In China – the land of hot noodles, steaming rice and warm soups – a new and unlikely food trend has swept across the country’s social media platforms in recent weeks.

People have been sharing images of what most would consider incredibly bland foods, such as raw carrots wrapped in cheese, two-ingredient sandwiches and dressing-free salads – all unified by a single hashtag: #bairenfan.

Translation: #Whitepeoplemeals.

You’re unlikely to find depictions of roast turkey dinners or cheeseburgers when exploring the images attached to this hashtag. What you will find are unappetizing pics of no-frills, cold, assembled dishes that require little or no cooking time – the kinds of foods many Westerners traditionally associate with lunch.

The trend really started to take off in May, when people started posting photos and videos of these simple meals on social media platforms in China, though there are posts with the hashtag dating as far back as last October.

In one such video, a woman on a train in Europe unwraps a plastic bag of lettuce and a bag of ham. She bundles them together, adds mustard and starts eating.

Other posts feature photos of raw vegetables and basic sandwiches – think a single slice of bologna between two pieces of white bread – that Chinese netizens’ international colleagues or spouses have shared with them.

As the trend spread, Chinese netizens around the world started sharing their own experiences with these minimalistic meals, making #bairenfan one of the hottest phrases on various platforms and local media in the last month.

The rapid evolution of #whitepeoplemeals

The photos begged the question: is that really what people in China think Caucasians eat all the time?

“I feel it’s important to recognize that perception is an evolving concept,” says British Chinese chef Andrew Wong, the third-generation owner of London’s two-Michelin-star Chinese restaurant, A. Wong.

“China is awash with Western cultural references – art, philosophy, fashion, food. This has happened in a relatively recent and short timeframe given the history of China’s relationship with the West. It takes time to adjust to understanding the reasons behind some things and that includes certain foods.”

In this case, the trend took only weeks to evolve. At first, most of the posts shared in China were filled with mockery and disbelief.

“My Australian colleagues have expressed the ‘don’t-give-a-s**t’ spirit of white people meals to the extreme. It was a slice of bread last time. Now there are two carrots. The only ceremonial effort was putting them in a lunchbox,” wrote one user on Xiaohongshu, a popular Chinese social media site.

Another user shared a lunchbox photo of two carrots with some baby spinach and expressed concern over whether its owner could “generate enough energy” with so little food.

Others complained about feeling empty and soulless after eating such meals.

And then the trend hit Twitter, with English-language users sharing their own photos and videos with the #whitepeoplemeals hashtag. (One such tweet gathered 4.3 million views in the last 3.5 weeks.)

I found out today that on Chinese social media, there’s a trending hashtag that translates to white people meals lol

“I was so tired I ate a white people meal today”

One of hashtags is also “white people meals are still meals” pic.twitter.com/VGdedgrV2F

— Yan Fan Tokyo – we’re hiring! (@yanarchy) June 2, 2023

Many Twitter users, beyond the Chinese community, found the hashtag hilariously true.

“Well, you can’t argue with this,” one user said.

A Japanese Twitter user recalled her own experience in the United States: “I was kinda surprised that I saw people just bringing veggies in ziplock for lunch when I was an exchange student in the States.”

Back in China, as the hashtag went viral globally, some media reports expressed surprise at how quickly the international community embraced the stereotype.

Multiple outlets reported that a new trending topic had emerged – #Whitepeoplemeals have been discovered by white people – and recapped the lighthearted responses from users around the globe.

But that wasn’t the end of it. Another group appeared from the shadowy corners of the internet to show support for these simple meals, with a new hashtag – #Bairenfanyeshifan, or #whitepeoplemealsmatter – popping up on social media platforms in China.

Some said eating such foods will help them lose weight. Others looked at the matter through a more serious lens, claiming the trend reflects the lifestyle and hardship of today’s society.

One post on 163.com, a Chinese blog/media site, explored the parallels between these simple meals and the current “quiet quitting” mindset – the idea of simply slowing your progress at work instead of literally quitting the job – of the tired workers in China.

The post thanked the bland and comfortless meals for “maintaining their lives” without requiring much effort, especially during lunch at work. In other words, the no-hustle approach aligns with how little they care about their careers.

Another positive highlighted in the post: unlike full Chinese meals, these ones don’t make you drowsy, allowing you to avoid the urge to take an afternoon nap while at work.

Cross-cultural differences

Malaysia-born chef Edward Voon is the founder of Auor, a French-influenced fine-dining restaurant in Hong Kong. He says the trend highlights cross-cultural differences.

His only memory of eating something similar to a “white people meal” in his childhood was a boiled egg and canned tuna.

“We didn’t have Western food at home when I was a child as the older generations in my family didn’t have a taste for it,” he recalls. “Gathering around the table over Asian dishes was the tradition, as it was for most families at the time, and the happy buzz of everyone together sharing plates of steaming hot, delicious home-cooked food and lively conversation was what drew me to a career as a chef.”

Even the first-ever meal he tried to cook – at four years old, when he was sick of the fried eggs and chicken curry his mother made for him – wasn’t cold.

It was fried beans and potatoes.

“I almost burnt my house down,” says Voon. “The pan caught fire and I poured water on burning oil. Oops. Seriously, though, it could have been disastrous. I guess I’m quite resilient as the incident didn’t scar me for life (mentally or physically) and I was able to continue my adventures in the kitchen.”

Making a sandwich might have been safer in that case.

Over in London, chef Wong considers himself lucky to have grown up in a family of Chinese descent, but surrounded by family members, friends and peers from different backgrounds and cultures. He emphasizes that any new culture and experience can be deciphered wrongly or exaggerated, and that includes food.

“(In terms of) culture, there are more similarities than there are differences when it comes to food. Something I’ve learned even more as a chef,” he says.

Quick and easy lunches have a long history

In addition to being deterred by the mere lack of taste and tiny portions of those so-called #whitepeoplemeals, many Chinese have expressed puzzlement with uncooked food in general. That’s because Chinese traditional medicine has long dictated that our bodies respond better to warm food and beverages.

But what some of the viral posts fail to point out is that these simple cold foods are primarily only eaten at lunchtime. And there’s a historic reason for that, says Megan Elias, food historian and gastronomy director at Boston University.

“The standardization of the lunch hour in factory settings gave people less time to eat and urbanization meant they might be far from home, so they were not able to cook. Lunch wagons and quick-serve coffee shops emerged especially in America to provide cheap and easy lunches that people could eat outside or in their work rooms.”

Elias has written multiple books on food and culture, including “Lunch: A History.”

She says sandwiches became the defacto lunch option at these wagons and shops because you can “get a variety of flavors into one package without much risk of spilling or any need to heat things up” in a limited time.

“As the world gets smaller (and busier), eating convenient cold food, whether sandwiches, salads or Asian snacks, has become commonplace.”

Malaysia-born chef Edward Voon

Elias says her lunches are similar to the ones posted under the hashtag “white people meals” – but often include dishes from other countries.

“I usually have a small cold lunch so I don’t get tired and it includes something savory and something sweet,” says the historian.

“For example, an onigiri and a macaron or a small sandwich and a cookie. And always an espresso.”

Chef Voon says he now understands the beauty of sandwiches, and they grace his lunchtime from time to time.

“As the world gets smaller (and busier), eating convenient cold food, whether sandwiches, salads or Asian snacks, has become commonplace,” he says.

“As a chef, I love to bring together the many diverse flavors of Asia alongside nature’s bounty from all over the world. Cold store-bought food has its place in our busy modern lives… but you cannot beat the social and sensorial pleasures of a freshly cooked meal at home or in a good restaurant.”

Despite preferring hot flavorful meals when possible, the chef dislikes the idea of stereotyping anyone.

“I don’t like the term ‘white people meals,’ even when it’s used in a joking manner,” says Voon. “Diversity is an important part of my culinary philosophy and it is impossible to make generalizations according to race, country or culture.”

Chef Wong takes a similar stance, comparing food to language.

“It’s deeply ingrained in culture, terroir, even in political and historical events,” he says. “It’s easy for it to be deciphered wrongly or exaggerated while people are learning something new or something they haven’t experienced before. It’s easy to miss the nuances or take something out of context.”

As a food scholar, Elias says the “white people meals” trend might serve more than just a stereotype – it may actually help challenge other hackneyed cultural beliefs.

“I see the recent trend stereotyping white people’s food as bland and unappealing as an attempt to decolonize American foodways by rejecting what has typically been pushed as the ‘norm’ for American food,” she says.

“It offers some xenophobic people an opportunity to see their own foodways as ‘exotic’ or odd, which is a good way to decenter whiteness. Ultimately, though, people like what they like.”

Editor’s Note: Find the latest coverage here.

“Presumed human remains” were among the debris and evidence recovered from the seafloor where the doomed Titan submersible’s remnants were found, the US Coast Guard said Wednesday.

The remains were recovered “within the wreckage” of the submersible, the Coast Guard said in a news release – an announcement coming nearly a week after authorities determined the Titanic-bound vessel had imploded in the North Atlantic, killing all five men aboard.

The presumed remains, which the military branch said will be analyzed by US medical professionals, were among the evidence from the submersible that arrived at a Canadian pier Wednesday.

A white panel-like piece – taller than the two men guiding it onto land – and another similarly sized part with cords and wires draped with white tarp were among the debris taken off the anchor handling vessel Horizon Arctic at the Canadian Coast Guard pier in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, photos by The Canadian Press’ Paul Daly show.

It was not immediately clear what those pieces were. Titan was made of carbon fiber and titanium and weighed 23,000 pounds, with room for only five adults, according to OceanGate Expeditions, which operated the craft as part of its offering for extreme tourists to get close to the century-old wreckage of the Titanic for $250,000 per person.

Crew members “have been working around the clock now for 10 days, through the physical and mental challenges of this operation, and are anxious to finish the mission and return to their loved ones,” the company said in a statement.

Pelagic Research Services deferred questions to the US Coast Guard, adding its team cannot comment on or provide any information related to the investigation into the Titan’s demise. The company will hold a news conference at its East Aurora, New York, operations base after “our team has regrouped,” it said.

The OceanGate submersible and its five passengers began their descent to the 111-year-old wreckage of the Titanic on the morning of June 18. But about an hour and 45 minutes into its dive, the cramped vessel lost contact with its mother ship and did not surface as expected, kicking off a massive, dayslong multinational search and rescue operation that captured the world’s attention.

On Thursday, the US Coast Guard announced the vessel had suffered a “catastrophic implosion” that presumably killed all those aboard.

The tail cone and other debris from the submersible were found by a remotely operated vehicle about 1,600 feet from the bow of the Titanic.

Over the weekend, the military branch said it convened a Marine Board of Investigation to probe what caused the implosion and to offer possible recommendations “to pursue civil or criminal sanctions as necessary.”

In its news release Wednesday, the Coast Guard said those working on the investigation board are collecting evidence and interviewing witnesses ahead of an expected public hearing for additional witness testimony.

“There is still a substantial amount of work to be done to understand the factors that led to the catastrophic loss of the Titan and help ensure a similar tragedy does not occur again,” Capt. Jason Neubauer, who heads the investigative board, said Wednesday.

Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin has arrived in Belarus, the country’s President Alexander Lukashenko said Tuesday, days after the mercenaries’ 36-hour military insurrection posed an unprecedented challenge to the authority of Russia’s leadership.

“I see that Prigozhin is already flying on this plane. Yes, indeed, he is in Belarus today,” Lukashenko said, according to Belarusian state TV Tuesday.

Prigozhin’s exact whereabouts are unknown. The warlord hasn’t been seen in any videos or photos since he left the Rostov-on-Don military headquarters Saturday evening.

However, satellite imagery by global monitoring company BlackSky shows two planes linked to Prigozhin landed at a Belarusian airbase outside the country’s capital on Tuesday morning.

Flight tracking data from FlightRadar24 indicated the planes landed near Minsk at around 8 a.m. local time. Both planes had their transponders turned off before landing, obscuring their exact landing location.

Two sources – a senior European intelligence official and a source familiar with Prigozhin’s planes – confirmed the jets are linked to the Wagner boss but did not know if he was on board.

Questions over Prigozhin’s whereabouts have been circling for days, since the Wagner chief’s short-lived rebellion triggered a weekend of chaos for Russian President Vladimir Putin.

On Saturday, troops from Prigozhin’s private military group seized control of a military base and moved in convoy toward Moscow, facing little resistance, in a remarkable and unexpected challenge to the Kremlin leader.

The march was suddenly called off when a supposed deal was struck that would see Prigozhin move to neighboring Belarus.

Though Putin said Saturday those on “path of treason” or armed rebellion would be punished, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) later announced it was dropping the criminal case against the Wagner paramilitary group.

Then on Monday, Putin thanked Wagner fighters for making the “right decision” to halt their advance and offered them three options: sign contracts with the Defense Ministry or other law enforcement agencies, return home or “go to Belarus.”

Possible Wagner investigation

In Moscow Tuesday, Putin told Russian security personnel they had “virtually stopped a civil war” in responding to the failed insurrection.

The Russian leader also alluded to a possible investigation into claims that billions of rubles of state funds were spent on Wagner, saying “we” will “deal with that.”

Speaking to security personnel, Putin claimed Wagner had been completely funded by the Russian state, with 86 billion rubles (about $1 billion) funneled to the group in the past 12 months. Putin claimed the Concord company, owned by Prigozhin, received 80 billion rubles from Moscow for supplying food and providing food services.

“I want everyone to know about this: the maintenance of the entire Wagner group was fully provided for by the state,” Putin claimed. “But I hope that through its work, nobody has taken anything.”

Despite Putin’s claims, the shadowy Wagner mercenary force had long served Moscow’s interests, advancing Putin’s foreign policy and influence, particularly in Africa.

On Tuesday, the US Treasury Department also imposed sanctions on four companies and one person tied to Wagner that “have engaged in illicit gold dealings to fund the Wagner Group to sustain and expand its armed forces, including in Ukraine and Africa.”

“The Wagner Group funds its brutal operations in part by exploiting natural resources in countries like the Central African Republic and Mali. The United States will continue to target the Wagner Group’s revenue streams to degrade its expansion and violence in Africa, Ukraine, and anywhere else,” Under Secretary of the Treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence Brian Nelson said in a statement.

Belarus ‘not building’ Wagner camps

Belarusian President Lukashenko said Tuesday that Wagner had been offered some abandoned land inside Belarus if they needed it but denied building camps on its territory for the Russian mercenaries.

“We are not building any camps yet. But if they want, we will accommodate them. Set up tents, please. But for now they are in Luhansk [in eastern Ukraine] in their camps,” he said.

Lukashenko – a longtime ally of the Russian President – also claimed he convinced Putin not to “destroy” Wagner and Prigozhin, talking up his role in halting the weekend rebellion.

He described his view of the negotiations that led to Prigozhin ending his march towards Moscow, saying he spoke on the phone to the Wagner boss throughout Saturday.

“I also realized there was a harsh decision taken – to destroy. I suggested Putin not to hurry. Let’s talk with Prigozhin, with his commanders,” Lukashenko said, according to Belarusian state media.

Lukashenko said he managed to get hold of Prigozhin and, according to his account, warned he would be “crushed like a bug” if Wagner troops continued their advance to the Russian capital.

The Kremlin has credited Lukashenko with helping to deescalate the situation, though the Belarus leader’s account of events has not been corroborated by Putin or Prigozhin.

Lukashenko also said most of the tactical nuclear weapons that Russia plans to station in Belarus have already arrived but Wagner troops would not be guarding them.

“In terms of nuclear weapons, most of them were already brought to Belarus, I won’t say how many. It’s surprising that they didn’t trace it,” Lukashenko said, according to Belarus state media.

“Russians and Belarusians are guarding it… No Wagner fighters will guard nuclear weapons. This is our task.”

If Lukashenko’s remarks are correct, it would be the first time Belarus has had nuclear weapons on its territory since the early 1990s.

Earlier this year, Putin announced plans to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus and that Moscow would complete the construction of a special storage facility for the weapons by the beginning of July.

In between leading Sunday services at All Saints’ Cathedral in the Ugandan capital, Kampala, Rev. Canon John Awodi declares vehemently that “homosexuality is a sin that must be repented of,” adding that it is against the “order of God.”

These themes have become a common thread in his sermons and interviews, especially since Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act was signed into law last month.

The act outlaws gay marriage in Uganda, punishes same-sex acts with life imprisonment, and calls for the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality” – which includes sex with a minor or otherwise vulnerable person, having sex while HIV positive and incest.

After initially wavering and sending the bill – which is widely popular with lawmakers, Christian and Muslim leaders in Uganda, as well as commentators on social media – back to parliament for review, President Yoweri Museveni eventually signed it into law in May, leading to global criticism, existential dread within the LGBTQ+ community, and legal challenges.

‘Nowhere is safe’

Even though she created a safe space and shelter for lesbian, bisexual, and queer women through her organization, she says, she herself faces eviction from her rented apartment by the end of July. She believes it is because of her sexuality and prominence in queer activism, even though her landlord didn’t explicitly say so but her suspicions rose after a neighbor tipped her off.

“I have had myself being chased away from where I’m staying,” she said.

Returning to her parents’ house was not an option either. “My mum stands in solidarity with me but from a distance. When we had the conversation that I had been evicted, she didn’t say ‘you can come home’ she just said ‘oh, sorry, I’ll pray for you.’ How is prayer going to help?” Amek asked.

In recent weeks, disturbing videos have surfaced showing mounting hostility towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex individuals in Uganda since the reintroduction of the Anti-Homosexuality Bill.

In one video, verified by a consortium of civil society groups called the Strategic Response Team (SRT), a transgender woman is marched naked on the streets while a jeering crowd follows, and a lesbian couple endures ridicule from neighbors, among other forms of public shaming.

They include cases of evictions, so-called “corrective” rape, outing, termination from employment, blackmail, threats of violence or physical attacks and incidents of mob justice, according to SRT.

However, opposition lawmaker Asuman Basalirwa, who introduced the 2023 bill, dismissed the latest reports of human rights violations as “distortions” and fabrications.

“Who has been fired from their jobs? Who has been evicted from their houses? This is a very innocent law. No one has been targeted,” he said.

‘My life is hell’

Nash Wash Raphael, a 30-year-old transgender man, says he was attacked on the night Museveni signed the Anti-Homosexuality Act. He was left with a broken ankle and relies on crutches to walk while it heals.

This was not the first time Raphael had faced violence; he says it was the ninth assault since his transition. Raphael describes his life as “hell,” and says he attempted suicide when pictures of him and his partner were leaked and went viral. While they weren’t intimate photos, they still outed him.

“I feel like I should take my own life as there is nothing else I’m left to protect. This is my second year on hormones, and I was supposed to get my top surgery next year, but all this has been shattered, and I can’t even afford it,” Raphael said. Top surgery refers to the procedure to remove breast or chest tissue.

Raphael says he no longer walks during the day, afraid that he might get attacked again.

After getting fired from his job for not wearing traditional women’s clothes, he tried casual jobs in Dubai and Saudi Arabia and hawking baked goods in Kampala but says he couldn’t keep his identity hidden for long.

“My life is actually useless to them. I literally tell myself that I don’t have a family in this world. The same God that created them has a reason why he made me the way I am,” Raphael says, his voice breaking.

‘Promoting’ homosexuality penalized

The new law states that “a person who promotes homosexuality commits an offense and is liable, on conviction, to imprisonment for a period not exceeding twenty years.”

It also requires Ugandans to report suspected homosexuals or violations of the law to the authorities.

On Museveni’s recommendation, the law prescribes rehabilitation for convicted homosexuals to change their sexual orientation, even though scientists say so-called conversion therapy is harmful and ineffective.

Ugandan lawmakers, who overwhelmingly supported the bill, railed against the supposed “recruitment” of young people into homosexuality, pedophilia and grooming.

“I want to disagree with the people who say homosexuality is a Western concept. No, it is not. We’ve lived with homosexuality here in this country, in Africa. What is foreign is recruitment and promotion. That’s un-African,” he said.

Human rights advocates say that the offense of “promotion” of homosexuality could be weaponized against activists, journalists, or any ordinary citizen.

Cutting ties with the Anglican Church

Amek has grown accustomed to the dangers of her work, after she says her organization’s offices were raided by police three times, forcing them to move to a new shelter for vulnerable queer women.

It is the cost of continuing to operate in a conservative Ugandan society where homophobic messaging emanates everywhere from churches and mosques to the highest political offices, Amek said.

The Church of Uganda openly defied the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and supported the Anti-Homosexuality Act, accusing the global head of the Anglican Church of misinterpreting the Bible.

Welby wrote to the leader of Ugandan Anglicans expressing his “grief and dismay” for at that support, but it fell on deaf ears. The Church of Uganda says it will separate from the Church of England over their differences on the issue of homosexuality.

The Anti-Homosexuality Act of 2023 is a revival of a previous version nicknamed the “Kill the Gays” Bill that Uganda’s parliament passed in 2014 but which was blocked in court on a technicality. This current law is also being challenged in court.

Amek understands that she risks jail time by speaking up, but she persists, saying it is worth it. “I don’t want to be a martyr and die. But I want to stand strong for protection of the LGBTIQ generation and community now, but also for the future,” she said.

“Silence equals death. And regardless of whether I stay silent or not, they’ll still kill us, they’ll still criminalize us.”

It was dinner time and the restaurant – a popular pizza joint in the center of Kramatorsk – was crammed with people. Just after 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, a Russian missile ripped through, killing at least 11 people. For millions across the country, the strike was yet another reminder of the horrifying reality of life in Ukraine.

Authorities said three teenagers, including a 17-year-old girl and 14-year-old twin sisters Yulia and Anna Aksenchenko, were among those killed in the strike. At least 61 people, including a baby, were injured in the attack, State Emergency Services said, warning the toll could increase in the coming hours.

The strike – the deadliest attack against civilians in months – came just as Russia emerged from a major crisis sparked by a short-lived uprising led by the head of the Wagner mercenary group Yevgeny Prigozhin. Prigozhin arrived in Belarus on Tuesday, after staging what was the biggest ever challenge to the authority of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.

Rescue workers are still searching the rubble, after having to temporarily pause the work late Tuesday night because of another air raid alarm.

The people of Kramatorsk are no strangers to Russian attacks. The eastern Ukrainian city lies about 25 kilometers (15 miles) from the front line, according to the Institute for the Study of War’s assessments of the current situation on the ground.

But despite the proximity to the fighting, Kramatorsk remains a busy city. The area around Ria Lounge, the restaurant that was struck, is a particularly popular spot with a busy post office, a jewelery store, a cafe and a pharmacy all within a stone’s throw from Ria. One of Kramatorsk’s biggest supermarkets is just down the road.

Being so near the fighting, the city is popular with soldiers seeking some respite from the fighting.

The soldier, who asked to be identified only by his call sign Alex, said there had been a banquet for 45 people at one of the restaurants when the strike occurred, and that it hit “right in the center of the cafe.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called the attack a “manifestation of terror.”

“Each such manifestation of terror proves over and over again to us and to the whole world that Russia deserves only one thing as a result of everything it has done – defeat and a tribunal, fair and legal trials against all Russian murderers and terrorists,” he said.

Pavlo Kyrylenko, the head of the Dontesk region military administration, said the strike used Iskanders – high-precision, short-range ballistic missiles.

EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell echoed Zelensky’s words on Wednesday. “In another demonstration of the terror Russia is imposing on Ukrainian civilians, a Russian cruise missile hit a restaurant and shopping centre in Kramatorsk,” Borrell said in a post on Twitter.

Kramatorsk, has been the target of frequent shelling since the war between Ukraine and Russian-backed separatists broke out in eastern Ukraine in 2014. The city was briefly occupied by separatists in 2014, but has remained under Ukrainian control since then.

The Ukrainian Security Service alleged on Wednesday that the attack was premeditated, saying that it had detained a man who allegedly scouted the restaurant and sent a video to the Russian Armed Forces prior to the strike Tuesday.

The man was described by the Ukrainians as a “Russian intelligence agent” and an “adjuster.”

“To execute the enemy’s instructions, the GRU agent took a covert video recording of the establishment and vehicles parked nearby. Then the suspect forwarded the footage to Russian military intelligence,” the service said in a statement on Telegram.

“Having received this information, Russian invaders fired on the cafe with people inside,” it added.

The Russian Defense Ministry claimed on Wednesday that the target of the missile strike in Kramatorsk was “a temporary command post” of a Ukrainian army unit.

Separately, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists that Russia “does not strike at civilian infrastructure” and the strikes are carried out “only on objects that are connected with military infrastructure.”

The frequency and intensity of the attacks increased after Russia launched its full-scale war on Ukraine in February 2022. One attack in particular sparked international outrage and led to accusations of Russia deliberately targeting civilians.

In April last year, Russian forces carried out a missile strike on Kramatorsk’s railway station which was being used to shelter civilians fleeing the fighting.

More than 50 people, including several children, died in that one attack, which was called “an apparent war crime” by Human Rights Watch and SITU Research.

According to their report, several hundred civilians were waiting at the station when “a ballistic missile equipped with a cluster munition warhead exploded and released dozens of bomblets, or submunitions.”

At least 21,000 Wagner mercenaries have been killed fighting in Ukraine, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The Ukrainian leader said the private military company had suffered “enormous losses,” particularly in eastern Ukraine where its “most powerful group” was fighting.

“Our troops killed 21,000 Wagnerites in eastern Ukraine alone,” Zelensky told reporters in Kyiv on Saturday, adding that another 80,000 Wagner fighters had been wounded.

“These were enormous losses for the Wagner PMC,” said Zelensky, who characterized its fighters as a “motivated staff of the Russian army” and mostly convicts who “had nothing to lose.”

The trip by Sanchez is his third visit to Ukraine. It comes as Spain takes over the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union and follows news that CIA Director William Burns also recently traveled to Ukraine to meet with Zelensky and Ukrainian intelligence officials.

Zelensky’s claims about Wagner’s losses comes just a week after the private military company’s boss Yevgeny Prigozhin led his men in an abortive rebellion against Moscow.

Wagner troops had marched toward the Russian capital, taking control of military facilities in two Russian cities in what Prigozhin said was a response to a Russian military attack on a Wagner camp, before a deal brokered by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko defused the crisis.

The future of the Wagner Group is now unclear, with the deal brokered by Lukashenko requiring Prigozhin to move to Belarus and his fighters given the option of either signing up to the Russian military or enforcement agencies, returning to their families and friends, or also going to Belarus.

In his speech Saturday, Zelensky said Prigozhin’s rebellion had “greatly affected Russian power on the battlefield” and could be beneficial to Ukraine’s counteroffensive.

“We need to take advantage of this situation to push the enemy out of our land,” Zelensky said.

“They are losing the war. They have no more victories on the battlefield in Ukraine, and so they are starting to look for someone to blame,” he said.

However, he said the counteroffensive would not be rushed because he valued human lives and needed to be strategic in where he sent troops.

“Every meter, every kilometer costs lives. You can do something really fast, but the field is mined to the ground,” he said. “People are our treasure. That’s why we are very careful.”

Also during Saturday’s conference, Zelensky expressed fears of losing bipartisan support from the United States, following “dangerous messages coming from some Republicans.”

“Mike Pence has visited us and he supports Ukraine – first of all, as an American and then as a Republican,” Zelensky said.

“We have bipartisan support however there are different messages in their circles regarding support for Ukraine. There are messages coming from some Republicans, sometimes dangerous messages, that there may be less support.”

“The most important thing for Ukraine is not to lose bipartisan support,” he added.

When asked by a reporter if he was in danger and feared for his life, Zelensky responded: “It is more dangerous for Putin than for me, honestly. Because it’s only in Russia that they want to kill me, whereas the entire world wants to kill him.”

Canada has moved to ban the testing of cosmetics on animals, joining a number of other countries and American states to outlaw the practice.

The Canadian government announced the decision in a Tuesday news release. Bill C-47 amends the Food and Drugs Act to ban both the testing of cosmetic products on animals and the sale of products relying on animal testing data, according to the news release.

The news release noted animal testing for cosmetics was “rarely conducted in Canada.”

Canada will join the ranks of the European Union, Australia, the United Kingdom, and South Korea, which have all moved to ban cosmetic testing on animals, according to the release.

A total of 44 countries have passed laws banning cosmetic animal testing, according to the Humane Society International. Additionally, 10 states in the US have banned the practice: New York, Virginia, California, Louisiana, New Jersey, Maine, Hawaii, Nevada, Illinois, and Maryland.

“Protecting animals, now and in the future, is something that many Canadians have been calling for, and something we can all celebrate,” said Canadian Minister of Health Jean-Yves Duclos in the release. “We are proud to move forward with this measure, and to assure Canadians that the products they buy are cruelty-free. We will keep working with experts and international partners to explore safe, cruelty-free alternatives so no more animals suffer and die due to cosmetic testing.”

The release added Health Canada is also working to identify “effective alternatives to animal testing” outside the cosmetic world.

The amendment banning cosmetic testing on animals in one of a package of amendments included in the measure. The text of the bill stipulates “No person shall sell a cosmetic unless the person can establish the safety of the cosmetic without relying on data derived from a test conducted on an animal that could cause pain, suffering or injury, whether physical or mental, to the animal” and that “No person shall conduct a test on an animal that could cause pain, suffering or injury, whether physical or mental, to the animal.”

The bill was first read in the House of Commons in April and received royal assent on June 22.

Cosmetic testing has historically included “toxicity tests” in which animals are focused to consume or inhale certain chemicals, or have the chemicals applied to their skin or eyes, according to the Humane Society International’s Animal-Free Safety Assessment Collaboration.

In addition to being unnecessarily cruel, animal tests are also less effective compared to newer forms of assessment like computer modeling or tests using human cells, said the Humane Society International.

Dutch driver Dilano van ’t Hoff, 18, died Saturday as the result of a crash during the second Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine (FRECA) race at Spa-Francorchamps in Stavelot, Belgium, according to a statement from his team MP Motorsport.

The details about what caused the accident haven’t been revealed.

“We are devastated at the loss of one of our brightest Dutch talents, who brought so much energy to our team during the years he raced with us,” a team statement read.

“We offer our sincere condolences to Dilano’s family and his loved ones, and are in full support of them and our team members who have lost not only a driver but a friend as well.”

Van ’t Hoff made his debut for MP Motorsport in 2021, winning the Spanish Formula 4 championship with ease.

He then moved up to compete in FRECA, a Formula 3 regional series, in 2022 but struggled with injury through much of his first season.

FIA, motorsport’s governing body, confirmed the news and sent its “condolences to the family and friends of Dilano van ‘t Hoff and to the MP Motorsport Team” in a statement on Saturday.

News of the teenager’s death sparked tributes across the world of motorsport, with Formula 1’s CEO Stefano Domenicali paying his respects.

“We are so sad to learn of the passing of Dilano van ‘t Hoff today at Spa-Francorchamps,” he said in a statement.

“Dilano died in pursuit of his dream to reach the pinnacle of motorsport.”

The Austrian Grand Prix got underway this weekend and Formula 1 teams and drivers have shared their condolences.

In a post on Twitter, Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz said it was “an extremely sad day for the entire motorsport family and my thoughts and condolences go to his family and friends.”

Formula 2 driver Anthoine Hubert died at the same track in 2019 after a high-speed collision.

He hasn’t picked up a professional baseball glove in 22 years but he’s still picking up a paycheck – and a hefty one at that.

It’s July 1, which for New York Mets fans means it’s Bobby Bonilla Day.

The former slugger retired in 2001 with the St. Louis Cardinals, but he has been collecting a check of nearly $1.2 million from the Mets every year on July 1 for more than a decade.

The deal is part of a contract negotiated by Bonilla’s agent Dennis Gilbert, which will pay Bonilla $1,193,248.20 every year until 2035. Bonilla, a former All-Star who last played with the Mets in 1999, will be 72 when his contract with the team expires.

How was Gilbert able to secure such a sweet deal for his client? They can both thank disgraced financier Bernie Madoff and Mets owner Fred Wilpon.

The Mets wanted to part ways with Bonilla in 1999, but he had $6 million left on his contract. Wilpon believed he was getting a huge return on his investments through Madoff but the Mets owner turned out to be a victim of Madoff’s infamous Ponzi scheme

Instead of paying Bonilla outright, Wilpon opted to defer payments so that the money could be unwittingly invested into Madoff’s Ponzi scheme.

Gilbert negotiated with the team to defer payments until 2011, with an 8% annual interest rate.

Madoff was the mastermind of the most notorious Ponzi scheme in history. A Ponzi scheme is a form of fraud that uses funds from more recent investors to pay profits to earlier investors, leading them to believe that their investments are part of a successful enterprise.

Madoff, who died in 2021, was serving 150 years in prison for the multibillion-dollar scheme that he ran for decades.

In total, Bonilla will walk away with a $29.8 million payday because of Wilpon’s blunder.

For two days after Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin called off his abortive mutiny, Russian President Vladimir Putin said nothing in public. Having faced the greatest challenge to his authority in 23 years, and almost witnessed his country tip into civil war, many expected the president to respond with sound and fury.

Instead, the silence was broken first by his adversary. In an 11-minute audio message posted to his Telegram channel, Prigozhin claimed to have merely staged a protest, rather than a coup, attempting to “bring to justice” Russia’s top military brass for their “mistakes during the special military operation.”

When Putin finally addressed the nation again on Monday, he was remarkably clement. The last time he had been seen on Saturday, he told the nation that Prigozhin’s mutiny was “a stab in the back of our country and our people,” and promised to hold the insurgents “accountable.”

Now, he thanked the insurgents for making the “right decision” in halting their advance, and offered them contracts to join the Russian ministry of defense’s force. He also claimed that the “armed rebellion would have been suppressed anyway,” without specifying how.

For a leader renowned for delivering grand historical theses in hour-long tracts, Monday’s speech was terse, lasting only a few minutes – and leaving more questions than answers.

Why has Prigozhin been allowed to flee to Belarus? Why have the insurgents not been punished? And how does Putin attempt to reassert his authority?

First pacify, then punish

In a bizarre and chaotic 36 hours, Prigozhin drove 800 miles from the border of Ukraine towards Moscow, captured a regional military command, stormed a large city, and claimed to have shot down a military helicopter.

Many expected Putin’s response to be swift and brutal. He said in his Saturday address that Wagner’s “treachery” was a “betrayal” of their country.

Given this, Putin’s apparent reluctance to punish the insurgents seemed puzzling.

But, according to Kirill Shamiev, a fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, Putin’s first priority will be to “demilitarize, disarm and demobilize the Wagner group,” before issuing any potential punishment.

Putin is currently engaged in a balancing act. His instinct may have been to respond swiftly, to demonstrate that mutiny won’t be tolerated and to project an image of strength. But if he moves too quickly, he risks stirring up another rebellion – and of giving the impression of panic.

“If you react too swiftly, it can show the elites that you’re scared,” said Shamiev. Paradoxically, taking the “strongman” approach can instead reveal weakness.

Prigozhin must be made an example of, according to Shamiev, but it is a careful question of timing. The war in Ukraine is entering an uncertain phase: Kyiv’s counteroffensive may have gotten off to a stuttering start, but the unity and morale of Russia’s forces has come under question since the chaos of the past weekend.

If the Kremlin were to have somehow dispatched Prigozhin immediately, and Russia’s forces were to crumble in Ukraine, the Wagner chief’s criticisms may simply have been proved correct.

“It would look like, ‘Oh, Prigozhin was right, actually. He was right about the military, he was right about how unprepared and uneducated the generals are – and now they’ve killed him.’ It’s a bad look for the Kremlin,” said Shamiev.

An image of calm

Hence Putin’s somewhat chastened response may prove prudent. He was more visible on Tuesday, as he thanked security officers for their apparent role in quelling the mutiny. “You stopped a civil war,” he told officials at an address in the Kremlin.

“In a difficult situation, you acted clearly and in a well-coordinated manner, you proved by deed your loyalty to the people of Russia and to the military oath and showed responsibility for the fate of the Motherland and its future,” he said.

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) also said Tuesday that it is dropping the case against Wagner, since “its participants stopped their actions directly aimed at committing a crime,” according to state media RIA Novosti.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko also broke his silence Tuesday, confirming that Prigozhin had traveled to Belarus, under the terms of a “deal” Lukashenko had brokered with him, allowing him to leave Russia without facing criminal charges.

Lukashenko claimed he told Prigozhin that he would be “crushed like a bug” if he continued his advance towards Moscow, and persuaded him to call of the mutiny. But, while he disclosed some of the details of Saturday’s negotiations, Lukashenko said little about Prigozhin’s future.

Lack of public support

During a crisis, visibility matters. Now that the dust has settled after a chaotic weekend, Putin is attempting to project an image of control. But he has been unable to call on another method to reassert control that other leaders have used after facing similar challenges to their authority: Mobilizing political support.

When Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faced a coup attempt in 2016, his response was rapid and uncompromising. Thousands were imprisoned within days. He publicly announced he was considering reinstating the death penalty. Even a year later, his fury was palpable. “We are going to behead these traitors,” he said.

Throughout the crisis, Erdogan hardly left the airwaves. He attended the funerals of those killed in the mutiny. He rallied protesters to his support, organizing mass pro-government demonstrations in major cities.

Such sights have been absent in Russia. The only public demonstrations of support have been for Prigozhin. As he was driven out of Rostov-on-Don on Saturday evening, people lined the streets to cheer him, like fans waiting outside a stadium to get a glimpse of their favorite sports star.

“The Kremlin’s power is heavily reliant on the depoliticization of the majority of the Russian population. Voluntary, independent depoliticization – so that people don’t go on the streets on their own,” said Shamiev.

Because of this long-cultivated tactic, Putin cannot expect millions of Russian citizens to rally to his defense, as in Erdogan’s case.

For now, it is a case of biding his time before deciding on how and when to punish Prigozhin.

But, during this delay, doubts may grow in Russia. “If he is not jailed, if he is not killed by Putin, that is going to send a signal to everyone that Putin is weaker than they thought, and you can get away with a lot,” said Alperovitch.

“There’s no question that his power is now weakened. There’s no question that a lot of people around the country – the elites, various governors, various people in the security services – are probably asking themselves: If Prigozhin can really get away with this, with challenging state power like this, what can I get away with?”