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The tandem of Ukrainian Lyudmyla Kichenok and Latvian Elena Ostapenko started their performance at the WTA Finals in doubles with a defeat.

They lost to the Czech-American duo of Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend in the tie-break with a score of 6:3, 3:6, 9:11.

WTA Finals: how the first match of Kichenok and Ostapenko went

The tennis players spent 1 hour and 38 minutes on the court, during which Kichenok and Ostapenko served five aces — as many as her opponents, made the same number of unforced errors as their opponents — each, but had fewer winners — 13 against 20.

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In the first set, the Ukrainian-Latvian duo took the lead with a break, 3:0, after which Siniakova and Townsend reduced the gap to 4:3. However, the next two games were won by Lyudmila and Elena.

The tennis players began the second set with an exchange of breaks, after which Siniakova and Townsend managed to make a breakthrough to 1:4. The Ukrainian and Latvian took two more games on their serves, but without a break. Thus, the Czech and American tied the score in sets.

The winners of the match were determined by a super tie-break. With the score 7:8, Kichenok and Ostapenko took two points in a row and served for the match, but the opponents turned the tide of the match and won a strong-willed victory 9:11.

According to the draw, Kichenok and Ostapenko ended up in the green group. Their rivals will also be the tandems of Taiwanese Xie Shuwei and Belgian Elise Mertens, as well as American Nicole Melichar-Martinez and Australian Ellen Perez.

To reach the playoffs of the WTA Finals, you need to finish first or second in the quartet.

Democrats are preparing for the fact that Trump may prematurely declare himself president, – media Sergei Popovich

Democrats are preparing for a swift response if Donald Trump tries to prematurely declare his victory in the election. They plan to flood social networks and the media space with calls for calm and patience as the votes are counted until the very end.

Trump already did this in 2020, when he lost. Democrats are preparing for him to do the same this year, Channel 24 reports, citing Reuters.

How will Democrats react to Trump's statement

Trump told reporters this week that he hopes to declare victory on Election Day. Experts warn that an accurate vote count could take several days, especially in key states.

Usually, winners of US elections are announced by large media companies that analyze data from election commissions. Candidates sometimes declare victory before the official announcement, but this rarely happens before the result is at least partially clear.

We are prepared, unfortunately, if he does that, and if we know that he is in fact manipulating the press and trying to manipulate the consensus of the American people… We are prepared to respond,” his opponent Kamala Harris told ABC.

She did not disclose details of the preparations, but representatives of the Democratic Party and the Harris campaign confirmed that the fight will primarily take place in the public space. They plan to flood social media and television with calls to count every vote before the results are announced.

Could Trump declare himself the winner early

The Trump campaign told Reuters that the Republican would fight for every vote before the polls close, but did not directly answer whether he planned to declare victory again before the results were officially announced.

Reference: In 2020, Trump declared himself the winner early in the morning after Election Day, three days before Joe Biden was officially declared the winner. Trump still claims the result was “stolen” due to fraud. At the time, he was condemned by both Democrats and many Republicans.

Trump and his allies have been preparing to challenge the results for months, assembling a legal team and arguing that people without citizenship might try to vote for Democrats. At rallies, Trump often says their victory should be “too big to be stolen.”

This time, Trump's premature declaration of victory may not face such resistance among Republicans. He has had near-total control of the Republican Party in recent years, political analysts say.

Bournemouth, which features Ukrainian footballer Ilya Zabarnyi, for the first time in history defeated Manchester City in the English Premier League championship.

But the townspeople were able to recoup one goal at the end of the match. After an unsuccessful attempt by Erling Haaland, Joško Gvardiol made a precise shot on goal in the 81st minute.

Cherries defender Ilya Zabarnyi started the game against City and played the entire match. During the game, he made 28 accurate passes out of 30, made nine clearances, made one interception and won one aerial duel.

Bournemouth — Manchester City: match video

After ten matches in the Premier League, Manchester City has 23 points and dropped to second place in the standings. Bournemouth is currently eighth with 15 points. Liverpool (25) has once again become the leader of the English championship after a strong-willed victory over Brighton.

The world's largest captive crocodile has died in Australia: its age is astonishing Sergey Popovich

Australian crocodile Cassius, who weighed more than a ton, held the world record for the world's largest crocodile kept in captivity. He died at what is believed to be more than 110 years old.

He lived a very long time for a crocodile, the reserve says. This was reported by Channel 24, citing Reuters.

What was unique about the crocodile Cassius

Cassius was the world's largest crocodile living in captivity. He was 5.48 meters long and weighed more than one ton.

The animal's health had been deteriorating since October 15, the Marineland Melanesia Crocodile Habitat reserve reported.

The exact cause of the crocodile's death is unknown. Researchers believe he was over 110 years old, which is very old for a crocodile.

We will miss Cassius very much, but our love and memories of him will remain in our hearts forever. Thank you to everyone who visited and cared for Cassius during his life, the organization said in a statement.

Saltwater crocodile Cassius was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's largest crocodile kept in captivity. He has lived in the sanctuary since 1987.

He received this title after the 6.17-meter-long Philippine crocodile Lolong died in 2013.

Russian troops carried out a massive drone attack on Kyiv and other cities in Ukraine. Powerful explosions were heard in the capital in the morning, and air defense forces were working on enemy air targets in other regions.

ICTV Facts analyzed what is known about the drone attack on the night of November 2, what tactics Russia is using and what it wants to achieve.

Drone attack on Kyiv: what tactics are Russian troops using

Kyiv City Military Administration spokesman Mikhail Shamanov said that the attack on the capital lasted more than eight hours with breaks.

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According to him, this indicates that Russian troops launched UAVs in several waves at night, and the last waves reached Kyiv almost during the day.

According to information from the head of the KGVA Sergey Popko, UAVs of the Russian Armed Forces entered the capital in groups. Before Kiev they were divided into single targets, attacked at extremely low altitudes to complicate the work of air defense forces and assets.

— They are currently using exactly this tactic, approaching the city of Shahed at low altitudes, meaning that the attacks are carried out in waves. They may be trying to circle around in certain areas, attracting the attention of mobile groups, — Mikhail Shamanov explained.

The KGVA spokesman noted that the main goal of the Russian troops is to confuse the Ukrainian air defense forces and assets as much as possible.

— That is, they are trying to get the mobile groups to move, thus creating corridors for the next waves to pass through. These are attempts to reconnoiter the weak points of the air defense and identify where exactly they are located, so that the next waves can bypass these locations, — he emphasized.

Aviation expert, leading researcher at the A.K. Antonov State Aviation Museum Valery Romanenkotold in a commentary to ICTV Fakty that Russia's goal is to terrorize the population of Ukraine.

— They are looking for where they can cause direct damage, destroy something with strikes, simply not let them rest and sleep peacefully. You see, the strikes are mostly at night, — the expert noted.

The raids are accompanied by strikes: air defense forces worked all night

The air attack was repelled by anti-aircraft missile troops, aviation, electronic warfare units, mobile fire groups of the Armed Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Defense Forces of Ukraine.

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Reintegration Center for released military captives opened in Ukraine – Umerov

Remotely controlled: the Tavriya combat turret has been approved for use in the Ukrainian Armed Forces

Photo: General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, on the night of November 2, Russian troops launched a strike with a Kh-31P guided air missile from the airspace of the Belgorod Region.

— Drone raids are accompanied by strikes on our air defense. The Kh-31P guided air missile is an anti-radar missile that is launched with the aim of breaking through, and is also combined with strikes on our air defense. Radars are the eyes of air defense and the guidance systems of anti-aircraft missiles, — noted Valeriy Romanenko.

In September 2024, the Russian Federation launched more than 1,300 Shahed missiles into Ukraine, according to data from the UK Ministry of Defense.

At the same time, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that in October of this year, the Russian Federation used 2,023 Shahed attack UAVs and unidentified drones against Ukraine.

About 1,185 of them were destroyed or suppressed, another 738 units were locally lost, and 29 UAVs left the airspace controlled by Ukraine, according to the General Staff.

— Here's the thing. Until then, the Russians had not launched Gerber and Geran drones together. Gerbers with these lenses that reflect radar beams become similar to Shahed, which is why there was an increase. But if you add up all the ones that were locally lost over a month, you won't see much of a difference, — noted Valery Romanenko.

Photo: South Defense Forces Ukraine

As of 11:00, the Ukrainian Air Force confirmed the downing of 39 enemy UAVs in the Kirovograd, Kyiv, Sumy and Poltava regions, 21 drones were lost locally, five drones returned to the Russian Federation.

— What the Air Force tells us? 21 drones were lost locally — these are Gerberas. Another five UAVs returned to Russia — these are Gerans with Starlink or also reconnaissance drones that were simply accompanying attack UAVs in order to identify air defenses, — the aviation expert suggested.

In his opinion, Russian troops are trying to terrorize the civilian population with Shahed drones, because they strike at objects with known coordinates.

— They are not suitable for military purposes. Military facilities will be covered by air defense, for example, machine guns will be installed, and the Shahed will be shot down on approach. Civilian objects are mostly unprotected. The military is currently protecting them, but in general, the Russians are letting them in where not everyone can protect. Therefore, the goal of these strikes is to demoralize and terrorize the population of Ukraine. You see, we are being trained to be attacked around the clock, — summed up Valery Romanenko.

US elections: why American states are divided into “blue” and “red”, what does this mean Dmitry Usik

On November 5, 2024, the US will hold presidential elections. The two main contenders for victory are Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump.

In the context of voting in the US, you can often hear the division into so-called “blue” or “red” states. Moreover, there are also “shaky” states, or swing states. What does this mean and what impact does it have on the US elections, Channel 24 broadcasts.

“Blue” and “red” states in elections

So, in the USA there is a traditional division into states by their political sympathies.

“Blue” states are favorable to the Democratic Party and usually vote for their representatives in elections. These include California, Illinois, Massachusetts and Vermont. They “got” their color because of the official color of the Democrats.

In turn, “red” states usually vote for the Republican Party. Red is the color of the Republicans, which is why Trump's MAGA hats are red.

But there are also states that have not yet decided on their electoral preferences and regularly change their position, voting alternately for the Democrats and the Republicans. These are the “swing states.” In 2024, there are 7 of them – Pennsylvania, Michigan, Nevada, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Georgia and Arizona.

That is, in fact, the fate of the elections is decided in these 7 states. Therefore, candidates are especially trying to persuade voters from swing states to their side. According to the latest poll, Harris has a slight advantage in Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin, but Trump is leading in North Carolina, Georgia, and Arizona. If this poll is true, Harris will win because these states have more elections. Pennsylvania has the most, with 19, but North Carolina, with 16 voters, is probably more pro-Trump. So the intrigue will remain until the very end.

The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine has codified and approved the Tavria combat module for use in the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

This is stated in a message from the Defense Ministry of Ukraine.

The Tavria turret has been approved for use in the Armed Forces of Ukraine

It is noted that the Tavria combat module is a remotely controlled turret that has two machine guns, one of which is — large-caliber.

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According to the Ministry of Defense, the module can be installed on combat armored vehicles or used to equip ground robotic platforms.

In addition, with the help of the control system, the turret with machine guns captures and tracks targets. It can also conduct aimed fire at moving objects.

At the same time, the Tavria combat turret can operate both during the day and at night. The entire module is protected by armor protection, which can protect against shrapnel and withstand bullets from small arms.

When installed on armored vehicles, the control panel of the combat module and the operator's monitor are located inside the combat armored vehicle. Thus, it provides additional protection for the soldier operating the module during combat.

All about the US elections: how Americans vote and when the results will be out Dmitry Usik

On November 5, 2024, the US will hold presidential elections. The main opponents in the fight for the post of head of the country are Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.

Despite the fact that other candidates are also participating in the elections, the struggle traditionally unfolds between two camps – Republicans and Democrats. What are the features of voting, when to expect the results and other nuances of the American elections, 24 Channel broadcasts.

Voting in the USA

The US presidential election traditionally takes place on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November. This time the voting falls on November 5. However, some Americans have the right to vote early – both in person and remotely. In particular, Joe Biden has already taken advantage of the opportunity to vote early.

For example, in North Carolina, absentee ballots for early voting began to be sent out on September 6, and this opportunity was subsequently opened in Alabama and Wisconsin. Early in-person voting also began in Minnesota, South Dakota, and Virginia

Polling stations in the United States will open on November 5 at 5:00-7:00 and will remain open until 18:00-20:00 in different states and in different time zones. After the polls close, the votes will be counted.

How votes are counted in the USA

More than 240 million voters can potentially take part in the US presidential election, and there are no direct presidential elections in the country, meaning that Americans do not vote for a specific candidate (even though his name is on the ballot), but delegate their votes to the electoral college.