KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian air defenses shot down more than 30 Russian cruise missiles and drones in Moscow’s sixth air attack in six days on Kyiv, local officials said Friday.

The Ukrainian capital was simultaneously attacked from different directions by Iranian-made Shahed drones and cruise missiles from the Caspian region, senior Kyiv official Serhii Popko wrote on Telegram.

01 June 2023; MEMO: Shamsa Al-Ali, 65, builds tandoors — traditional clay ovens to bake bread — in Syria's northern district of Tal Abyad to look after her six orphan grandchildren, Anadolu Agency reports.

In 2015, Shamsa lost her only son in an airstrike carried out by the US-led forces in the province of Deir Ez-Zor.

Shamsa migrated to Raqqa from Deir Ez-Zor, which was at the centre of the attacks of the YPG/PKK terrorist group and coalition forces.

KYIV, June 2 (Reuters) - Ukrainian forces in Kyiv said on Friday they shot down 36 Russian missiles and drones in and around the capital overnight, with two people injured by falling debris before authorities lifted air raid alerts across most of the country.

Russia has launched about 20 missile and drone attacks on Kyiv since the beginning of May, a surge in strikes that the government says appears aimed at derailing Ukraine's preparations for a major counter-offensive.

WASHINGTON, June 1 (Reuters) - Chinese airlines are avoiding flying over Russian airspace in newly approved flights to and from the United States, according to flight tracking website FlightAware and industry officials.

Russia has barred U.S. airlines and other foreign carriers from flying over its airspace, in retaliation for Washington banning Russian flights over the U.S. in March 2022 after the country invaded Ukraine.

01 June 2023; MEMO: The Sultan of Oman Haitham Bin Tarik yesterday presided over the launch ceremony for a new city bearing his name, which is set to be the sultanate's first smart city.

During the event held at Al-Baraka Palace, themed "Treasure the Future", the sultan was briefed about the project of the planned Sultan Haitham City. A presentation also showcased a model of the city, which will be developed in the wilayat of Seeb, several kilometres northwest of Muscat.

DOHA, Jun 2 (NNN-WAM) – United Arab Emirates (UAE)’s recent move to quit a U.S.-led maritime coalition, revealed Abu Dhabi’s disappointment at U.S. reluctance to actively protect its partners and rebuild its deterrence in the Gulf region, Al Jazeera reported.

The UAE Foreign Ministry, announced on Wednesday that, the country had stopped participating in the Combined Maritime Forces, two months ago, “as a result of our ongoing evaluation of effective security cooperation with all partners.”

HARLINGEN, Texas (AP) — Border Patrol medical staff declined to review the file of an 8-year-old girl with a chronic heart condition and rare blood disorder before she appeared to have a seizure and died on her ninth day in custody, an internal investigation found.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has said the child’s parents shared the medical history with authorities on May 10, a day after the family was taken into custody.

01 June 2023; MEMO: Italy has lifted its embargo on arms sales to Saudi Arabia after years of restriction, amid the recent peace initiatives to resolve the conflict in Yemen.

ANKARA, June 2. /TASS/: At least 20 heads of state and 45 ministers will participate in Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's inauguration in Ankara on June 3.

01 June 2023; MEMO: Arab experts have said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's re-election will advance Turkish-Arab relations to greater horizons, Anadolu Agency reports.

Erdogan won last Sunday's runoff vote with 52.16 per cent.

Continuous development

"Prior to the Turkish elections, there was a path of normalisation between Turkiye and Arab countries," Ali Bakir, a Professor of International Relations at the Ibn Khaldun Centre at Qatar University, told Anadolu.

MOSCOW, June 1 (Reuters) - One of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's close allies on Thursday publicly criticised Russia's most prominent mercenary, casting Yevgeny Prigozhin as a blogger who yells all the time about problems, drawing a stern rebuke from a top Wagner fighter.

Addressing Prigozhin in a video message using the diminutive of "Zhenya" and the familiar Russian form of you ("ty"), Adam Delimkhanov, a close ally of Kadyrov, told Prigozhin:

SINGAPORE, June 2 (Reuters) - Asia's top security meeting opened on Friday, with intensifying competition between the United States and China expected to dominate a weekend of high-level speeches, backroom military dealings and delicate diplomacy.

The Shangri-La Dialogue, which attracts senior military officers, diplomats, weapons makers and security analysts from around the globe, is taking place June 2-4 in Singapore.