https://www.rferl.org Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is an international news organization serving Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East and Balkan countries https://www.rferl.org/Content/responsive/RFE/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.rferl.org en Copyright 2023 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Sun, 23 Jul 2023 23:51:04 +0000 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Russia “failed a long time ago” in what it sought to achieve in its war against Ukraine and that Kyiv’s current counteroffensive has retaken substantial territory initially seized by Moscow, but he also warned of a long, "very hard fight." https://www.rferl.org/a/blinken-russia-ukraine-invasion-failed-goals-hard-fight/32515576.html https://www.rferl.org/a/blinken-russia-ukraine-invasion-failed-goals-hard-fight/32515576.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 15:27:08 +0000 NewsRussiaUkraineRussia Invades Ukraine The southeastern Siberian settlement of Domna has long been a military town, with most locals seeing only drugs or military service as an escape from the region's grinding poverty. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-siberia-village-emptied-war-ukraine-poverty-military-service/32515566.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-siberia-village-emptied-war-ukraine-poverty-military-service/32515566.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 15:10:44 +0000 RussiaFeaturesUkraineRussia Invades Ukraine Iranian authorities have banned a film festival that put out a publicity poster featuring an actress who was not wearing a hijab, state media reported on July 23. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-film-festival-banned-poster-hijab/32515542.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-film-festival-banned-poster-hijab/32515542.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 13:55:01 +0000 IranNewsHuman Rights Four police officers were killed in an attack in Iran’s restive Sistan-Baluchistan Province, officials and state media reported on July 23. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-police-killed-sistan-baluchistan/32515518.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-police-killed-sistan-baluchistan/32515518.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 13:19:30 +0000 IranNews Locals rushed to the Transfiguration Cathedral in the Ukrainian port city of Odesa to clear it from rubble after an overnight Russian missile attack on July 23. Odesa's largest Orthodox church was consecrated in 1809, destroyed by the Soviet authorities in 1939, and rebuilt in 2003. The city center is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-odesa-church/32515478.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-odesa-church/32515478.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 12:32:26 +0000 UkraineVideo ArchiveVideosBBG AffiliatesRussia Invades Ukraine Ukraine’s media landscape has shifted in the face of the Russian invasion. The sweeping changes may be part of the staunch resistance to Moscow’s onslaught, but they also create risks that could grow as the war rages on -- or after it ends. https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-telemarathon-media-zelenskiy-propaganda-russia-invasion/32515429.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-telemarathon-media-zelenskiy-propaganda-russia-invasion/32515429.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 11:38:37 +0000 UkraineFeaturesRussiaRussia Invades Ukraine Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks in St. Petersburg with Belarusian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka, who was quoted as saying in an apparent joking tone that fighters of Russia's Wagner mercenary group who are now training Belarus's army were keen to push into NATO member Poland.  https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-lukashenka-wager-poland/32515408.html https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-lukashenka-wager-poland/32515408.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 10:38:46 +0000 NewsBelarusRussiaUkraineRussia Invades Ukraine The presidents of the five Central Asian countries just traveled to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, to participate in the first-ever Gulf Cooperation Council-Central Asia summit. Ties between the two regions have been growing since Russia launched its full-scale war on Ukraine. What is changing in Central Asian-Arab relations and what lies ahead for cooperation between these regions? To explore these questions, host Bruce Pannier is joined by two experts: Aijan Sharshenova, research fellow at the Bishkek-based think tank Crossroads Central Asia; and Theodore Karasik, fellow on Russian and Middle Eastern affairs at the Washington, D.C.,-based Jamestown Foundation. https://www.rferl.org/a/majlis-podcast-central-asia-arab-relations/32515401.html https://www.rferl.org/a/majlis-podcast-central-asia-arab-relations/32515401.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 10:20:08 +0000 Majlis One person was killed and 22 wounded, including four children, in fresh Russian missile strikes on the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, Ukrainian officials said on July 23. The Transfiguration Cathedral of the Moscow-linked Ukrainian Orthodox Church (UOC) was severely damaged in the attacks. https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-cathedral-odesa-damaged-russia-strikes/32515336.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-cathedral-odesa-damaged-russia-strikes/32515336.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 08:50:09 +0000 UkraineRussiaPhoto GalleriesPhoto GalleriesRussia Invades Ukraine At least 31 people have been killed and 74 others injured in flooding throughout Afghanistan over the past three days of heavy rains, Taliban authorities said on July 23. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-flash-flood-12-dead-maidan-wardak/32515323.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-flash-flood-12-dead-maidan-wardak/32515323.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 08:29:35 +0000 AfghanistanNews The remote Russian city of Norilsk, above the Arctic Circle, is known for its history of forced labor camps, mining, and railways. Photojournalist Aleksandr Kharitonov, who grew up there, shares images and stories with RFE/RL that capture the region's unheralded beauty, as well as its dark past. https://www.rferl.org/a/norilsk-artic-city-russia-photographer-/32509810.html https://www.rferl.org/a/norilsk-artic-city-russia-photographer-/32509810.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 07:52:00 +0000 RussiaFeaturesPhoto GalleriesPhoto Galleries At least one person was killed and 22 wounded, including four children, in fresh Russian missile strikes on the Ukrainian port city of Odesa, Ukrainian officials said on July 23. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-attacks-odesa-orthodox-cathedral-grain-invasion/32515285.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-attacks-odesa-orthodox-cathedral-grain-invasion/32515285.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 07:20:41 +0000 NewsRussiaUkraineRussia Invades Ukraine RFE/RL's Ukraine Live Briefing gives you the latest developments on Russia's ongoing invasion, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. The Live Briefing presents the latest developments and analysis, updated throughout the day. https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-crisis-crosshairs-live-briefing/31668477.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-crisis-crosshairs-live-briefing/31668477.html Sun, 23 Jul 2023 07:11:00 +0000 UkraineFeaturesRussiaPicksRussia Invades Ukraine Millionaire Russian businessman Anton Cherepennikov, 40, founder of the ICS Holding technology conglomerate and who was subject to U.S. sanctions, was found dead in his Moscow office. https://www.rferl.org/a/russian-millionaire-found-dead-moscow-office/32514748.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russian-millionaire-found-dead-moscow-office/32514748.html Sat, 22 Jul 2023 17:04:52 +0000 NewsRussia Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned the Danish ambassador to protest against "the desecration of the Koran in Copenhagen," the ministry tweeted on July 22. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-summons-danish-envoy-koran-burning/32514698.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-summons-danish-envoy-koran-burning/32514698.html Sat, 22 Jul 2023 15:32:49 +0000 IranNewsHuman Rights Three prominent actresses who were sentenced this week for not wearing the hijab in public were diagnosed as having "antisocial" and "anti-family" personality disorders by a Tehran court, a practice that top psychiatrists said was unfathomable. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-court-controversy-diagnosing-hijab-protesters-mental-illness/32514690.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-court-controversy-diagnosing-hijab-protesters-mental-illness/32514690.html Sat, 22 Jul 2023 15:24:34 +0000 IranHuman Rights The Bulgarian parliament voted to send additional military and technical support to Ukraine, including some 100 Soviet-era armored vehicles from the NATO country’s reserves. https://www.rferl.org/a/bulgaria-lawmakers-shipment-soviet-era-armored-vehicles-ukraine/32514685.html https://www.rferl.org/a/bulgaria-lawmakers-shipment-soviet-era-armored-vehicles-ukraine/32514685.html Sat, 22 Jul 2023 15:01:26 +0000 NewsUkraineBulgariaRussia Invades Ukraine Wagner mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin has registered a "real estate management" firm in Belarus following his aborted mutiny against Russia's military leadership last month. https://www.rferl.org/a/prigozhin-registers-real-estate-firm-belarus-tent-village/32514682.html https://www.rferl.org/a/prigozhin-registers-real-estate-firm-belarus-tent-village/32514682.html Sat, 22 Jul 2023 14:54:24 +0000 NewsBelarusRussiaUkraineRussia Invades Ukraine Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the only NATO leader in regular contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin, seems to be “rebalancing” his foreign policy and taking steps to improve ties with the West. How long will that last, where does it leave Moscow, and what does it mean for Ukraine? https://www.rferl.org/a/erdogan-looks-west-putin-russia/32514668.html https://www.rferl.org/a/erdogan-looks-west-putin-russia/32514668.html Sat, 22 Jul 2023 14:29:51 +0000 Russia A Russian military correspondent for the state-run RIA Novosti news agency was killed during shelling in the Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhya region, the Defense Ministry in Moscow said on July 22. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-military-correspondent-killed-ukraine-zaporizhzhya-/32514638.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-military-correspondent-killed-ukraine-zaporizhzhya-/32514638.html Sat, 22 Jul 2023 13:35:21 +0000 NewsRussiaUkraineRussia Invades Ukraine