Hard Numbers: Russian missile strike prompts fresh Kyiv calls for air defenses, Corruption makes African youth look abroad, Migrant boat capsizes in English Channel, Housing woes hit all-time highs in rich countries, US Marines assaulted in Turkey

​People inspect a damaged building after the Russian missile attack on the premises of the lyceum of the Interregional Academy of Personnel Management in Poltava, Ukraine.
People inspect a damaged building after the Russian missile attack on the premises of the lyceum of the Interregional Academy of Personnel Management in Poltava, Ukraine.
dpa via Reuters Connect

51: A Russian ballistic missile strike on a military academy and a hospital in eastern Ukraine on Tuesday killed at least 51 people. After the attack, which occurred in the city of Poltava, about 200 miles from the front lines, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky renewed his call for Western allies to send more air defenses. Separately, the US and Ukraine are close to an agreement on the supply of long-range missiles.

60: How bad is corruption in African countries? Bad enough that 60% of the continent’s young people aged 18 to 24 want to leave because of it, according to a new study by the South Africa-based Ichikowitz Family Foundation. The top destination of choice was North America, followed by Western Europe.

12: At least 12 migrants are dead after their boat capsized in the English Channel en route from France to the UK on Tuesday. Last week, the French and British governments pledged to jointly crack down on the human trafficking networks that bring asylum-seekers across the channel in small boats.

50: The lack of affordable housing is a problem for at least 50% of people in the OECD, a group of nearly 40 wealthy democracies. That’s the highest level of dissatisfaction on record. A combination of high interest rates – which make home loans more expensive – and sluggish construction are to blame. In the US, housing costs are nearly 40% higher than when the Biden administration took office, making housing a key issue in the presidential election. See here for our special report on what Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have pledged to do about it.

2: Two US Marines were assaulted on Monday in Izmir, Turkey, by members of the Turkish Youth Union, a nationalist and anti-American youth organization. Police reportedly detained 15 people over the incident. A video of the altercation showed a group pushing and grabbing two men dressed in civilian clothes, and attempting to put a sack over one of their heads while chanting “Yankee, go home.” Police and other Marines in the area eventually intervened. The two Marines were taken to a hospital to be evaluated but were not injured and have returned to their ship, the USS Wasp.

More from GZERO Media

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant speaks next to prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference in the Kirya military base in Tel Aviv, Israel , 28 October 2023.
Abir Sultan/Reuters

Gallant, who was fired by Netanyahu as defense minister last year before being reinstated two weeks later, has been deeply critical of the prime minister’s prosecution of the war in Gaza — particularly for not accepting a cease-fire deal that would bring hostages home.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer meeting with Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

REUTERS/Phil Noble/Pool

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Monday to learn how her hard-line tactics against irregular migration could help him deliver on his election promise to “smash the gangs” driving such migration to the UK.

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks on TV during a debate with her opponent, former President Donald Trump, on Sept. 10, 2024.
Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images via Reuters

Last week’s presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump marked the final scheduled milestone before Election Day on Nov. 5. It also bookended a summer of surprises that began with President Joe Biden’s disastrous debate performance against Trump on June 27.

- YouTube

What's the reaction on the discussions ongoing considering the possibility of Ukrainians to use long-range strike weapons? What's the reaction to Germany's decision to partly at least reimpose on their border controls? Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden and co-chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations, shares his perspective on European politics from Kyiv, Ukraine.

Uncover the future of AI with a family of models built on principles of transparency. IBM Granite models are built on vast amounts of industry and domain-specific data, and they are designed to help support enterprise-level innovation and application modernization. Learn more about the benefits of IBM Granite and see how customers can use cost-efficient AI models to help drive business transformations. Get started with IBM