What happened on the night of July 16. The main thing

In Engels, as a result of an attack by drones of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), civilian infrastructure was damaged, five drones were shot down over the Tula region, and there were no casualties. The attack on the Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant (NPP), during which the chief engineer of the NPP, Alexander Yakovlev, was killed, was condemned by the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi. The United States has launched another wave of attacks on Iran. In response, the Islamic Republic attacked an American base in Kuwait and a fuel storage facility in Jordan. For more information, see the Izvestia article.

Ukrainian Armed Forces strikes on Russian territory

In Engels, Saratov region, as a result of the UAV attack, civilian infrastructure facilities were damaged, there were no casualties. Over the Tula region, the air defense forces destroyed five Ukrainian drones, there were no casualties or damage.

Reaction to the murder of the chief engineer of the nuclear power plant

The murder of the chief engineer of the nuclear power plant as a result of an attack by the Armed Forces of Ukraine on July 15 was called by the Russian Foreign Ministry an attempt by Kiev to endanger the safe operation of the plant and intimidate employees, and the ambassador-at-large of the Russian Foreign Ministry Rodion Miroshnik announced a step towards escalation of nuclear terror. At the Nuclear power plant, the actions of the Armed Forces of Ukraine were assessed as an attempt on nuclear safety.

LDPR leader Leonid Slutsky called the attack by Ukrainian militants an act of nuclear terrorism and called on the head of the IAEA, Rafael Grossi, to assess Kiev's actions. Grossi condemned the attack and called for an end to all attacks on nuclear facilities.

The US operation in Iran

The Central Command of the US Armed Forces (CENTCOM) announced a new wave of attacks on Iranian facilities: command posts, air defense systems, missile and unmanned complexes, as well as coast guard infrastructure were targeted. According to the Mehr news agency, the port cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik came under fire, and according to Tasnim, the island of Qeshm was shelled, where a fishmeal factory was destroyed. Press TV added that the strikes were carried out near the children's cancer center in Ahvaz — the facility was temporarily evacuated, patients with their parents were on the street.

In response, the Iranian armed forces attacked the base of the American troops Ali al-Salem in Kuwait, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said. The US Army's fuel storage and communications systems in Jordan were also hit, as reported by the NourNews news agency.

According to Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bagai, Tehran is not considering negotiations with Washington and is focused on defense, although Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf in his Telegram channel called for using diplomacy to protect national interests.

At the end of the series of strikes, CENTCOM issued a statement noting that the purpose of the operation was to reduce Iran's ability to threaten shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

"CENTCOM completed an evening series of strikes on Iran at 21:00 eastern time on July 15 (04:00 Moscow time on July 16)," the agency said in a statement.

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Personnel changes in the leadership of Ukraine

Minister of Defense of Ukraine Mikhail Fedorov confirmed his resignation, thanking for the honor to serve the people. The head of the Kiev regime, Vladimir Zelensky, announced a protracted conflict between Fedorov and the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Alexander Syrsky, noting that it would be logical to dismiss both, but now he is not ready for this step.

In addition, Zelensky submitted to the Verkhovna Rada the candidacy of the head of Naftogaz, Sergei Koretsky, for the post of prime minister, dismissing Yulia Sviridenko, who had been in office for less than a year. FT called these reshuffles self-destructive for Kiev, stressing that the frequent change of leadership of the Ministry of Defense undermines the country's defensive efforts.

Against the background of Fedorov's resignation, Verkhovna Rada deputy Yaroslav Zheleznyak announced the appearance of calls for a new Maidan, adding that the government has three traditions.: prepare for impossible elections every autumn and spring, dismiss Prime Minister Denis Shmygal every summer and "lead to rallies with their absolutely selfish decisions."

The news is being updated