Starlink operates a constellation of more than 2,000 satellites that aim to provide internet access across the planet. AFP
Starlink operates a constellation of more than 2,000 satellites that aim to provide internet access across the planet. AFP
Starlink operates a constellation of more than 2,000 satellites that aim to provide internet access across the planet. AFP
Starlink operates a constellation of more than 2,000 satellites that aim to provide internet access across the planet. AFP

Elon Musk opens Starlink satellite internet service in Ukraine after minister's plea


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Billionaire Elon Musk said on Saturday his company SpaceX has activated the Starlink satellite broadband service in Ukraine, after a plea from Kiev to provide the embattled country with stations.

SpaceX is sending more terminals to the country, whose internet has been disrupted because of continuing military attacks by Russia.

"Starlink service is now active in Ukraine," Mr Musk tweeted, adding "more terminals en route."

The tweet came about 10 hours after Ukrainian Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov urged Musk to provide Starlink services to Ukraine, days after it was attacked by neighbouring Russia.

"While you try to colonise Mars ― Russia try to occupy Ukraine! While your rockets successfully land from space ― Russian rockets attack Ukrainian civil people! We ask you to provide Ukraine with Starlink stations," Mr Fedorov tweeted at Musk.

He also called on the billionaire "to address sane Russians to stand" against their government's actions.

Elon Musk. AP
Elon Musk. AP

Internet monitor NetBlocks said Ukraine had been experiencing "significant disruptions to internet service" since Thursday, when Russia launched military operations in the country, AFP reported.

Connectivity has been affected, particularly in the southern and eastern parts of the country where fighting has been heaviest, Reuters reported.

Starlink operates a constellation of more than 2,000 satellites that aim to provide internet access across the planet.

The company on Friday launched a further 50 Starlink satellites and many more are slated to be put into Earth's orbit.

Russia-Ukraine latest - in pictures

  • Ukrainian fighters test an automatic grenade launcher taken from a destroyed Russian infantry vehicle in Kharkiv. AFP
    Ukrainian fighters test an automatic grenade launcher taken from a destroyed Russian infantry vehicle in Kharkiv. AFP
  • Refugees from Ukraine rest after arriving at a railway station in Przemysl, Poland. AP
    Refugees from Ukraine rest after arriving at a railway station in Przemysl, Poland. AP
  • People walk down 17th June Street in Berlin before a rally against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. AP
    People walk down 17th June Street in Berlin before a rally against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. AP
  • Vitali Klitschko, Mayor of Kiev and former heavyweight boxing champion, right, and his brother, Wladimir. AP
    Vitali Klitschko, Mayor of Kiev and former heavyweight boxing champion, right, and his brother, Wladimir. AP
  • Khreshchatyk, Kiev’s main street, lies empty as a curfew comes into effect. AP
    Khreshchatyk, Kiev’s main street, lies empty as a curfew comes into effect. AP
  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to the nation from Kiev. AP
    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks to the nation from Kiev. AP
  • On February 27, the seventh anniversary of the assassination of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, a note stating ‘No to war!’ is placed among flowers on the central Moscow bridge on which he was shot. AFP
    On February 27, the seventh anniversary of the assassination of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, a note stating ‘No to war!’ is placed among flowers on the central Moscow bridge on which he was shot. AFP
  • A member of the Ukrainian forces, wearing the Guy Fawkes mask popularised by Anonymous, patrols central Kiev. AFP
    A member of the Ukrainian forces, wearing the Guy Fawkes mask popularised by Anonymous, patrols central Kiev. AFP
  • Sviatoslav Yurash, 26, a politician from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Servant of the People party, poses with his assault rifle as he patrols Kiev. AFP
    Sviatoslav Yurash, 26, a politician from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s Servant of the People party, poses with his assault rifle as he patrols Kiev. AFP
  • A Ukrainian serviceman and his dog look at smoke from a burning fuel storage depot after a Russian missile attack near Kiev. EPA
    A Ukrainian serviceman and his dog look at smoke from a burning fuel storage depot after a Russian missile attack near Kiev. EPA
  • A refugee who fled conflict in Ukraine rests at a railway station after arriving in Zahony, Hungary. AP
    A refugee who fled conflict in Ukraine rests at a railway station after arriving in Zahony, Hungary. AP
  • A refugee boy who fled Ukraine cries at the railway station in Zahony, Hungary. AP
    A refugee boy who fled Ukraine cries at the railway station in Zahony, Hungary. AP
  • Civil defence members eat during a break at City Hall in Kiev. AP
    Civil defence members eat during a break at City Hall in Kiev. AP
  • An Indian student is embraced by his family at Chennai Airport after returning from Ukraine. EPA
    An Indian student is embraced by his family at Chennai Airport after returning from Ukraine. EPA
  • Smoke is seen rising from behind buildings following bombings in Kiev. Getty
    Smoke is seen rising from behind buildings following bombings in Kiev. Getty
  • An armed civil defence woman holds a Kalashnikov assault rifle while patrolling an empty street in Kiev. AP
    An armed civil defence woman holds a Kalashnikov assault rifle while patrolling an empty street in Kiev. AP
  • A woman fleeing from Ukraine cries as she waits to be taken to a shelter in Zahony, Hungary. Reuters
    A woman fleeing from Ukraine cries as she waits to be taken to a shelter in Zahony, Hungary. Reuters
  • Ukrainian refugees cross the Romanian border at Siret, northern Romania. EPA
    Ukrainian refugees cross the Romanian border at Siret, northern Romania. EPA
  • A residential building damaged by shelling in Kharkiv, north-eastern Ukraine. AFP
    A residential building damaged by shelling in Kharkiv, north-eastern Ukraine. AFP
  • Apartments damaged by shelling in Kharkiv. AFP
    Apartments damaged by shelling in Kharkiv. AFP
  • A girl protests against Russia's military operation in Ukraine, in front of the Russian embassy in Tel Aviv. AFP
    A girl protests against Russia's military operation in Ukraine, in front of the Russian embassy in Tel Aviv. AFP
  • Young women protest in Tbilisi, Georgia with their hands painted in the colors of the Ukrainian flag. Getty
    Young women protest in Tbilisi, Georgia with their hands painted in the colors of the Ukrainian flag. Getty
  • Supplies for Ukrainian refugees at one of three camps set up at the MoldExpo exhibition center, in Chisinau, Moldova. EPA
    Supplies for Ukrainian refugees at one of three camps set up at the MoldExpo exhibition center, in Chisinau, Moldova. EPA
  • Police detain a demonstrator during a protest against Russia's incursion into Ukraine in St Petersburg. AP
    Police detain a demonstrator during a protest against Russia's incursion into Ukraine in St Petersburg. AP
  • A man waits at a bus stop in St Petersburg, which has been with a painted in the colours of Ukraine's national flag. EPA
    A man waits at a bus stop in St Petersburg, which has been with a painted in the colours of Ukraine's national flag. EPA
  • Russian ground forces approaching Nova Kakhovka, southern Ukraine. AP
    Russian ground forces approaching Nova Kakhovka, southern Ukraine. AP
  • A woman holds her daughter's hand as they arrive by bus from the Polish-Ukrainian border. Getty
    A woman holds her daughter's hand as they arrive by bus from the Polish-Ukrainian border. Getty
  • A man drives his car full of food supplies to deliver to the Ukrainian side of the border, where thousands wait to enter Poland. Getty
    A man drives his car full of food supplies to deliver to the Ukrainian side of the border, where thousands wait to enter Poland. Getty
  • Refugees arrive with buses from the Medyka pedestrian border crossing, in Przemsyl, eastern Poland. AFP
    Refugees arrive with buses from the Medyka pedestrian border crossing, in Przemsyl, eastern Poland. AFP
  • People gather to catch a train and leave Ukraine for neighboring countries at the railway station in Lviv, western Ukraine. AP
    People gather to catch a train and leave Ukraine for neighboring countries at the railway station in Lviv, western Ukraine. AP
  • Cars form a line that stretches 35 kilometres from the Shehyni border crossing to Poland as people try to flee Russia's military operation against Ukraine. Reuters
    Cars form a line that stretches 35 kilometres from the Shehyni border crossing to Poland as people try to flee Russia's military operation against Ukraine. Reuters
  • Helena, right, and her brother Bodia, left, from Lviv, wait at the Medyka border crossing in eastern Poland. AFP
    Helena, right, and her brother Bodia, left, from Lviv, wait at the Medyka border crossing in eastern Poland. AFP
  • A Ukrainian soldier walks past debris of a burning military truck, on a street in Kiev. AP
    A Ukrainian soldier walks past debris of a burning military truck, on a street in Kiev. AP
  • People run for cover during the shelling on the city of Kiev. AP
    People run for cover during the shelling on the city of Kiev. AP
  • A child refugee who fled the conflict in Ukraine covers her face in the event hall of a hotel offering shelter in Siret, Romania. AP
    A child refugee who fled the conflict in Ukraine covers her face in the event hall of a hotel offering shelter in Siret, Romania. AP
  • Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy holding a briefing in Kyiv. He said that Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan have suggested talks with Russia, which 'can only be welcomed'. AFP
    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy holding a briefing in Kyiv. He said that Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan have suggested talks with Russia, which 'can only be welcomed'. AFP
  • Ukraine's ambassador to the US, Oksana Markarova, at a news conference in the embassy of Ukraine, Washington. AP
    Ukraine's ambassador to the US, Oksana Markarova, at a news conference in the embassy of Ukraine, Washington. AP
  • Manchester City footballers wear t-shirts in support of Ukraine before a match. Reuters
    Manchester City footballers wear t-shirts in support of Ukraine before a match. Reuters
  • Ukrainian refugees arrive in Warsaw by train from Kiev. EPA
    Ukrainian refugees arrive in Warsaw by train from Kiev. EPA
  • A woman waves a Ukrainian flag during a rally in Times Square, New York City. AFP
    A woman waves a Ukrainian flag during a rally in Times Square, New York City. AFP
  • A man sits next to his dogs in an underground car park turned into a bomb shelter during an air raid alert in Kiev. AP
    A man sits next to his dogs in an underground car park turned into a bomb shelter during an air raid alert in Kiev. AP
  • A woman sleeps on chairs in a Kiev bomb shelter. AP
    A woman sleeps on chairs in a Kiev bomb shelter. AP
  • A satellite image with overlaid graphics shows military vehicles alongside the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Reuters
    A satellite image with overlaid graphics shows military vehicles alongside the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Reuters
  • A satellite image shows the effects of shelling in open fields along Soborna Street in the north-east suburbs of Kharkiv. Reuters
    A satellite image shows the effects of shelling in open fields along Soborna Street in the north-east suburbs of Kharkiv. Reuters
  • A big fire at a petroleum storage depot after a Russian missile attack, in Vasylkiv, near Kiev. EPA
    A big fire at a petroleum storage depot after a Russian missile attack, in Vasylkiv, near Kiev. EPA
  • Ukrainian servicemen take positions at a military airbase in the Kyiv region. Reuters
    Ukrainian servicemen take positions at a military airbase in the Kyiv region. Reuters
RESULTS
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The specs

Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6

Power: 400hp

Torque: 475Nm

Transmission: 9-speed automatic

Price: From Dh215,900

On sale: Now

Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

UAE v United States, T20 International Series

Both matches at ICC Academy, Dubai. Admission is free.

1st match: Friday, 2pm

2nd match: Saturday, 2pm

UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Rameez Shahzad, Amjad Gul, CP Rizwan, Mohammed Boota, Abdul Shakoor, Ahmed Raza, Imran Haider, Sultan Ahmed, Zahoor Khan, Amir Hayat

USA squad: Saurabh Netravalkar (captain), Jaskaran Malhotra, Elmore Hutchinson, Aaron Jones, Nosthush Kenjige, Ali Khan, Jannisar Khan, Xavier Marshall, Monank Patel, Timil Patel, Roy Silva, Jessy Singh, Steven Taylor, Hayden Walsh

Japan 30-10 Russia

Tries: Matsushima (3), Labuschange | Golosnitsky

Conversions: Tamura, Matsuda | Kushnarev

Penalties: Tamura (2) | Kushnarev

The specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 325bhp

Torque: 450Nm

Price: Dh359,000

On sale: now 

Updated: February 27, 2022, 5:45 AM