VISUAL REPORTS
European Far-Right Leaders Meet In Prague
European right-wing leaders, including Marine Le Pen of France and Dutch politician Geert Wilders, gathered in Prague on December 16 for a meeting hosted by the Czech Republic's Freedom and Direct Democracy party, which won nearly 11 percent of the vote in parliamentary elections in October based on an anti-Islam and anti-immigrant platform.
Clashes In Kyiv As Protesters Demand President, Top Prosecutor's Ouster
Police and protesters have clashed in central Kyiv as several thousand people took to the streets of the Ukrainian capital to call for the impeachment of President Petro Poroshenko and the resignation of the country's top prosecutor.
Russian Truckers Launch Strike Over Road Tax
Truckers across Russia began 10 days of protests against what they say are unfair taxes.
Video Shows Chechen Police Beating Youth
Video on Chechen social media appears to show a police major beating a teenage boy for "disrespecting" the birthplace of a venerated Sufi sheik. A girl is told she should be hanged.
Romania Holds State Funeral For Former King Michael
Romania has held a grand state funeral for former King Michael, who died in Switzerland at the age of 96 on December 5.
OTHER NEWS
Kremlin Says CIA Helped Russia Thwart Terrorist Attacks In St. Petersburg
The Kremlin and the White House say that U.S. intelligence services helped Russia thwart a series of terrorist attacks in St. Petersburg by tipping off Moscow about the purported plot.
Saakashvili Refuses To Be Questioned By Ukraine's Prosecutor-General
Ukrainian opposition leader Mikheil Saakashvili appeared at the Prosecutor-General's Office in Kyiv on December 18 but refused to answer questions from investigators.
Ukraine Says Three Soldiers Killed In East
Ukraine's military said on December 18 that three of its soldiers were killed amid multiple cease-fire violations by Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine in the preceding 24 hours.
Chechen Militant Leader Killed In Syria
Chechen militant commander Salahuddin Shishani, the nom de guerre of Payzoola Margoshvili, who is believed to have fought in Syria against pro-Assad forces since 2013, has reportedly been killed as a result of a Russian airstrike. (Kavkaz Realities website)
Russian Villagers Live In The Shadow Of A Nuclear Tragedy
For decades, radioactive waste from the nearby Mayak nuclear complex has been dumped or seeped into the Techa River in Russia's Ural Mountains. In 1957, a nuclear accident at Mayak contaminated 20,000 square kilometers and affected an estimated 270,000 people.
Court In Crimea Considers Mykola Semena’s Appeal Today
The supreme court in Russia-annexed Crimea ruled on the appeal today filed by RFE/RL contributor Mykola Semena, who was convicted in September on separatism charges, affirming the original 2 1/2 year suspended sentence, but reducing the 3-year ban on his “public activities” to 2 years (Russian Service)
Crimea’s Communists Commemorate Stalin
Communist party members in the peninsula’s capital city, Sevastopol, held a gathering on December 16 to commemorate Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin’s 138th birthday, during which children were accepted into the party’s youth organization and later, together with other participants, sang “Bring Back Stalin.” (Crimea Realities website)
Parents In Ukraine Wary Of Vaccinations Even As Measles Numbers Rise
The problem is not a lack of vaccine, as Kyiv's chief immunologist explains, but a fear among parents that it's worse than the disease.
Belarus Contributors To Russian News Agency Face Trial In Minsk
Three Belarusians who have contributed articles expressing pro-Russia views to the Russian news outlet Regnum went on trial in Minsk on December 18 on hate-crimes charges.
Protesters In Bosnia Rally Against Trump's Jerusalem Move
Dozens of demonstrators have taken to the streets of Bosnia-Herzegovina's capital, Sarajevo, to protest U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to declare Jerusalem the capital of Israel.
COMMENTARY: A Band Of Balkan Brothers At The Hague Prison
COMMENTARY: Was That Kazakhstan's Opposition I Heard?
Among the many interesting aspects of the recent coal miners' strike in Kazakhstan's central Qaraghandy region was the reappearance of Kazakhstan's opposition Nationwide Social Democratic Party.