While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, Feb 16
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White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre (left) looks on as US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby delivers a press briefing on Russia's new anti-satellite weapon in Washington.
PHOTO: AFP
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Russia developing ‘troubling’ anti-satellite weapon
Russia is developing an anti-satellite weapon that is a cause for concern for the United States but which poses no direct threat to people on Earth, the White House said on Feb 15.
The United States is now reaching out to Moscow over the weapon, whose existence was confirmed after lawmakers warned of an unspecified but serious threat to national security, it added.
Moscow denied the “malicious” and “unfounded” claims, describing them as a White House ploy to try to pass a multi-billion-dollar Ukrainian war aid package stalled in Congress.
White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan was holding a closed-doors meeting with congressional leaders on Feb 15 about the developments.
Two Super Bowl parade fans stopped a suspected shooter
Mr Trey Filter, an avid Kansas City Chiefs fan, was feeling great about the Super Bowl victory rally he was leaving with his family when suddenly shots rang out, he saw people running and he heard them shout, “He’s got a gun! Get him!”
He saw the man everyone seemed to be shouting about and sized up the situation.
“I did the math right there and jumped,” the paving company owner, 40, from Wichita, Kansas, said in an interview, following Feb 14’s deadly shooting outside the downtown landmark Union Station.
Pope replaces cardinal who went missing for two days
VIA REUTERS
Pope Francis on Feb 15 replaced a 79-year-old cardinal who recently went missing in Panama and was later found in an apparently disoriented state, the Holy See’s diplomatic mission announced.
Cardinal Jose Luis Lacunza’s resignation as bishop of the diocese of David was accepted on the grounds of age, the Apostolic Nunciature said in a statement.
Reverend Father Luis Enrique Saldana Guerra was appointed to replace him, it added.
Russian bloggers say admiral fired after latest ship attack
Russian military bloggers and a former Kremlin adviser said on Feb 15 that Moscow had fired the commander of its Black Sea fleet, a day after Ukraine said it had destroyed a large Russian ship.
There was no official confirmation of the dismissal of Admiral Viktor Sokolov.
Adm Sokolov took up his command in September 2022, according to the ministry’s website, a few months into Russia’s war in Ukraine. His appointment followed a series of humiliations for the Black Sea fleet, including the sinking of its lead warship, the Moskva, by Ukrainian missiles.
Mbappe tells PSG he plans to leave as saga draws to close
AFP
France captain Kylian Mbappe has told officials at Paris Saint-Germain that he intends to leave when his contract expires at the end of the season, a source close to the Ligue 1 champions said on Feb 15.
The 25-year-old, who arrived in Paris from Monaco in 2017, had extended his contract in 2022 until 2024 but last summer declined to activate a clause allowing him to stay another year at PSG.
Mbappe has been widely tipped to move to Real Madrid and, according to a source close to the matter, has already entered negotiations with the Spanish giants.
