In Myanmar, America’s Pastime Has Asian Flair
The national baseball team receives little support from Myanmar and sees few fans in the stands but it’s clear there’s no shortage of effort and enthusiasm. …
Antidiscrimination Group Says St. Petersburg Has Shut Down Its Office
An umbrella group that campaigns against racism and antigay abuse in sports has accused the authorities in St. Petersburg of having shut down one of its “safe places” for the World Cup. …
LGBTI Activists Gather In Central Kyiv For ‘March Of Equality’
Gay-rights activists are gathering in the center of Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, for a pride rally, amid stepped-up security. …
How a Puerto Rican From the Bronx Became the King of Ukrainian Dance
A Puerto Rican from the Bronx, Orlando Pagan fell in love with Ukrainian folklore when he was a teenager. He used to dance in the Syzokryli Ukrainian Dance Ensemble, and now he leads it. Pagan believes Ukrainian dances are truly special and hopes to make them as popular as the Argentine tango or the Austrian …
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‘Muslim Oscars’ Honor Projects, Filmmakers Who are Changing the Narrative
Many Muslims around the world are not happy with Hollywood’s stereotypes of Muslims and Islam. But instead of protesting, nonprofit group Muslim Public Affairs Council created a Hollywood bureau to engage with filmmakers. It also honors those making a difference with the so-called “Muslim Oscars.” VOA’s Vina Mubtadi reports from Los Angeles. …
Russia, Saudis Agree To Request Increase In OPEC+ Oil Output
Russia and Saudi Arabia will ask OPEC to increase oil output by 1.5 million barrels a day in the third quarter of 2018 to counter fears that U.S. sanctions on Iran could disrupt supplies. …
Taliban Members Enter Afghan Capital To Mark Eid Cease-Fire
Dozens of unarmed Taliban members have entered the Afghan capital to celebrate a cease-fire marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, Kabul police spokesman Hashmatollah Stanikzai says. …
Bosnia In Crosshairs Of Ethnic Nationalists And Their Allies
Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik’s Russian-endorsed secessionism is not the only threat to Bosnian stability. (The views expressed in this blog post do not necessarily reflect those of RFE/RL.) …
Ordered To Grow Red-Hot Chili Peppers, Uzbek Farmers May As Well Give ‘Em Away Now
It was bad enough they had to grow a new crop. Now some Uzbek chili-pepper farmers complain they have to line up foreign buyers as well. …
Ethiopian Prime Minister Visits Somalia
The new Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Abiy Ahmed, has arrived in the Somali capital Mogadishu amid tight security. Ahmed was received at the airport by Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo. In a message posted on Twitter, Farmajo told the Ethiopian prime minister: “Welcome to Mogadishu your excellency it’s an honor to host you and your …
Top Threat to EU Unity: Migration
Forget Brexit or a looming trans-Atlantic trade war. The diplomatic spat this week between Italy, Malta and France over who should take responsibility for more than 600 people rescued at sea shows that the biggest challenge Europe faces today is migration. It’s not about the hundreds of thousands of people who arrived across the Mediterranean …
Egypt Fuel Prices Jump Under Austerity Measures
Egypt announced Saturday steep increases in fuel and cooking gas prices as part of the country’s economic reforms and austerity measures designed to overhaul the country’s ailing economy. The new prices went into effect Saturday morning, the Ministry of Oil said in a statement. Prices for cooking gas increased from 60 to 100 pounds (from …
Former Trump Campaign Chair Manafort Jailed After $10 Million Bail Revoked
A U.S. judge has jailed Paul Manafort, who served as U.S. President Donald Trump’s campaign manager during the 2016 presidential campaign, after revoking his bail ahead of a trial on charges brought by the special counsel investigating alleged Russian election interference. …
Trump Mounts Fresh Attack on Mueller Probe
Outside the White House Friday, a media frenzy. And at the center of it all, President Donald Trump. “Can we do one question at a time? Wait! One question at a time,” the president scolded reporters. Trump launched a new attack on the Russia probe in the wake of a critical report on the Hillary …
Iran Fans Unfurl Banner at World Cup in Support of Women
Iranian fans at the national team’s first match at the World Cup unfurled a banner protesting Iran’s ban on women attending soccer matches back home. The banner read “#NoBan4Women” and “Support Iranian Women to Attend Stadiums” and it was held aloft during the match against Morocco in the Russian city of St. Petersburg on Friday. …
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Thousands in Indian Kashmir Pay Tribute to Murdered Journalist
In Indian Kashmir, thousands turned out to pay tribute at the funeral of a prominent journalist who was gunned down in the capital Srinagar, by unknown assailants. The killing of Shujaat Bukhari sent shock waves through the violence-scarred region where he was regarded as a strong voice for dialogue, reconciliation and peace. Police said …
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Georgian Officials Charged After Allegedly Forcing Man To Wash Face With Urine
Facebook video spurs Georgian officials to detain mayor for the alleged “inhumane” treatment of a man that reportedly involved urine. …
Trump Floats Idea Of Summer Meeting With Putin
U.S. President Donald Trump says “it’s possible” he will meet with Russian President Vladimir this summer and has pressed again for Moscow to be allowed to rejoin the Group of Seven (G7) industrialized countries. …
GOP Drafts Bill Overturning Policy of Separating Families at Border
While people around the country hit the streets protesting separating children from their parents at the U.S. border, Republican House members are crafting an immigration bill that would end family separations, as the U.S. plans to reopen a tent shelter to house migrant children. Drafted by House Speaker Paul Ryan, the legislation says children who …
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Supreme Court Answers Question of Foreign Law in US Courts
Nyet. Non. Nein. No. That’s the answer the Supreme Court gave Thursday to the question of whether federal courts in the United States must accept statements from foreign governments about their own laws as binding. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote for a unanimous court that a “federal court should accord respectful consideration to a foreign …
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Iran Rebukes Canadian Move to Label Revolutionary Guard ‘Terrorists’
Iran Foreign Affairs Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif says an effort in Canada’s Parliament to brand Iran’s Islamist Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) “terrorists” is regrettable. “Although the government has changed in Canada and a new administration has stepped into the political fray with a new approach toward the world, the radicals are still active in the country, …
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U.S. Denounces Detention Of ‘Brave’ Iranian Rights Lawyer
The United States says it is “deeply concerned” by reports that prominent Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh has been arrested in Tehran and calls for her immediate release. …
Lawyer: Russian Court Overturns Acquittal Of Gulag Historian, Sets Retrial
A regional court has overturned a verdict that cleared Russian historian Yury Dmitriyev of child pornography charges, setting up a retrial, his lawyer says. …
Belarus Assembly Passes Controversial ‘Fake News’ Media Legislation
Belarussian lawmakers have passed controversial amendments to the country’s media laws despite claims by domestic and international groups that the move risks leading to further censorship of the press. …