January 17, 2022

*) US accuses Russia of ‘preparing sabotage’ to justify Ukraine invasion The United States accused Russia of sending saboteurs trained in explosives to stage a pretext to invade Ukraine, where government websites were knocked out in a cyber attack linked to Moscow. The allegations and incident mark a new escalation in tensions over Ukraine, just after a week of talks between the West and Russia that sought a diplomatic solution. Detailing intelligence findings, the White House said that Russia was "laying the groundwork to have the option of fabricating a pretext for invasion" by blaming Ukraine. *) Military flights assess damage from Pacific volcano New Zealand and Australia sent military surveillance flights to Tonga to assess the damage caused by a huge undersea volcanic eruption in the Pacific island nation. A towering ash cloud had prevented earlier flights. New Zealand hopes to send essential supplies, including much-needed drinking water, on a military transport plane. Communications with Tonga remained extremely limited. Underwater communications cables were likely severed in the eruption and repairs could take weeks. ​​​*) Lebanon slams Israeli media reports of gas deal as 'completely untrue' The Lebanese government denied media reports about an agreement to be supplied with gas from Israel. Israeli media reported the country had reached an agreement with the United States to supply Lebanon with gas. However, the Lebanese Ministry of Energy and Water described the Israeli media report in a statement as “totally and completely untrue." *) Sudanese doctors protest attacks by security forces in anti-coup rallies Sudanese doctors protested against violent attacks by security forces targeting medical personnel during pro-democracy rallies following last year's military coup. "During every protest they fire tear gas inside the hospital where I work," one doctor, Houda Ahmad, said at the rally in Khartoum. "They even attack us inside the intensive care unit," she added at the rally, where medical