• Ukrainian paratroopers said a North Korean soldier they captured ran into a pillar to knock himself out.
• They said they found him alone on the battlefield with a grenade, a knife, and some food.
• Their prisoner closely resembles one of the two North Koreans Ukraine said it captured.

Ukrainian paratroopers in Kursk said they captured a North Korean soldier who tried so hard to evade capture that he intentionally ran into a concrete pillar to knock himself out.

Three members of the 95th Separate Air Assault Polissia Brigade spoke of the encounter in a video published on Tuesday, describing how one of their drones found a lone North Korean on the battlefield after an assault had ended.

The clip was published by the brigade's press service on its YouTube, Facebook, and Telegram accounts.

The paratroopers said they enveloped the North Korean with guidance from drone operators and found that he didn't respond to commands in Ukrainian, Russian, or English.

"With gestures, we showed him what to do," one of the paratroopers said.

The soldier was carrying a grenade, a knife, and a sausage, the paratroopers said.

They said the North Korean was also visibly wounded, with his jaw bandaged and one of his hands appearing to be injured.

One paratrooper said the injured soldier appeared calm at first but grew agitated when he saw a vehicle coming to pick him up.

"When we brought him near the road, suddenly he ran headfirst into a concrete pillar at full speed. He hit it very hard and probably passed out," he said.

But the paratrooper also suspects it might have been a ploy by the North Korean soldier, because the latter fell backward, not forward, as one might expect when a charging person faints.

"I think he was faking it, trying to get us close so he could grab a weapon and attack us," he said.

The paratroopers said they eventually hauled the North Korean into a vehicle and took him away from the front lines, after which he received food and watched romance films upon request.

An older paratrooper said in the video that the North Koreans' tactics appeared to mimic Russia's Soviet-era fighting, with frontal assaults where "they try to crush simply with massive numbers."

But he added that while Russian forces in Kursk tend to attack in groups of two or three, the North Koreans would conduct assaults with groups of at least six.

The paratroopers said that Pyongyang's forces would fight to the end if cornered, adding that their brigade reported instances where wounded North Koreans blew themselves up to avoid capture.

"They are not in a mood to surrender," one of the paratroopers said.

The man they captured appears to be one of two North Korean soldiers whom Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced had been seized from the battlefield in early January.

One was captured by Ukraine's special forces, while the other was found by the Polissia brigade.

The paratroopers posted a clip of their prisoner on January 11, which they referenced when recounting the events of his capture in their Tuesday video.

Another North Korean soldier, separate from the pair shown by Zelenskyy, was captured in December, but South Korea's intelligence service said he died of his injuries shortly after.

Western and South Korean intelligence estimate that 12,000 North Korean soldiers have been sent to Russia, where they've been deployed to fight a Ukrainian incursion in the Kursk region.

Their presence in the war is a significant sign of Pyongyang and Moscow strengthening an economic and military partnership spurred by Russia's isolation since the war began.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is believed to have received food, financial assistance, and Russian expertise in space and weapons technologies in return for his troops and guns.

Meanwhile, the West fears that North Korean troops are gaining valuable combat experience from fighting in Russia.

A captured North Korean soldier's documents obtained by The Washington Post discusses guidance related to the six-man frontal assaults the paratroopers spoke of.

"In modern warfare, where real-time reconnaissance and drone strikes are conducted, failing to disperse combat teams into smaller units of two to three members could lead to significant casualties from enemy drones and artillery," one document read, per The Post.

After 14 years, EA will retire its controversial Origin game distribution app for Windows, the company announced. Origin will stop working on April 17, 2025. Folks still using it will be directed to install the newer EA app, which launched in 2022.

The launch of Origin in 2011 was a flashpoint of controversy among gamers, as EA—already not a beloved company by this point—began pulling titles like Crysis 2 from the popular Steam platform to drive players to its own launcher.

Frankly, it all made sense from EA's point of view. For a publisher that size, Valve had relatively little to offer in terms of services or tools, yet it was taking a big chunk of games' revenue. Why wouldn't EA want to get that money back?

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The Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Ohio State Buckeyes meet in the college football national championship on Monday night, and only one team could be the winner.

It will mark the end of the first-ever expanded College Football Playoff. Neither team came into the tournament favored, and each team had to scratch and claw their way to get to the championship game. It will certainly be a scrap at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, but some of the top talent from each team has expressed at least one common thing to bring them together: their faith.

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Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard, Ohio State quarterback Will Howard, running back TreVeyon Henderson and wide receiver Emeka Egbuka have all talked about their belief in God in the days leading up to the game.

"I truly think things happen for a reason, not only us, but Ohio State as well. I think we’re the two main teams to just publicly display our faith the most," he told reporters last week, per Sports Michiana. "I don’t know if this is some divine teaching, you know, who put us here. 

"I truly believe that Jesus was looking over both our shoulders throughout the [whole] season and put these two teams on a pedestal for a reason."

Howard talked about his belief in God after the team’s upset win over Oregon in the Rose Bowl.

"First and foremost, I got to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, for giving me this opportunity to be on this stage in the Rose Bowl," Howard told ESPN. "Younger me would be in awe right now."

Egbuka talked to Sports Spectrum during the season about how faith affected his performance on the field.

"I would say for the past couple years we’ve kinda been – there’s kind of been a number of players on the football team who have restored their faith in Jesus Christ. And that was something that was big for me my freshman year," the star receiver told the outlet in November. 

Egbuka, a graduate student, recalled in his interview the turning point for him. He was invited to attend Mass by his fellow teammates and said it was the first time he had felt a true connection to his faith. 

COLLEGE FOOTBALL STAR ASHTON JEANTY TALKS POSSIBILITY OF DEION SANDERS COACHING COWBOYS

"Ever since then, my life has been changed. A complete 180, and I have a similar testimony to a lot of players on the team. We’ve been praying for a type of revival like this on our team, and we decided to share with everybody what God has been doing on our football team." 

Egbuka said he opted against going into the NFL Draft last season because he felt a calling that was "bigger" than football.

Henderson told the outlet in a separate interview that despite his standout rookie season, which included success and NIL deals, he had turned to his faith after an injury. 

"He saved my life from going down that road of destruction. He saved me. He put me on this path of everlasting life … you see so many people go down that large path of destruction, but I’m so thankful that Jesus, He rescued me from that path and put me on His path."

Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman reinstated pregame Mass when he took over for Brian Kelly in 2021. He was baptized into the Catholic Church in and received his first Holy Communion in September 2022.

Freeman credited Notre Dame for encouraging the student body to grow their faith.

"It's not only in Catholicism. It's the reality of you having a faith and a belief in something bigger than yourself," he said.

Come Monday night, each team will have a prayer and then lock in for the final 60 minutes of their season.

Fox News' Paulina Dedaj, Chantz Martin and Peter Burke contributed to this report.

• All of North Korea's troops in Kursk could get wiped out by April, given current losses, a think tank said.
• Analysts cited casualty reports from Ukraine and South Korea, estimating 92 losses per day for Pyongyang.
• Still, the estimated 12,000 troops sent by North Korea are a small fraction of its total military strength.

If North Korea's current casualty rate holds, it would take three more months for Pyongyang to lose all of its estimated 12,000 troops deployed to fight Ukraine, per an estimate by researchers from the Institute for the Study of War.

Analysts at the Washington-based think tank cited casualty reports from Ukraine and South Korea, as well as Russian military bloggers who said that North Korean troops were actively participating in significant combat in December.

"North Korean have therefore likely suffered roughly 92 casualties per day since starting to participate in significant fighting in early December 2024," they wrote in an assessment published on Thursday.

The think tank said that "the entirety of this North Korean contingent in Kursk Oblast may be killed or wounded in roughly 12 weeks (about mid-April 2025) should North Korean forces continue to suffer similarly high casualty rates in the future."

The analysts wrote that Pyongyang's losses will likely involve more wounded troops than those killed in action, which they said is "typical or armed conflict."

"And it is unclear if or when injured North Korean soldiers return to combat," the think tank's assessment said.

A South Korean lawmaker, Lee Sung-kwon, said on Monday that Seoul's intelligence service estimated that about 300 North Korean soldiers had been killed in action in Kursk, with another 2,700 wounded.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in early January that North Korean losses in Kursk had reached up to 3,800 wounded or killed.

"12,000 has arrived. Today, 3,800 killed or wounded," he told podcaster Lex Fridman.

The US also gave its estimate for North Korean casualties in December, saying that Pyongyang likely suffered 1,000 killed or wounded in its first week of engaging in significant combat.

"We now assess that North Korean forces are conducting massed — massed, dismounted assaults against Ukrainian positions in Kursk," White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said on December 27.

Russia's defense ministry press team did not respond to a request for comment sent outside regular business hours by Business Insider.

Western and South Korean intelligence officials have said that the roughly 12,000 North Korean troops deployed in Kursk are likely from the Storm Corps.

The elite branch of soldiers is considered North Korea's version of special forces, and estimates have varied as to how many are fielded by Pyongyang. One of the highest counts, by South Korea's Defense Ministry in 2022, put the Storm Corps at up to 200,000 strong.

Questions remain as to whether Kim Jong Un may send more troops to Russia's aid if manpower on the frontline runs dry. Quantity has been vital for both Ukraine and Russia — from troops to artillery to ammo — as the war looks to drag into its fourth year.

North Korea has an estimated 1.2 million soldiers in its armed forces, though they have barely any combat experience. Pyongyang is known to instead often rely on its troops for building infrastructure projects.

Still, Zelenskyy warned in early January of the possibility that North Korea could send up to half a million troops to aid Russia. But Pyongyang isn't giving its troops away for free — Kim is receiving food, technological expertise, and economic assistance from Russia in exchange.

Ukraine and South Korea reported in November that Russia was also paying Kim a stipend for each North Korean soldier deployed in Kursk. Seoul's intelligence said at the time that the cost was about $2,000 per man.

• Brandy Melville is expanding in Asia with a new store in Seoul, South Korea's capital.
• The store is in Seongsu-dong, a hip neighborhood often likened to Brooklyn.
• The store saw snaking queues and products flying off the shelves in its first week of operation.

Brandy Melville, the teen-favorite clothing store that offers a "one size fits all" sizing approach, just opened a new store in Seoul's answer to Brooklyn — and it's a big hit.

The store, located in the hip Seongsu-dong area, opened on January 3 and was flooded with customers in its first week of operation, according to The Korea Herald.

Snaking queues formed outside the store in its first week of operations, as seen in TikTok videos posted by customers.

Other TikTok posts about the store's opening showed customers spending hours waiting in line.

The videos showed a well-stocked inventory, with full stacks of clothes on islands around the store. Products were snatched up fast, with staff having to restock the shelves frequently, per multiple reports from South Korean media outlets.

TikToker users have also been quick to post their shopping hauls from the new store, showing off their new sweaters and cami purchases. Other videos called it a "must-visit" store and one of the "new trendy places" in the Seongsu-dong neighborhood.

The Seoul store adds to the chain's small but growing presence in Asia. Brandy Melville currently has five other stores in the continent — one each in Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan, and two in mainland China.

Founded in Italy in the 1980s, the brand gained popularity after expanding to the US in 2009 and establishing its image as the go-to retailer for teenage girls in the US.

Representatives for Brandy Melville did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.

François Chollet, an influential AI researcher, is launching a new startup that aims to build frontier AI systems with novel designs. The startup, Ndea, will consist of an AI research and science lab. It’s looking to “develop and operationalize” AGI. AGI, which stands for “artificial general intelligence,” typically refers to AI that can perform any […]

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• Yoon Suk Yeol, South Korea's impeached president, was arrested on Wednesday.
• This was the South Korean authorities' second attempt to arrest Yoon.
• Yoon was impeached on December 14 after he attempted to impose martial law, triggering protests.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was arrested by investigators early on Wednesday morning, local time.

Yoon's arrest comes after weeks of attempts by South Korean anti-corruption investigators to bring him in for questioning. This makes him the first sitting South Korean president to be detained.

Yoon has repeatedly defied attempts to arrest him. During a particularly tense standoff on January 3, investigators had to stand down after six hours when Yoon's security team barred them from taking the president.

More than 3,000 police officers and anti-corruption investigators were involved in Yoon's arrest on Wednesday morning, per Reuters.

South Korea's Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials said they had executed an arrest warrant for Yoon at 10.33 am local time, per a statement obtained by Yonhap News.

Yoon said in a statement on Wednesday that he had chosen to comply with the warrant "to prevent unsavory bloodshed," according to a translation by Reuters.

Roughly 6,500 supporters were present outside Yoon's presidential residence when he was arrested, per Yonhap News.

Yoon was impeached and stripped of his presidential powers on December 14. South Korean lawmakers voted to remove him from duties after a stunning declaration of martial law, which triggered large-scale protests and calls for his resignation.

South Korea's nine-member Constitutional Court is set to rule on Yoon's removal from office.

The trial, which must conclude within 180 days from the date of Yoon's impeachment, could take months to resolve. If the court decides to remove Yoon from office, a presidential election must be held within 60 days.

Last month, South Korean lawmakers impeached the country's acting president, Han Duck-soo, after he had refused to fill the Constitutional Court's three vacancies.

Han, who was also South Korea's prime minister, was replaced by the country's finance minister, Choi Sang-mok. Choi said in December that he would move quickly to fill up the court's vacancies.

There are currently eight justices on the court, after two new justices started their terms this month. Choi said he would appoint a ninth candidate after both the ruling and opposition parties come to an agreement on the nomination.

At least six votes are needed to remove Yoon.

• Starbucks is extending its free refills policy to non-rewards members with reusable cups.
• Customers at participating stores will be eligible for a top-up of many brewed coffee and teas.
• Starbucks is also reversing its open-door policy, limiting facilities to paying customers and staff.

Starbucks is expanding its free refills policy to all customers at participating stores as part of its new code of conduct, effective January 27.

Non-rewards members at the coffee giant will soon be able to receive refills at no extra cost as long as their beverage is prepared in a clean reusable cup or a for-here utensil. They also must order in-store and within the same visit.

The offer includes hot and iced brewed coffee and tea but excludes flavored iced tea, cold brew, nitro cold brew, iced tea lemonade, and its Refreshers.

Starbucks rewards members were previously the only ones who could get a free top-up of their order. From February 12th, loyal customers will also have to use a reusable cup or a ceramic in-house mug to be eligible for a refill.

The Seattle-headquartered coffee chain said on Monday that it would also reverse its open-door policy.

The policy was first introduced in 2018 after Starbucks faced widespread criticism over an incident in which two men having a business meeting were arrested at a Philadelphia location after they tried to use the restroom without purchasing anything.

The policy lets non-paying guests use store facilities, like bathrooms, indoor communal areas, and patios.

From January 27th, these spaces will only be reserved for staff, customers, and people accompanying those making purchases.

"Implementing a Coffeehouse Code of Conduct is something most retailers already have and is a practical step that helps us prioritize our paying customers who want to sit and enjoy our cafés or need to use the restroom during their visit," Starbucks' representative Jaci Anderson told BI in an emailed statement.

The changes come as new CEO Brian Niccol sets out his vision to make Starbucks cafés places where people want to hang out again.

A joint international statement provides the first official confirmation that North Korea was behind the $235M hack of WazirX, India's largest cryptocurrency exchange.

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Eli Manning was named one of the semifinalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s modern era ballot two weeks ago as he tries to get to Canton, Ohio, in his first year.

The former New York Giants star has a Hall of Fame worthy resume with two Super Bowl championships – both over Tom Brady and an undefeated New England Patriots team – as well as 57,023 passing yards and 366 touchdown passes. Those statistics were among the highest in the NFL ever when he retired from the sport after the 2019 season.

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However, getting into the Hall of Fame in his first year on the ballot is an uphill climb as he will have to last as long as Antonio Gates, Torry Holt, Reggie Wayne, Darren Woodson, Fred Taylor and a handful of others who have been on the ballot longer.

Former Patriots head coach Bill Belichick appeared on ESPN’s "ManningCast" on Monday during the Los Angeles Rams’ playoff win over the Minnesota Vikings and threw his support behind the four-time Pro Bowl quarterback.

"Eli, you don’t look that good in that hoodie, but you're going to look great in a gold jacket," Belichick told Manning. "I'm sure that's going to happen, and you deserve it so much to join Peyton in a gold jacket too."

PACKERS' KEISEAN NIXON DISPUTES EARLY FUMBLE IN WILD-CARD ROUND GAME, ARGUES EAGLES SHOULD HAVE BEEN PENALIZED

Manning told the New York Post last week he was not exactly so sure.

"I guess it's different just because it's all out of your hands, you're not campaigning for it, you're not trying to talk to people about it or prove your point," he said. "If I get in, it will be an awesome, unbelievable few days down in New Orleans, and if I don't, it's not going to ruin it for me. I'm not going to be in a bad mood, I'm not going to be sulking around. 

"Just to be included in the top 15 this year is a great honor, and so I look at all of this as positive and a fun experience."

If he does get in, the announcement ceremony would take place in New Orleans – Manning’s hometown.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Sunday's wild-card game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers got off to a surprising start. 

Referees ruled that Packers defensive back Keisean Nixon fumbled the opening kickoff. The Eagles recovered the ball and quickly took advantage of the short field. On Philadelphia's third offensive play of the game, quarterback Jalen Hurts threw an 11 yard touchdown pass to Jahan Dotson.

Philly never trailed in the playoff game and eventually punched their ticket to the divisional round after defeating Green Bay 22-10. After the game, Nixon argued that the game officials — not him — were the ones who dropped the metaphorical ball.

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Nixon asserted that he was the one who recovered the fumble in the pile-up, and he was stripped of the pigskin after what should have been considered a dead ball. The two-time All-Pro also claimed the fumble should have been negated because Eagles players committed an illegal hit which ultimately created the fumble.

EAGLES' AJ BROWN READS BOOK ON SIDELINE DURING TEAM'S PLAYOFF WIN

"I got the ball back for sure, and then it should’ve been targeting, helmet to helmet," Nixon said. "I’ve never been hit that hard."

Replay videos appeared to show an initial recovery by Nixon as he was being contacted by players from the opposing team. 

The league office could review the play in question and issue discipline — such as a fine — at a later date should it determine that an illegal hit occurred.

On Monday, Nixon also expressed his lack of interest in returning kicks going forward. The 27-year-old instead wants to focus on being a cornerback on a full-time basis.

"I want to be CB1," Nixon said as players emptied their lockers for the offseason. "CB1 is not doing kick returns. That's just what it is."  Nixon posted career-highs in pass breakups and forced fumbles this season.

Packers quarterback Jordan Love threw three interceptions during Sunday's loss. Meanwhile, Hurts finished the game with two touchdown passes. 

Philadelphia awaits the winner of Monday night's game between the Los Angeles Rams. The wild-card round matchup was relocated to Glendale, Arizona, due to the ongoing wildfires in the Los Angeles area.

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• Ukraine has been releasing excerpts of what its forces say is a North Korean soldier's diary.
• They include a stick-figure sketch of using a comrade as "bait" to shoot down a drone.
• Other entries include musings on class struggles and a confession for stealing undisclosed Russian items.

Excerpts from a North Korean soldier's diary released by Ukraine show a glimpse at how Pyongyang's troops in Russia believed they could defend against drones and artillery strikes.

Ukraine's special forces have been releasing excerpts of the diary since Christmas week, saying the entries were written by a now-deceased North Korean private named Gyeong Hong Jong.

The latest of these, published on Thursday, appeared to feature the young soldier confessing that he was stealing items from his Russian allies to sell. He did not specify what the stolen goods were but wrote that he had been caught.

"While working in the barracks, I thought that no one was watching me and put the Russians' things in my pocket," the diary excerpt said, per Ukraine's special forces.

"I will no longer trade in other people's things. I will heroically advance in the forefront and destroy the enemy," the soldier added.

Other entries released by Ukraine included praises of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and musings on class struggle.

"Longing for my homeland, having left the warm embrace of my dear father and mother here on Russian land. I celebrate the birthday of my closest comrade Song Ji Myong," another entry read, per a translation by The Wall Street Journal.

One of the earliest entries, published by Ukraine on December 26, featured a stick-figure drawing of what the soldier described as "How to eliminate a drone."

The simple illustration showed a figure standing upright on open ground while another two stick figures fired at a quadcopter drone.

"If a UAV is spotted, gather in groups of three," the diary read, per The Journal's translation. "One person must act as bait to lure the drone while the other two take aim and neutralize it with precision shooting. The bait must maintain a distance of seven meters from the drone. The other two should prepare to shoot down the drone from a distance of 10 to 12 meters. When the bait stands still, the drone will stop and it can be shot down."

Ukraine's special forces said the North Korean soldier also wrote of how to avoid artillery strikes. An excerpt of his diary said that Pyongyang's troops were supposed to "disperse in small groups" if fired upon by artillery.

The excerpt also said he could hide in the location of "the previous hit" because he believed artillery doesn't repeatedly strike the exact same spot.

Business Insider couldn't independently verify the authenticity of the diary entries. Ukraine posted photos of what it said were the soldier's corpse and passport. The Journal also cited a former North Korean soldier and a former South Korean major general who said the choice of words in the diary aligned with the ideology and vernacular of North Korea's troops.

The soldier's diary could give insight into how North Korean forces are adapting battlefield doctrine for combat in Russia.

The West worries that Pyongyang's involvement will allow its forces to glean valuable lessons from battling Ukraine, especially as they face off against American and European equipment and encounter drone warfare.

Dorothy Camille Shea, the deputy US ambassador to the UN, said on Wednesday that Pyongyang "is significantly benefiting from receiving Russian military equipment, technology, and experience, rendering it more capable of waging war against its neighbors."

Western and South Korean intelligence says that 12,000 North Korean troops are stationed and fighting in Kursk, a Russian border region that Ukraine attacked in the summer of 2024.

Moscow hasn't addressed the presence of Pyongyang's troops on its soil, but Ukraine has increasingly been trying to cast a spotlight on North Korea's direct involvement in the war.

Most recently, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy published images of who he said were two captured North Korean soldiers. He did not provide evidence that they were North Korean, though Seoul's intelligence service backed up his claim.

"This was not an easy task: Russian forces and other North Korean military personnel usually execute their wounded to erase any evidence of North Korea's involvement in the war against Ukraine," Zelenskyy wrote. He has said that around 3,000 North Korean soldiers were wounded or killed.

Thousands of North Korean troops serve as a valuable source of manpower for Russia, which is relying on mass infantry assaults along the front lines to whittle down Ukraine's defenses.

Still, Pyongyang's reinforcements are still few compared to the over 600,000 people that Ukraine and the West believe Moscow has lost.

Russia is believed to be providing Kim with much-needed finances, economic support, food, and technology in exchange for the latter's troops.

• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine has captured two North Korean soldiers.
• Zelenskyy said the two soldiers were wounded and had been taken to Kyiv.
• South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) has reportedly confirmed their capture.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine has captured two wounded North Korean soldiers.

In a statement posted on X on Saturday, Zelenskyy said the soldiers had been captured in Russia's Kursk region and had been taken to Kyiv, where they were now "communicating with the Security Service of Ukraine." He added that they were receiving the "necessary medical assistance."

Zelenskyy also shared images of two injured men, but he did not provide evidence that they were North Korean.

"This was not an easy task: Russian forces and other North Korean military personnel usually execute their wounded to erase any evidence of North Korea's involvement in the war against Ukraine," Zelenskyy said, adding that he had instructed Ukraine's security service to allow journalists access to the captured soldiers.

South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) has reportedly confirmed their capture.

The NIS told AFP that it had "confirmed that the Ukrainian military captured two North Korean soldiers on January 9 in the Kursk battlefield in Russia".

The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has also shared some details from their questioning of the pair.

The SBU said the North Korean soldiers did not speak Ukrainian, English, or Russian, "so communication with them is carried out through interpreters of Korean," with help from the NIS.

The SBU said that one soldier told interrogators that he believed he had been sent for training, not to fight in the war against Ukraine.

It added that one of the soldiers was found with a Russian military ID card "issued in the name of another person," while the other had no documentation with him.

The soldier with the ID card stated that he was born in 2005 and that he had been serving as a rifleman in the North Korean military since 2021.

The other was born in 1999 and had been a scout sniper in the North Korean army since 2016, the SBU said, citing "preliminary information."

Pyongyang reportedly began sending troops to Russia in October.

White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby said last month that Russia was using North Korean troops to carry out "human wave" assaults on Ukrainian positions, resulting in heavy casualties.

"It is clear that Russian and North Korean military leaders are treating these troops as expendable and ordering them on hopeless assaults against Ukrainian defenses," Kirby said. "These North Korean soldiers appear to be highly indoctrinated, pushing attacks even when it is clear that those attacks are futile."

Zelenskyy said last month that preliminary estimates suggested that more than 3,000 of Pyongyang's soldiers had been killed or wounded in Kursk.

He previously said that Russian forces had been trying "to literally burn the faces of North Korean soldiers killed in battle" in an effort to "conceal" their losses.

In December, a North Korean soldier believed to be the first to be captured by Ukrainian forces died from his injuries, South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) said, per Yonhap news agency.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Three Russian citizens were charged with money laundering for their role in operating Blender.io and Sinbad.io crypto mixing services.

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• "Squid Game" on Netflix is about a group of people in debt competing in deadly games for money.
• Some of the characters' debts revealed in season two are more than a billion South Korean won.
• When converted into US currency, the highest debt represented is just under $7 million.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for "Squid Game" season two.

Netflix's biggest show, "Squid Game," is a South Korean thriller series about a group of people who risk their lives in a dangerous competition to pay off their debts.

The largest debts are equal to billions of South Korean won. But in the context of US dollars using the current conversion rates, the largest debt represented is just under $7 million.

The show is set in a dystopian version of the present where people compete in a series of deadly children's games to win 45.6 billion won (roughly $31.2 million). In the show, the prize fund starts at zero and can rise to 45.6 billion won, however the money only increases if a player dies. Each player's death adds 0.1 billion won to the prize pot.

In season one, there can be only one winner, but season two changes the rules. After each game, the contestants can vote to leave, splitting the prize money that's been won so far. If a majority agrees, all the surviving players leave with an equal split of the current prize fund.

By the end of season two, 36.1 billion won (roughly $24.7 million) is in the fund, and 95 players are still alive. If the contestants leave right away, each player would receive 380 million won (roughly $260,000), but this amount is lower than some of the characters' debts.

Viewers unfamiliar with the Korean won may struggle to grasp the level of debt each player is in. These are the fictional debts converted from South Korean won to US dollars based on current conversion rates.

Player 196 owes $31,000

When the contestants first enter the games in season two, the game organizers expose some of the players' debts in an attempt to get them to shut up and play along with the competition.

Player 196, who is the first person to be killed in the first game, has the lowest debt that is revealed in the season.

The organizers say Player 196, who is killed in the first game, "Red Light, Green Light," owed 45 million won, which is roughly $31,000.

Player 007 owes $68,000

In episode five, Player 007, whose real name is Park Yon-sik, shocks his mother by voting to stay in the games.

He later tells her that his debt is higher than she thought it was, and he is being threatened to pay it back.

He says his debt is around 100 million won, which is roughly $68,000.

He is still alive at the end of the season.

Player 120 owes $226,000

Player 120, Cho Hyun-ju, is an ex-military trans woman who needs money to finish paying off her surgical bills and to move to Thailand, where she would be more accepted.

The game organizers say she owes 330 million won, which is roughly $226,000.

She is still alive at the end of the season.

Player 230 owes $814,000

Player 230 is a microcelebrity internet rapper who goes by the name Thanos. He enters the games after losing 500 million won (roughly $342,000) in a crypto scam led by Player 333. Player 333 kills him during a brawl in episode seven.

The organizers say he owes 1.19 billion won, which is roughly $814,000.

Player 198 owes $958,000

Player 198 is a minor character in season two who dies in the second game.

The organizers say he owes 1.4 billion won, which is roughly $958,000.

Player 333 owes $1.2 million

Player 333, Lee Myung-gi, is a former YouTuber who is wanted for fraud and violating telecom and financial investment laws after promoting a crypto coin that turned out to be a scam.

The scammers fled after taking 15.2 billion won (roughly $10.4 million) from those who invested in the coin, including Thanos, Player 222, and Player 124, but Myung-gi seemed to also lose money in the scam and shut down his social media accounts.

In episode three, the organizers expose Lee to the group and say he owes 1.8 billion won, which is roughly $1.2 million.

He is still alive at the end of the season.

Player 226 owes $1.3 million

Player 226 is one of the players who consistently pushes the group to continue playing the games.

The organizers say he owes 1.9 billion won, which is roughly $1.3 million.

He is still alive at the end of the season.

Player 444 owes $1.4 million

Player 444 is a minor character who dies in the first game. A sniper shoots him in the leg, but he makes it to the finish line only to be shot and killed by another sniper.

The organizer says he owes 2.02 billion won, which is roughly $1.4 million.

Player 343 owes $2 million

Player 343 is a minor character who dies during the Mingle game after Player 001 strangles him.

The organizers say he owes 2.89 billion won, which is roughly $2 million.

Player 006 owes $2.1 million

Player 006 is a minor character who becomes part of Player 44's cult.

The organizers say she owes 3.1 billion won, which is roughly $2.1 million.

Player 283 owes $2.7 million

Player 283 is a minor character who is the second character to die in the first game. A sniper kills the player after she panics over Player 196's death.

The organizers say she owes 4.02 billion won, which is roughly $2.7 million.

Player 100 owes $6.8 million

Player 100 is the biggest defender of the games, often inspiring the group to continue with the contest instead of quitting.

The organizers say he owes 10 billion won, which is $6.8 million.

He is still alive at the end of the season.

• North Korea is learning combat lessons fighting Ukraine, a US official said.
• It means the authoritarian state is more of a threat to its neighbors.
• North Korea has dispatched around 12,000 troops to fight for Russia.

North Korea is learning valuable lessons from fighting against Ukraine, making it an increased threat to its neighbors, a US official said.

In recent months, North Korea has sent around 12,000 troops to fight for Russia against Ukraine as part of a new security pact between its leader, Kim Jong Un, and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The fighting has been concentrated in the Kursk region of Russia, where Ukraine has seized and held swaths of territory.

In exchange, North Korea is receiving economic and diplomatic backing from Russia, as well as valuable military technology.

Dorothy Camille Shea, the deputy US ambassador to the UN, discussed the arrangement at the UN Security Council, Reuters reported.

North Korea "is significantly benefiting from receiving Russian military equipment, technology and experience, rendering it more capable of waging war against its neighbors," she said.

"In turn, the DPRK will likely be eager to leverage these improvements to promote weapons sales and military training contracts globally," she said, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

After brokering its alliance with Russia, North Korea has taken a defiant posture and on Monday tested a ballistic missile tipped with a hypersonic warhead.

The test came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited South Korea. The timing seemed intended to showcase North Korea's capacity to overcome the defenses of the US and its regional allies.

South Korea has watched North Korea's involvement in the Ukraine war with growing concern. It said last year it could provide Ukraine with intensified support in response to the alliance with Russia.

The UN has long sought to constrain North Korea's military program, specifically its ability to deploy nuclear weapons, by imposing severe sanctions.

But Russia has used its place on the UN Security Council to stymie a committee formed to enforce them.

On Wednesday, Russia's UN ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, argued that North Korea's new missile tests were a defensive measure in response to military exercises by the US and its regional allies.

Under President Joe Biden, the US reaffirmed its commitment to help defend east Asian regional allies, including South Korea and Japan.

President-elect Donald Trump has suggested he may take a more transactional approach to broker a deal with Kim, a path he pursued in his first term.

• The US Navy is officially referring to F/A-18s armed with nine air-to-air missiles as "Murder Hornets."
• This loadout was first observed during Red Sea combat operations last year.
• The loadout consists of four AIM-9X and five AIM-120 missiles.

The US Navy is officially using the term "Murder Hornet" to describe F/A-18 fighter jets armed with nine air-to-air missiles, a munition configuration first spotted amid Red Sea combat operations last year.

The office of the Chief of Naval Operations highlighted the new term for these missile-packed Super Hornets in a document outlining the Navy's achievements over the past year. It said the configuration, which was used in combat as the sea service faced off against numerous airborne threats, involves arming the jets with four AIM-9X instead of two and five AIM-120 missiles.

This air-to-air loadout was first seen on a Boeing-made F/A-18 Super Hornet during flight operations aboard the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Red Sea last April. The Ike and the other ships in its strike group had deployed to the region for several months in response to repeated Iran-backed Houthi rebel attacks on shipping lanes off the coast of Yemen.

The Navy took steps to boost the air-defense capabilities of its Super Hornets amid pressing threats in the Red Sea. Navy aircraft and warships have routinely shot down Houthi drones and missiles above the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since October 2023.

The head of Naval Air Systems Command's Program Executive Office for Unmanned Aviation and Strike Weapons, Rear Adm. Stephen Tedford, said last year that the heavy air-to-air configuration, among other efforts, was brought about due to the need for "a lot more firepower and capability immediately in support of Red Sea operations and counter-UAS," The War Zone, which first reported the new nickname, previously reported.

The AIM-9X is the latest model in the decades-old Sidewinder family of short-range missiles, and the AIM-120 AMRAAM (Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile) is a beyond-visual-range missile capable of all-weather engagements. Both munitions are manufactured by US defense contractor Raytheon, now known as RTX Corporation.

The Eisenhower, where the Murder Hornet configuration was first showcased, is one of four carriers that, along with their strike groups, have participated in counter-Houthi operations. US forces are routinely tasked with intercepting rebel drones and missiles; the Navy said it has defended military and civilian ships from more than 180 attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Using a range of other munitions, the US military has also carried out airstrikes targeting the Houthis. Just on Wednesday, for instance, American forces bombed two underground weapons storage facilities in Yemen.

Despite a year of combat action, the Houthis still maintain the ability to launch attacks, which they claim are done out of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. In recent weeks, the rebels have stepped up drone and missile attacks on Israel, which has responded by bombing their facilities.

For all the chatter about the decline of San Francisco, the data repeatedly shows that the area is still the best place for venture-backed startups.

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• A UK-led coalition is using AI to track Russia's shadow fleet, the British Ministry of Defence said.
• The operation, involving 10 countries, comes after damage to major undersea cables in the Baltic.
• Finland said evidence suggests a Russia-linked ship dragged its anchor to sever the cables.

A UK-led coalition of European countries has deployed AI to track Russia's shadow fleet and detect possible threats to underwater cables, after suspected sabotage incidents in recent months.

On Monday, the UK's Ministry of Defence said that the Joint Expeditionary Force's operation, dubbed Nordic Warden, has been using AI to evaluate data from several sources, including the Automatic Identification System, which ships use to share their real-time locations.

In the event of a potential threat, it said the system would monitor the suspect vessel in real time and issue a warning, which will be communicated to both NATO allies and participating countries.

The UK's Defense Secretary John Healey said AI would allow them to monitor "large" sea areas using a "comparatively" small number of resources.

"Nordic Warden will help protect against both deliberate acts of sabotage as well as cases of extreme negligence which we have seen cause damage to underwater cable," Healey added.

The UK MOD didn't respond to a request for comment, but in its news release said that there were 22 areas of interest, including parts of the English Channel, the North Sea, the Kattegat Sea, and the Baltic Sea.

It said the operation's launch came after reported damage to a major undersea cable in the Baltic.

Over the past two months, several undersea cables in the Baltic Sea have been damaged, including the BCS East-West Interlink cable, the C-Lion1 telecommunications cable linking Finland and Germany, and the Estlink 2 electricity cable connecting Estonia and Finland.

Last week, Finnish officials said they found a 60-mile trail on the seabed that suggested the Eagle S — a Russia-linked tanker — could have been responsible for slicing a cluster of valuable data and power cables.

Edward Hunter Christie, a senior research fellow at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs and a former NATO official, told BI that AI will help NATO identify suspicious ships among the vast majority of legitimate commercial activity in the region.

Neither Russia's shadow fleet nor any other country for that matter, "even the Chinese," can afford to lose ship after ship trying to damage cables, he said, pointing to Finland's seizure of a Russian-linked vessel last week.

"Russia needs its shadow fleet," he added, "that's how it earns its oil export revenues."

Flying Flea is the latest electric two-wheeler manufacturer to embrace the connected vehicle trend. At CES 2025, Flying Flea shared plans to integrate some of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon products into its upcoming line of motorcycles, bringing connected capabilities like voice assistance, smartphone-enabled keys, and customizable ride modes.  Indian motorcycle manufacturer Royal Enfield introduced the Flying Flea […]

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