Rare

ZAYN Malik has shared rare snaps of the daughter he shares with Gigi Hadid as the youngster turned six over the weekend.

Taking to social media to give fans a glimpse inside Khai’s special day, the former One Direction star posted pictures from the celebrations, although his ex Gigi couldn’t be seen.

The 33-year-old wrote: “Khai’s 6th birthday this weekend!! Big thank you to everyone who made it extra special.

“@americandream – Nickelodeon Universe & Hasbro Arcade. The girls had the BEST time! And… @thelondonbaker the cake is epic, as always. Thank you!”

Zayn and Gigi’s only child could be seen surrounded by friends as she blew out the candles on a towering birthday cake.

Other snaps showed Khai playing arcade games and celebrating beside mountains of colourful balloons.

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Gigi and Zayn split in October 2021, when Khai was just one, following an on-off relationship that began in 2015 after meeting at a Victoria’s Secret party.

Their romance came to an end following an alleged row between Zayn and Gigi’s mum, Yolanda, although neither Gigi nor Zayn has ever publicly given a full explanation for the split.

It was reported at the time that the couple had parted ways yet again following allegations made by Yolanda that Zayn “struck her.”

They have continued to co-parent Khai since then and are understood to share custody equally.

Zayn previously revealed they have their daughter “50/50”, while Gigi said the exes arrange their custody schedules months in advance.

Gigi, 31, said there is “love” and a “feeling of camaraderie” between them as they focus on raising their daughter together.

The model has since moved on with Hollywood actor Bradley Cooper, with the couple dating since October 2023.

Meanwhile, Zayn is not publicly known to be dating anyone and instead has managed to keep his love life out of the spotlight.

BRITAIN’S oldest lido is set to open to the public this weekend for the first time in years.

The historic swimming facility will be open for just one day, giving fans the chance to get a rare peek at 200-year old pool.

Cleveland Pools in Bath, is set to reopen this Sunday for the first time in over three years.

It was first built in 1815 and is the oldest of its kind to exist in the UK, but closed in 1984.

A huge campaign and a £10million refurbishment saw it reopen for just four months in 2023 before it was forced to close again due to flood damage.

The public have not had a chance to visit the Grade II listed lido up until now, with Cleveland Pools Trust running an open day for the public.

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It is important to note that the pools are not currently open for swimming.

So while this is not a chance to have a swim, you will have a chance to hear talks on the future of the site.

Visitors will be able to meet the trustees and volunteers to hear about their vision for the site.

The free event will also have children’s activities and heritage walks around the site.

“This Open Day is an opportunity to shape the future of the pools as we explore a viable and appropriate route to re-opening,” a note on the trustee website explains.

It is running from 10:30am to 4pm, on Sunday, September 13 at Cleveland Pools, Hampton Row, Bath, BA2 6QS.

The sprawling snack-food factory in upstate New York appeared to be closed when a small army of immigration officers arrived after 9 a.m. Following a brief discussion of whether to force their way inside, a manager opened the front door.

Over the next several hours, body cameras were running as federal authorities from several agencies made 57 arrests, debated which files to seize and when to release employees who were U.S. citizens. They also searched for anyone in hiding.

The footage from September 2025 shows the raid at the Nutrition Bar Confectioners plant in Cato, N.Y., town of 2,500 people east of Syracuse, and offers a rare glimpse inside a workplace immigration sweep. The Associated Press analyzed the video, which was part of a lawsuit filed Thursday that accuses authorities of overstepping their search warrants.

The officers ordered a manager to announce their presence over loudspeakers while they entered the building and caught employees on the production line, in the warehouse and a few in the bathroom. Officers covered all exits while others swept the interior, including homing in on locked doors.

Male officers encountered a locked bathroom and began shouting instructions in broken Spanish at female employees through the door, demanding that they come out. After about 10 seconds, officers broke through the door.

One woman was outside of a stall and another in the stall. A male officer peered through a locked stall door, and his body cam video revealed a woman sitting on the toilet.

“Miss, pull up your pants. Come out of the bathroom,” he told her.

“You have to wait. I can’t come out like this, naked!” she replied.

Investigators interviewed the general manager and said they were looking into hiring practices and potential fraudulent documents. Inside and outside the building, officers checked every office, storage room and hallway for anyone who was hiding.

Employees were lined up and separated into groups of U.S. citizens and potential noncitizens. Officers asked for their immigration status, requested documents and posed questions about their entry into the U.S. Some employees were pregnant.

Some were parents and expressed concern for their children at home. Others said they would not answer questions without first speaking to their attorneys, and officers told them they would be arrested.

One employee refused to answer questions. “Will you let me talk to my attorney?” she asked the officer. He raised his voice and continued asking about her immigration status.

U.S. citizens were asked for personal information, including their phone numbers and addresses before they were allowed to leave.

A Border Patrol agent who spoke to another official wearing a camera used disparaging language about children from other countries when recounting his experience working at a South Texas immigrant detention center. He said President Biden’s administration allowed millions of people to enter the United States from countries where children are treated “differently” than they are by American parents.

“In other countries, kids are more of a commodity or it’s more of like, I’m going to put it in those terms. It’s more like an animal, right? It’s not prized the way that we do it,” he said.

“There’s countries like Brazil and other places where they’re literal street rats at a very young age who commit crimes, and then they come here. I don’t know if you have kids, but they’ll eat our kids for breakfast.”

The Homeland Security Department said Friday that it executed a criminal search warrant at the plant as part of an investigation that is still open. Its statement did not address the contents of the video or the merits of the lawsuit.

Not all officers wore body cameras, but those who did often indicated to other officers that they were recording before they initiated a conversation.

ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations unit is responsible for workplace raids, which have been relatively few and low-key compared with ICE’s removal unit, which arrests people in the street, at homes and in public and also manages detention centers. The Trump administration’s largest workplace raid was last year at a Hyundai electric vehicle plant in Georgia. It resulted in nearly 500 arrests and fueled diplomatic tension with South Korea.

The lawsuit against Homeland Security claims federal officers exceeded the authority of their warrants and violated workers’ constitutional rights against unlawful search and seizure.

“There were no arrest warrants,” said Perry Grossman, a supervising attorney at the New York Civil Liberties Union, which filed the lawsuit with the Worker Justice Center of New York.

“There was no suspicion that individual workers had committed crimes. And they seized easily 100 people for nonconsensual questioning. They arrested 57. Out of those 57 people, criminal charges were brought against only five. And the most serious charge was unlawful reentry.”

Grossman said one employee got her charges dismissed after contending in a lawsuit that her 4th Amendment rights were violated. He said he was not aware of any charges or indictments against the employers.

Officers detained about 60 people and deported some employees, including two plaintiffs who are part of Thursday’s lawsuit. One plaintiff has since been allowed to reenter the country. Attorneys for the second deported plaintiff are seeking his return.

Law enforcement agencies have come under criticism for not using body cameras and for refusing to release footage when they do. ICE, in particular, has been scrutinized after a $75-billion infusion from Congress and an expanding street presence that has led to three fatal shootings this year.

ICE’s own rules on releasing video are unclear. Its policy calls for expedited release of footage after a serious injury or death in custody when doing so is determined to be in the “ best interests of the agency.”

The Trump administration has repeatedly promised to equip ICE field agents with body cameras, as required by Congress. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said last week that the agency was “on track” to do so by the end of September.

Gonzalez and Vancleave write for the Associated Press.

European Parliament’s Vice President Pina Picierno says Hsiao Bi-khim’s visit ‘was kept secret until her arrival to protect her participation’ in the conference.

Taiwanese Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim is making a rare visit to Europe, attending a forum on democracy in Italy alongside the island’s foreign minister, the presidential office said.

Hsiao has been invited to attend the Ventotene Conference for Freedom and Democracy, and is travelling with Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung, the presidential office said in a brief statement.

Other details will be provided once the two return to Taiwan from the Italian island of Ventotene, it added,

While Taiwan’s foreign ministers occasionally visit Europe and other parts of the world that have no formal ties to the Chinese-claimed island, it is rare for an official as senior as the vice president to do so, given the risk of backlash from Beijing against the host nation.

Pina Picierno, vice president of the European Parliament, said Hsiao’s planned participation “was kept secret until her arrival to protect her participation” in the conference.

“No one can determine who can be hosted on European soil, what voices can be heard, and what presences must be hidden,” Picierno said in a Facebook post. “It is a simple and very clear message: intimidation cannot decide who participates in our democratic debate.”

“Freedom of debate is not negotiable with autocracies. And Ventotene, more than ever today, must continue to be the place where freedom and democracy are defended without fear,” she added.

The Ventotene conference takes place from Thursday until Saturday this week. Italy, like most countries, has no formal diplomatic ties with Chinese-claimed Taiwan.

Oleksandra Matviichuk, a 2022 Nobel Peace Prize laureate and president of Ukraine’s Centre for Civil Liberties, is also expected to participate in the conference.

China says Taiwan is one of its provinces, a view the democratically governed island strongly rejects.

Last November, Hsiao spoke at the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China’s annual summit, held in the European Parliament in Brussels.

HOLLY Willoughby has given fans a rare glimpse inside her marriage to Dan Baldwin as they packed on the PDA in the trailer for her next YouTube show episode.

The couple shared a sweet kiss during his cameo on Holly Willoughby Together while she got glammed up for the National Television Awards.

In the video, Holly could be seen fresh out of the shower in her robe, ready for her hair and makeup team.

“I could fall asleep sitting here, literally that’s what I was thinking” admitted Holly as her crew set to work.

Later, Dan walked onto the set suited and booted and Holly gushed: “Hi, you look very handsome.”

Dapper Dan then leaned in and gave Holly a sweet kiss on the lips.

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“Awwww,” said her crew before Holly’s makeup artist made it clear Dan wasn’t allowed to kiss her cheeks as it could ruin her glam.

Taking the stern warning in his stride, Dan replied: “Alright Patsy.”

He told a beaming Holly: “I’ll see you later.”

She said: “I’ll see you later, when I’m on stage.”

“Bye everyone,” waved TV producer Dan as he disappeared out the door following his very short cameo.

In another scene, Holly was seen telling her crew that she had to be strict with pre-drinking before appearing on telly.

She said: “I can’t have a Buzz Ball and go on stage at the NTAs… I’ll stick two down my top for emergencies.”

The next episode of Holly’s show is a ‘Get Ready With Me,’ which sees the legendary presenter chat everything getting glam.

Holly said: “So last night when I got the dress sorted from Danielle, I messaged the girls the picture.

Showing the camera a picture of her makeup inspiration, Holly continued: “And so I was looking and I thought with that dress being black, I wanted to do a tiny flick but a smudgy one [for her makeup].

“It’s almost like it’s been wiped… wide winged.”

One of Holly’s team questioned: “Aren’t they sanitary products, wide wings?”

At the end of the trailer, Holly revealed her bedazzled black dress, Hollywood-style bouncy curls and flawless makeup look.

Holly launched her YouTube series Together on July 28 2026, following her previous role presenting Netflix’s Celebrity Bear Hunt in 2025.

Her new show is produced by Hungry Bear Media, which was co-founded by her husband, Dan.

Birds of a Feather star Pauline Quirke was diagnosed with dementia in 2021.

Pauline Quirke’s son Charlie has spoken out about his mum amid her dementia battle, revealing “every day is different”.

The actress went public with her condition last year after first being diagnosed with dementia in 2021. Since then, the Birds of a Feather star has stepped out of the spotlight.

And on Wednesday (September 9), her son Charlie appeared on ITV’s Lorraine, where he spoke about a new campaign he is a part of for Alzheimer’s Research UK.

He said: “Alzheimer’s Research UK has made this brand campaign, and it’s putting a positive light on something that doesn’t have a lot of positivity around it. We believe someone alive today could be the first person to be cured of Alzheimer’s disease.”

Charlie then issued a fresh update on his beloved mum. Lorraine asked him: “When I was telling everyone you were in this morning, and you know the affection for your mum is huge, they just all want to know how she is?”

Charlie replied: “Mum, she’s great. Every day is different, it’s part of our journey. We still do as much as we can, we still go out for lunch, I made her sit through the West Ham win last night.”

Charlie added, “We’ve got such a close family unit that it makes it easier on our journey. But touch wood, she’s happy.”

Lorraine said: “That’s the main thing, that she’s happy and she’s safe and she feels surrounded by people that love her.”

Former Emmerdale actress Pauline’s dementia diagnosis became public knowledge last year, though her son Charlie Quirke disclosed in November that Pauline could still identify her relatives.

He revealed to BBC Breakfast at the time: “My mum knows exactly who we are. Every time she sees all of us, she smiles, laughs, says ‘I love you’, says ‘hello’.”

Pauline’s spouse, Steve, admitted they remain uncertain about precisely where the actress stands regarding the dementia, a condition that leads to deteriorating cognitive and memory abilities.

He explained: “Unfortunately, we are not in the state where we can do much about it. Just take every day, and try to take the best moment out of that day you can.

EastEnders airs Monday to Thursday at 7:30pm on BBC One.

ACTRESS Michelle Keegan has shared a rare snap of her daughter Palma, 18 months, just days after she quit a new ITV drama.

The mum-of-one welcomed the tot with her partner DJ Mark Wright, 39, in March last year.

Stockport-born Michelle and Essex lad Mark have opted to keep Palma’s identity under wraps but have shared brief glimpses into their lives as parents.

And, Michelle couldn’t help but update fans as her little girl hit a huge milestone.

The soap favourite took to Instagram to reveal they’ve been celebrating Palma turning 18-months-old.

In the snap posted online, Palma can be seen facing away from the camera wearing a stylish denim dress.

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She’s holding a tiny wooden plaque, which says the words: “18 months.”

It’s engraved with flowers around the outside and has a little brown bow stuck to the top.

Michelle recently pulled out of a major new ITV drama just months before filming was due to start in November.

The 39-year-old left ITV bosses baffled by her decision to turn her back on the lead role in a big budget production, focusing on a working-class barrister.

Sources said it was “a huge blow” as she had committed to the drama a few months ago and a filming start date had been decided.

Michelle, who decided not to go ahead with the series written by Sherlock writer Steve Thompson, has said she wanted to focus on family life.

A source said: “Michelle was really keen to take on the meaty role, but the heavy filming schedule would take her away from daughter Palma for too long.

“The hours were quite intense and the project was starting straight after her Netflix drama The Woods and she just couldn’t commit.

“She is dedicated to her acting career, but like all working mums has to prioritise being there for her family, juggling work, parenting and being present for Palma.”

Mark and Michelle, who married in 2015, live in a £3.5million mansion near his family in Essex.

The family of three have enjoyed a string of lavish holidays together over the past year, while Michelle has had some time off.

She first made it big in 2008 as Coronation Street’s Tina McIntyre, and starred in BBC military drama Our Girl from 2016 to 2020.

A U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III has made a highly unusual visit to Moscow today, landing at Vnukovo Airport after flying from Riga, Latvia, according to publicly available flight-tracking data. The purpose of the flight remains unclear for now. It does come as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says he has identified a potential opportunity for new U.S. ​mediation to help end the Russian war in Ukraine.

Flight-tracking data identified the C-17, operating under the callsign RCH4555, departing Riga at approximately 8:50 a.m. Moscow time and arriving at Vnukovo at around 10:04 a.m. Video posted to social media also shows the C-17 on approach to Vnukovo.

U.S. Air Force Boeing C-17A Globemaster III strategic airlifter descending to land at the Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow on Tuesday morning.

The cameraman, likely sarcastically, comments: “we are under attack!” https://t.co/7EfvANBScW pic.twitter.com/dVItO5nAjn

— Status-6 (War & Military News) (@Archer83Able) August 25, 2026

RCH4555 had flown from Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, to Joint Base Lindsey Graham (formerly Joint Base Charleston), South Carolina, on August 22. A day later, the aircraft touched down at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, before departing for Riga. The plane then continued to Moscow two days later.

Probably the first US C-17 in years seen over Russia few moments ago

Its itinerary over the past few days:

August 22: McGuire/Wrightstown → Charleston

August 23: Charleston → Joint Base Andrews

August 23: Andrews → Riga

August 25: Riga → Moscow-Vnukovo pic.twitter.com/Iedvuho8Gb

— Casus Belli (@casusbellii) August 25, 2026

There are unconfirmed reports, citing observers on the ground, that an aircraft that might have been a U.S. Air Force C-40B was also on the ground at Riga earlier today. The C-40B is a militarized version of the commercial Boeing 737-700 and is often used to shuttle high-ranking government and military leaders.

An observer in Riga, Latvia reported a white aircraft, likely a U.S. Air Force C-40B, parked near the C-17A Globemaster III that arrived in Moscow earlier this morning.

Notably, on the same day the C-17 departed Joint Base Andrews, a C-40B operating under callsign RCH790 also… https://t.co/LK7MVC4U9N pic.twitter.com/yTTsSBgYrR

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) August 25, 2026

The earlier stop at Joint Base Andrews is also notable. Situated just outside Washington, D.C., this is not simply an ordinary transport base. It is the home of the 89th Airlift Wing, which operates the Air Force’s Special Air Mission (SAM) fleet and supports senior U.S. officials and foreign dignitaries. The wing’s mission includes providing airlift for the president, vice president, senior executive staff, high-ranking government officials, and foreign dignitaries.

Joint Base Andrews is also where the Air Force’s Roll-On Conference Capsules (ROCC) are kept. The Air Force deploys ROCCs onboard certain C-17s to give senior leaders a secure, quiet place to conduct business in the middle of a noisy, often-crowded cargo aircraft. They serve as a mobile SCIF, office, and apartment all in one. Their extensive communications include multiple options for unsecured and secure voice, data, and video teleconferencing. These capsules replaced the previous Silver Bullet Command and Control Module, a converted Airstream trailer, which was phased out in recent years for reasons you can read more about here.

The C-17 is otherwise well-equipped for carrying high-ranking officials on overseas trips, including into potentially hostile areas. The planes have a defensive suite that includes multiple types of expendable decoys and the laser-based Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasure System (LAIRCM).

The Globemaster III’s primary mission is as a strategic airlifter, and it is typically used for transporting personnel, equipment, and other cargo. With those capabilities, the aircraft are also regularly used to bring advance parties to countries ahead of major state and other diplomatic visits. For presidential visits, this can even include Marine One helicopters and vehicles for the official motorcade.

The presence of an active-duty U.S. military transport aircraft in the Russian capital is highly unusual and immediately attracted attention from open-source intelligence and aviation observers.

Theories on today’s highly unusual movement of a US military aircraft to Moscow Vnukovo airport
1. Prisoner swap
2. Mission by senior intelligence official to warn against escalation by Russia, eg in Baltics
3. New diplomatic opening pic.twitter.com/OhqlHYQeKs

— Mark Urban (@MarkUrban01) August 25, 2026

At this stage, the purpose of the Moscow flight and what the aircraft carried are not publicly confirmed. We have reached out to the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Air Mobility Command, and the U.S. Air Forces in Europe for more details about the mission. The Office of the Secretary of Defense directed us to contact the Air Force.

Nevertheless, any kind of U.S. military aircraft traveling from the Washington area via Riga and then into Moscow represents an exceptionally unusual movement based on current relations between Moscow and the West.

Washington and Moscow have maintained official diplomatic channels despite the broader deterioration in relations against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine. Since U.S. President Donald Trump began his second term in 2025, ties between the two countries have both warmed and cooled again at times. Trump notably met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in person at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025. This was the first summit between leaders of the two nations since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

More recent U.S.-mediated peace efforts have largely stalled in recent months, including when Ukraine refused Russian demands to cede more territory. However, over the weekend, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky did say he saw a window for new diplomatic efforts, at least to reach a ceasefire until the end of next summer. He has also drafted ‌a page of ideas with U.S. and European officials to be presented to Moscow, according to Reuters.

For its part, Moscow has continued to signal that it is prepared to engage with Washington, while U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have been discussed as potential participants in further talks. Witkoff and Kushner were last in Moscow in ​January.

There have also been reports that FBI Director Kash Patel is planning to visit Russia later this year, although such a trip is not thought to be expected until mid-October.

This is very much a developing story, and we will watch with interest to see when the C-17 departs Moscow, its destination, and any other clues as to the purpose of this mission.

Update, 4:10 p.m., Central European Time (CET) –

Russkaya Pravda reports that the Russian government says it has no information about the C-17 flight, and Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov claimed that Russian officials had no meetings scheduled this week with representatives of the U.S. administration.

Other Russian media outlets reported that this is the first time that a U.S. Air Force C-17 had arrived in Moscow since 2017. Kommersant, meanwhile, noted that another U.S. military aircraft — a Gulfstream C-37B — landed at Vnukovo in February 2025 after departing from Andrews Air Force Base.

That earlier flight carried Russian citizen Alexander Vinnik after his release from a U.S. prison. Vinnik returned to Russia as part of a prisoner exchange that also involved American citizen Marc Fogel.

Potentially, the flight today could be related to a prisoner exchange, although a C-17 would be an unsual choice for this.

Unconfirmed reports out of Russia suggest the C-17 may have arrived in connection with American citizen Charles Wayne Zimmerman, who was sentenced to five years in prison in January after Russian authorities found weapons and ammunition aboard his yacht.

Zimmerman sailed from the U.S. to Sochi on June 19, 2025, reportedly to meet a Russian woman he had met online. He pleaded guilty, saying he was unfamiliar with Russian law and believed weapons kept aboard his yacht for self-defense were permitted.

A source cited by Ostorozhno Media said Zimmerman signed a clemency petition at his prison this summer, which was then sent to Moscow.

For now, there is no official confirmation linking the American aircraft’s arrival to Zimmerman.

A convoy of cars with U.S. diplomatic license plates has been spotted in the capital of the Russian Federation.

Update, 4:15 p.m., Central European Time (CET) –

A remarkable capture of the arrival of the C-17A by an individual on the ground confirms beyond a doubt the location. In the foreground is the distinctive Tupolev Tu-104B jetliner, registration CCCP-42507, that is preserved as a gate-guard monument outside Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow.

Update, 4:20 p.m., Central European Time (CET) –

A video being shared on social media shows what is claimed to be a motorcade with American diplomatic license plates spotted on the streets of Moscow today, with a local police escort.

Russian media report that a motorcade with American diplomatic license plates was spotted on the streets of Moscow following reports that a U.S. Air Force Boeing C-17 Globemaster III had landed at Vnukovo Airport. https://t.co/EiKsKdnu6t pic.twitter.com/Hzrppj9fFy

— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) August 25, 2026

Update, 4:30 p.m., Central European Time (CET) –

Citing multiple unnamed sources, CBS reports that the C-17 brought CIA Director John Ratcliffe to Moscow for undisclosed meetings. This would be his first known trip to Russia as CIA director, though he has maintained contact with Russian intelligence counterparts.

NEW: CIA Director John Ratcliffe flew to Moscow today aboard a US Air Force C-17 for meetings, according to CBS News citing multiple sources.

The Kremlin said it had “no information” about the visit.

No details on who Ratcliffe met or the agenda. https://t.co/Y14uaWEP2H

— Clash Report (@clashreport) August 25, 2026

Update, 4:15 p.m., Central European Time (CET) –

CNN is also now reporting that CIA Director Ratcliffe traveled to Moscow overnight to meet with Russian officials, citing a U.S. official familiar with his travel. The same official declined to share the substance of the meetings or the topics set to be discussed.

If I had to wager, I’d say Ratcliffe is in Moscow to warn about Russian escalation against Europe/NATO. Linked to U.S. intelligence shared with Poles, Balts and Scandinavians, and comes amid a noticeable uptick in suspected GRU sabotage operations and Russian drone activity. See…

— Michael Weiss (@michaeldweiss) August 25, 2026

Update, 4:45 p.m., Central European Time (CET) –

The Financial Times now reports that the Trump administration last week requested that Kyiv not strike Moscow, St. Petersburg, and northern regions of Russia with its long-range missiles and drones on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of this week. This was due to Washington planning to end an aircraft carrying a senior-level official to the Russian capital, according to people familiar with the request.

Scoop @FT: Trump administration officials last week requested that Kyiv not strike Moscow, St Petersburg and nothern regions of Russia with its long range missiles and drones on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday when the US would send a plane carrying a senior-level official to the…

— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) August 25, 2026

Update, 8:45 p.m., Central European Time (CET) –

The Wall Street Journal now reports the possibility that CIA Director Ratcliffe was in Moscow to dissuade Russia from mobilizing and launching an attack on Europe. Given the intense NATO intelligence-gathering activity along the eastern flank over the past week, it seems the situation is indeed quite tense.

The U.S. has collected intelligence showing Russia’s early preparations for a possible military mobilization in Ukraine and plans for testing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s resolve, the WSJ has reported.

Flight-tracking data identifies the C-17, again operating under the callsign RCH4555, now departing Moscow for Riga.

RCH4555, a U.S. Air Force C-17A Globemaster lll which landed in Moscow early today carrying CIA Director John Ratcliffe for a series of high-level meetings with Russian officials, has just departed Moscow bound for Riga, Latvia. pic.twitter.com/9I4AG8dcA9

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) August 25, 2026

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com