s “ongoing expansion of trade restrictions and insufficient progress in addressing the vulnerabilities highlighted by the 2023 bank failures” could undermine financial stability around the world.

The IMF statement is just the latest warning on US overspending. On Tuesday, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said the US debt-to-GDP ratio was at its highest since World War II. The debt-to-GDP ratio is a metric used to gauge a country’s ability to repay what it owes.

Last year, the nation’s debt surged to 122% of its GDP, according to the OECD.
* https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2024/06/27/cs62724-united-states-concluding-statement-of-the-2024-article-iv
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https://www.rt.com/business/600140-us-national-debt-warning-imf/
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8) Pezeshkian: 10.4 million Jalili: 9.5 millon Ghalibaf: 3.4 million Pourmohammadi: 206,397
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