Month: February 2017

Elena is a human rights defender in a country where the government has not shown much regard for the rights of citizens for a quarter of a century. …

Some of the most compelling photographs from RFE/RL’s broadcast region and beyond for the sixth week of 2017. …

Kremlin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza, Jr., who has been hospitalized in critical condition for the second time in two years in what his family and friends suspect was a deliberate poisoning, has awoken from a coma and improved noticeably, his lawyer and wife told RFE/RL. …

Sen. Elizabeth Warren has earned a rare rebuke by the Senate for quoting Coretta Scott King on the Senate floor. The Massachusetts Democrat ran afoul of the chamber’s arcane rules by reading a three-decade-old letter from Dr. Martin Luther King’s widow that dated to Sen. Jeff Sessions’ failed judicial nomination three decades ago. The chamber is debating the …

Read more “Warren Violates Arcane Rule, Sparking Senate Dustup”

China has emerged as the top single-country source of tourism for Vietnam over the past year, a status that could help broader relations hurt by a maritime dispute and historical distrust.  The number of Chinese tourists to the neighboring Southeast Asian country reached 250,000 in January, leading other countries with about a quarter of the …

Read more “Boom in Tourists Helping Stabilize China-Vietnam Relations”

A U.S. federal appeals court expects to issue a ruling sometime this week on the government’s request to end a temporary pause of President Donald Trump’s travel ban.  A lower federal court issued the temporary restraining order last week, saying the government could not enforce the 90-day entry ban on people from seven Muslim-majority countries …

Read more “Supreme Court Likely Destination for Trump Travel Ban Case”

Russia is increasingly cracking down on Internet users as courts impose harsh jail sentences for posts expressing political views, a rights advocacy group warned. …

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ratified a deal to build the Turkish Stream natural gas pipeline to southern Europe, state media reported on February 7. …

President Vladimir Putin has put the Russian air force on high alert for a snap inspection, the latest in a series of drills amid tensions with the West. …

Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly is heading to Capitol Hill for his first public appearance before lawmakers who are sure to press him for details about the Trump administration’s contentious rollout of a travel and refugee ban. He will testify before the House Homeland Security Committee.   Kelly has said the ban was intended to …

Read more “Homeland Security Chief Makes First Public Trip to Congress”

An Afghan official says a suicide bomber has struck near the Supreme Court building in central Kabul, killing 12 people. …

Afghan officials say a suicide bomb attack near the Supreme Court building in the capital, Kabul, has killed at least  20 people and wounded about 40 others. Most of the victims are said to be court employees. Details of the incident are still coming in. There was no immediate claim of responsibility. The attack came …

Read more “Deadly Suicide Blast Hits Near Kabul Supreme Court”

Russia’s deputy prime minister in charge of sport has admitted that many Russian coaches have been responsible for track-and-field athletes using performance-enhancing drugs. …

U.S. First Lady Melania Trump has re-filed a defamation lawsuit against the company that publishes the Daily Mail’s website, saying an article posted there in August 2016 harmed her ability to earn millions of dollars during a time when she would be “one of the most photographed women in the world.” The article discussed false …

Read more “Melania Trump Lawsuit Says ‘Daily Mail’ Article Cost Her Millions in Business”

The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily reflect the views of RFE/RL. …