Chilling video of the Russian Plane Crash shows the 737 had no chance – The typhoon that ravaged the Philippines is being felt at Royal Melbourne – Nuclear talks with Iran will resume – And a puppy upstages the President of Argentina.

The passenger jet that crashed in Kazan, Russia Sunday night came down at a near vertical angle at a high rate of speed before hitting the ground and exploding, according to a video of the crash from an airport surveillance camera.  All 50 people on board were killed.  Investigators say both “black box” flight data recorders are recovered, but are damaged.

The death toll from the weekend storms that tore across Middle America has been raised to eight lives lost.  The tornado that hit Washington, Illinois has been rated as an EF-4 on the Enhanced Fujita scale – that means wind speeds as powerful as 322 kilometers per hour.  It wiped out more than 400 homes in the tiny town southwest of Chicago.  The death toll could have been a lot worse, but for the quick and effective warning system developed over the years in Illinois, advising people to get into their storm shelters before the storm got too close.

Stunning amateur video has emerged showing the devastating power of Typhoon Haiyan’s storm surge as it ripped into a house on Samar Island in the Philippines, combining the force of a tsunami with the unforgiving typhoon winds.  This was east of Tacloban City, the worst hit urban area in the archipelago.  Almost 4,000 people are confirmed dead and roughly 1,600 are missing. 

Pro golfer Jason Day lost eight family members in the Philippines to Typhoon Haiyan, including his grandmother.  His immediate family moved to Australia 30 years ago, which was before he was born, but the extended family kept close ties despite the distance.  Despite the tragedy, Day will tough it out and represent Oz at the World Cup of Golf at Royal Melbourne on Thursday.

At least nine people have been killed as Cyclone Cleopatra hit the northern edge of the Italian island of Sardinia, in and around the city of Olbia.  A number of people are missing after rivers spilled their banks, resulting in flash flooding that swept cars away and caused bridges to collapse.

Iran unveiled its latest drone aircraft, which it claims has a range of 2,000 kilometers.  That covers much of the Middle East, including Israel. The Islamic Republic's Defense Minister says “Fotros” could carry out reconnaissance missions or launch missile strikes.

Meanwhile, Iran’s President Hassam Rouhani is warning world powers not to make “excessive demands” in nuclear negotiations, which begin anew in Geneva this week.  Iran and the P5+1 nations reportedly came very close to a deal over Tehran’s nuclear program, which it insists is only for power and medical research, but western powers believes includes nuclear weapons.

Haiti’s national Independence Day holiday turned into violent protests as crowds demanded President Michel Martelly step down over the high cost of living and rampant corruption.  Local and legislative elections are two years overdue.  UN peacekeepers, still on duty after all these years, were called out to restore order.

Argentine President Cristina Fernandez returned to work after six weeks spent recuperating from brain surgery to relieve a subdural hematoma.  Appearing in a video message with a hilarious puppy named after South American independence hero Simon Bolivar (at about 4:45 on the video) given to her by the late Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, CFK thanks those who supported her during her difficult moments.