June 5, 2023

*) Russian forces 'thwart' major Ukrainian attack The Russian Defence Ministry has said its forces pushed back a “large scale” Ukrainian assault at five points in Donetsk. Donetsk is one of four Ukrainian regions Russia illegally annexed last fall. Ministry Spokesperson Igor Konashenkov said Ukraine “did not achieve its tasks” and 250 Ukrainian personnel were killed. 16 Ukrainian tanks, three infantry fighting vehicles and 21 armoured combat vehicles were also destroyed, he said. There was no comment from Ukraine. *) India: Deadly train crash caused by signal system failure The cause of a train disaster that left more than 300 people dead and hundreds more injured in India was linked to the signal system, the railway minister said. Railway officials had said a signalling error sent the Coromandel Express onto a side track where it slammed into a freight train and derailed an express train. The minister confirmed this, saying a "change that occurred during electronic interlocking” caused the accident. He said “whoever did it, and how it happened, will be found out after proper investigation”. *) Sudan battles rage as US, Saudi renew push for fresh ceasefire The United States and Saudi Arabia have made a renewed push for truce talks between Sudan's warring generals as deadly fighting has raged into its eighth week. The foreign mediators called for "the parties to agree to and effectively implement a new ceasefire, with the aim of building to a permanent cessation of hostilities", Riyadh said. A five-day extension of an earlier truce formally expired on Saturday evening, with no signs of the conflict abating and fears that the rival sides were poised for an escalation. Deadly urban battles have gripped the Sudanese capital Khartoum and Darfur region, after fighting erupted between the regular army and paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. *) Stoltenberg thanks Türkiye for sending reinforcements to Kosovo The chief of NATO has expressed gratitude to Türkiye for its efforts in Kosovo during a meeting in