Exclusive: Newly Disclosed Files Reveal Lesin Sustained Broken Neck
Mikhail Lesin, the former Russian press minister who was found dead in a Washington hotel room in 2015, sustained a fracture to a neck bone just below the jaw line "at or near the time" of his death, according to documents released by the city's medical examiner to RFE/RL.
VISUAL REPORTS
Russia's Leftist Opposition Protests Price Hikes, 'Fake News' Legislation
Several hundred supporters of mainly leftist opposition forces in Russia gathered in Moscow on March 17 to call for a change in the country’s social and political course, rallying against recent changes to the retirement age, tax hikes, rising prices, and a new internet law.
Serbia's Vucic Vows To Defend Law And Order After Opposition Storms State TV
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has vowed to defend law and order in his country, a day after opposition supporters escalated their 14-week protest against his rule, storming and briefly occupying the headquarters of state TV.
Montenegrins March Against Corruption, Government
An estimated 10,000 activists supported by opposition parties marched through the Montenegrin capital, Podgorica, on March 16, calling for the resignations of long-serving President Milo Djukanovic, Prime Minister Dusko Markovic, the prosecutor-general, and the management of state-run television.
Salvaged In Siberia, Historic U.S. Aircraft Gets New Lease On Life
A U.S.-made transport plane that was supplied to the Soviet Union during World War II and went down in the Siberian tundra in 1947 is being restored in Krasnoyarsk.
OTHER NEWS
Putin To Mark Five Years Since Crimea 'Rejoined' Russia
Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to travel to Crimea on March 18 for celebrations marking the fifth anniversary of what Moscow considers the day Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula became part of Russia. Kyiv and the West consider the annexation illegal.
Mogherini Slams Russia On Anniversary Of Crimea ‘Illegal Annexation'
The European Union’s foreign policy chief has marked the fifth anniversary of Russia’s "illegal annexation" of Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula with scathing criticism of the Kremlin, and said the EU “remains steadfast in its commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity."
Russia's Deripaska Files Suit Against U.S. Sanctions
Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska has filed a lawsuit in a Washington court against the U.S. Treasury Department, alleging that sanctions against him are illegal and have cost him $7.5 billion.
Egypt To Buy Dozens Of Russian Jet Fighters
Russian media report that Moscow’s defense ministry has signed a $2 billion contract to supply upwards of 20 supersonic Su-35 fighter jets to Egypt, with deliveries expected in 2020-2021. Egypt is one of the largest buyers of Russian weapons, already having purchased MiG-29M/M2 fighter jets, Ka-52 combat helicopters, air defense systems, small arms, and ammunition. (Russian Service)
Verdict Being Read In Chechen Activist Titiyev’s 'Revenge' Trial
A judge in the Shali district court in Russia's Chechnya region has started reading the verdict in the drug possession trial of human rights activist Oyub Titiyev. Prosecutors have urged the court to find Titiyev, the head of the human rights group Memorial's Chechnya office, guilty and sentence him to four years in prison. Titiyev and his supporters have condemned the case as politically motivated.
Karelia Camp Managers Imprisoned For Criminal Negligence In 2016 Boating Deaths
Two former managers of a summer camp in Russia's northwestern region of Karelia have been sentenced to prison terms of 9 1/2 years each in a case involving the capsizing of two boats in 2016 that killed 14 children from Moscow.
Azerbaijani President Pardons Hundreds, Including Political Prisoners
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has pardoned more than 400 people convicted of crimes in the country, including several members of the opposition considered to be political prisoners by international rights organizations.
Joint NATO-Georgia Exercises To Kick Off Near Tbilisi
Around 350 personnel from 24 NATO member states and partner countries are set to kick off 11 days of joint military exercises in Georgia on March 18.
Hague Court To Rule On Bosnian Serb Wartime Leader Karadzic's Appeal
Judges at The Hague are expected to issue rulings on March 20 on an earlier conviction and acquittal of former Bosnian Serb wartime leader Radovan Karadzic for genocide and other atrocities during the Balkan wars of the 1990s, ending the highest-profile legal battle of the civil war that saw the collapse of the former Yugoslavia.
Kyrgyzstan’s Atambaev Apologizes For Bringing Successor To Power
Former Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambaev has issued a public apology for bringing incumbent President Sooronbai Jeenbekov to power, and vowed "to try to rectify” his mistake. Atambaev has accused Jeenbekov of creating an autocratic governing style based on family ties in the Central Asian country.
MAJLIS PODCAST: The Fate Of 'Googoosha'