A day after the UK expelled almost a dozen Russian diplomats over an attempted murder on British soil, the Kremlin will most likely retaliate with “tit-for-tat expulsions,” said Jason Douglas, a reporter at the Wall Street Journal.
He said relations between the UK and Russia are now “at their worst since the Cold War.”
It all stems from the attempted poisoning on March 4 of a former Russian spy and his daughter, who have been living in Britain. The pair were exposed to a Russia-produced nerve agent known as Novichok and are now in hospital in critical condition.
This attack is the first use of a nerve agent in Europe since WWII, and the UK has declared that it is “highly likely” Russian authorities were behind it.
Novichok was first developed in the Soviet Union in the 1970s and 1980s. It is far more lethal than other poisons like VX, which is listed as a weapon of mass destruction and was used to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un’s half-brother.
On Thursday, UK allies including the U.S. came forward to condemn Russia for its alleged actions, saying “this threatens the security of us all.”
“There’s definitely a tough line from the international community,” said Douglas. “Whether that translates into firm action...is an open question. But it does seem that the UK has been pretty successful in corralling its allies.”
Also on Thursday, the Trump administration announced new sanctions against a number of Russian organizations and individuals for the country’s interference with the 2016 presidential elections.
The global community is now closely watching how Russia will handle this pressure from the West.
The Israeli military said Monday that at least 199 hostages were taken back in Gaza, higher than previous estimates.
Republicans chose Rep. Jim Jordan as their new nominee for House speaker on Friday during internal voting, putting the gavel within reach of the staunch ally of GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump.
American citizens in Israel can start leaving the country on charter flights starting Friday after the State Department said flights will take Americans and immediate family members to either Athens, Greece or Frankfurt, Germany.
The Israeli military has ordered the 1.1 million residents of northern Gaza to evacuate to the south within 24 hours as U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin arrived in Israel.
The U.N. says Israel’s military has told some 1 million Palestinians living in Gaza to evacuate the north.
Republican Steve Scalise has ended his bid to become House speaker after failing to secure the votes to win the gavel.
U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey faced a new charge Thursday that he conspired to act as an agent of the Egyptian government, a remarkable accusation against a Democrat who had a powerful role in U.S. policy as head of the Senate’s Foreign Relations Committee.
An Israeli ground offensive in the Gaza Strip would further escalate the war raging since Hamas launched its unprecedented attack, killing hundreds of civilians.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin assured Israel that “we have your back” as he and America’s top diplomat met Friday with Israeli and Arab leaders.
A retired bank official testified that former president Donald Trump obtained hundreds of millions of dollars in loans based on financial statements that have since been deemed fraudulent.
