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Two Russian Su-30 Flanker multirole fighters have been damaged in an overnight arson attack on the military airfield at Lipetsk in the region of the same name in southwest Russia. According to the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine (GUR), the raid was launched by “a representative of the resistance movement in Russia.” If that’s the case, it underscores the varied tactics being used to strike Russian military aircraft on their bases, coming soon after two separate drone attacks on Belbek Air Base in Russian-occupied Crimea.

Уражено ворожі винищувачі Су-30 та Су-27 ― відео та деталі унікальної операції ГУР в ліпєцку

In its initial statement, the GUR said that a Russian Su-30 Flanker multirole fighter and a Su-27 Flanker interceptor were damaged in a fire at Lipetsk Air Base (also known as Lipetsk-2) on the night of December 20-21. The agency later clarified that both targeted aircraft two-seat, more advanced Su-30s.

While the GUR claims that is masterminded the operation, which required two weeks of planning, the agency also says that the sabotage was “directly implemented by a representative of the resistance movement to the criminal Russian regime.”

In a statement, the GUR explained: “Studying the patrol route and guard change schedule allowed them to infiltrate the aggressor state’s military facility unnoticed, hit the Russian jets in their protective aircraft hangar, and then leave the airfield unhindered.”

The GUR has released a video that purports to show the attack, which it describes as the result of “careful preparation, composure, and professionalism.” The airbase is located around 200 miles from the Ukrainian border.

The footage includes a view inside the cockpit of an apparent Su-30SM, as well as a fire being started at one of the main undercarriage legs of the same type of jet, which then spreads to engulf one of the engine intakes. One Su-30SM is also armed with underwing air-to-air missiles. Clearly visible is one of the canard foreplanes on the Flanker, confirming it is a Su-30SM, rather than a Su-27UB or a Su-30M2.

Also seen in the video are close-ups of the aircraft’s individual red-painted ‘Bort’ numbers, ‘12’ and ‘82.’

The GUR puts the estimated total cost of the two affected fighters as “up to $100 million,” although this is presumably based on them being totally written off, something which remains unclear. Indeed, the agency only states that the jets were “disabled.” Ukrainian media reports also state that the aircraft were “put out of action,” but once again we don’t have any concrete evidence about their current state.

Lipetsk Air Base has a very significant role within the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS).

The 4th State Air Personnel Preparation and Military Evaluation Center at the base is tasked with conducting military evaluation of initial batches of new tactical combat aircraft, training pilots in the combat application of the aircraft, and developing air force tactics, which are then used by operational units.

At Lipetsk, the 4th Center is responsible for the 968th Research Instructor Composite Aviation Regiment (968 IISAP, in Russian), which receives the first batches of new tactical aircraft. The regiment was first to receive the Su-34 Fullback, in 2010, the Yak-130 Mitten, in 2013, the Su-30SM Flanker, in 2014, and the Su-35S Flanker, in 2019. It was to also the first to receive Su-57 Felon fighters, so that pilots could undergo theoretical training on the new type.

The regiment has squadrons of Sukhoi fighters (Su-27, Su-30SM, and Su-35S), tactical bombers (Su-24 Fencer and Su-34) and attack aircraft (Su-25 Frogfoot), as well as a detachment of An-26 Curl transport aircraft.

Lipetsk Air Base has two runways; the main runway is around 9,800 feet long, while the second, shorter runway has long been unused and is used for storage of several dozen MiG-29 Fulcrums, and smaller numbers of MiG-31 Foxhounds, and Su-27s.

The video evidence available suggests that at least the Su-30SM that was targeted was very much an active aircraft, based on its armament as well as its relative modernity.

There is also a strong suggestion that the aircraft targeted were part of the VKS effort to combat Ukrainian long-range one-way attack drones, including those headed toward Moscow.

Su-30SMs ‘Red 82’ and ‘Red 12’ belong to the 14th and 31st Fighter Aviation Regiments, not normally based at Lipetsk. The presence of these jets at the base, at least one of them armed with air-to-air missiles, would be consistent with a forward deployment for quick reaction alert (QRA) duties.

This would not be the first time that a Russian airbase has been targeted by pro-Ukrainian or Ukrainian saboteurs.

In the aftermath of reported explosions at Russian airbases in occupied Crimea, in the summer of 2022 — most dramatically, the blasts at Saki Air Base that left at least 10 jets seriously damaged or destroyed — there were reports citing Ukrainian officials claiming that a team, possibly made up of Ukrainian special operations forces, local partisans, or a mixture of both, had attacked the installations.

In October 2022, we reported on an apparent sabotage raid against a Russian airbase in the Pskov region, in the far west of the country. This was filmed by the operatives before they detonated explosives placed on attack helicopters at Ostrov Air Base. The explosions destroyed two Ka-52s and one Mi-28N, according to the Ukrainian defense intelligence service.

In May 2023, meanwhile, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) confirmed a sabotage attack against a Russian strike or reconnaissance aircraft at an aircraft factory in Siberia. This was reportedly an arson attack, although it’s unclear if the aircraft in question was actually airworthy at the time.

In September 2023, there were reports that one of Russia’s most important airbases, Chkalovsky, located less than 20 miles from Moscow, was struck by saboteurs. In a statement on the raid, the GUR said that “unidentified saboteurs” were responsible for the attack on what it described as a “heavily guarded airfield,” which left three aircraft “badly damaged.”

As we have noted in the past, the ability of saboteurs to penetrate frontline Russian airbases clearly points to major security loopholes.

On the other hand, even Russian airbases housing other strategic assets have been subject to incursions in the recent past, by apparent criminal elements, while other airfields have been penetrated by drunken soldiers in command of an armored vehicle, for example.

What remains far less clear, and something we are unlikely to learn more about for the foreseeable future, is how the Ukrainian military and intelligence services work or at least coordinate with partisans in Russia. We do know that Ukraine conducts extensive activities, including sabotage efforts, in areas of the country that Russia occupies, as well as inside Russia proper. Most prominent was this summer’s Operation Spiderweb, the large-scale Ukrainian drone strike against airbases across Russia yesterday, which you can read about in our coverage here. This used more than a hundred short-range drones that were launched from trucks against at least four bomber airfields.

In recent days, there have been other notable attacks on VKS aircraft by Ukrainian using drones, too.

As we reported last week, Belbek Air Base, a key Russian facility in occupied Crimea, was targeted by a Ukrainian drone strike on December 18, according to Ukraine. Authorities in Kyiv claim that drones hit a MiG-31BM, as well as elements of an S-400 air defense system.

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), the government’s main internal security agency, reported that the Belbek drone strike was carried out overnight by forces from its Special Group “Alpha.”

Just two days later, “Alpha” was reportedly responsible for another drone strike on Belbek. This time, the SBU said its operatives hit two Su-27s. Like the MiG-31, these were also parked out in the open.

Whatever the results of the apparent partisan raid on Lipetsk, the operation once again highlights the fact that Russian military aircraft and other assets are not safe, even if relatively far from the Ukrainian battlefields, and that drones are by no means the only threat they face,

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced ‘the largest gas deal in Israel’s history’, worth around $35 billion, with Egypt. Cairo has been a vocal critic of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, but experts say the country is facing an energy crisis.

WASHINGTON — The Senate gave final passage Wednesday to an annual military policy bill that will authorize $901 billion in defense programs while pressuring Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to provide lawmakers with video of strikes on alleged drug boats in international waters near Venezuela.

The annual National Defense Authorization Act, which raises troop pay by 3.8%, gained bipartisan backing as it moved through Congress. It passed the Senate on a 77-20 vote before lawmakers planned to leave Washington for a holiday break. Two Republicans — Sens. Rand Paul and Mike Lee — and 18 Democrats voted against the bill.

The White House has indicated that it is in line with President Trump’s national security priorities. However, the legislation, which ran more than 3,000 pages, revealed some points of friction between Congress and the Pentagon as the Trump administration reorients its focus away from security in Europe and toward Central and South America.

The bill pushes back on recent moves by the Pentagon. It demands more information on boat strikes in the Caribbean, requires that the U.S. maintain its troop levels in Europe and sends some military aid to Ukraine.

But overall, the bill represents a compromise between the parties. It implements many of Trump’s executive orders and proposals on eliminating diversity and inclusion efforts in the military and grants emergency military powers at the U.S. border with Mexico. It also enhances congressional oversight of the Department of Defense, repeals several years-old war authorizations and seeks to overhaul how the Pentagon purchases weapons as the U.S. tries to outpace China in developing the next generation of military technology.

“We’re about to pass, and the president will enthusiastically sign, the most sweeping upgrades to DOD’s business practices in 60 years,” said Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Still, the sprawling bill faced objections from both Democratic and Republican leadership on the Senate Commerce Committee. That’s because the legislation allows military aircraft to obtain a waiver to operate without broadcasting their precise location, as an Army helicopter had done before a midair collision with an airliner in Washington, D.C., in January that killed 67 people.

“The special carve-out was exactly what caused the January 29 crash that claimed 67 lives,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), the chair of the Senate Commerce Committee, said at a news conference this week.

Cruz said he was seeking a vote on bipartisan legislation in the next month that would require military aircraft to use a precise location sharing tool and improve coordination between commercial and military aircraft in busy areas.

Boat strike videos

Republicans and Democrats agreed to language in the defense bill that threatened to withhold a quarter of Hegseth’s travel budget until he provided unedited video of the strikes, as well as the orders authorizing them, to the House and Senate Committees on Armed Services.

Hegseth was on Capitol Hill on Tuesday ahead of the bill’s passage to brief lawmakers on the U.S. military campaign in international waters near Venezuela. The briefing elicited contrasting responses from many lawmakers, with Republicans largely backing the campaign and Democrats expressing concern about it and saying they had not received enough information.

The committees are investigating a Sept. 2 strike — the first of the campaign — that killed two people who had survived an initial attack on their boat. The Navy admiral who ordered the “double-tap” strike, Adm. Frank “Mitch” Bradley, also appeared before the committees shortly before the vote Wednesday in a classified briefing that also included video of the strike in question.

Several Republican senators emerged from the meeting backing Hegseth and his decision not to release the video publicly, but other GOP lawmakers stayed silent on their opinion of the strike.

Democrats are calling for part of the video to be released publicly and for every member of Congress to have access to the full footage.

“The American people absolutely need to see this video,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.). “I think they would be shocked.”

Congressional oversight

Lawmakers have been caught by surprise by the Trump administration several times in the last year, including by a move to pause intelligence sharing with Ukraine and a decision to reduce U.S. troop presence in NATO countries in eastern Europe. The defense legislation requires that Congress be kept in the loop on decisions like those going forward, as well as when top military brass are removed.

The Pentagon is also required, under the legislation, to keep at least 76,000 troops and major equipment stationed in Europe unless NATO allies are consulted and there is a determination that such a withdrawal is in U.S. interests. Roughly 80,000 to 100,000 U.S. troops are usually present on European soil. A similar requirement keeps the number of U.S. troops stationed in South Korea at 28,500.

Lawmakers are also pushing back on some Pentagon decisions by authorizing $400 million for each of the next two years to manufacture weapons to be sent to Ukraine.

Cuts to diversity and climate initiatives

Trump and Hegseth have made it a priority to purge the military of material and programs that address diversity, anti-racism or gender issues, and the defense bill codifies many of those changes. It would repeal diversity, equity and inclusion offices and trainings, including the position of chief diversity officer. Those cuts would save the Pentagon about $40 million, according to the Republican-controlled House Armed Services Committee.

The U.S. military has long found that climate change is a threat to how it provides national security because weather-related disasters can destroy military bases and equipment. But the bill makes $1.6 billion in cuts by eliminating climate change-related programs at the Pentagon.

Repeal of war authorizations and Syria sanctions

Congress is writing a closing chapter to the war in Iraq by repealing the authorization for the 2003 invasion. Now that Iraq is a strategic partner of the U.S., lawmakers in support of the provision say the repeal is crucial to prevent future abuses. The bill also repeals the 1991 authorization that sanctioned the U.S.-led Gulf War.

The rare, bipartisan moves to repeal the legal justifications for the conflicts signal a potential appetite among lawmakers to reclaim some of Congress’ war powers.

Groves writes for the Associated Press.

The setting looked almost cozy: Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and a podcast host seated inside her home in two comfy chairs, talking about President Trump, ICE raids, public schools and the Palisades fire.

The recording session inside the library at Getty House, the official mayor’s residence, lasted an hour. Once it ended, the two shook hands and the room broke into applause.

Then, the mayor kept talking — and let it rip.

Bass gave a blunt assessment of the emergency response to the Palisades and Eaton fires. “Both sides botched it,” she said.

She didn’t offer specifics on the Palisades. But on the Eaton fire, she pointed to the lack of evacuation alerts in west Altadena, where all but one of the 19 deaths occurred.

“They didn’t tell people they were on fire,” she said to Matt Welch, host of “The Fifth Column” podcast.

The mayor’s informal remarks, which lasted around four minutes, came at the tail end of a 66-minute video added to “The Fifth Column’s” YouTube channel last month. In recent weeks, it was replaced by a shorter, 62-minute version — one that omits her more freewheeling final thoughts.

The exact date of the interview was not immediately clear. The video premiered on Nov. 25, according to the podcast’s YouTube channel.

Welch declined to say whether Bass asked for the end of the video to be cut. He had no comment on why the final four minutes can’t be found on the YouTube version of the podcast.

“We’re not going to be talking about any of that right now,” he told The Times before hanging up.

Bass’ team confirmed that her office asked for the final minutes of the video to be removed. “The interview had clearly ended and they acknowledged that when they took it down,” the mayor’s team said Tuesday in an email.

In the longer video, Bass also talked about being blamed for the handling of the Eaton fire in Altadena, which is in unincorporated Los Angeles County, outside of L.A. city limits. Altadena is represented by L.A. County Supervisor Kathryn Barger, not Bass.

“No one goes after the Board of Supervisors,” Bass said on the original 66-minute video. “I’m responsible for everything.”

Bass, in an interview with The Times, said she made those remarks after the podcast was over, during what she called a “casual conversation” — a situation she called “unfortunate.” Nevertheless, she stood by her take, saying she has made similar pronouncements about the emergency response “numerous times.”

In the case of the city, Bass said, the fire department failed to pre-deploy to the Palisades and require firefighters to stay for an extra shift, as The Times first reported in January. In Altadena, she said, residents did not receive timely notices to evacuate.

“The city and the county did a lot of things that we would look back at and say was very unfortunate,” she told The Times.

Bass was out of the country on a diplomatic mission to Ghana when the Palisades fire first broke out on Jan. 7. When she returned, she was unsteady in her handling of questions surrounding the emergency response.

Both the response and the rebuilding effort since the fire have created an opening for Bass’ rivals. Real estate developer Rick Caruso, who lost to her in 2022, is now weighing another run for mayor — and has been a harsh critic of her performance.

Former L.A. schools superintendent Austin Beutner, who is running against Bass in the June 2 primary election, called the mayor’s use of the word “botched” a “stunning admission of failure on behalf of the mayor” on “the biggest crisis Los Angeles has faced in a generation.”

“She’s admitting that she failed her constituents,” Beutner said.

Bass isn’t the first L.A. elected official to use the word “botched” in connection with the Palisades fire, which destroyed thousands of homes and left 12 people dead. Last month, during a meeting on the effort to rebuild in the Palisades, City Councilmember Monica Rodriguez said that Bass’ office had mishandled the recovery, at least in the first few months.

“Let’s be honest,” she told one of the mayor’s staffers. “You guys have to be the first to acknowledge that your office has botched the first few months of this recovery.”

Bass has defended her handling of that work, pointing to an accelerated debris removal process and her own emergency orders cutting red tape for rebuilding projects. The recovery, she told Welch, is moving faster than many other major wildfires, including the 2023 Lahaina fire in Hawaii.

“It’s important to state the facts, especially because in this environment … there’s a number of people out there who have been very, very deliberate in spreading misinformation,” she said.

Bass, who formally launched her reelection campaign over the weekend, has been giving interviews to a growing list of nontraditional outlets. She recently fielded questions on “Naked Lunch with Phil Rosenthal + David Wild.” She also went on “Big Boy’s Off Air Leadership Series” to discuss the Palisades fire and several other issues.

On “Big Boy’s Off Air,” Bass said she was in conflict with then-Fire Chief Kristin Crowley over her handling of the fire. When she ousted Crowley in February, she cited the LAFD’s failure to properly deploy resources ahead of the fierce winds. She also accused Crowley of refusing to participate in an after-action report on the fire.

Bass told Big Boy, the host of the program, that firefighters “were sent home and they shouldn’t have been.”

She also called the revelation that the Jan. 1 Lachman fire reignited days later, causing the Palisades fire, “shocking.” The Times has reported that an LAFD battalion chief ordered firefighters to leave the burn area, despite signs that the fire wasn’t fully extinguished.

Bass said that had she known of the danger facing the region in early January, she wouldn’t have gone to Long Beach, let alone Ghana.

Asked where blame should be assigned, Bass said: “At the end of the day, I’m the mayor, OK? But I am not a firefighter.”

On “The Fifth Column,” Bass spent much of the hour discussing the effect of federal immigration raids on Los Angeles and the effort to rewrite the City Charter to improve the city’s overall governmental structure. She also described the “overwhelming trauma” experienced by fire victims in the Palisades and elsewhere.

“To lose your home, it’s not just the structure. You lost everything inside there. You lost your memories,” she said. “You lost your sense of community, your sense of belonging. You know, it’s overwhelming grief and it’s collective grief, because then you have thousands of people that are experiencing this too.”

In the final four minutes, Welch told Bass that he viewed the Palisades fire as inevitable, given the ferocious strength of the Santa Ana winds that day. “As someone who grew up here, that fire was going to happen,” he said.

“Right,” Bass responded.

Welch continued: “If it’s 100 mile an hour winds and it’s dry, someone’s going to sneeze and there’s going to be a fire.”

“But if you look at the response in Palisades and the county,” Bass replied, “neither side —”

The mayor paused for a moment. “Both sides botched it.”

Experts have discovered thousands of dinosaur footprints in northern Italy’s Stelvio National Park – some of them on the sides of mountains.

Fans of English novelist Jane Austen have been celebrating the anniversary of her birth 250 years ago. Al Jazeera’s Charlie Angela has been to Austen’s former home in southern England.

Saying the unedited video of a September 2 strike on a boat in the Caribbean is “top secret,” US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters that its viewing will be restricted to select lawmakers, not the general public.

Netflix and iHeartMedia announced Tuesday they have an exclusive video partnership deal to bring more than 15 original podcasts, including “The Breakfast Club,” true crime podcast “My Favorite Murder” and Chelsea Handler’s “Dear Chelsea” to the subscription streaming service.

The multi-year deal, which launches in early 2026, includes new episodes from the podcasts and some library episodes. The video podcasts will first roll out on Netflix in the U.S. and later to other markets. Netflix declined to disclose the financial terms of the deal.

The announcement comes as Netflix is adding more video podcasts to its lineup to diversify the content on its streaming service and better compete with YouTube. Several of the iHeart podcasts involved in the deal, including “My Favorite Murder,” have posted videos of their podcasts on Google’s video platform prior to the deal’s announcement.

“With this partnership we are incredibly excited to offer our members such unmatched variety, and to deliver highly entertaining podcasts featuring some of the world’s most dynamic personalities,” said Lauren Smith, Netflix’s vice president of content licensing and programming strategy in a statement.

In October, Netflix announced next year it would stream 16 Spotify video podcasts, including sports audio programs like “The Bill Simmons Podcast” and “The Ringer Fantasy Football Show.”

Video podcasts have become more popular among audio listeners. Roughly 70% of podcast listeners prefer their shows with video, according to a Cumulus Media study. Some of the programs also have huge followings — for example, “My Favorite Murder,” with hosts Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, has generated about 2 billion lifetime downloads according to iHeart and Netflix in a press release.

Other video podcasts coming to Netflix include comedy podcast “This is Important,” mental health podcast “The Psychology of your 20s” and history podcast “Behind the Bastards.”

iHeart will keep its audio-only rights and distribution as part of the deal, with its podcasts continuing to be on iHeartRadio and “everywhere podcasts are heard,” the companies said. iHeart did not immediately return a request for comment on the financial terms of the Netflix deal.

“Netflix has a leading video-first service, and this partnership perfectly complements our strong audio foundation,” Bob Pittman, iHeartMedia CEO in a statement. “Working with Netflix—an important leader in entertainment— gives fans one more way to connect with the personalities they love and opens the door to new audiences, including viewers discovering these shows for the first time.”

Thousands of people joined demonstrations across Brazil to protest against a bill that would reduce the prison sentence of former President, Jair Bolsonaro. He was jailed for plotting a failed coup after losing the elections in 2022.

DAVINA McCall has shared a sweet tribute to her new husband Michael Douglas after confirming they have finally tied the knot. 

The couple, who have been together since late 2018, said their I Dos in a small and intimate ceremony in front of family and friends earlier this week. 

Just days later, Davina took to Instagram to reshare an on-stage tribute she made to Michael back at the 2024 NTAs – declaring her love for the celebrity hairdresser. 

At the time, Davina, who picked up the Special Recognition Award that evening, joked that when she meant Michael Douglas she meant “the younger one, not the older one” in a jab to his shared name with the Hollywood actor married to Catherine Zeta-Jones. 

“I love being on this journey with you, you make me a better person and you make me so happy, thank you!,” she sweetly said. 

Michael was seen watching on from the audience with tears in his eyes as she spoke about him. 

HEALTH JOURNEY

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Sources have shared how the couple had opted to keep their wedding on Friday “very low key” before attending a friend’s wedding the following day. 

A friend added: “Their wedding was perfect, exactly what they wanted. They chose a small venue close to their home, and just invited about ten of their friends and relatives to be there with them.

“It was very intimate and everyone who attended is very special in their lives.”

They went on: “They’ve been through a huge amount in recent months, with Davina’s health, and it just felt right to formalise their marriage. They didn’t see the point in waiting.

“The next day they just carried on with life as normal, and as coincidence would have it they were guests at another friend’s wedding day.

“So they went as a married ­couple for the first time and happily showed off her wedding ring. It was the perfect weekend.”

Their happy day comes amid a string of health battles for Davina, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in November after finding a small lump. 

Davina shared the news and revealed she had been reminded to check her breasts by a campaign on ITV’s Lorraine Kelly show, and had caught it early. 

“It was very, very small, so I got it very, very early which is incredibly lucky,” she told fans. 

“But I am so relieved to have had it removed and to know that it has not spread.

“I’m talking about this because I think it might help someone. And this is what I always do.”

She added she was due to have five days of radiation to ensure the cancer was gone. The diagnosis comes just a year after she had a six-hour brain op after a benign but very rare tumour was discovered by chance when she was offered a scan.

Political cartoons have infuriated kings, crooks and captains of industry since the days of the penny press in 19th century England. In a new video produced by two talented Los Angeles Times staffers, Armand Emamdjomeh and Don Kelsen, I describe how I carry on this satirical tradition in a world of iPads and online news. Please check it out.

One thing I may not have stressed enough in the video is the work that comes before dreaming up ideas and doing drawings. I learned about that early from one of the masters, Paul Conrad. From 1964 to 1993, Conrad was a formidable editorial voice at this newspaper. His cartoons won Pulitzer Prizes in three different decades. I was lucky enough to meet Conrad when I was just starting my career, and I asked him how I could be a better cartoonist. His answer was simple: “Read, read, read.”

And he was right. It’s not just about drawing. It’s not just about humor. It’s about knowing enough to intelligently engage in the great debates of our times. It is a privilege to have a job where I can jump into that debate, and it’s an honor to practice my craft in the place where Conrad once raised political art to a lofty standard.

For close to two centuries, cartoonists such as Conrad ruled the world of political satire — or were, at least, the most lauded court jesters. Now, in the star-power glare of comic commentators such as Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, plain old political cartoons can seem old-fashioned.

Still, I think the best cartoons retain a unique, subversive capacity to get inside people’s heads and speak truth to power. Traditionally a creature of print, political cartoons are now finding a new life and new relevance in the world of digital journalism. Cartoons are visual and succinct — key attributes in grabbing the attention of wide-roaming online readers.

Excuse me now, it’s time to do the hard work. I need to go read, read, read.

Jim Ward, a prolific voice actor whose work spans Nickelodeon shows “Fairly OddParents,” “Danny Phantom” and video games including “Ratchet & Clank,” has died. He was 66.

Ward died Wednesday, his former radio co-host commentator Stephanie Miller announced. “Our Good friend, Jim Ward passed away yesterday,” she tweeted Thursday. “We’re going to spend the morning remembering his brilliance.”

She first broke the news Wednesday, informing her followers on X (formerly Twitter) of “one of saddest messages I have ever received from the amazing Mrs. Jim Ward.” The voice actor co-hosted and often appeared as a guest on Miller’s eponymous syndicated talk radio program from 2004 to 2021.

Ward’s wife, Janice Ward, confirmed to TMZ that he died because of complications from advanced Alzheimer’s disease and was receiving treatment in Los Angeles before his death.

Though Ward often imitated public figures on Miller’s show, he is best known for voicing a wide variety of characters, including real estate tycoon Doug Dimmadome (the famed owner of the Dimmsdale Dimmadome) and dogged news anchor Chet Ubetcha on “The Fairly OddParents.” He also voiced various roles in series “My Life as a Teenage Robot,” “Danny Phantom,” “Ben 10,” “The Replacements” and dozens of other animated shows. In 2009, he earned a Daytime Emmy for his performance in the revival of “Biker Mice From Mars.”

Butch Hartman, the creator and animator for “Fairly OddParents” and “Danny Phantom,” mourned his longtime collaborator on social media. “To say the voice over world has lost a giant is an understatement,” Hartman said on Instagram, hours after Ward’s death.

“Rest in peace, dear friend and thank you for blessing us with your incredible talent and charm,” Hartman added. “Love you, brother.”

In the realm of video games, Ward’s voice acting credits were plentiful and ranged from the adventure classic “Escape From Monkey Island” in 2000 to the anti-Nazi shooter “Wolfenstein” in 2009 to the western-themed “Red Dead Redemption II” in 2018. Most notably, Ward voiced camera-ready space hero Captain Qwark in Insomniac Games’ “Ratchet & Clank” franchise, from the original game’s release in 2002 to its re-release in 2016, and the sequels and various shorts in between.

Ward’s video game voice credits also include the inaugural “Call of Duty,” “Resident Evil 4,” “Final Fantasy XIII,” “BioShock 2,” “Fallout: New Vegas” and numerous gaming tie-ins for TV and film projects.

Al Jazeera’s Barnaby Lo has been to a displacement camp in Cambodia where people have taken refuge from cross-border fighting with Thailand. Half a million people have been displaced by the fighting.

Crowds celebrated in the Syrian city of Latakia after the US House of Representatives approved a bill that will lift sanctions imposed on Syria six years ago. The legislation will now go to the US Senate where it’s expected to pass.

A Brazilian lawmaker was removed from Congress by police on Tuesday as he staged a protest against a bill which could drastically reduce ex-President Jair Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison sentence.

Busta Rhymes got a young TikTok creator all in check over the weekend after he boldly and incorrectly identified the rapper as “Saturday Night Live” alum Tracy Morgan.

The “Woo-Hah!! Got You All in Check” and “Calm Down” rap veteran, 53, sternly set the record straight for the social media troll during an exchange Sunday at Art Basel in Miami Beach. In video of the interaction, published Monday by TMZ, the musician poses with a supposed fan for a photo op. “Get the video of this, it’s Tracy Morgan out here,” the jokester, wearing a black hoodie and baggy jeans, seems to say as he points to Rhymes.

The remark immediately elicited confusion from the rapper and the surrounding crowd. “Wait, what’d you say?,” the Grammy-nominated musician asks, according to the video. “What did you just say?”

For reference, Rhymes is a longtime hip-hop star who first rose to prominence in the late 1980s and is also known for songs “Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See” and Chris Brown’s “Look at Me Now.” Over the years he has collaborated with Notorious B.I.G., Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Pharrell, T-Pain, Missy Elliott and Ye (formerly Kanye West), among others. Morgan, on the other hand, is an Emmy-nominated comedy veteran who was part of the “Saturday Night Live” cast from 1996 to 2003 before pivoting to comedy series including “30 Rock”, “The Last O.G.” and most recently, “Crutch.”

Both Rhymes and Morgan are Black men.

The video continues with Rhymes — real name Trevor Smith Jr. — requesting an onlooker put down their camera and asking the alleged fan to explain himself. “I’m trying to understand,” he can be heard saying, patting the Tiktoker on the shoulder.

“I’m asking you a question, I ain’t calling you out,” he says, later adding, “I was taking a picture to show you love, but you trying to be funny?”

“I’m not trying to be funny at all,” the young man replied.

“What [do] you mean, ‘Tracy, my boy?’”

As Busta Rhymes continues scolding the troll, the TMZ video pans over to the crowd and identifies Kenny Brooks, an internet personality known as Funny Salesman. While it’s unclear if Brooks played a part in the viral interaction, he shared videos and coverage of the exchange to his Instagram stories on Monday.

“You don’t play with a grown man, little boy — that’s how people get f— up,” Rhymes reportedly told the young man, who can be seen walking away from the scene alongside Funny Salesman at the end of the video. Brooks attempted to distance himself from the exchange, calling out TMZ in a TikTok posted Monday: “I don’t know what happened. I wasn’t there,” he said, despite video evidence pointing to the contrary.

“I’m not Shaggy, it wasn’t me. I don’t know what’s going on. I was like Stevie Wonder, I ain’t see nothing,” Brooks said, adding he was trying to get his own video with Rhymes.

He ended his post with a nod to Rhymes’ music: “I’m trying to put my hands where my eyes can see.”