Last week, Ukraine carried out its largest drone attack on Russia’s capital since the start of the full-scale war. More than 140 drones entered Russian territory in the early hours of September 10, according to the Russian authorities, and air defenses reportedly shot down at least 20 in the Moscow region. The most heavily affected town was Ramenskoye, a Moscow suburb where drone strikes damaged three apartment buildings, injuring three residents and killing one. The attack came amid news that Ukraine may soon get permission from allies to use Western long-range missiles to strike Russian territory — and the Moscow region is full of facilities that it could target. A correspondent from the independent journalists’ cooperative Bereg went to Ramenskoye to find out how local residents are feeling after the attack and whether they’re afraid of being targeted again. Meduza shares a lightly abridged translation of their report.

On September 5 and 6, 2004, the victims of the Beslan school siege were laid to rest. The terrorist attack was the deadliest in modern Russian history, killing 333 people, including 186 children, and injuring 783. While the authorities’ official investigation is effectively over, the victims’ relatives continue to insist that law enforcement made crucial mistakes that led to dozens of unnecessary deaths. (In 2017, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the Russian authorities had “sufficiently specific information about a planned terrorist attack in the area” several days in advance to take preventive measures but failed to do so, and that they used “indiscriminate and disproportionate” force in their response.) This year marks the 20th anniversary of the attack, and like every year, the Beslan authorities organized a ceremony in memory of the victims — but relatives and survivors were highly skeptical of the event. The independent journalists’ cooperative Bereg traveled to the town to witness the memorial proceedings and speak to survivors and victims’ relatives about their memories from 2004 and their experiences in the two decades since. Meduza shares an abridged translation of their report.

From The Economist

On August 31st a Chinese cutter rammed the largest patrol ship of the Philippine coastguard, punching a hole in its side. It was the latest attempt by China to force the Teresa Magbanua to leave Sabina Shoal, where it has been stationed since April. No one was injured. But the incident is part of an emerging new pattern of escalation and confrontation in the South China Sea, particularly around the Spratly Islands.

Continue reading The scary new map of the South China Sea at Ahead of the Herd.

From Bloomberg

For nearly 20 years, a plan has been brewing for a high-speed rail line connecting Las Vegas to southern California.

Something was always getting in the way, from ballooning budgets to bureaucratic red tape, not to mention developer and investor switcheroos.

Like many US infrastructure projects, the dream of sleek, fast-moving trains connecting two of the country’s biggest entertainment meccas in just two hours turned into a game of speculation, with nothing getting built.

Continue reading ‘Buy America’ Feud Risks 200 Mile-an-Hour Rail From Vegas to LA at Ahead of the Herd.