February 19, 2025

Armed conflicts and attacks

• Islamic State insurgency in Puntland
  • Puntland counter-terrorism operations
    • Puntland police capture several IS–Somalia militants accused of involvement in extortion and bombings in Bosaso, the capital of the Bari Region, amid ongoing military operations in the Cal Miskaad mountains. (Garowe Online)
• Kivu conflict
  • M23 campaign
    • Following a meeting between Chadian president Mahamat Déby and a diplomatic envoy of Congolese president Félix Tshisekedi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo formally requests military support from Chad in their ongoing conflict against the M23 rebel movement. (Anadolou Agency)
• Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Russian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure
    • At least one person is killed and 14 others are injured in Russian missile and drone strikes across Ukraine, including a large drone attack on energy infrastructure in Odesa that leaves 160,000 residents without heating and electricity. (The Kyiv Independent)

International relations

• Peace negotiations in the Russian invasion of Ukraine
  • Ukraine–United States relations
    • Amid deteriorating relations between both countries, U.S. President Donald Trump says Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a “dictator” and says he has done “terrible job” while warning “he is not going to have a country left” soon. (BBC News)
  • Russia–United States relations
    • Russian President Vladimir Putin praises the high-level talks with the U.S. in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, as a “first step” towards restoring full diplomatic ties with the United States. (The Moscow Times)

Law and crime

• Former President of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro is formally charged with leading the 2022 Brazilian coup plot. (Reuters)

Science and technology

• Polish police secures several SpaceX rocket tanks that crashed in the country after its reentry into the atmosphere during the night. (BBC)