Russian delegation to meet Ukrainian officials in Turkey, but unclear if Putin will attend
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(LONDON) — Moscow on Wednesday said it would send a delegation to Istanbul to meet with Ukrainian officials, potentially bringing diplomats from the two at-war countries together for the first known in-person direct talks in more than three years.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Wednesday that Russian diplomats would travel to Turkey, but didn’t detail which officials would be present.
The confirmation followed an act of one-upmanship from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine, who on Wednesday said he would be willing to meet personally with Russian President Vladimir Putin, should the latter decide to travel to Turkey.
“We are ready for such direct diplomacy to put an end to killings and advance real peace,” Zelenskyy said on social media “And this must certainly be discussed with the person who makes decisions in Russia.”
Peskov, who spoke in Moscow on Wednesday, wouldn’t confirm which Russian officials would be present. Putin had on Sunday proposed the direct talks.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — An alleged leader of violence during the Rwandan genocide in 1994 has been living in an exclusive enclave on Long Island as a beekeeper. He was arrested Thursday and accused of concealing his role in horrific violence and human rights violations by making false statements in his applications for a visa, green card and for U.S. citizenship, according to the Justice Department.
Faustin Nsabumukunzi is charged with visa fraud and attempted naturalization fraud for allegedly lying on his application for a green card and for U.S. citizenship.
Nsabumukunzi was arrested at his home in Bridgehampton and pleaded not guilty Thursday in Islip federal court. He was released on $250,000 bond with home detention and GPS monitoring and will be allowed to keep working as a gardener for a private equity entrepreneur on Long Island who signed his bond.
“As alleged, Nsabumukunzi repeatedly lied to conceal his involvement in the horrific Rwandan genocide while seeking to become a lawful permanent resident and citizen of the United States,” said United States Attorney John Durham. “For over two decades, he got away with those lies and lived in the United States with an undeserved clean slate, a luxury that his victims will never have, but thanks to the tenacious efforts of our investigators and prosecutors, the defendant finally will be held accountable for his brutal actions.”
According to officials, Nsabumukunzi served as a local leader with the title of “Sector Councilor” in Rwanda in 1994 when the genocide began. Between April 1994 and July 1994, members of the majority Hutu population persecuted the minority Tutsis, committing acts of violence, including murder, rape and sexual violence. During the three-month genocide, an estimated 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus died.
According to the indictment, Nsabumukunzi used his leadership position as Sector Councilor to oversee the violence and killings of Tutsis in his local sector of Kibirizi and directed groups of armed Hutus to kill Tutsis. He set up roadblocks during the genocide to detain and kill Tutsis and participated in killings and violence, according to court documents.
Nsabumukunzi allegedly ordered a group of armed Hutus to locations where Tutsis were sheltering, and the Hutus killed them. Nsabumukunzi also allegedly facilitated the rape of Tutsi women by verbally encouraging Hutu men to do so. According to court filings, Nsabumukunzi has been convicted of genocide in absentia by a Rwandan court.
The suspect applied for refugee resettlement in the United States in August 2003 and then applied for and received a green card in November 2007. He later applied for naturalization in 2009 and 2015. Nsabumukunzi allegedly lied to United States immigration officials to gain admission to the United States as a refugee, by falsely denying in the applications under penalty of perjury that he ever engaged in genocide, federal prosecutors said.
He allegedly repeated those lies in his subsequent applications for a green card and for naturalization. Nsabumukunzi has lived and worked in the United States since 2003.
If convicted, Nsabumukunzi faces a maximum of 30 years in prison.
Yevhen Titov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images
(LONDON) — Russian drone strikes and bombs killed at least three people in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv overnight, regional officials there said, even though Moscow’s latest drone and missile barrage elsewhere was significantly smaller than preceding nights.
Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov said in a post to Telegram that another 56 people were injured by Russian attacks overnight, which included the use of Iranian-designed Shahed attack drones, first-person view commercial-style drones and KAB guided bombs.
More than 103 residential buildings were damaged, Terekhov said, describing the destruction as “enormous.”
Kharkiv — Ukraine’s second largest city with a pre-war population of around 1.4 million — sits just 20 miles from the Russian border. That proximity has seen the city bombarded throughout Russia’s full-scale invasion.
Kharkiv has also faced intense recent attacks as Moscow expanded its drone and missile campaign, plus as Russian forces reportedly mass along the nearby border and threaten new incursions.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said of the strikes on Kharkiv, “Every new day now means new vile strikes by Russia, and almost every strike is indicative. Russia deserves increased pressure, with literally every hit on ordinary life it proves that pressure is not enough. And we should not be afraid, not postpone new decisions that could complicate the situation for Russia.”
“Without this, they will not go for real diplomacy,” Zelenskyy added. “And this depends primarily on the United States and other world leaders. Everyone who called for an end to the killings and for diplomacy must act.”
Elsewhere on Tuesday night, at least five people were injured by Russian shelling in the southern Kherson region, local officials said in a post to Telegram. One person was also killed and another injured by Russian shelling in the eastern Donetsk region, officials said.
Ukraine’s air force said Russia launched 85 drones and one missile into the country overnight, of which 49 drones were shot down or otherwise neutralized. Impacts were recorded in 14 locations, with drone debris falling in two other locations, the air force said.
Zelenskyy said in a Tuesday night post to Telegram that he had spoken with Defense Minister Rustem Umerov about “our efforts to counter drones, protect against missiles and reinforce our air defense.” The meeting came after Monday night’s massive Russian attack on cities including Kyiv.
“The Russians have once again used ballistic missiles from North Korea,” Zelenskyy said of Monday night’s attacks. “We are also tracking evidence that Russian-Iranian drone technologies have spread to North Korea. This is extremely dangerous both for Europe and for East and Southeast Asia.”
“The longer this war continues on our territory, the more warfare technologies evolve and the greater the threat will be to everyone,” Zelenskyy added. “This must be addressed now — not when thousands of upgraded Shahed drones and ballistic missiles begin to threaten Seoul and Tokyo.”
Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said its forces shot down 33 Ukrainian drones overnight into Wednesday morning.
In Russia’s Tambov region — around 260 miles southeast of Moscow and 230 miles from the closest Ukrainian-controlled territory — acting governor Evgeny Pervyshov said on Telegram that a fire broke out in the town of Kotovsk due to falling drone debris. “The situation is under control,” Pervyshov wrote.
But Andriy Kovalenko, the head of the Counter-Disinformation Center operating as part of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, said in a Telegram post that an explosives plant in the area was hit by drones.
Kovalenko claimed that the Tambov gunpowder plant had been forced to suspend operations by the strike. “It produces gunpowder used for various types of small arms, artillery and rocket systems,” he said of the facility.
“The enterprise is one of the main suppliers of explosives for the Russian army,” Kovalenko added. “With the beginning of a full-scale war in Ukraine, production at the plant has increased significantly.”
The governor of Russia’s western Belgorod region said six people were also injured by a Ukrainian drone strike on a factory in the town of Shebekino. All were hospitalized, the governor said in a post to Telegram.
ABC News’ Oleksiy Pshemyskiy and Ellie Kaufman contributed to this report.
(DOMINICAN REPUBLIC) — The death toll has continued to rise after the roof of a Dominican Republic nightclub collapsed during a concert.
At least 44 people were killed and 160 people injured at the Jet Set nightclub, located in the capital of Santo Domingo, according to the Dominican civil defense.
A search-and-rescue operation was underway in the rubble following the collapse, police said.
The incident happened at 12:34 a.m. Tuesday, during a concert by the Dominican merengue singer Rubby Pérez, according to the national police. The roof collapsed within seconds, police said.
“We deeply regret the tragedy that occurred at the Jet Set nightclub,” Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader said in a post on social media. “We have been following the incident minute by minute since it occurred. All relief agencies have provided the necessary assistance and are working tirelessly in the rescue efforts. Our prayers are with the affected families.”
The deceased included Montecristi Gov. Nelsy Milagros Cruz Martinez, according to national police and Abinader’s office. She was the sister of former MLB star Nelson Cruz, who shared a statement from the Cruz Martinez family on social media that said her “legacy of service and love for others will live forever in our hearts.”
Many families gathered at the scene looking for their loved ones who were inside the club, according to DJ Shakirax, who was at the nightclub and shared videos from the scene.
An investigation into the cause of the collapse is underway, police said.
There was a fire in 2023 that damaged part of the nightclub, authorities said.
