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Lies, horror, trauma: Kenyans recount forced Russian recruitment
Charles Ojiambo Mutoka, 72, with portraits of his son Oscar, who he learned was killed in August, during a press conference where relatives of conscripts demanded urgent government action to repatriate their kin, in Nairobi on Jan. 27 | AFP-JIJI Nairobi - The scars on Victor's forearm remind him constantly of the day a Ukrainian drone attacked him after he was forcibly conscripted, like hundreds of young Kenyans, into the Russian military. It was a war that had nothing to do with him and which he was exceptionally lucky to survive. Four Kenyans -- Victor, Mark, Erik and Moses -- recounted the web of deception that took them to the killing fields of Ukraine. Their names have been changed for fear of reprisals. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 1,447
Could Ukraine hold a presidential election right now? Will Europe use frozen Russian assets to fund war? How can Ukraine rebuild China ties? 'Ukraine is running out of men, money and time' Russian overnight drone attacks on Ukraine, including in the eastern Kharkiv and Chernihiv regions, killed at least four people. A mother and her 10-year-old son were killed in the attacks, which also knocked out power to tens of thousands of people, Ukrainian officials said.
AI helps scam centers evade crackdown in Asia and dupe more victims
Shwe Kokko city, a casino, entertainment, and tourism complex,from Thailand's side of the border after Bangkok said it would suspend electricity supply to some border areas with Myanmar to try to curb scam centers, in the Mae Sot district, Thailand, on Feb. 5, 2025 | REUTERS Criminals in Southeast Asia are harnessing inexpensive artificial intelligence tools to target bigger pools of potential victims at high speed, keeping scam centers humming even as governments try and crack down, senior officials at Interpol say. Previously, some scams were easy to spot -- from poor quality online ads luring people to work in such centers to the scams themselves, typically designed to make people part with their money through the promise of romance or investment returns. Now, scammers are using large language models and other AI tools to make their cons more sophisticated. Artificial intelligence also allows them to change course quickly, shifting to newer targets and from fresh locations. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever.