Eurasia Press & News

MEGVREKISI, Georgia (Reuters) – Fighting raged in and around the capital of Georgia’s breakaway South Ossetia region on Friday as Georgian troops, backed by warplanes, pounded separatist forces in a bid to re-take control of the territory.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Georgia, engaged in a large-scale operation to regain control of its breakaway province of South Ossetia, told its other separatist region, Abkhazia, on Friday to stay away from the conflict.

TBILISI (Reuters) – Three Russian jets entered Georgian airspace and “dropped bombs” at two locations just south of breakaway South Ossetia, where fighting raged on Friday, Georgia’s interior ministry said.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The U.N. Security Council failed on Friday to reach an agreement on a Russian-drafted statement that would have called on Georgia and separatists in its South Ossetia region to immediately halt all bloodshed.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Georgian troops entered Tskhinvali, the besieged capital of the breakaway region of South Ossetia, on Friday after battling separatist forces overnight, Interfax news agency reported.

TBILISI (Reuters) – Georgia will continue its military operation in the breakaway region of South Ossetia until a “durable peace” is reached, Prime Minister Lado Gurgenidze said on Friday.

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is currently holding consultations with aides on Moscow’s strategy in the South Ossetian conflict, the Kremlin said.

HEBRON, West Bank (Reuters) – The Palestinian juice vendor cursed after an Israeli soldier stopped him from trundling his barrow into Hebron’s ancient covered market.

GAZA (Reuters) – Gaza’s Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) militant group on Thursday warned Israel that a truce between Israel and Hamas which went into effect on June 19 was in danger of collapse, saying it could end in three weeks.

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) – The U.N. Security Council voted on Thursday to keep the United Nations mission in Iraq for another year, as Baghdad urged the world body to do more to help it transform into a functioning democracy.