Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

RFE/RL Headlines 8/26/2011 8:21:19 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 Reporter's Notebook: As Libyan Rebels Assert Control, Calm Descends Over War-Torn Capital As fighting continues in the Libyan capital between rebels and fighters loyal to deposed leader Muammar Qaddafi, a sense of calm has finally settled over most of the city, putting something of an end to what has been the most intense conflict to emerge in the "Arab Spring." More   News Islamist Group Claims Responsibility For Nigerian UN Blast A radical Islamist group in Nigeria has claimed responsibility for the deadly car-bomb attack on UN headquarters in the capital, Abuja. As world leaders condemn the attack, officials now say least 18 people were killed and warn the toll could rise considerably. More   Libyan Opposition Council Moves To Tripoli As Fighting Continues The Libyan rebel government has arrived in Tripoli as efforts begin to stabilize the city despite remaining pockets of resistance by fighters loyal to Muammar Qaddafi. More   Slain Pakistan Governor's Son Abducted The son of former Pakistan Governor Salman Taseer, who was killed by militants in January for opposing blasphemy laws, has been abducted by gunmen in Lahore. More   Tadic Remains Defiant Over Kosovo Serbian President Boris Tadic says Serbia will not give up its influence in northern Kosovo even if that means delaying Belgrade's hopes of obtaining the status of an EU candidate by the end of the year. More   From Our Bureaus Azeri Activists Detained In Iran ran's Intelligence Ministry has detained over 30 ethnic Azeris in recent days over environmental protests. More   Armenian Opposition Suspends Dialogue The opposition Armenian National Congress (HAK) has suspended its ongoing dialogue with the authorities to protest the continuing detention of one of its activists arrested earlier this month. More   Egypt's Ibrahim: Libya Events 'Will Hasten Demise Of Other Regimes' Prominent Egyptian rights activist Saad Eddin Ibrahim says that "the game is over" for embattled Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi and that the fall of Tripoli will hasten the demise of other regimes in the Arab world. More   Russia Frees Alleged Army Deserter A Russian soldier who claims he spent more than a decade in forced labor has been released from detention after authorities accused him of desertion. More   RFE/RL Kazakh Reporter Sued For Libel A rights activist and RFE/RL correspondent in Kazakhstan is being sued for libel after she alleged children at a special needs school were being abused. More   Belarus Drops Charges Against Fugitive Belarusian authorities are reported to have dropped charges against another prominent opposition activist who was being prosecuted over postelection protests. More   Transmission Croatia, Serbia In War Of Words Over Kosovo Former wartime foes Serbia and Croatia's on-again, off-again relationship took a new turn for the worse this week after Croatian Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor's visit to Kosovo. More   The Power Vertical Russia's August Lull Ends; A Hot Autumn Looms Five things about Russia that I wish I blogged this week. More   Persian Letters MKO Supporters Rally To Call For U.S. Delisting Several hundred supporters of the Iranian opposition Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization gathered in front of the State Department in Washington, D.C., to urge Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to remove the group from the United States' list of foreign terrorist organizations. More   The Blender Podcast: What Now In Libya? Plus, The Taliban's Destructive Legacy In Pakistan's Swat Valley In Episode 33 of "The Blender," we look at the challenges Libya's rebel leaders face in getting the country back on its feet. The U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan talks about the best ways to challenge extremism in the region. And we have a report on the terrible impact the Taliban have had on women's rights and the music culture of Pakistan's Swat Valley. More   Tangled Web Uzbekistan Launches Its Own Facebook, Except It’s Not For Everyone What most worries activists in Uzbekistan, though, is that the launch of Muloqot is merely a prelude to a ban of Facebook, which represents the global connected society the Karimov regime is so afraid of. More   Commentary The Next Awakening As the Canadian writer Mark Steyn repeatedly reminds us, the history of the last two centuries is the story of how vast, dominant, and well-rooted powers have crumbled and dissolved almost overnight from the Czarist autocracy to the Soviet Empire. There is a reason why the experts are confounded by revolutions and the fall of empires every twenty years or so. The one variable they cannot measure is the change in the mentality of the subjects of the power. More

RFE/RL Caucasus Report 8/26/2011 8:19:07 PM A review of RFE/RL reporting and analysis about the countries of the South Caucasus and Russia's North Caucasus region. For more stories on the Caucasus, please visit and bookmark our Caucasus page .

 

Azeri Activists Detained In Iran ran's Intelligence Ministry has detained over 30 ethnic Azeris in recent days over environmental protests. More   Azeris Jailed Over April Protest Six Azerbaijani opposition activists have been jailed for up to three years over an antigovernment protest in Baku four months ago that was broken up by police. More   Armenian Prosecutor Concerned Over High-Profile Robberies Armenian Prosecutor-General Aghvan Hovsepian has expressed concern over a series of high-profile robberies in Yerevan. More   Armenian Soldier's Suicide Disputed Relatives of an Armenian soldier who was found dead last week say they do not believe he committed suicide. More   Suspected Mastermind of Politkovskaya Murder Arrested Russian investigators say they have arrested a former police officer in connection with the murder of journalist Anna Politkovskaya and are close to determining who ultimately ordered the hit. More   Azerbaijani Opposition Body To Present 'Road Map To Democracy' Azerbaijan's opposition Public Chamber is to present authorities later this week with a plan it calls a "road map to democracy. More   Azerbaijan Protests French Deputies' Visit To Nagorno-Karabakh Baku has lodged a formal protest with the French Foreign Ministry over an ongoing visit to the breakaway Azerbaijani region of Nagorno-Karabakh by four French parliament deputies. More   The Fall Of Robert Sturua Sets A New Standard In Georgian Public Life If in a Western democracy a public figure who receives his salary courtesy of the taxpayer said something similar to recent xenophobic comments by theater director Robert Sturua, he would not remain in office for very long. More   Armenian Opposition Activists Freed Two more members of the opposition Armenian National Congress (HAK) have been released from prison pending investigation into their violent dispute with police in Yerevan last week. More