Lithuanian border guards discovered an underground tunnel running from Belarus into the southeastern part of the country, the Lithuanian broadcaster LRT reported , citing Lithuania’s State Border Guard Service. The tunnel (about one meter, or 3.3 feet, in diameter) had no exit on the Lithuanian side, according to the outlet. Border guards discovered it after detecting ground vibrations suggesting someone was digging underneath.

Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, dismissed rumors of a possible mobilization in Russia this fall as untrue, the Russian state news agency TASS reported. The Security Council advises the president on national security matters. He called news reports and social media posts on the subject “paid for.” Medvedev added: The enemy’s attempts to spread nonsense that a mobilization is being prepared in the country are nothing more than a lying provocation.

Lithuanian border guards discovered an underground tunnel from Belarus in the southeast of the country. LRT reports this with reference to the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service. According to the publication, the tunnel, about one meter in diameter, did not have access to the Lithuanian side. It was found thanks to the fact that border guards recorded vibrations in the ground, indicating possible digging of an underground passage.

Meduza has obtained the ” brand book ” governing how United Russia’s regional branches design campaign materials for local candidates. The document also shows the design intended for the party’s federal-level campaigns.

Demand for electric and hybrid vehicles has surged in Russia, leaving some models in short supply, the Russian business daily Kommersant reported , citing dealers and distributors. The outlet’s sources did not provide specific figures, but data from the analytics agency Avtostat, cited by the newspaper, showed sales of new hybrids and electric vehicles rose 80 percent between June 29 and July 19 compared with the average weekly figure for the first half of the year.

Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said that rumors about a possible mobilization in Russia this coming fall are not true. He called publications on this topic, which are distributed in the media and social networks, “paid for,” TASS writes. The enemy’s attempts to spread all kinds of bullshit that the country is preparing for mobilization are nothing more than a false provocation. This is part of the propaganda ahead of the elections.

Dmitry Fekolistov / TASS / Profimedia In recent years, Russian authorities have pushed ninth graders ever harder to enroll in vocational colleges instead of staying in school through 11th grade and going on to university, the BBC’s Russian service reports. According to the Higher School of Economics, 2022 — the first year of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine — was the first year in which more than half of ninth graders (50.4 percent) chose college over 10th grade.

The Eksmo-AST publishing group has fired employees who refused to work under the censorship rules it introduced in response to Russia’s new laws, and others who objected resigned, the group’s president, Oleg Novikov, said in an interview on the program Vesti. The independent Russian investigative outlet Agentstvo flagged the interview.

Senate Republicans and Democrats have struck a deal on a new Russia sanctions bill co-authored by the late Lindsey Graham, Bloomberg reports. Under the agreement, the two sides have finalized the bill’s language. A procedural vote is set for later on July 28. The vote falls on the same day as the funeral for the bill’s co-author, Lindsey Graham, who died suddenly more than two weeks ago.

Swedish Coast Guard / Getty Images Gas escaping from a leak in the Nord Stream pipeline in the Baltic Sea. Photo by the Swedish Coast Guard. September 27, 2022 On the night of September 26, 2022, explosions ruptured three of the four pipelines that make up the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline systems in the Baltic Sea, near the Danish island of Bornholm. German investigators pursued theories ranging from a Russian provocation to the involvement of Western intelligence services.

Apple shares on Tuesday, July 28, rose in price by 1.8%, to almost $343 per security. Thanks to this, the company's capitalization exceeded five trillion dollars, Bloomberg writes . Later in the trading, the share price fell slightly, causing Apple's market value to drop below the five trillion mark. Nevertheless, it continues to hold the lead in the list of the most valuable companies in the world. Apple became the second company in history to achieve such capitalization.

In an article about the trials of participants in the 1825 uprising on St. Petersburg’s Senate Square, the Russian business daily Vedomosti mistakenly labeled the Decembrists an “undesirable” organization — a legal status that bans a group from operating in Russia and criminalizes any involvement with it. On the morning of July 28, Alexey Polorotov, a journalist with Ostorozhno Media, was among the first to spot the label in the article. Vedomosti published the article on July 25.

The SK SOS crisis group has been designated an “extremist” organization, according to a letter received by its director, David Isteev. The decision was made about a month ago, but SK SOS has not yet been added to the Justice Ministry’s registry of “extremist” organizations, the group said. SK SOS said in a statement: We have long expected this decision and began restructuring our work the moment the “international LGBT movement” was designated an “extremist” organization.

Russian officials are considering installing machine guns and mobile missile launchers on cargo ships that carry grain through the Sea of Azov to shield the vessels from Ukrainian drone attacks, sources told Bloomberg. The Russian military and other government agencies are in talks with grain traders and shipowners over how to safeguard their cargo.

Demand for electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles has increased in Russia. There is a shortage of some models, writes Kommersant with reference to dealers and distributors. The publication's interlocutors do not provide specific figures. But according to the analytical agency Autostat, cited by journalists, sales of new hybrids and electric vehicles from June 29 to July 19 increased by 1.8 times compared to the weekly average in the first half of the year.