Russian forces attacked Kryvyi Rih, Iran and Russia signed new agreement - Friday brief

Russia strikes Kryvyi Rih with ballistic missiles: Killed and injured reported

On January 17, the Russian army launched a ballistic missile attack on the city of Kryvyi Rih. The attack damaged houses and an educational institution. Initially, three injured and three dead were reported.

After that, the number of victims and wounded began to grow. According to the latest reports, four people were killed, and nine others were injured.

Read more about the aftermath of the attack in RBC-Ukraine's material.

Putin signs strategic partnership agreement with Iran

Russia has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Iran. Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed the document today, according to Russian media.

Prior to that, relations between Moscow and Tehran were based on a cooperation agreement of 2001. Active work on the new document began in January 2022, before the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

After the signing ceremony, Pezeshkian said that Iran supported a political settlement in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Slovak Prime Minister offers Zelenskyy new date and location for meeting

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico suggested a new date and venue for a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. No response has yet been received.

He mentioned that he had a phone conversation with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, discussing the topic of gas supplies.

"During the conversation, I also informed that we have been offering to hold a joint meeting with Mr. Zelenskyy on Tuesday evening (January 21 - ed.) in Davos at the World Economic Forum, where we will both be present," the Prime Minister added.

He further stated that the meeting in Davos could potentially determine the future of relations with Ukraine, but "Zelenskyy has not responded to this proposal."

US Supreme Court upholds TikTok ban

The US Supreme Court has upheld a law mandating the ban of TikTok starting January 19, 2025, unless Chinese parent company ByteDance sells the platform to an American company.

The court ruled that the law, enacted last year and signed by President Joe Biden, does not violate the First Amendment of the US Constitution, which protects freedom of speech.

At the same time, US President-elect Donald Trump said that he would soon make a decision on the operation of the TikTok media platform.

"Congress has given me the decision, so I’ll be making the decision," Trump said.

Israel's security cabinet approves agreement with Hamas

Israel's security cabinet has approved an agreement with Hamas to release hostages. It will now be submitted to the Israeli government for consideration, according to the Prime Minister's Office.

“After considering all aspects: political, security, and humanitarian, and based on the understanding that the proposed agreement contributes to the achievement of the goals of the war, the Ministerial Committee on National Security (the security cabinet) recommended that the government approve the proposed plan,” the statement said.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu added that the government meeting will be held later today, January 17.

US secretly invests in developing drone production in Ukraine – The New York Times

The Biden administration has declassified the latest details of its military assistance to Ukraine, highlighting previously undisclosed support for Ukraine's drone industry, the New York Times reports.

According to US officials, they made major investments that helped Ukraine begin and expand the production of UAVs to fight a larger and better-equipped Russian army.