Russia’s “Orion”Drone Hitting Aerial Target in Crimea
PHOTO: MILITARY DRONE 'ORION' TAKING OFF, HITTING AERIAL TARGET AERIAL TARGET BLOWING UP 'ORION' LANDING
INTERNATIONAL: The Russian Ministry of Defence has released on Monday what they said was the first video of unmanned aerial vehicle 'Orion' hitting an aerial target. The ministry has said in a statement that the new Russian UAV hit a helicopter-type drone during tests on the military training ground in Crimea.
'Orion' can also conduct reconnaissance far apart from a base airfield for dozens of hours, the ministry added. Kronstadt began the development of Orion in 2011 as part of the Russian MoD-funded Inokhodets programme. In 2013-2015, the company has revealed the first layout of the Orion. In May 2016, RIA Novosti has reported that test flights of the drone had begun.
According to Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, the Orion was tested for strike missions in 2019 in Syria. In 2020, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation has received one batch of Orion drones for trial operation. On 24 August 2021, it was reported that the Russian MoD and Kronshtadt has signed a deal for the procurement of 5 combat groups of an upgraded version of Orion.
Japanese Crew Members Return to Earth After a 12-Day Journey into Space
PHOTO: JAPANESE BILLIONAIRE YUSAKU MAEZAWA AND HIS ASSISTANT YOZO HIRANO AND RUSSIAN COSMONAUT ALEXANDER MISURKIN RETURNING FROM MISSION TO THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION
Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa has returned to earth on Monday after a 12-day journey into space, a voyage he said he saw as a dry run for his planned trip around the moon with Elon Musk's SpaceX in 2023.
The 46-year-old fashion magnate and art collector, who successfully launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on 8 December along with his assistant Yozo Hirano and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin, landed as scheduled in a different location on the Kazakh steppe.
Maezawa, a space enthusiast, has made the trip in a Soyuz spacecraft and became the first space tourist to travel to the International Space Station (ISS) in more than a decade. Maezawa will become the first private passenger on the SpaceX moon trip in 2023, as commercial firms including Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin usher in a new age of space travel for wealthy clients. The billionaire, who sold his online fashion business Zozo to SoftBank in 2019, is searching for eight people who will join him in his moon voyage in 2023, requiring applicants to pass medical tests and an interview.
AP Photographer Beaten by Israel Police
PHOTO: ISRAELI FORCES PUSHING JOURNALISTS FROM AREA ISRAELI BORDER POLICE BEATING AP PHOTOGRAPHER MAHMOUD ILLEAN AP PHOTOGRAPHER MAHMOUD ILLEAN BEING TREATED BY PARAMEDICS SCUFFLES BETWEEN PALESTINIANS AND ISRAELI FORCES
The Associated Press news agency has announced on Friday one of its photographers, Mahmoud Illean, was "pushed and beaten by Israeli police in an unprovoked attack" while covering the protests, requiring hospital treatment.
There were also clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police in the flashpoint East Jerusalem neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah.The AP has said it was "outraged" and the Foreign Press Association called for an investigation.
In response, a police spokeswoman has said officers "used means to disperse riots to maintain public order" and that the incident would be investigated.
The United Nations Mideast peace envoy has warned against escalating tensions on Friday after Palestinian gunmen have killed an Israeli in the occupied West Bank and Jewish settlers were accused of attacking Arab villages in the aftermath.
Yehuda Dimentman, 25, was killed on Thursday in an ambush on his car as he left Homesh, an Israeli settlement in the northern West Bank that was evacuated in 2005 and is now home to a religious seminary.
Palestinians have reported settlers attacking nearby villages, shooting, hurling stones and injuring one man in his home in Qaryut. Settler leaders said Palestinians also threw rocks at Israelis.
