https://www.rferl.org/z/651 RFE/RL journalists report the news in 23 countries where a free press is banned by the government or not fully established. We broadcast in 27 languages to 22 countries, including Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Russia. https://www.rferl.org/Content/responsive/RFE/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.rferl.org/z/651 en Copyright 2026 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Thu, 04 Jun 2026 01:50:13 +0200 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL Families sharing single meals. Appliances sold to pay utility bills. Businesses gutted. Four Iranians inside the country describe an economy in freefall. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-economy-us-war-sanctions/33771852.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-economy-us-war-sanctions/33771852.html Wed, 03 Jun 2026 16:43:53 +0200 Iran Diplomatic efforts to contain the widening Middle East crisis entered a critical phase this week as US officials sought to keep alive negotiations with Iran amid mounting tensions. RFE/RL spoke with Dania Arayssi, program head and senior analyst at the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy. https://www.rferl.org/a/can-diplomacy-survive-analyst-dania-arayssi-on-iran-hezbollah-and-the-struggle-for-a-deal/33771631.html https://www.rferl.org/a/can-diplomacy-survive-analyst-dania-arayssi-on-iran-hezbollah-and-the-struggle-for-a-deal/33771631.html Wed, 03 Jun 2026 12:34:49 +0200 Iran Frederick Flott, who died in 2006, was a longtime State Department diplomat around the world, as well as a CIA agent who worked under diplomatic cover. For years, the KGB tried to recruit him. Did it succeed? https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-kgb-spy-espionage-mitrokhin-flott-secret-archive/33770150.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-kgb-spy-espionage-mitrokhin-flott-secret-archive/33770150.html Wed, 03 Jun 2026 12:07:11 +0200 Russia Russia is investing hundreds of millions of dollars to build schools and universities across Central Asia, reinforcing the use of the Russian language at a time when younger generations in the region are increasingly exposed to Western and Chinese influences. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-schools-central-asia-kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-kazakhstan-uzbekistan/33771019.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-schools-central-asia-kyrgyzstan-tajikistan-kazakhstan-uzbekistan/33771019.html Tue, 02 Jun 2026 16:52:40 +0200 Features As Washington and Tehran edge toward a preliminary peace deal, renewed fighting in Lebanon has cast uncertainty over the diplomatic track. https://www.rferl.org/a/former-senior-trump-nsc-official-says-diplomacy-alive-as-us-iran-battle-for-leverage/33770891.html https://www.rferl.org/a/former-senior-trump-nsc-official-says-diplomacy-alive-as-us-iran-battle-for-leverage/33770891.html Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:41:12 +0200 Iran A donation of 16 Gripen C/D fighter jets from Sweden to Ukraine has the potential to significantly impact the ground war with Russia, depending on what weapons will be provided with the jets, experts say. https://www.rferl.org/a/gripen-fighters-ukraine-war-impact-russia-aviation/33768477.html https://www.rferl.org/a/gripen-fighters-ukraine-war-impact-russia-aviation/33768477.html Sat, 30 May 2026 16:27:17 +0200 Ukraine Leaked documents examined by Schemes link a debunked report that claimed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy bought a $3.2 million apartment in Dubai for his mother to a Kremlin-backed disinformation outfit hit with sanctions by the US, the EU, and the UK. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-fake-news-zelenskyy-claim-dubai-kremlin/33768433.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-fake-news-zelenskyy-claim-dubai-kremlin/33768433.html Sat, 30 May 2026 10:55:48 +0200 Ukraine When US President Donald Trump unexpectedly called on a number of Muslim-majority states to join the Abraham Accords in a social media post suggesting the move could pave the way for a broader peace arrangement with Iran, many responded with uneasy silence. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-abraham-accords-trump-saudi-pakistan/33768416.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-abraham-accords-trump-saudi-pakistan/33768416.html Fri, 29 May 2026 16:41:31 +0200 News Analysis On the second anniversary of his imprisonment, Farid Mehralizada reflects on life behind bars, the humanity of the prison economy, and the AI photo of him with the daughter he has barely seen. https://www.rferl.org/a/imprisoned-journalist-farid-mehralizada-shares-reflections-from-azerbaijani-prison-on-second-anniversary-of-detention/33768284.html https://www.rferl.org/a/imprisoned-journalist-farid-mehralizada-shares-reflections-from-azerbaijani-prison-on-second-anniversary-of-detention/33768284.html Fri, 29 May 2026 12:31:59 +0200 Azerbaijan After Ukraine’s tourism industry was decimated by the Russian invasion, tour operators in Ukraine are catering towards travellers who want to see the impacts of the war firsthand. https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-war-dark-tourism-russia-invasion/33767624.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-war-dark-tourism-russia-invasion/33767624.html Fri, 29 May 2026 10:22:25 +0200 Ukraine Russia and Afghanistan’s Taliban have signed a military and technical cooperation deal, Russian media reported, but neither side released details, raising questions about whether it marks a substantive shift or a symbolic move. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-taliban-afghanistan-military-agreement-shoigu-yaqub/33767652.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-taliban-afghanistan-military-agreement-shoigu-yaqub/33767652.html Thu, 28 May 2026 18:37:02 +0200 Features Over the past eight years, at least 20 foreigners have helped raise and educate two boys believed to be the sons of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his purported partner Alina Kabayeva, most of them from Western countries, RFE/RL’s Russian investigative unit has determined. https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-purported-sons-western-nannies-language-tutors/33767499.html https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-purported-sons-western-nannies-language-tutors/33767499.html Thu, 28 May 2026 17:42:38 +0200 Russia Former Pentagon official Michael Patrick Mulroy says both Washington and Tehran have incentives to avoid renewed war, but warns the Strait of Hormuz will remain a long-term pressure point even if an agreement is reached. https://www.rferl.org/a/mulroy-warns-iran-us-conflict-could-restart/33767525.html https://www.rferl.org/a/mulroy-warns-iran-us-conflict-could-restart/33767525.html Thu, 28 May 2026 13:51:40 +0200 Iran The Taliban has issued a new law on divorce that explicitly acknowledges child marriage is permitted in Afghanistan. Two former child brides told RFE/RL that the law formalizes a reality many Afghan girls are already living: forced marriage, delayed justice, and silence treated as agreement. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-taliban-child-bride-marriage-divorce-girls-women/33766823.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-taliban-child-bride-marriage-divorce-girls-women/33766823.html Wed, 27 May 2026 17:21:19 +0200 Afghanistan After 88 days of a near-total Internet blackout, Iranians are slowly reconnecting, but to the same heavily censored, regulated network they had before. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-internet-restrictions-shutdown/33766824.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-internet-restrictions-shutdown/33766824.html Wed, 27 May 2026 16:34:32 +0200 Iran Tens of thousands of Afghans have been internally displaced by deadly border clashes between Afghanistan and Pakistan in recent months. Among them is a father-of-six who now lives in a tent. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-pakistan-idp-refugees-border/33766621.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-pakistan-idp-refugees-border/33766621.html Wed, 27 May 2026 13:09:02 +0200 Afghanistan After 88 days of digital isolation, described by NetBlocks as the “longest nationwide Internet shutdown in modern history,” Iran has begun partially restoring Internet access. To unpack what this means, RFE/RL spoke with Charles Dunne, a former senior US diplomat and national-security official. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-s-internet-restoration-highlights-shift-from-battlefield-to-negotiating-table-says-former-diplomat-charles-dunne/33766524.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-s-internet-restoration-highlights-shift-from-battlefield-to-negotiating-table-says-former-diplomat-charles-dunne/33766524.html Wed, 27 May 2026 09:38:11 +0200 Iran A series of conflicting signals from Tehran and Washington has highlighted the fluid status of ongoing US-Iran negotiations. To break down the strategic calculations, political pressures, and maritime realities on the ground, RFE/RL spoke with former US Ambassador Christopher Henzel. https://www.rferl.org/a/ambassador-christopher-henzel-iran-deal-negotiations/33766110.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ambassador-christopher-henzel-iran-deal-negotiations/33766110.html Tue, 26 May 2026 20:00:54 +0200 Iran Dramatic images of glowing projectiles streaking down from space on May 24 marked the latest combat use of Russia's Oreshnik missile against Ukraine. Here is how the missile works, and why some of its payloads don't explode. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-ukraine-missile-oreshnik-kinetic-strike-war-invasion/33766001.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-ukraine-missile-oreshnik-kinetic-strike-war-invasion/33766001.html Tue, 26 May 2026 18:45:56 +0200 Features The patriarch of Russian Orthodox Church is a vocal backer of Moscow’s war against Ukraine. Systema, RFE/RL’s Russian investigative unit, examined how the country’s dominant religious organization goes after dissenters, including priests who decline to intone a victory prayer in their services. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-church-persecution-ukraine-war-prayer/33764424.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-church-persecution-ukraine-war-prayer/33764424.html Tue, 26 May 2026 14:14:54 +0200 Russia The coup trial of former security chief Kamchybek Tashiev has become the clearest sign yet of a profound transformation inside Kyrgyzstan’s political system. Far from an ordinary criminal case, the proceedings reflect President Sadyr Japarov’s effort to eliminate the last major rival within the ruling elite and cement a new era of centralized presidential power. https://www.rferl.org/a/kyrgyzstan-tashiev-coup-trial-japarov-power-struggle-rivalry/33764407.html https://www.rferl.org/a/kyrgyzstan-tashiev-coup-trial-japarov-power-struggle-rivalry/33764407.html Tue, 26 May 2026 08:41:00 +0200 Features RFE/RL interviewed Jason H. Campbell, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute and former Pentagon official during Trump’s first administration, about a potential peace deal between Washington and Tehran. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-us-conflict-peace-deal/33764611.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-us-conflict-peace-deal/33764611.html Mon, 25 May 2026 20:55:15 +0200 Iran A senior Iranian official says Tehran has imported Chinese equipment to support a “permanent” internet shutdown, as the country’s unprecedented blackout enters its third month. Experts say Iran's censorship model is cheaper than the Chinese version and easier to replicate for other states. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-china-internet-blackout-censorship-tool/33764398.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-china-internet-blackout-censorship-tool/33764398.html Mon, 25 May 2026 17:21:36 +0200 Iran After a detainee died in police custody, six officers face trial -- an uncommon step in Tajikistan, where allegations of abuse seldom reach court. https://www.rferl.org/a/tajikistan-death-in-police-custody--torture-allegations/33762719.html https://www.rferl.org/a/tajikistan-death-in-police-custody--torture-allegations/33762719.html Mon, 25 May 2026 14:00:06 +0200 Tajikistan Across Central Asia, deep-rooted son preference is driving sex-selective abortions and distorting birth ratios. Women describe intense family pressure to bear boys, while experts warn the growing gender imbalance could fuel long-term social instability. https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-sex-selective-abortions-girls-tajikistan-uzbekistan/33761697.html https://www.rferl.org/a/central-asia-sex-selective-abortions-girls-tajikistan-uzbekistan/33761697.html Sun, 24 May 2026 13:22:35 +0200 Features RFE/RL interviewed Anwar Gargash, a senior official in the United Arab Emirates, about the prospects of a deal to end the Iran war. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-uae-israel-united-states-war/33762806.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-uae-israel-united-states-war/33762806.html Fri, 22 May 2026 21:43:54 +0200 Iran Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif begins a three-day visit to China on May 23 as tensions in the Middle East remain high. Analysts say Sharif is expected to push for renewed urgency in US-Iran negotiations. https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-china-iran-us-diplomacy-talks/33761723.html https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-china-iran-us-diplomacy-talks/33761723.html Fri, 22 May 2026 13:19:23 +0200 China A state-approved photo story intended to celebrate motherhood and volunteerism became a political controversy in Iran because the images used showed a woman unveiled at home. The photos were deleted within hours and the state news agency’s boss was later summoned by the authorities. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-foster-child-hijab-woman-irna-censor/33761942.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-foster-child-hijab-woman-irna-censor/33761942.html Fri, 22 May 2026 10:35:41 +0200 Iran Some experts believe the recent emergence of fiber-optic drones piloted by Hezbollah militants indicates Russia is feeding Iran intelligence about drone warfare, others believe a more worrying potential is more likely. https://www.rferl.org/a/israel-iran-fiber-optic-drones-russia-ukraine-war/33761841.html https://www.rferl.org/a/israel-iran-fiber-optic-drones-russia-ukraine-war/33761841.html Thu, 21 May 2026 20:28:57 +0200 Features Iran is cementing its control over the Strait of Hormuz, a key international shipping route, 11 weeks after the start of the war with the United States and Israel. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-strait-of-hormuz-toll-defying-united-states/33761865.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-strait-of-hormuz-toll-defying-united-states/33761865.html Thu, 21 May 2026 16:35:14 +0200 Iran US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Sweden for a meeting of NATO foreign ministers as European allies seek reassurances over US troop drawdowns and Washington's shifting rhetoric on the alliance. https://www.rferl.org/a/rubio-nato-sweden-troop-cuts-russia/33761765.html https://www.rferl.org/a/rubio-nato-sweden-troop-cuts-russia/33761765.html Thu, 21 May 2026 13:55:10 +0200 Features Poor turnout for an online election underscores the daunting challenges faced by the largely exiled Belarusian democratic opposition six years after a groundswell of popular protests raised hopes for change in a country ruled by authoritarian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko since 1994. https://www.rferl.org/a/belarus-exiled-opposition-bleak-shadow-election/33760941.html https://www.rferl.org/a/belarus-exiled-opposition-bleak-shadow-election/33760941.html Thu, 21 May 2026 09:10:21 +0200 Belarus As Iran struggles with the economic fallout from months of conflict, Afghan refugees and migrant workers in the Islamic republic say they are paying a disproportionate price. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-afghanistan-migrants-war/33761126.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-afghanistan-migrants-war/33761126.html Wed, 20 May 2026 17:30:41 +0200 Iran Four-plus years into Russia’s all-out invasion, Ukraine has battled Moscow’s forces to a standstill. In fact, by some accounts, Ukraine has even recaptured territory, offering Kyiv a glimmer of optimism after a grueling winter. https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-war-battlefield-gains/33761066.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-war-battlefield-gains/33761066.html Wed, 20 May 2026 16:37:47 +0200 Ukraine Republican Congressman Don Bacon warned that uncertainty over US commitments to NATO risks emboldening Russia, Iran, and China, arguing Washington must maintain strong alliances and military deterrence amid growing global instability. https://www.rferl.org/a/don-bacon-nato-russia-iran-china-us-alliances/33760960.html https://www.rferl.org/a/don-bacon-nato-russia-iran-china-us-alliances/33760960.html Wed, 20 May 2026 13:12:08 +0200 Features Over two days, US President Donald Trump has repeatedly raised the prospect that the cease-fire with Iran will be broken by new US military strikes -- in comments that have drawn close scrutiny from analysts and policymakers. https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-strike-iran-restraint-war/33760289.html https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-strike-iran-restraint-war/33760289.html Wed, 20 May 2026 10:39:25 +0200 Iran RFE/RL, Mark Cancian, senior adviser with the Defense and Security Department at CSIS, told RFE/RL the US is focused on finding an "exit" from the crisis -- even as major disagreements remain over sanctions, nuclear restrictions, and Iran's claims over the Strait of Hormuz. https://www.rferl.org/a/csis-interview-mark-cancian-iran-trump-exit/33760437.html https://www.rferl.org/a/csis-interview-mark-cancian-iran-trump-exit/33760437.html Tue, 19 May 2026 20:35:29 +0200 Iran The United Arab Emirates has deported thousands of Pakistanis, many of them Shi’a Muslims, since the United States and Israel launched a bombing campaign of Iran on February 28, according to a Pakistani lawmaker and media reports in the South Asian country. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-pakistan-shia-uae-saudiarabia/33760229.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-pakistan-shia-uae-saudiarabia/33760229.html Tue, 19 May 2026 15:03:56 +0200 Iran Washington is sharply divided over the latest US sanctions waiver for Russian oil. Michael Parker, a former investigator and section chief in the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), explains why sanctions relief remains Washington’s sharpest diplomatic bargaining tool. https://www.rferl.org/a/sanctions-expert-michael-parker-russia-iran-waivers-/33760204.html https://www.rferl.org/a/sanctions-expert-michael-parker-russia-iran-waivers-/33760204.html Tue, 19 May 2026 14:20:00 +0200 Features The summit follows Xi Jinping's meeting with US President Donald Trump and is expected to cover future energy cooperation, Ukraine, and the war in Iran. https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-xi-china-russia-trump-war-ukraine-iran-power-siberia/33760042.html https://www.rferl.org/a/putin-xi-china-russia-trump-war-ukraine-iran-power-siberia/33760042.html Tue, 19 May 2026 09:51:47 +0200 China Iran's appointment of parliament speaker and chief US negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf as special envoy for China signals Tehran is playing its most valuable political card on two fronts at once. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-qalibaf-envoy-china-us-talks/33759380.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-qalibaf-envoy-china-us-talks/33759380.html Mon, 18 May 2026 14:13:28 +0200 Iran In Chechnya, defying authority or tradition can carry consequences beyond life. Activists say domestic violence victims, LGBT people, and political dissenters are increasingly denied Islamic burial rites -- a final act of control and humiliation. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-chechnya-killings-burial-opprssion-violence/33756653.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-chechnya-killings-burial-opprssion-violence/33756653.html Sun, 17 May 2026 09:39:01 +0200 North Caucasus A major military museum in the western German city of Koblenz is denying entry to nationals from 26 countries, causing tense scenes with some visitors who arrive with children. https://www.rferl.org/a/germany-military-museum-bans-ukrainians-russians-security-risk/33756719.html https://www.rferl.org/a/germany-military-museum-bans-ukrainians-russians-security-risk/33756719.html Sat, 16 May 2026 13:28:17 +0200 Features A leaked EU threat assessment seen by RFE/RL warns that terrorism and violent extremism “pose a significant threat to the EU,” citing heightened risks from Afghanistan and Iran as well as negative spillover effects from the war in Ukraine. https://www.rferl.org/a/leaked-eu-report-rising-terror-risk-iran-afghanistan-russia/33758305.html https://www.rferl.org/a/leaked-eu-report-rising-terror-risk-iran-afghanistan-russia/33758305.html Sat, 16 May 2026 13:21:43 +0200 Features Iran's publishing industry is staging a virtual book fair amid compounding wartime crises: physical damage to bookshops from US-Israeli strikes, an Internet blackout, and a paper shortage worsened by sanctions. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-book-fair-publishing-industry-war/33758285.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-book-fair-publishing-industry-war/33758285.html Sat, 16 May 2026 12:55:37 +0200 Iran In an interview with RFE/RL, Sam Brownback argued that Russia, China, and Iran are increasingly operating as part of a “dark alliance” of authoritarian states -- one built on surveillance technology, censorship, ideological control, and the suppression of religious and civil society groups. https://www.rferl.org/a/sam-brownback-religious-freedom-russia-iran-china/33757881.html https://www.rferl.org/a/sam-brownback-religious-freedom-russia-iran-china/33757881.html Fri, 15 May 2026 20:42:15 +0200 Iran Iranian traders are smuggling over 6 million liters of fuel to neighboring Pakistan each day, traders and transporters in the South Asian country told RFE/RL. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-pakistan-smuggling-fuel/33757626.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-pakistan-smuggling-fuel/33757626.html Fri, 15 May 2026 15:48:04 +0200 Iran If organizers’ hopes are fulfilled, thousands of devout Belarusians -- Baptists, Adventists, other Protestants – could jam a Minsk stadium for a 2-day religious festival, where famed preacher Franklin Graham is expected to speak. It’s an exceedingly rare event for Belarus’ authoritarian regime. https://www.rferl.org/a/belarus-religion-protestant-graham-festival-prayer/33757689.html https://www.rferl.org/a/belarus-religion-protestant-graham-festival-prayer/33757689.html Fri, 15 May 2026 15:04:08 +0200 Features Iran has executed at least 29 prisoners since the start of the war, including two on the same day on May 13, including a cybersecurity specialist hanged on espionage charges and a protester convicted of killing a security officer. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-executions-war-fear-human-rights/33756791.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-executions-war-fear-human-rights/33756791.html Thu, 14 May 2026 13:47:13 +0200 Iran At the center of the congressional push is the Ukraine Support Act, legislation that would authorize more than $1 billion in direct security assistance for Kyiv, provide $8 billion in loans, tighten sanctions on Russia, and limit presidential authority to unilaterally lift existing sanctions. https://www.rferl.org/a/us-military-aid-ukraine-congress-bipartisan/33756628.html https://www.rferl.org/a/us-military-aid-ukraine-congress-bipartisan/33756628.html Thu, 14 May 2026 10:49:55 +0200 News Analysis