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Russia’s Lavrov blames Ukraine for tried assassination of prime common
Again to Russia, we’re getting a line from the Russian overseas minister, Sergei Lavrov, blaming Ukraine for the tried assassination of a prime Russian common in Moscow.
In feedback reported by Reuters, he stated that it confirmed that “Zelenskyy seeks to derail peace course of” after talks in Abu Dhabi earlier this week.
This Kremlin narrative – offered with none proof – is just not significantly shocking, as Pjotr Sauer defined earlier (10:19).
Key occasions
Calls to postpone presidential election as Storm Leonardo lashes Portugal and Spain
Sam Jones
in Madrid
Heavy rains and powerful winds continued to batter components of Spain and Portugal on Friday, inflicting not less than one demise, forcing the evacuation of greater than 7,000 individuals and prompting calls to postpone the second-round of Portugal’s presidential election.
Storm Leonardo, which has lashed the Iberian peninsula this week, has led the Portuguese authorities to increase the present state of calamity in 69 municipalities till the center of February.
The storm has killed one man in Portugal, leaving a younger lady lacking within the southern Spanish area of Andalucía. It’s the newest in a sequence of lethal storms to have hit Portugal and Spain in latest weeks, killing a number of individuals.
The injury and uncertainty introduced by the storm has given rise to calls to postpone Sunday’s second spherical of the presidential election in Portugal.
André Ventura, the chief of the far-right Chega celebration, stated the vote ought to be delayed by every week because the ballot was “a matter of equality amongst all Portuguese”.
However the nationwide electoral authority stated the vote would go forward as scheduled.
“A state of emergency, climate alerts or total unfavourable conditions are not in themselves a enough motive to postpone voting in a city or area,” it stated.
Authorities in Andalucía, the place greater than 7,000 individuals have been compelled to go away their houses, evacuated residential areas close to the Guadalquivir River in Córdoba in a single day as a result of the dramatic rise in water ranges.
About 1,500 residents have been ordered to go away their houses in Grazalema, a mountain village common with hikers, as water seeped via the partitions of homes and cascaded alongside steep cobbled streets.
Andalucía’s regional president, Juan Manuel Moreno, instructed Cadena Ser radio that aquifers within the Grazalema mountains had been full and will provoke landslides owing to pent-up stress. “This might trigger giant holes or ditches. If this occurs beneath a home or road, the outcome may very well be dramatic,” Moreno stated.
He added geologists had been assessing the state of affairs in Grazalema to find out when residents would have the ability to return to their houses.
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, was attributable to go to the hardest-hit areas of Andalucía afterward Friday.
Scientists say human-driven local weather breakdown is rising the size, depth and frequency of utmost climate occasions such because the floods and heatwaves which have struck each international locations lately.
TikTok may very well be compelled to alter app’s ‘addictive design’ by European Fee

Dan Milmo
World know-how editor
Elsewhere, TikTok may very well be compelled into adjustments to make the app much less addictive to customers after the EU indicated the platform had breached the bloc’s digital security guidelines.
The EU’s govt arm stated in a preliminary ruling that the common app had infringed the Digital Companies Act (DSA) attributable to its “addictive design”.
The European Fee stated TikTok, which has greater than 1 billion customers worldwide, had not adequately assessed how its design might hurt the bodily and psychological wellbeing of customers together with youngsters and weak adults.
By continually “rewarding” customers with new content material, the Chinese language-owned platform fuelled fixed scrolling and shifted the brains of customers into “autopilot mode”, the fee added, which might result in compulsive behaviour and scale back customers’ self-control.
The preliminary ruling accused TikTok of ignoring indicators of compulsive use, such because the period of time youngsters spend on the app at night time.
The fee stated it was contemplating forcing adjustments to the app’s design, together with alterations to its highly effective algorithm that pushes content material to customers.
Russia’s Lavrov blames Ukraine for tried assassination of prime common
Again to Russia, we’re getting a line from the Russian overseas minister, Sergei Lavrov, blaming Ukraine for the tried assassination of a prime Russian common in Moscow.
In feedback reported by Reuters, he stated that it confirmed that “Zelenskyy seeks to derail peace course of” after talks in Abu Dhabi earlier this week.
This Kremlin narrative – offered with none proof – is just not significantly shocking, as Pjotr Sauer defined earlier (10:19).
Protesters rally in Milan in opposition to US ICE presence at Milano Cortina Olympics
Tons of of protesters gathered in Milan on Friday to oppose the presence of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) brokers and the closure of colleges and streets within the metropolis forward of the opening ceremony of the Milano Cortina Winter Video games.
Reuters reported that protesters – largely college students with indicators studying “ICE out” – assembled in Piazzale Leonardo da Vinci, in entrance of a constructing of the Politecnico College within the jap a part of town.
The US state division stated final week that a number of federal businesses, together with ICE, would assist shield the visiting Individuals, a choice that instantly triggered protests in Milan.
On Thursday, Nicole Deal, chief of safety and athlete companies for the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee insisted that no brokers from ICE had been offering safety for the Workforce USA delegation.
However La Repubblica newspaper stated on Friday that its sources claimed three ICE brokers had been nonetheless embedded within the broader US presence.
The paper additionally reported extensively on the heavy US safety presence reportedly involving 45 autos and over 300 safety brokers to guard the US vice-president JD Vance and the US secretary of state Marco Rubio.
The opening ceremony is on tonight on the fantastic San Siro, with a number of rumours and leaks about how goes to star and what they will sing, together with some actually huge Italian hits…
The ceremony is predicted to final 2,5 hours, and see not one, however two Olympic cauldrons in each host cities of Milan and Cortina.
There may be additionally some late political drama as to which official delegations will even participate, as some leaders are reportedly not that eager on sitting subsequent to one another.
Italy’s prime minister Giorgia Meloni can be anticipated to satisfy with JD Vance this afternoon, and I one way or the other doubt they are going to be speaking concerning the huge air competitors.
Oh, and curling, luge, and downhill are on now. Simply saying.
For detailed protection of the Olympics, be part of our particular dwell weblog right here:
Former PM, Nobel committee chair investigated by Norway’s financial crime police unit after Epstein recordsdata launch
Norway’s financial crime police unit, Økokrim, stated it has opened an investigation into former prime minister and chairman of the Norwegian Nobel committee, Thorbjørn Jagland, on suspicion of aggravated corruption, Reuters reported.
The choice to analyze Jagland, additionally a former secretary common of the Council of Europe, was based mostly on info revealed by newly launched recordsdata associated to the late US intercourse offender Jeffrey Epstein, Økokrim stated.
“We think about there are cheap grounds for investigation, provided that he held the positions of chair of the Nobel Committee and secretary common of the Council of Europe throughout the interval lined by the launched paperwork,” Økokrim director Paal Loeseth stated in an announcement.
Jagland has not been charged with any crime and the investigation will amongst different issues cowl whether or not presents, journey and loans had been obtained in connection along with his place.
Separate investigations associated to the most recent Epstein recordsdata launch have additionally been opened in Poland and Lithuania, amongst others.

Jakub Krupa
I’ll deliver you extra from Russia when we now have it, however within the meantime…
First photos from the scene of the tried assassination of Russian common
Alekseyev’s taking pictures will likely be seen as failure to guard key army personnel – snap evaluation

Pjotr Sauer
Russian affairs reporter
Alekseyev’s taking pictures will likely be seen as the most recent failure of Russia’s safety companies to guard key army personnel deep inside Russia.
Whereas particulars of who carried out the assault and the way it was organised stay unclear, Russian army bloggers have criticised obvious safety lapses, questioning how a gunman was capable of enter the condominium constructing undetected.
When Lt Gen Igor Kirillov, one other distinguished army official, was killed in December 2024 after an explosive gadget planted in a scooter detonated as he left his house in Moscow, Vladimir Putin described the killing as a “gravest failure” of Russia’s legislation enforcement businesses.
Russia’s Putin being briefed on prime common’s assassination try, Kremlin says
The Kremlin has simply stated that particular companies are wanting into the tried assassination reported this morning, and Russia’s president Vladimir Putin is being briefed on the incident, Reuters reported.
‘Hanging’ timing of the taking pictures prompts Russia accountable Ukraine – snap evaluation

Pjotr Sauer
Russian affairs reporter
The timing of the taking pictures is putting. It got here a day after Russian and Ukrainian delegations – together with Alekseyev’s direct superior, Igor Kostyukov – met in Abu Dhabi, the place each side spoke of obvious progress within the peace talks.
Some in Moscow swiftly blamed Ukraine, alleging with out proof that Kyiv was trying to derail the talks.
“An try on Alekseyev’s life is one of the simplest ways to derail these talks, and the one one that stands to profit on this state of affairs is Volodymyr Zelenskyy,” stated Alexei Zhuravlev, a Russian parliamentarian.
He known as for these concerned to be eradicated, describing Alekseyev as “one of the authoritative and revered generals within the Russian military.”
Earlier peace efforts have damaged down over Russia’s maximalist territorial calls for on Ukraine, with Moscow repeatedly rejecting Kyiv’s requires an instantaneous ceasefire.
Russian information company Interfax is reporting that the investigators are at present CCTV recordings from the crime scene and interrogating eyewitnesses, with early reviews that the attacker fired “a number of photographs” at Alekseyev.
Moscow’s suspicions are more likely to fall on Kyiv as assault on army chief investigated – snap evaluation

Pjotr Sauer
Russian affairs reporter
Alekseyev is a deputy director of Russia’s army intelligence company, the GRU. He has been extensively described as a key determine overseeing the nation’s non-public army firms and was among the many senior officers dispatched to barter with Yevgeny Prigozhin throughout the Wagner group’s temporary mutiny in the summertime of 2023.
He’s additionally beneath US sanctions for his alleged involvement in efforts to intervene within the 2020 presidential election.
No celebration has claimed accountability for the assault, however suspicion in Moscow is more likely to fall on Kyiv. Ukrainian intelligence businesses have focused dozens of Russian army officers and Russian-installed officers for the reason that begin of the battle, accusing them of involvement in battle crimes.
Little is publicly recognized concerning the clandestine networks believed to be behind assassinations and assaults on army infrastructure inside Russia and in Russian-controlled territories.
Morning opening: Deputy chief of Russian army intelligence shot

Jakub Krupa
We’re opening right this moment’s dwell weblog with breaking information coming to us from Moscow that a deputy chief of Russian army intelligence was shot and wounded Friday, officers stated, in feedback reported by AP.
Lt Gen Vladimir Alekseyev was shot a number of occasions by an unidentified assailant in Moscow, Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko stated in an announcement.
She stated that Alekseyev was hospitalised. Petrenko didn’t say who may very well be behind the assault Alekseyev has served as the primary deputy head of Russia’s army intelligence since 2011.
AFP famous that a number of high-ranking army officers have been killed since Moscow launched its full-scale offensive on Ukraine in February 2022.
I’ll deliver you extra when we now have it.
It’s Friday, 6 February 2026, it’s Jakub Krupa right here, and that is Europe Dwell.
Good morning.