The Economist.

Hello, you're listening to the free edition of the world in brief from The

Economist. As a reminder, if you subscribe to the economist, you'll get access to a deeper look at the day ahead, updated three times a day.

If you're already an economist subscriber, visit Economist.com slash Espresso,

or visit our Espresso app to start listening.

Here's today's free edition. This is the World in Brief from The Economist.

Our top stories.

Israel killed around 15 members of Hezbollah and Iran-backed militia in Bintjebael, a town in southern Lebanon, according to the Israel Defence Forces.

Earlier, the IDF bombed Central Beirut, hitting a medical center belonging to the Islamic

Health Organization and killing nine people, according to

Lebanon's health ministry.

Meanwhile, in the West Bank, Palestinian officials said Israeli strikes killed at least 14 people in the Tukarem refugee camp.

Russia launched a major drone attack on 15 Ukrainian regions causing widespread damage to power lines.

Thousands of people are without electricity.

Ukraine's Air Force said it shot down 78 of 105 Russian drones during the assault.

On Wednesday Russian troops seized control of Voolodar,

a strategically located town in eastern Ukraine.

The European Commission sued Hungary over a controversial law it passed last year

in the name of protecting its national sovereignty. Critics compare the measure

which criminalizes some groups that take foreign money to a Russian law requiring

NGOs that receive funding from abroad to register as foreign agents,

the Block argues that the measure infringes EU law.

...