Articles by Maira Butt

Technology

Nato scrambles fighter jets after Russian planes violate Lithuania’s airspace in ‘blatant breach’

Nato has been forced to scramble jets in response to Russian violations of Lithuania’s airspace. Two Russian military aircraft, an Su-30 fighter jet and an II-78 refuelling tanker, entered the Nato member state on Thursday for approximately 18 seconds, prompting a formal reaction from the Alliance. They were possibly on a refuelling training mission when they flew 700m (0.43 miles) at 1500 GMT, the military said. “I strongly condemn the violation of Lithuanian airspace by the fighter jet and transport plane of the Russian Federation from a Kaliningrad region site,” Lithuanian president Gitanas Nausėda said in a statement. “This is a blatant breach of international law and territorial integrity of Lithuania,” he added on X. “Once again, it confirms the importance of strengthening European air defence readiness.” Russia’s defence ministry has denied the incident and said none of its Su-30 jets training in the Kaliningrad region violated the territory of any country. The Russian province is sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania. Nato’s Baltic Air Police scrambled Spanish Eurofighter Typhoon jets that were patrolling the area in response. It deployed aircraft to the Lithuanian airbase of Siauliai as part of its Operation Eastern Sentry. A Nato official told Reuters that the swift response demonstrated “Nato’s readiness to respond to any developments and ability to ensure the safety of the Alliance’s airspace”. Lithuania summoned Russia’s top diplomat to issue a stern protest after the incident. It has informed the Alliance, European Union allies and the North Atlantic Council of the episode, the country’s foreign ministry said. “This incident once again shows that Russia is behaving like a terrorist state, disregarding international law and the security of neighbouring countries,” Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene said on Facebook. “Lithuania is safe. Together with our allies, we look after and will defend every centimetre of our country.” The latest incursion follows a spate of similar events starting with more than 20 Russian drones entering Poland last month, prompting its foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski to request that a no-fly zone be implemented. Former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander of Nato, Sir Richard Shirreff, told The Independent that he believes the incursion was a “deliberate attack to probe Nato defenses”, adding that if Russia “smells weakness” it will persist in its aggression: “Nato has to respond with real strength.” Nine days later, Russia’s military jets were accused of violating Estonia’s airspace for 12 minutes on 19 September. Russia denied its planes entered the country and accused the Estonia of purposefully inflaming tensions between Russia and Europe. Violations were also alleged to have taken place in Romania, as training drills got underway in Belarus. Denmark later accused Russia of encroaching its airspace, which Russia has denied.

Technology

Trump claims allies in Middle East will send troops into Gaza and ‘straighten out Hamas’ if ceasefire fails

Donald Trump has claimed that US allies in the Middle East have offered to send “heavy force” into Gaza to “straighten out Hamas”. In a post on Truth Social, the US president wrote that leaders in the region had told him “explicitly and strongly” that they would act against the militant group “if they continue to act badly”. “There is still hope that Hamas will do what is right. If they do not, an end to Hamas will be FAST, FURIOUS, & BRUTAL! I would like to thank all of those countries that called to help,” he wrote. Trump did not clarify which of the Middle Eastern countries had offered to fight Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Qatar, Egypt, Turkey and the US have all been involved in diplomatic negotiations but it is unclear whether they will provide military help. During a press conference in Israel on Tuesday, vice president JD Vance reiterated Mr Trump’s warning on Monday that Hamas must “behave” or face “severe repercussions”. He threatened that Hamas would be “obliterated” if they did not play ball, although he confirmed that there would be no US boots on the ground in Gaza. Mr Vance also downplayed the significance of recent violence, with Israel killing scores of people in Gaza after accusing Hamas of breaching the ceasefire, and said the implementation of the ceasefire was going “better than expected” and that the Israeli government had been “remarkably helpful”. He said that the location of some of the dead hostages’ bodies in Gaza remains unknown and described the situation as “difficult”, supporting claims by Hamas that they had not located all the bodies - despite Israeli claims to the contrary. Hamas’ military wing said on Tuesday that it would hand over the bodies of two more deceased hostages at 9pm local time on Tuesday (7pm UK time). If the handover is carried out successfully, this will bring the number of deceased captives and hostages remaining in Gaza down to 13. Mr Vance also said Hamas must disarm or “very bad things are going to happen”, although he declined to place a deadline on the group, saying: “I don’t think it’s actually advisable to say this has to be done in a week.” President Trump wants Hamas and other factions to disarm and Gaza to be demilitarised as part of his peace deal. But the group has never accepted this and says mediators have not yet officially started discussing the issue with it. During a meeting with Mr Albanese on Monday, Mr Trump said: “They’re going to be nice, and if they’re not, we’re going to go and we’re going to eradicate them. “Hamas has been very violent, but they don’t have the backing of Iran any more. They don’t have the backing of really anybody any more. They have to be good, and if they’re not good, they’ll be eradicated.” At least 97 Palestinians have been killed by Israel, according to Gaza’s health authorities, since a ceasefire was announced on 11 October. The Israeli military said it fired at “terrorists” who crossed an invisible “yellow line” in Rafah on Sunday, which marked a withdrawal point for Israeli troops who remain occupying 53 per cent of the Gaza Strip. Two Israeli soldiers were killed in the exchange, according to the Israeli military. Israel temporarily cut off aid in response. Hamas said it had no knowledge of individuals operating in the Rafah region and had not been in touch with groups there since March. Israel demands that the body of every hostage be returned. Hamas has requested specialist equipment to find the remains. The militant group has drawn increased criticism after it executed seven Palestinians last week for “collaborating with Israel”. Following the announcement of a ceasefire, Israel-backed militias, armed clans and Hamas factions have began fighting each other amid a power vacuum in the Strip. Two of the groups The Independent spoke to denied accusations that they were backed or supported by Israel. Hossam al-Astal, running an armed faction called the Counter-Terrorism Strike Force, also behind Israeli lines, told The Independent he is already in touch with the Trump administration about the plan for a post-war Gaza, and wants to work with Tony Blair. “Today, we’re the ones who are there with credibility,” he says. “We are determined and capable. In the near future, it will be us, not Hamas.” US special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and Mr Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, landed in Tel Aviv Monday to work on the second phase of a 20-point ceasefire agreement. Kushner, a businessman, boasted about his strong relationships with countries in the Middle East, stating that his strong cultural awareness created a relationship of trust. “We have trusted relationships in the Arab world and even in Israel, where we’ve both done business in the past. But that means they trust us,” he told 60 Minutes. “We understand their cultures. We understand how they work. And we’re able to use that knowledge and skill set to try to do things that advance the world.” The pair met with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss “developments and updates in the region”, having played a leading role in the first phase of negotiations.

Can Trump win the Nobel Peace Prize – and who nominated him?

The US president claims he has ended ‘seven wars’ - even though many of the conflicts are still taking place. Experts tell Maira Butt that Trump is unlikely to win, but not to rule him out