 RFE/RL Headlines 8/12/2010 7:55:18 PM A daily digest of the English-language news and analysis written by the staff of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty RFE/RL is looking for guest bloggers, preferably writing from and about our broadcast region. If you're interested, drop us a line at webteam@rferl.org. |
| Features  Interview: Russian Forest Ranger Discusses Challenges Of Firefighting As they work to help contain the wildfires plaguing Russia, the country's forestry workers are short of manpower and equipment. RFE/RL spoke to Aleksandr Rovnov, a forest ranger in Nizhny Novgorod's Vyksunsky district, about the challenges he and his colleagues face as they battle the blazes. More  As State Fumbles Fire Response, Russia Discovers A New Strength: People Power Russian officials are foundering in fire-relief efforts. But at ground level, a massive support operation is under way -- organized by ordinary citizens and fueled by the web. More  Interview: 'If Putin Was Told Everything Was Under Control, He Was Deceived' Today Russia marks the 10th anniversary of the tragic sinking of the “Kursk” nuclear submarine. One hundred eighteen crewmembers lost their lives, many of them after being trapped for days hundreds of meters below the surface of the Barents Sea. RFE/RL Russian Service correspondent Viktor Rezunkov asked submarine Captain Igor Kurdin, chairman of the St. Petersburg Club of Submariners, how the catastrophe has affected the Russian Navy. More  Turkmen Oil Enters BTC Pipeline BP Azerbaijan has announced that Turkmen oil is now flowing through the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline. More  Russia Marks 'Kursk' Anniversary The Russian nuclear submarine "Kursk" sunk in the Barents Sea 10 years ago today, killing all 118 men aboard. Official documents state that the Kursk was sunk by its own torpedoes. The tragedy outraged families of the lost submariners and the Russian public itself, who questioned the Russian government's slow response. More  Lawyers: Stoning Defendant 'Tortured' To Confess With her face blurred and her words voiced over to translate them into Farsi from Azeri, it was not immediately possible to independently verify that the woman making the confession was Ashtiani, or whether she had been mistreated to extract the confession. More  'Superbug' Spreading From Asia A new superbug, according to the British medical journal "Lancet," contains a gene that can jump between bacteria, making them nearly impervious to antibiotics. More  Azerbaijani Scientist Released From Iranian Prison An Azerbaijani scientist has arrived in Baku after being released from an Iranian jail after serving a two-year sentence for espionage. More  Iran Puts New 'Restrictions' On Returning Expats The Iranian government has set new restrictions on Iranian expatriates coming into the country. More Kazakh authorities now say at least one prisoner was killed and more than 80 others injured in a riot at a prison in northern Kazakhstan. More  Moldova Shrugs Off Russia Criticism Moldova has rejected Russian criticism over its decision to decorate the members of the "Ilascu group" who were imprisoned for years by officials in the breakaway region of Transdniester. More  Displaced Georgians Protest Evictions Georgian Ministry of Refugees official Mariam Esaiashvili told RFE/RL that the ethnic Georgian families -- most of whom fled fighting between Russian and Georgian forces in 2008 -- were warned one month ago to vacate the building, which they occupied without official permission. More  Turkmenistan Preventing Students From Returning To Kyrgyzstan Turkmen officials are attempting to stop university students from returning to Kyrgyzstan to continue their studies in the wake of ethnic violence there. More  Admiration For A 61-Year-Old Postelection Detainee A popular blogger, "Agh Bahman," has written a tribute to hunger striking prisoner Keyvan Samimi. More  Closer Military Ties With Armenia To Boost Russia's Regional Clout Russia looks set to strengthen its foothold in the South Caucasus by means of a new defense agreement with Armenia that will formally make it a guarantor of the country's security and pave the way for more Russian arms supplies to Yerevan. More |
