Lara Emanuele, 46, was last seen on June 7 in Roxbury, and her car was found abandoned the following morning outside the Holiday Inn Express

Ukraine’s military has “good news” in the eastern front of the battlefield where heavy fighting is underway to regain ground, deputy defence minister Hanna Maliar has said, saying Kyiv’s forces were making gains near Bakhmut. “We are moving forward in the Bakhmut direction. The main battles continue in the districts of Andriivka, Kurdyumivka, Klishchiivka. And we have good news there – Andriivka. The situation is very complex and changeable, we keep our fingers crossed,” the deputy defence minister said in her official Telegram channel on Thursday evening. Initially, the minister claimed Ukrainian forces had retaken Andriivka village, which falls south of Bakhmut, but the country’s Third Assault Brigade fighting in the region said the report was “premature”. “Currently, serious and heavy fighting continues in the districts of Klishchiivka and Andriivka,” the brigade from Ukraine’s ground forces handling military operations on the eastern front said. Ms Maliar also said Vladimir Putin’s troops had sustained “significant losses” in attacks on key towns as Ukrainian forces are bolstering their efforts to capture clusters of villages in a drive towards the Sea of Azov. The Russian casualties had “significantly reduced their ability to defend themselves”, she said. Senior military officials said heavy casualties have been inflicted on Russian forces on the southern front, with over 600 deaths of Russian soldiers. “The enemy, as a result of attempts to recapture at least some of the lost positions in the Tavria (south) direction in the last two days has lost 15 tanks and 12 armoured vehicles,” Oleksander Shtupun, spokesperson for troops on the southern front, said on national television. Russian personnel losses stand at 665 over two days, he said. As part of a critical component of Ukraine’s four-month-old counteroffensive, the country’s forces are pushing southward with the aim to split a land bridge created by Russian forces between the Crimean peninsula and the areas Ukraine holds in the east. Russia’s defence ministry claimed its forces repelled eight attacks in the east in the hotly contested areas south of Bakhmut. Ukraine’s military confirmed attacks on two Russian patrol ships early on Thursday and said it destroyed a sophisticated air defence system in the west of occupied Crimea. President Volodymyr Zelensky marked a direct and rare celebration of the attacks on the Russian navy in his nightly address. “The entire staff of the Security Service of Ukraine and our Navy should be specially commended for this. I thank you for today’s triumph – the destruction of the occupiers’ air defence system on the land of our Crimea. It is a very significant achievement, well done! Glory to all who fight for Ukraine! And thank you to everyone who helps!” he said in his nightly address. The war-hit nation has been pushing back in the southern region and making increasing missile hits on the Crimean peninsula this week to challenge Mr Putin’s control in the Black Sea region. On Wednesday, Kyiv said it seriously damaged a Russian submarine and landing ship undergoing repairs in a missile strike on a shipyard in the Crimean port of Sevastopol, home to the Russian Black Sea Fleet. Read More Zelenskyy is expected to visit Capitol Hill as Congress is debating $21 billion in aid for Ukraine Ukraine-Russia war – live: Kyiv is pushing Putin forces back, UK’s most senior military officer says With Russia isolated on the world stage, Putin turns to old friend North Korea for help Kim Jong-un tests out Putin’s limousine during historic meeting Why support for Ukraine is in danger of splitting the EU

Donald Trump railed against a list of “villains” including electric vehicles (EVs), President Joe Biden and “radical left lunatics” as he delivered a speech in the battleground state of Michigan on Sunday night. The former president spoke before 2,500 supporters at Oakland County GOP’s Lincoln Day Dinner, where he was honoured by the party as its “Man of the Decade”. During the event, he claimed that electric vehicles would result in the “decimation” of the state’s traditional auto industry and claimed that his criminal indictments are “bulls***”. Michigan could be a key focus of the 2024 race after Mr Trump won the state in 2016 but lost it to Mr Biden in 2020. His appearance came one day after he told a crowd of evangelicals on Saturday that the federal government has a “vital role” in the restriction of abortion access and once again took credit for overturning Roe v Wade. But the former president did not detail his proposal for national abortion restrictions at the Faith & Freedom Coalition conference in Washington DC, in contrast to his 2024 rival Mike Pence, who said he supports outlawing abortion nationally at 15 weeks of pregnancy. Read More Trump celebrates anniversary of anti-abortion ruling as he tells religious crowd ‘I’m getting indicted for you’ Trump declares himself the ‘most pro-life’ president in American history Biden warns Republicans aren’t done with abortion bans as protesters hit streets on anniversary of Roe’s fall Trump quietly changes political fundraising site to funnel funds toward legal woes Trump tells Michigan Republicans that EVs will ‘decimate’ state’s auto industry

India and Saudi Arabia have agreed to expand trade and security ties, two days after their leaders and others attending a Group of 20 summit announced a new railways and port corridor deal that will link India, Middle East and Europe

A 44-year-old Arkansas man who beat a police officer with a flagpole during the January 6 riot at the US Capitol was sentenced Monday to four years in prison.

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde is warning that inflation is holding its grip on the economy

Dr Victor Ebenuwa misdiagnosed a patient's condition and medication, a tribunal hears.

Air India said on Wednesday a reserve plane would take off from Mumbai on Wednesday for passengers whose

WASHINGTON U.S. Senator Bob Menendez's arraignment on new charges that he conspired to act as a foreign agent

Phoenix says it’s slowly clearing hundreds of people from a downtown camp of homeless people called “The Zone,” asking a judge to allow more time to clear the area and set up a safer, structured camp site for people living outside

Storms and heavy rain across a large swath of Germany have flooded roads and forced the closure of some major railway routes, but there is no immediate word of any injuries

Italian authorities boarded a Turkish vessel off the southern city of Naples after the crew detected a group of unidentified people on board. During an event on Friday, Italian defence minister Guido Crosetto announced that there were 15 “illegal migrants” on board the ship named Galatea Seaways which was bound for France. According to reports, 13 men and two women, mainly from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq, had allegedly snuck into the ship in the hope of finding asylum in Europe. The Guardian reported that the immigrants were “armed with knives and attempted to hijack the vessel”. Ansa news agency additionally reported that once the immigrants were discovered by the crew of the ship, they allegedly tried to take some of the sailors hostage inside the bridge using knives. The captain of the ship was somehow able to get his hands on the radio, sending an SOS request to Ankara, which ended up reporting the incident to the Italian authorities. “An operation is underway on a vessel boarded by pirates … The stowaways were using what seem to be weapons like daggers” Mr Crosetto told reporters at the time. “The San Marco battalion had to intervene.” He added: “What is known about the hijackers is that they are illegal immigrants. Let’s hope it ends as quickly as possible without consequences for anyone.” It reportedly took seven hours for Italian special forces to intervene and regain control of the ship. They reportedly arrested the immigrants, some of whom found a place to hide in the depths of the ship. After the mission was successful, the Italian ministry said: “The ship has now been recaptured and the entire 22-man crew of the Turkish ship is safe.” Mr Crosetto also issued a statement on Twitter, writing: “Everything ended well. “My congratulations to the guys of the San Marco battalion and the police, who completed a wonderful operation,” he added. Read More Boris Johnson quits as MP and claims he is victim of ‘Partygate and Brexit witch-hunt’ Ukraine-Russia war – latest: Kyiv makes ‘good progress’ against Putin after ‘significant’ operations Russian man screams ‘papa’ as he is mauled to death by shark in Egypt Turkish lira declines to record lows following start of Erdogan's new presidential term Turkish forces arrive in Kosovo to bolster NATO-led peacekeepers after recent violence US sanctions Iranians over alleged assassination plots of former US officials, dissidents