![Khadija Ismayilova Receives UNESCO World Press Freedom Award. [Azerbaijan’s first lady is a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador]](https://gdb.rferl.org/4047A4FE-6E56-4935-A3BF-DC175554FEAE_w250_r1_s.jpg)
VIDEO REPORTS
Azerbaijan’s Crackdown On Media Freedom
On World Press Freedom Day, RFE/RL celebrates Azerbaijan’s independent journalists and revisits the forced closure of its Baku bureau and the imprisonment of RFE/RL contributor Khadija Ismayilova in December, 2014.
Religious activists, atheists, communists, socialists, trade unionists, anarchists, feminists, and LGBT activists turned out on Moscow’s streets in the tens of thousands as May Day and the Orthodox Christian Easter converged. (Russian Service)
May 1 Parade Finds Local Police Not Amused
Wacky costumes and weird signs were on display at a parade in the Russian city of Novosibirsk marking the May 1 holiday.
'The Soviet Union Sided With Hitler?’
Aleksandr Zaldostanov, the leader of the notorious pro-Putin Night Wolves motorcycle club, speaks to journalists in Belarus’s city of Brest.
NEWS HIGHLIGHTS
Ismayilova To Receive UNESCO Press Freedom Award
On World Press Freedom Day, imprisoned Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova will receive UNESCO’s 2016 UNESCO/Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize.
Spain Issues Warrants For Russian Officials
Russian political figures and former government officials closely linked to President Vladimir Putin are among dozens of alleged members of two Russian criminal gangs being sought on international warrants issued by a Spanish judge.
Russian experts participating in a round-table discussion agree that the country’s population has become considerably poorer since 2014, and cite data showing that over 40 percent of Russians have no spare cash and 13 percent of the population lives below the poverty line. (In Russian)
New Law Seeks To Populate Far East
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law a bill to hand out hectares of land to Russian citizens free of charge in Russia's Far East.
Moscow Moves To Clean Up North Ossetia
Russian authorities are finally responding to calls by activists in the North Ossetian capital, Vladikavkaz, to address the massive amounts of toxic waste and emissions from the Elektrotsink metallurgical plant, which produces sulfuric acid and zinc.
Poroshenko’s Reelection In Hroysman’s Hands
Pointing to recent polling indicating that 75.2 percent of respondents assess Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko’s performance negatively, experts say that how public opinion develops now depends on the work of Volodymyr Hroysman’s government. (In Ukrainian)
U.S. Troops Conduct Military Exercises In Moldova
U.S. and Moldovan military forces on May 3 began joint military exercises that are scheduled to last for more than two weeks.
China Stirs Kazakhstan’s Simmering Pot
The possibility that Chinese entrepreneurs will benefit from Kazakhstan’s land privatization plans is contributing to tensions in a region where China’s influence looms.
MOST READ/RUSSIA: 14 Months In Luhansk’s Prisons
Luhansk journalist Maria Varfolomeeva spent 14 months in detention after being captured by separatists in the self-declared Luhansk People’s Republic. She recounted acts of torture perpetrated against prisoners, and accused Russia of creating the conflict, stating that “citizens of Russia arrived and shattered the situation artificially.” (over 30K on Russian Service website)