French train networks partially restored after sabotage attack
(PARIS) — Services to the French rail networks have been partially restored following Friday’s sabotage attack ahead of the Olympics opening ceremony.
Crews worked through the night amid inclement weather to restore service to all the lines affected by the attack. The rail company is aiming to get service fully restored by Monday.
No arrests have been made nor have suspects been identified in the arson attack on the railway system.
Most train lines were running with delays after the fires and at least 800,000 people have been affected, according to a statement from France’s rail network, according to France’s state-owned railway network SNCF.
The fires started to be reported at 4 a.m. local time on Friday, SNCF said. Trackside signal boxes were set on fire and cables on the lines had been cut, which caused major disruptions in the north and east of France, according to SNCF.
SNCF said it had increased security along all lines with 1,000 workers and 50 drones.
(HAIFA, Israel) — A 4-year-old boy accidentally smashed a Bronze Age jar during a visit to a museum in Israel on Friday, the museum said.
The ancient jar, which was on display at the University of Haifa’s Hecht Museum, dates back to between 2200 and 1500 B.C., making it at least 3,500 years old. It was especially rare due to it being fully intact — well, until recently.
The boy’s father — identified only by his first name, Alex — told the BBC the jar fell to the ground after his son “pulled the jar slightly” because he was “curious about what was inside.”
Alex was “in shock” when he saw his son next to the smashed artifact, and initially thought, “It wasn’t my child that did it,” but spoke to a security guard after calming the child down.
The museum’s director, Inbal Rivlin, told ABC News they understand it was an accident.
“There are instances where display items are intentionally damaged, and such cases are treated with great severity, including involving the police,” Rivlin said. “In this case, however, this was not the situation. The jar was accidentally damaged by a young child visiting the museum, and the response will be accordingly.”
The jar had been displayed at the museum’s entrance, without glass or barriers, which Rivlin said is a core tenet of the museum in order to make “archaeological items accessible to the public.”
“The museum believes that there is a special charm in experiencing an archaeological find without any obstructions, and despite the rare incident with the jar, the Hecht Museum will continue this tradition,” she said.
Rivlin said the jar was used to store and transport supplies, particularly wine and olive oil.
A conservation specialist has been selected to restore the jar, and Rivlin said it would be “returned to its place in a short time.”
The family was invited back to see the repaired artifact, Rivlin said, and are planning to visit again this coming weekend.
Alex told BBC he was “relieved” the jar would be repaired, but is “sorry” that “it will no longer be the same item.”
(LONDON) — Russia’s Defense Ministry said Sunday it defeated a fresh wave of Ukrainian drone attacks over the west of the country.
The ministry wrote on its official Telegram channel that 29 “Ukrainian drones were destroyed by air defense on duty overnight.”
The ministry said that 15 UAVs were downed over Bryansk region, five over the Kursk region, four over the Smolensk region, two over the Orel region and one each over Belgorod, Kaluga and Rostov regions.
On Sunday morning, the ministry said it shot down an additional Ukrainian drone over the Ryazan region.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia fired two ballistic missiles, one cruise missile and 14 Shahed UAVs into the country on Saturday night. The cruise missile and 10 Shaheds were shot down by air defenses, it wrote on Telegram.
Ukraine did not comment on its alleged overnight drone attack into Russia. Ukrainian leaders and commanders generally do not confirm or deny attacks within Russian borders.
The latest drone and missile exchange followed a large Russian drone assault against Ukrainian cities on Friday night and Saturday morning. Ukraine’s air force said it downed 72 of 76 Shahed drones fired at targets including the capital Kyiv.
Moscow said it also destroyed Ukrainian drones over two western regions on Friday night.
ABC News’ Tanya Stukalova contributed to this report.
(LONDON) — A team of over ten vets – including specialist surgeons, anaesthetists, and animal keepers – have on Thursday performed what they described as a ground-breaking world-first surgery on a Rhino with a broken leg.
Amara is an almost 2-year old Southern white rhino whose home is the Knowsley Safari Park near Prescot, in northwestern England.
Vets say they performed a lengthy “world first medical procedure” on the Rhino, who had suffered a broken leg.
“Earlier this year, Amara began limping on her right front leg,” Knowsley Safari Park told ABC News in a statement. “The Knowsley Safari team brought in specialist equine surgeons from the University of Liverpool to help with the diagnosis, where radiographs confirmed a fractured ulna.”
The ulna — also known as the ulnar bone — is a long forearm bone that stretched from the elbow to the wrist in humans. For Rhinos, the Ulna is associated with the lower front leg of the animal.
The safari park says no records or documentation exists worldwide for this form of surgery, the team having to use expertise in treating horses with similar injuries to apply it to Amara for the groundbreaking surgery.
“Under anaesthesia in Amara’s enclosure, the large team performed a lengthy operation, including key-hole surgery of Amara’s wrist, in a procedure lasting five hours.”
Dr. David Stack, senior lecturer in Equine Surgery at the University of Liverpool, says the surgery was “unlike they have experienced previously.”
“Due to the unprecedented nature of the procedure, we didn’t know how much room we would have to operate, or how much of the affected area we would be able to see,” Stack said.
He added, “We were unsure if the cast would be strong enough and how Amara would cope with such a restriction on her limb. We hoped that she would accept it and that she would be able to move around, get down and, importantly, back up again but this was unchartered water.”
The Zoo says Amara wore a full limb cast to support her leg and was kept in her enclosure to minimize her movement. The zoo says she is doing “well” with her treatment and wearing the cast, which is set to be removed in May, the zoo told ABC News.
Southern white rhinos are commonly found in savannahs of southern and eastern Africa. The species is today listed as ‘near threatened’ due to ‘decades of rampant poaching’ for Rhino horn, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
The zoo describes Amara as a Rhino known for her “boisterous play,” a trait the zoo says is typical of her species.
“Treating Amara has been a truly ground-breaking veterinary journey incorporating many firsts which we will now document should another animal team encounter similar scenarios in the future, though we very much hope the notes are never needed,” said Stack.