WESTERN PERSPECTIVE Ukraine's teenage boys fear a dark dilemma: Fight or run A month before turning 18, Kyiv native Roman Biletskyi left his family and boarded a train westwards to escape Ukraine and any prospect of fighting in its grinding war. "I delayed the decision until the very end," he told Reuters from his college dorm in Slovakia where he travelled to in February. "It was a one-way ticket." Not all Ukrainian teenagers made the same call. Andriy Kotyk, by contrast, joined the army early in the war in 2022 after he turned 18. "I thought everything through and decided…

Lebanon's Hezbollah aims to rebuild longer term despite Israeli blows, US intel says Lebanon's Hezbollah has been significantly degraded militarily by Israel, but the Iran-backed group will likely try to rebuild its stockpiles and forces and pose a longterm threat to the U.S. and its regional allies, four sources briefed on updated U.S. intelligence told Reuters. U.S. intelligence agencies assessed in recent weeks that Hezbollah, even amid Israel's military campaign, had begun to recruit new fighters and was trying to find ways to rearm through domestic production and by smuggling materials through Syria, said a senior U.S. official, an Israeli…

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE US House speaker rules out more Ukraine aid The US House of Representatives will not consider President Joe Biden’s request to include $24 billion in additional aid to Ukraine in a government funding bill, Speaker Mike Johnson has said. In the absence of a formal budget, the US government has been funded through “continuing resolutions” periodically approved by Congress. The White House has requested the $24 billion as part of its latest proposed legislation, which the House would need to adopt before adjourning for Christmas holidays. “I’m not planning to do that,” Johnson said on Wednesday, at a…

Israel and Hezbollah exchange strikes as ceasefire violations mount At least nine people were killed and three injured on Monday from Israeli strikes on two southern Lebanese towns, Talousa and Haris, as the Israeli military said it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets throughout Lebanon. Earlier on Monday, Lebanese authorities reported two additional deaths in Israeli strikes on other parts of southern Lebanon, including a state security member killed while on duty, bringing the day's death toll to 11. The latest Israeli strikes came shortly after Hezbollah accused Israel of violating a ceasefire agreement and fired missiles on an Israeli military…