AP, Moscow
Russian President Vladimir Putin Saturday sent a fleet of warships to the English Channel to test bombs off the British coast, according to news reports.
The move put the Royal Navy on high alert, as vessels would seek to intercept the fleet as it passes within a mile of the British coast en route to Syria, The Sun reports. The vessels are headed to the Mediterranean Sea and would join Russian naval forces in support of Moscow’s bombing campaign in Syria, according to the report.
Attacks kill 46 in Iraq
AFP, Baghdad
Attacks killed at least 46 people in Iraq on Saturday, including a suicide bombing claimed by the Islamic State group that was the deadliest to hit Baghdad in months. The violence comes as Iraqi forces prepare for an operation to retake Mosul, the last IS-held city in the country-a key battle, but one that will not end the threat of attacks such as those carried out on Saturday. In the deadliest attack, a suicide bomber targeted a funeral tent where mourners were gathered to pay their respects in the Shiite-majority Shaab area of north Baghdad, killing at least 34 people and wounding least 36, officials said.
Stampede death toll rises to 24 in India
AFP, Varanasi
A stampede at a religious gathering in northern India killed at least 24 people Saturday as thousands of devotees of a controversial guru tried to cross a bridge at once, police said.
The followers of Jai Gurudev, a leader of a local religious sect, had gathered on the outskirts of Varanasi, a Hindu holy town in Uttar Pradesh state, when the deadly stampede broke out.
