White House warns Russia may use chemical weapons in Ukraine
Washington, Mar 10: The Biden administration has publicly warned that Russia might seek to use chemical or biological weapons in Ukraine as the White House rejected Russian claims of illegal chemical weapons development in the country it has invaded.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova this week, without evidence, accused Ukraine of running chemical and biological weapons labs in its territory, supported by the US White House press secretary Jen Psaki called Russia's claim "preposterous" and said it could be part of an attempt by Russia to lay the groundwork for itself using such weapons of mass destruction against Ukraine.
"This is all an obvious ploy by Russia to try to justify its further premeditated, unprovoked, and unjustified attack on Ukraine," Psaki tweeted Wednesday.
"Now that Russia has made these false claims, and China has seemingly endorsed this propaganda, we should all be on the lookout for Russia to possibly use chemical or biological weapons in Ukraine, or to create a false flag operation using them."
The US for months has warned about Russian "false flag" operations to create a pretext for the invasion. Wednesday's warning suggested Russia might seek to create a pretense for escalating the two-week old conflict that has seen the Russian offensive slowed by stronger-than-expected Ukrainian defenders, but not stopped.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby on Wednesday called the Russian claim "a bunch of malarkey."
The international community for years has assessed that Russia has used chemical weapons before in carrying out assassination attempts against Putin enemies like Alexey Navalny and former spy Sergei Skripal. Russia also supports the Assad government in Syria, which has used chemical weapons against its people in a decade-long civil war.
Asked by a Russian journalist about the claims, United Nations spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. "At this point have no information to confirm these reports or these allegations about these kinds of labs."
"Our colleagues at the World Health Organization, who have been working with the Ukrainian Governments, said they are unaware of any activity on the part of the Ukrainian Government which is inconsistent with its international treaty obligations, including on chemical weapons or biological weapons," Dujarric added.
This is all an obvious ploy by Russia to try to try to justify its further premeditated, unprovoked, and unjustified attack on Ukraine.
— Jen Psaki (@PressSec) March 9, 2022
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Belagavi youth’s murder case projected as road accident, cracked in Uttara Kannada; Three arrested
Karwar: Uttara Kannada police have cracked a murder case in which a Belagavi youth was killed and his body burnt inside a car to make it appear like a road accident.
Addressing a press meet in the city, Superintendent of Police Deepan M.N. said three accused from Old Hubballi have been arrested in connection with the case. The crime was a pre-planned act driven by personal enmity, he said.
The case came to light on April 8 morning when a car (KA-04/MJ-8996) was found completely burnt in a roadside ditch near Talekumbri bus stand in Yellapur. Only charred human remains were found inside the vehicle. Initially, it was suspected to be an accident caused by overspeeding, and a case was registered at Yellapur police station based on a complaint filed by the deceased’s father, Jagannath Dhapale.
However, the father later expressed suspicion that his son’s death was not accidental, prompting a detailed investigation.
Taking the matter seriously, two special teams were formed under the leadership of Yellapur Inspector Ramesh Hanapur. On analysing technical evidence and CCTV footage, police found that it was a planned murder.
The accused have been identified as Abdul Raheem Basheer Ahmed Mujawar (32), Maulasab Bavahan Wada (36) and Dadapeer alias Aftab Mehboob Saab Balasangi (22), all chicken traders from Old Hubballi.
Police have seized the car used in the crime along with two scooters. The accused have been remanded to judicial custody.
Investigations revealed that the accused killed Nitesh Dhapale due to personal enmity and later set the car on fire along with the body to project it as an accident.
SP Deepan M.N. appreciated the efforts of Inspector Ramesh Hanapur, PSIs Rajashekhar Vandali and Siddappa Gudi, and the entire team for solving the complex case.
