 RFE/RL Headlines 8/21/2009 4:30:13 PM A daily digest of the English-language news and analysis written by the staff of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| News  Top Candidates Both Claim Victory In Afghan Poll The front-runners in Afghanistan's presidential election, incumbent Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, are both claiming victory based on their camps' early tallies of the August 20 vote. But election officials say no conclusions can be reached until official results are released. More  Belarusian Christians Protest Against Church Closure A 26-hour concert in the building of the evangelical Christian New Life Church in Minsk has begun in an attempt to keep authorities from seizing the keys to the church and expelling the congregation, RFE/RL's Belarus Service reports. More  Popular Russian Actor Farada Dies In Moscow Russian actor Semyon Farada, who rose to fame during the Soviet era, has died at the age of 76 in Moscow, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports. More  Tymoshenko Named Ukraine’s Most Influential Person For the second consecutive year, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko has been named Ukraine's most influential person by the magazine "Korrespondent," RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service reports. More Armenian authorities are stepping up security after a wave of cyberattacks on government websites, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reports. More  On Molotov-Ribbentrop, Different Wikipedias Tell Different Stories It is the Internet age’s reference of first resort -- the online encyclopedia Wikipedia. More  Why Aren't They Afraid? Blogger Rezasayyedi wonders why the demonstrators in Iran aren't afraid to keep protesting, despite the harsh reaction they've faced. More  'I Could Die For You, Tupolev!' Blogger Bolfozol writes an ironic ode to the Tupolev airliner, which has featured in a number of recent crashes in Iran. More  Did The Taliban Lose The Elections? Taliban threats and attacks appear to have succeeded in keeping turnout low in several provinces during Afghanistan's presidential and provincial-council elections on August 20. But as the dust settles and the vote-counting begins, some observers are arguing that people's participation in the election and the security effort that preceded it ultimately signify a Taliban setback. More  Group's Claim Of Russian Power Plant Attack Dismissed Russian officials have dismissed apparent claims by the militant group Riyad-us Salihiin that it was behind this week's deadly explosion at a hydroelectric station in Siberia. But analysts say the group is developing the ability to strike deep inside Russia. More  Redrawing The Map Of Europe On the night of August 23-24, 1939, German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop met in the Kremlin with Soviet dictator Josef Stalin and his foreign minister, Vyacheslav Molotov. By dawn, Hitler's Germany and the Soviet Union had signed a nonaggression pact -- and a secret protocol establishing "spheres of influence" in Central Europe. More  Divisive Pact With Europe preparing to mark the 70th anniversary of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact's signing, Russia's influence in the region is once again on the rise. In Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and the territory of modern-day Moldova, anxiety still lingers over small nations' fates being decided by great powers. More  When Russia's Intelligence Services Play At Politics Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) has again rushed to find evidence confirming the correctness of the opinion of the country’s top leadership, reporting not what is true, but what the leadership wants to hear. But no one – not the spymasters, nor the political leaders of the country – really understands what these political games might result in. More "Why should I vote? I love my fingers." At a briefing last night, RFE/RL's Akbar Ayazi and Abubakar Siddique gave a first-hand account of what happened throughout election day in Afghanistan. More |
