Europe

KIEV, March 3 (Xinhua) -- Russian forces captured the building of Kherson regional administration in southern Ukraine, Gennady Laguta, the head of the regional administration, said Thursday on Telegram.

Laguta said the Kherson regional operational headquarters continues to work and address pressing issues to help residents of the region.

Currently, the Kherson region is waiting for humanitarian aid, Laguta added.

Russia launched a "special military operation" against Ukraine on Feb. 24. 

BUCHAREST, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Seven bodies were found in a crashed helicopter in Romania while searching for a fighter jet, bringing the double-crash death toll by two more than previously announced.

The latest figures from the National Defense Ministry show that the helicopter was actually carrying seven servicemen, two more than the usual standard.

The IAR 330 Puma helicopter took off around 20:21, in a search and rescue mission for the MiG 21 Lancer jet.

02 March 2022; MEMO: Egypt has increased the transit fees for ships passing through the Suez Canal by ten per cent, reports the Associated Press, to develop and enhance the service.

Transit fees for liquefied petroleum gas and chemical tankers increased by ten per cent whilst vessels carrying vehicles, natural gas and general cargo went up seven per cent and oil crude tankers and dry bulk vessels will go up five per cent.

THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The International Criminal Court prosecutor has launched an investigation that could target senior officials believed responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide amid a rising civilian death toll and widespread destruction of property during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan announced the probe late Wednesday night after dozens of the court’s member states asked him to take action.

(AP) --- Kyiv, bracing for a potentially catastrophic Russian attack, is the spiritual heart of Ukraine.

Among the sites at risk in the Ukrainian capital are the nation’s most sacred Orthodox shrines, dating back nearly 1,000 years to the dawn of Christianity in the region.

ROME (AP) — Pope Francis is planning to visit Congo and South Sudan in July, the Vatican announced Thursday, fulfilling a wish to minister to the faithful in the conflict-ridden countries.

Francis is scheduled to visit the Congolese capital, Kinshasa, and the city of Goma on July 2-5, and plans to be in Juba, South Sudan, on July 5-7, the Vatican said.

HELSINKI (AP) — Through the Cold War and the decades since, nothing could persuade Finns and Swedes that they would be better off joining NATO — until now.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has profoundly changed Europe’s security outlook, including for Nordic neutrals Finland and Sweden, where support for joining NATO has surged to record levels.

(AP) --- In a stunning reversal, Russian and Belarusian athletes have been banned from the Winter Paralympic Games for their countries’ roles in the war in Ukraine, the International Paralympic Committee said Thursday in Beijing.

The about-face comes less than 24 hours after the IPC on Wednesday announced it would allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete when the Games open on Friday, but only as neutral athletes with colors, flags and other national symbols removed.

LONDON (AP) — Auto shipments stopped, beer stopped flowing, cargo ships dropped port calls and oil companies cut their pipelines.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has thrown business plans into disarray and forced a growing number of the world’s best known brands — from Apple to Ford and BP — to pull out of a country that’s become a global outcast as companies seek to maintain their reputations and live up to corporate responsibility standards.

ZAHONY, Hungary (AP) — Some of Ukraine’s most vulnerable citizens have reached safety in Poland through an effort of solidarity and compassion that transcended borders and raised a powerful counterpoint to war.

On Wednesday, a train pulled into the station in Zahony, Hungary carrying about 200 people with severe physical and mental disabilities — residents of two orphanages for the disabled in Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv that were evacuated as Russian forces battered the city.