 RFE/RL Headlines 8/17/2010 7:44:41 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  Stoning Of Afghan Couple For Adultery Sparks Debate On Shari’a Law Islamic clerics and scholars have condemned the public execution by stoning of a young couple in northern Afghanistan. The two had been charged with adultery by the local Taliban. The execution brings into focus a heated debate about the interpretation of Shari’a-based law in Afghanistan, where some clerics recently called for the revival of a strict Islamic criminal code. More  IMU Announces Longtime Leader Dead, Names Successor The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan has announced that its leader, Tahir Yuldash, was killed nearly a year ago. The IMU also announced that it had selected a new leader, Usman Odil. More  President's Decree Bans Private Security Firms From Afghanistan Afghanistan's president has banned all private security firms from his country -- regardless of whether they are international companies or Afghan firms. More  Karzai Condemns Taliban Stoning Afghan President Hamid Karzai today condemned as an "unforgivable crime" the stoning to death of a young couple by the Taliban. More  Attack On Iraqi Army Recruits Kills 58 In the bloodiest such attack in weeks, a suicide bomber has killed dozens of people at an Iraqi Army recruitment center in Baghdad today. The bomber set off his explosives in an area where many prospective recruits and soldiers were gathered. More  Well-Known Ukrainian Journalist Missing The chief editor of a weekly newspaper based in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv has been missing for nearly a week and police are investigating possible foul play. More  Children ‘Starve To Death’ In Flooded Northwest Pakistan At least five children have reportedly died of starvation in a remote mountainous district in northwest Pakistan as a result of massive floods throughout the region. More  Kyrgyz Officials Challenge HRW Report Members of a Kyrgyz National Commission investigating the deadly ethnic clashes in the southern regions of Osh and Jalal-Abad in June have challenged the findings of a recent Human Rights Watch (HRW) report on the unrest between ethnic Uzbeks and Kyrgyz. More  When Water Dries Up, The Donkey Market Booms As the result of slow repairs to a derelict 40-year-old water-supply system, many residents of the Tajik city of Kulob are living without running water in their homes, RFE/RL’s Tajik Service reports. More  Jailed Iranian Journalist Takes Nokia to Court Issa Saharkhiz, a prominent Iranian journalist who was jailed in the postelection crackdown, has filed a lawsuit against Nokia Siemens Networks and its parent companies Siemens AG and Nokia Inc. for delivering surveillance equipment to Iran. More  Shajarian's Beloved 'Rabbana' So Far Absent From Iran's Ramadan Celebrations Traditionally aired on Iranian state television and radio during the month of Ramadan, an Islamic prayer called "Rabbana," sung by 69-year-old Mohammad Reza Shajarian, has yet to be broadcast this year, leading to speculation that Shajarian's criticism of last year's postelection crackdown is the reason. More  After Green Movement, Iran's Conservative Factions Turn On Each Other Last year's crackdown on the opposition Green Movement united the various factions of Iran's ruling establishment. Now there are signs of conflict among these competing groups, and the supreme leader seems to be having trouble balancing among them while simultaneously favoring the president's faction. More |
