Barrage Of Cruise Missiles Rock Western Ukraine, Plunging Lviv Into Darkness

"Ukrainian city of Lviv said they heard several large blasts in the evening hours. It has since
emerged that railway power substations are coming under attack, after the Kremlin last week indicated its military would ramp up efforts to thwart Western arms deliveries into Ukraine.

Ukrainian Railways has announced Tuesday night that a number of trains are delayed after the blasts. "In particular, trains have been detained at the entrance to Lviv, information is being updated," a statement from the rail authority quoted by CNN said. The attacks, which are being called the biggest cruise missile strikes on Lviv and perhaps across Ukraine since the war's start, have knocked out power and internet to parts of the city. Vital power and train stations have also been hit in other key areas of the country Tuesday night (local time)." ZH

Hunter Had Meetings With Russian Oligarch Close to Putin and Sanctioned by UK, Australia (but Not Biden)

"Hunter had multiple meetings and business dealings with a Russian oligarch who was close to Vladimir Putin: Vladimir Yevtushenkov. Hunter and his partners were trying to court Yevtushenkov to invest in their real estate company in 2012 and 2013. Hunter met with him in Moscow for dinner at his company Sistema on February 16, 2012. Journalist Vicky Ward allegedly has further calendar entries from Sistema that indicate Yetushenkov thereafter met with Hunter Biden in New York on March 14 at the Ritz-Carlton and then had another breakfast with Rosemont Realty on March 15 in Texas.

Hunter Biden’s partner, Devon Archer, said in emails that they had more meetings with Yevtushenkov.

Yevtushenkov owns a company that allegedly provides drones that are being used to bomb Ukraine and used to own a Russian defense contractor. On top of that, Yevtushenkov has now been sanctioned by the U.K and Australia. But he hasn’t been sanctioned by the Biden Administration." RS

Probes launched into 75 foreign ‘mercenaries’ in Ukraine

"Russia’s Investigative Committee has launched at least 75 criminal probes into foreign  “mercenaries” fighting against Russian forces in Ukraine, the committee’s chairman, Alexander Bastrykin, told RT. He claimed that among the individuals are British, American, Norwegian, Canadian, and Georgian nationals.

In an interview published on Tuesday, Bastrykin said the Russian authorities had collected extensive evidence implicating these foreign fighters, and some have been captured by Russian troops, he added." RT

Firefights Break Out As Azov Fighters Briefly Emerge From Steel Plant

"Fierce fighting broke out Tuesday in the largely Russian-controlled southeast city of
Mariupol, where for nearly two months some 2,000 Ukrainian Azov fighters and up to hundreds of civilians have been holed up in the gigantic and cavernous Azovstal steel plant, completely surrounded by Russian forces.

After repeatedly demanding the Azov militants lay down their arms and come out, it's believed to be only a matter of time before a final battle, given those trapped inside and underground are said to be running low on food and water, and also crucial ammo. An commander with the neo-Nazi Azov regiment told CNN, "Since the morning, the enemy has been trying to assault the Azovstal plant with significant forces using armored vehicles. Our soldiers bravely repel all attacks" - and confirmed that Azovstal "is now being assaulted." ZH

Russian troops killing civilians in Central African Republic

"Human Rights Watch on Tuesday said there was "compelling evidence" that Russian
paramilitary troops were committing serious rights abuses and killing civilians in the Central African Republic. fighting resumed abruptly when rebels launched an offensive to overthrow President Faustin Archange Touadera.

After the president called on Moscow for help, hundreds of Russian paramilitary forces helped push back the rebels, who still hold sway over swathes of the country.

The private military contractors are often described as belonging to the "Wagner group" - a Russian entity with no known legal status. Russian, appear to have summarily executed, tortured, and beaten civilians since 2019, Human Rights Watch said." France24

ANOTHER Food Plant Catches Fire In Virginia Amid Wave of Destroyed Food Facilities

"Another food processing facility has caught fire in Chesapeake, Virginia on Saturday, amid a
spate of mysterious food plant accidents taking place across America.

The latest incident took place at the Perdue Farms grain processing facility, where a soybean tank was found ablaze by plant workers. Over the last several week alone, dozens of food processing facilities have been damaged or destroyed in fires, plane crashes, and other curious incidents across the U.S." IW

Putin to undergo cancer surgery, transfer power to ex-FSB chief

"Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to undergo cancer surgery and temporarily hand over power to a hardline former federal police chief, according to a new report.

Putin will transfer control of Russia’s government to Nikolai Patrushev, head of the Russian federal police’s Security Council, while he is incapacitated during and after the procedure, according to a video from the mysterious Telegram channel “General SVR” on Saturday.

The channel — which is purportedly run by a former Russian Foreign Intelligence Service lieutenant general known by the pseudonym “Viktor Mikhailovich” — reported that Putin has been told by doctors that he must undergo an operation. “I will say that this is the worst option,” the narrator adds. “Patrushev is an outright villain. He is no better than Vladimir Putin. Moreover, he is a more cunning, and I would say, more insidious person than Vladimir Putin. If he comes to power, Russians’ problems will only multiply.” NYP

Human Infection of H3N8 Bird Flu Reported in China

"China’s health authority recorded its first human infection of the H3N8 strain of avian
influenza. The variant was identified in a 4-year-old boy from Henan province. The child raises chickens and crows in his home city of Zhumadian. On April 5 he showed fever and other symptoms, then was admitted to a medical institution five days later for treatment." SaraCarter

 

Look Who’s Back: Russians Restore Lenin Statue in Ukrainian Town

"Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, observed: “While Ukraine is the first in the world to introduce e-passports, ‘orcs,’” that is, Russian forces, “are restoring Lenin’s monument in temporarily occupied Nova Kakhovka.” PJMedia

Russia Threatens to Nuke Britain, France, and Germany

"Russia threatened a dramatic escalation of its war in Ukraine Thursday when Russia’s
Channel One featured a video depicting Russian missiles reaching Berlin, Paris, and London. Channel One’s 60 Minutes program, one of the most popular TV shows in Russia, featured “the chairman of the nationalist Rodina party, Aleksey Zhuravlyov,” who “suggested Russia could launch a Sarmatmissile attack on the UK.” This was not, however, Zhuravlyov’s eccentric view: “Producers then cut to a map of Kaliningrad and seemed to suggest that missiles could be launched from the Russian enclave between Poland, Lithuania and the Baltic Sea.” The show’s other host, Popov’s wife Olga Skabeyeva, then added: “Sarmats are not in Kaliningrad yet. From Kaliningrad to Berlin is 106 seconds, from Kaliningrad to Paris is 200 seconds. You’re interested in London, 202 seconds to London.” Zhuravlyov responded happily: “They need to be shown this picture. ‘Guys, look at this picture — count the seconds, can you make it? Hello, it’s already here.’ That’s the way. Let them think about it. Get a stopwatch, count [to] 220 seconds. That’s how you talk to them, they don’t understand anything else.” PJMedia

Heroic ‘Ghost of Kyiv’ fighter doesn’t actually exist, Ukraine admits

"The “Ghost of Kyiv” is a myth, Ukrainian officials admitted over the weekend. After several news outlets last week identified the legendary, mysterious, hero fighter pilot as a 29-year-old dad recently killed in battle with the Russians, military officials acknowledged Saturday that there was no such person. “The ghost of Kyiv is a superhero-legend, whose character was created by Ukrainians!” Ukraine’s Air Force Command wrote on Facebook. The reputed hero had been credited with taking out as many as 40 Russian aircraft until he was shot down March 13 while battling an “overwhelming” number of enemy forces, the Times of London had reported. The Times identified the supposed Ukrainian war hero as Major Stepan Tarabalka. But while Tarabalka was a distinguished war hero, he was not the “Ghost” — because there never was such a person, Ukraine said. “Hero of Ukraine Stepan Tarabalka is NOT ‘Ghost of Kyiv’ and he did NOT shoot down 40 planes,” said the country’s Air Force Command." NYP

Bird Flu Puts Organic Chickens Into Lockdown From Pennsylvania to France

"Organic and free-range chickens have been thrown into lockdown. Egg-laying hens that
normally have access to the outdoors can no longer roam as freely or feel the sun on their beaks as some U.S. and European farmers temporarily keep flocks inside during lethal outbreaks of bird flu, according to egg producers and industry representatives.The switch comes as a surprise to shoppers already shelling out more money for eggs due to cullings of infected flocks. The virus can also infect humans, though experts say the risk is low. In France, where the government has temporarily required farmers to keep chickens indoors since November, some retailers are defying obligations to post clear information for consumers about the mandate, according to checks of grocery stores by Reuters. "I didn't know that they had to stay inside," said Josephine Barit, 34, a shopper at a small Paris store that had no indications hens may have been confined." U.S.News&WorldReport

Hacker Attacks on Russia Gain Attention But Cause Little Damage

"....a group of hackers managed to get access to several Russian state-owned television
channels and broadcast anti-war videos. 

But the attack ended after a few minutes and regular programming resumed. 

The online offensive against Russia appears to have been carried out by shadowy hacking groups, and it has included data leaks, distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, anti-war posts on state-owned websites, and even making printers in Russia spew out anti-war messages. 

“[Worldwide hacking collective] Anonymous is pursuing a policy of ‘1,000 pinpricks’ with its hacker attacks,” said Dennis-Kenji Kipker, an expert on IT security at the University of Bremen. “Although these actions are regularly celebrated as successes, the sustainability of the cyber-attacks is doubtful.” MT

Finland scraps nuclear plant deal with Russia

"Finnish group Fennovoima said on Monday it had canceled its contract with Russian state-
owned nuclear power giant Rosatom to build a nuclear power plant." RT

House Republican Introduces Bill To Give Biden Sweeping Authorities To Wage War In Ukraine

"On Sunday, Congressman Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) announced a new Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF). If passed, the AUMF will allow President Joe Biden to deploy American troops to defend Ukraine if Russia uses chemical, biological, or nuclear weapons." ZH