RUSSIA LAUNCHES MASSIVE DRONE AND MISSILE BARRAGE ON UKRAINE, KILLING AT LEAST 18 CIVILIANS AND STRIKING KYIV AND MULTIPLE CITIES. (PHOTO).

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 Russia launches massive drone and missile barrage on Ukraine, killing at least 18 civilians and striking Kyiv and multiple cities  Russia carried out a large-scale overnight assault on Ukraine, launching hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles that killed at least 18 civilians and wounded more than 100 others across multiple cities, officials said Tuesday. The strikes hit Kyiv, Dnipro and other regions, with emergency crews working through destroyed residential buildings where some victims were trapped under rubble. In Dnipro, rescuers recovered the bodies of a 3-year-old child and a mother and her 8-year-old son, while officials reported 12 deaths in the city and six in Kyiv. The bombardment stretched from night into daylight, with explosions reported across wide areas of the country. Kyiv residents had been on alert for days after warnings of a major aerial attack, including advisories for foreign diplomats to leave the capital. Despite those warnings, most remained in pl...

MALI'S PRESIDENT TIGHTENS DIRECT CONTROL OVER KEY MINING SECTOR. (PHOTO).


 Mali's president tightens direct control over key mining sector


Mali's military leader has created a new ministerial-level role to oversee the mining sector, strengthening the presidency's direct oversight of the critical gold industry, and appointed a former Barrick Mining executive to fill it.


Legal documents governing the role show the minister will have powers to supervise mining policy implementation, monitor compliance with the mining code, and review reports submitted by title holders - responsibilities previously handled by the mines ministry.


According to a January 19 presidential decree, Hilaire Bebian Diarra, an earth-science specialist who switched from Barrick to the government last year while leading negotiations for the company over control of the Loulo-Gounkoto complex, has been appointed to the role, Reuters reported.


The Malian national was named special adviser to the presidency during the bitter dispute over Mali’s top industrial gold mine, as Assimi Goita's government pushed for higher taxes and greater state participation in mining projects.


The move was widely seen as a strategic blow to the Canadian miner.


STRONGER STRUCTURES TO OVERSEE MINING


Mali is one of Africa's biggest gold producers, and several national mining forums in recent years have urged the creation of stronger structures to oversee security, compliance, and community impacts in its mining industry.


A senior government official said the presidency has assumed the lead on mining oversight, with key exploitation permits decided by the presidency and contract talks - including the Barrick dispute - also run from the presidential palace.


The finance ministry meanwhile now fronts fiscal matters, and the mining ministry focuses on regulation.


Diarra's elevation comes as Mali tightens its grip on the mining sector, its biggest revenue generator, under a 2023 mining code that helped recover 761 billion CFA francs ($1.2  billion) in arrears, the government said in December.


The tougher code rattled miners and triggered a two-year standoff with Barrick, pushing industrial gold output down by 23% in 2025, provisional mines ministry data showed.

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