UN humanitarians on Monday condemned Russian attacks on Sumy city in the northeast of Ukraine over the weekend that damaged a hospital.

Matthias Schmale, the top UN aid official in Ukraine, said that the Russian military strikes killed and injured several people. He insisted that health centres must not be targeted.

Local officials reported that nine had been killed in the twin drone strikes on the northeastern city close to the Russian border, with 12 injured and more than 120 evacuated for their own safety.

Schmale’s comments came amid continuing violence on Monday, including a reported wave of drone attacks on Kyiv and protective air defence manoeuvres launched in response, according to the Ukraine military.

Outside the capital, media indicated explosions as Russia launched drone and guided bombs attack on Zaporizhzhia that damaged railways and buildings, while in Russia, Ukrainian armed forces reportedly shelled the Belgorod region.

Meanwhile, authorities in Algeria were on Monday urged by top independent human rights experts to reverse a prison sentence handed down to a poet for supporting widespread protests against the Government.

Djamila Bentouis received a two-year prison sentence and 100,000 Algerian dinars fine (worth around $750) for participating in the Hirak social protest movement via her songs and poetry recitals.

Initial charges levelled against Bentouis accused her of belonging to a terrorist entity.

The Hirak demonstrations began in February 2019 – initially against President Abdelaziz Bouteflika – but evolved into demands for political reforms and other freedoms.

The independent experts who include Alexandra Xanthaki, Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, said that the criminal charges against Ms. Bentouis appeared “directly linked” to her wish to exercise her right to freedom of expression.

The experts – who are not UN staff and receive no salary for their work – also expressed their hope that Algeria “will abide by its international obligations to guarantee the right to freedom of expression” when the appeals court considers the case on Wednesday. (NAN)

At least 20 people died after Hurricane Helene slammed into the south-eastern United States as a dangerous Category 4 storm, before later weakening to a tropical depression by Friday afternoon.The deaths were reported in US media across the states of Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Florida.

The governor of Georgia said at least 11 people had died in his state. Around 3 million people were without power across those states and beyond, with houses destroyed and entire communities flooded. There were fears that many people could still be trapped under collapsed and damaged buildings. Many roads across the region were not passable.The National Weather Service said Helene made landfall on the west coast of Florida as a Category 4 hurricane – the second highest category – but then began losing steam.The service had warned of “historic and catastrophic flooding,” and in some places on Friday the water was about 5 metres high. There were also threats of mudslides due to the extreme rain.Many victims were killed or injured by falling trees, while others died in their cars. In Florida, a woman drowned in her home, CNN reported.In North Carolina, authorities warned that a dam could break and urged nearby residents to move to safety.After pummelling the south-east, it began moving over the Appalachian mountains and affecting states like Tennessee and Virginia.Helene had already caused flooding and power outages in Cuba as it barrelled toward the U.S. (dpa /NAN)

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a $7billion loan to cash-strapped Pakistan, as the fragile economy of the South Asian nation grapples with deepening economic troubles.The executive board of the IMF approved a 37-month extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) for Pakistan.

The fund’s immediate disbursement would be about one billion U. S. dollars, the IMF said in a statement on Thursday. The Prime Minister’s office said that the first tranche of nearly $1.1 billion U.S. would be released immediately.Pakistan has approached the global lender 24 times since 1958 as successive governments failed to break the cycle of economic mismanagement and reliance on external aid.The IMF statement also said that Pakistan’s vulnerabilities and structural challenges remain formidable.Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif welcomed the development: “After achieving economic stability, we will continue to work hard to meet our targets for economic growth.”“If the same hard work continues, God willing, this will be Pakistan’s last IMF programme,” Sharif said in a statement.Sharif’s team started the groundwork soon after the February elections and reached staff-level agreement with IMF in July.His government is facing criticism after the imposition of heavy taxes on the salaried class and increasing the electricity prices.The tough and unpopular decisions taken in line with the IMF’s preconditions have substantially eroded public support for the government.Critics, especially from the opposition led by former prime minister Imran Khan, blame Sharif for making the economic situation worse.The government argues that it inherited the crisis from Khan’s administration, whose policies had left the economy on the brink of collapse. (dpa/NAN)