Briefly

RUSSIA

Estonia PM on wanted list for razing memorials

Russia declared Estonian leader Kaja Kallas and several other European officials as "wanted" on Tuesday over their alleged involvement in the destruction of Soviet-era memorials, according to the Russian interior ministry's database. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Kallas was wanted for the "desecration of historical memory". Since Russia's special military operation in February 2022, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have demolished most of their Soviet-era monuments, including those commemorating Soviet soldiers killed in World War II.

CAUCASUS

Four Armenian soldiers killed in border firing

Four Armenian soldiers were killed after Azerbaijan launched a "retaliation operation" near the border in response to earlier provocations, authorities from both sides said on Tuesday. Azerbaijan's border service said in a statement that it had conducted a "retaliation operation", destroying the Armenian combat post near the village of Nerkin Hand in response to earlier actions of the Armenian Armed Forces. The Armenian Ministry of Defense said in a Telegram statement that Azerbaijan's gunfire left four dead and one injured on the Armenian side. Russia hopes that both sides will continue their peace negotiations, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday.

FRANCE

Notre-Dame scaffolding begins to come down

The scaffolding around the spire of Paris' Notre Dame cathedral has begun to come down, the authority charged with restoring the monument after a devastating 2019 fire said on Tuesday. The spire should be entirely visible by the time the Olympic Summer Games open in the French capital on July 26, it said. The scaffolding reached 100 meters in height, weighed 600 tons and contained 70,000 metal parts. In December, the cathedral regained its great cross, and got a new golden rooster to replace the old one that was destroyed in the April 15, 2019 fire.

Agencies - Xinhua