China launches military manoeuvres around Taiwan in wake of election, FT reports.

China has staged its largest military manoeuvres around Taiwan in three weeks, in its first active response to the election of Lai Ching-te as the country’s president last weekend.

The People’s Liberation Army conducted joint air and naval combat patrols near Taiwan on Wednesday night, with 24 PLA aircraft and five PLA Navy vessels operating in the area, Taiwan’s defence ministry said.

According to the ministry, “11 of the aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait or entered Taiwan’s south-west and north air defence identification zone”.

China calls on Iran and Pakistan to refrain from escalation, Beijing is ready to help in the settlement, Chinese MFA says.

France will begin supplying Ukraine with 50 AASM glide bombs per month throughout the year starting from January.

Armement Air-Sol Modulaire (Modular Air-to-Ground Armament), commonly called AASM or HAMMER, is a French precision-guided munition developed by Safran Electronics & Defense.

Suspected Jordanian airstrikes on southern Syria killed 10 people, including children.

Jordan's Army has stepped up a campaign against drug dealers in recent weeks after clashes last month with dozens of people suspected of links to pro-Iranian militias carrying large hauls of narcotics over its border with Syria, along with weapons and explosives.

This is one of the caves used by PKK terrorists in northern Iraq.

The cave can be accessed through a total of 18 different tunnels.

Inside, there are facilities such as an operating room, pharmacy, kitchen, pantry, toilet and water tank.

The main corridor is about 300 meters long.

The tunnels have been dug like a labyrinth and complicated with false tunnels with no exit.

It has been destroyed by Turkish forces.

Pakistan releases footage of guided artillery strikes conducted against Iran today targeting Baluchi forces.

Russian Defence Minister Shoigu visited MKB Raduga Design Bureau, which specializes in the development and production of a wide range of Russian cruise missiles.

These missiles are used against Ukraine.

The general director said the enterprise has fully fulfilled the state defense order for 2023, and since the beginning of Ukraine's invasion, the volume of production of high-precision weapons has increased eight times.

Such famous missiles as Kh-101, Kh-55, Kh-59 and many others were developed in the Raduga workshops.

Russian tank is no more, destroyed by Ukrainian forces.

Absolute destruction of Russian BMP-3 IFV by Ukrainian FPV drone strike.

Captured Russian Army contracted Somalian man Mohammad Adil:

"Russian commanders said I will serve inside Russia. And their soldiers will fight on the front line."

He signed the contract on December 3, and already on January 4 he was on the front line.

He had to serve one month to receive his first salary, but he was captured before the end of this term.

"I am a simple person who came from another country to earn a living for my family in Somalia. I know nothing about strategic things in war: how to hide, how to fight, how to work with weapons, how to do anything," he said.

Mercenaries from Nepal, Egypt, India and Tajikistan are also fighting in the ranks of the Russian Army.

Russian commanders divide them into small groups and simply say: "Go, go, go!".

"We were ordered to get into a car, taken and left near a small house, given weapons, magazines and grenades."

Adil says now he would like to return to the past, not to see the announcement about recruitment to the ranks of the Russian army, and return home.

NATO plans to mobilize 90,000 soldiers for biggest military exercise since the end of the Cold War, Deutsche Presse-Agentur reports.

Israeli official confirms Biden administration is working on a "giant regional deal" that will bring an end to the war, to normalization between Israel and the Arab world, to the release of the kidnapped - and an alternative regime in Gaza.

Source: Israel Hayom

Iran's Foreign Ministry calls Pakistan's attack on Iranian territory "disproportionate" and "unacceptable".

#BREAKING Another U.S. attack on Yemen's Houthis

For the fifth time in a week, the United States on Thursday attacked Houthi anti-ship missiles in Yemen, two U.S. military officials said to NYT.

The U.S. military conducted the pre-emptive strikes against three Houthi missiles and launchers after U.S. surveillance aircraft detected that they were being prepared to attack commercial carriers and Navy warships in the Red Sea and nearby waters.

Biden says U.S. strikes on Yemen's Houthis are "not working".

Reporter:

Are the airstrikes in Yemen working?

Biden:

Well, when you say 'working' — are they stopping the Houthis? No. Are they gonna continue? Yes.

American MQ-9 Reaper UAV was reportedly shot down over the province of Diyala, northeastern Iraq last night by Iran-backed Iraqi forces.

The average unit cost of an MQ-9 is estimated at $30 million.

The first Turkish astronaut in space

The first Turkish astronaut, Alper Gezeravcı, and three other crew members blasted off on a voyage to the International Space Station (ISS).

Along with Gezeravcı, four space travelers from Spain, Italy, and Sweden will conduct more than 30 scientific experiments and demonstrations on the ISS as part of the Ax-3 mission.

"I would like to start this moment with the words of our great leader, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of our modern Türkiye:

"The future is in the skies."

Trump on his relations with Putin, Kim Jong-un & Xi:

It’s good to get along with people that have massive nuclear weapons & large nuclear stockpile.

Senior Houthi official Mohammed al-Bukhaiti promises safe passage for "Russian and Chinese vessels" through the Red Sea.

“As for all other countries, including Russia and China, their shipping in the region is not threatened,” he said.