The preliminary investigation by Russia’s Investigative Committee accused four Russian servicemen of the kidnap and murder of the American Russell Bentley, a Russian “war correspondent.”

The Russian state news agency TASS reported on Friday that the Main Military Investigative Department of Moscow’s Investigative Committee confirmed that four Russian servicemen have been charged in connection with the kidnap, torture and murder of the American Russell Bentley in April, while he worked for the Spunik propaganda outlet in the Donbas region.

The investigation found that on April 8, Bentley, who was known as the “Donbas Cowboy,” was abducted while filming the aftermath of a Ukrainian artillery strike in Donetsk's Petrovsky District.

It is alleged that three Russian servicemen Vitaly Vansyatsky, Vladislav Agaltsov and Andrey Iordanov, a tank crew from Moscow’s 5th Zakharchenko Brigade violently kidnapped Bentley, took him to an unidentified location where they interrogated and tortured him which, in the words of the committees indictment involved “actions that clearly went beyond their authority and which through negligence resulted in the death of the victim.”

The charges also say that, in trying to cover up the incident they put the American’s body into a VAZ-2115 / Lada Samara car which they then blew up using TNT blocks. The next day Vansyatsky ordered another serviceman in his unit, Vladimir Bazhin, to remove and hide Bentley’s remains, which have not been recovered but his car was later found, inside which was a baseball cap, glasses and a broken phone.

A hand holding up a deck of cards, the first card is Indestructible Aura from Magic the Gathering

A Russian private military company with links to Russia's Defense Ministry is withdrawing from Burkina Faso due to Ukraine's incursion into Kursk Oblast, French newspaper Le Monde reported on Aug. 29.

According to Le Monde, the 100-strong unit known as the Bears Brigade arrived in the West African nation of Burkina Faso in May to support the junta of Captain Ibrahim Traore, who came to power in a coup in September 2022.

Traore visited Russia in July 2023 for a Russia-Africa summit in St. Petersburg, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and attended Russian Navy Day celebrations.

Around 300 Russian troops are estimated to be deployed in Burkina Faso, Le Monde said.

Le Monde contacted the commander of the Bears Brigade, Viktor Yermolaev, via Telegram, on Aug. 22, after Ukraine launched its incursion into Kursk Oblast on Aug. 10.

"When the enemy arrives on our Russian territory, all Russian soldiers forget about internal problems and unite against a common enemy," Yermolaev told Le Monde.

The Ministry of Reintegration of Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine has opened a 24/7 hotline for the residents of Russia’s Kursk Oblast who need humanitarian aid or want to evacuate to Ukraine.

Source: Iryna Vereshchuk, Deputy Prime Minister for Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine

Quote: "Due to the possible deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the adjacent territories of Kursk Oblast of the Russian Federation, Ukraine should be prepared to accept Russian refugees.

Therefore, Ukraine’s Ministry of Reintegration opened a 24/7 hotline for the residents of Kursk Oblast who need humanitarian aid or want to evacuate to Ukraine.

Ukraine adheres to all the norms of international law. We will provide the civilians of Kursk Oblast with necessary protection and humanitarian support."

Scientists have discovered a reservoir of liquid water on Mars - deep in the rocky outer crust of the planet.

The findings come from a new analysis of data from Nasa’s Mars Insight Lander, which touched down on the planet back in 2018.

The lander carried a seismometer, which recorded four years' of vibrations - Mars quakes - from deep inside the Red Planet.

Analysing those quakes - and exactly how the planet moves - revealed "seismic signals" of liquid water.

Scientists have discovered a reservoir of liquid water on Mars - deep in the rocky outer crust of the planet.

The findings come from a new analysis of data from Nasa’s Mars Insight Lander, which touched down on the planet back in 2018.

The lander carried a seismometer, which recorded four years' of vibrations - Mars quakes - from deep inside the Red Planet.

Analysing those quakes - and exactly how the planet moves - revealed "seismic signals" of liquid water.