Thursday, May 23, 2013
People in the capital, Tehran, reading newspapers the day the shortlist of presidential candidates for the June 14 election was announced.

What's A Disqualified Iranian Candidate To Do?

This week Iran's electoral watchdog, the Guardians Council, approved the candidacies of just eight of the nearly 700 people who applied to run in next month's presidential election. Those disqualified included two prominent nominees -- former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, a close ally of current President Mahmud Ahmadinejad. So what recourse, if any, do disqualified candidates have to overturn the decision? More

Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of Uzbek President Islam Karimov, has been implicated in a major bribery scandal. (file photo)

Gulnara Karimova Takes To Twitter Following Critical Report

A report by RFE/RL and Swedish television documenting links between Gulnara Karimova and large-scale bribery has drawn a furious response on Twitter, where the Uzbek president's daughter and her supporters have posted a flurry of tweets criticizing the report and speculating that Karimova's rivals within Uzbekistan are to blame. More

Amnesty International says abusive governments can no longer use the issue of sovereignty to justify their actions.

Video Amnesty Report Notes Worldwide Abuses, As Well As Courage Of Activists

In a new report, the global rights group Amnesty International documents abuses in 159 countries and territories that it says were "inflicted by those in power on those who stand in the way of their vested interests." More

Former Georgian Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili attends a preliminary hearing of his case at the court in Kutaisi on May 22.

Who In Georgia Is Merabishvili's Arrest Meant To Scare?

The arrest of Vano Merabishvili, Mikheil Saakashvili's most powerful ally, appears to tighten the noose around the weakened Georgian president, who has seen his support base crumble since Bidzina Ivanishvili's rise to power last October. But observers in Georgia say the arrest may also be a response to a vicious religious crackdown against gay-rights groups – and a sign that Ivanishvili's true rival is no longer Saakashvili but the church. More

A man reads a campaign pamphlet in central Tehran ahead of Iran's 2012 parliamentary elections.

Vox Pop: Iranians React To Dismissal Of Presidential Hopefuls

RFE/RL's Radio Farda received a flood of comments via e-mail, Facebook, telephone calls, and SMS messages from its audience in Iran that overwhelmingly express disappointment and anger at the Guardians Council's final list of candidates for Iran's June 14 presidential election. More

Recent Features

Iran's Shortlisted Presidential Candidates

Iran's Interior Ministry has announced the official shortlist of candidates that will be vying to succeed President Mahmud Ahmadinejad in that country's June 14 election.
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A recent political protest in the heart of Zugdidi

Stuck In The Middle: Abkhazia's Ethnic Georgians Feel The Squeeze

The Georgian government of Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili is seeking to change the dynamic of Tbilisi's relationship with the breakaway region of Abkhazia. And the mostly ethnic-Georgian population of Abkhazia's Gali district is once again feeling the squeeze.
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Tubercular patients at a penal colony in the Ukrainian village of Zhdanovka, in the Donetsk region, line up to enter the canteen.

Study Claims Vitamin C Kills 'Hard-To-Kill' Tuberculosis

Scientists in the United States say they have discovered that a common substance might be able to wipe out even the hardest-to-kill tuberculosis bacteria: vitamin C.
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TeliaSonera CEO Lars Nyberg (shown in January) stepped down February 1 as the company, whose two largest stakeholders are the Swedish and Finnish governments, came under increasing scrutiny for its activities in Uzbekistan.

Video New Documents Suggest Fresh Evidence Of TeliaSonera Ties To Karimova

Documents leaked to Swedish investigative journalists and reviewed by RFE/RL appear to offer fresh evidence of a link between Swedish telecom giant TeliaSonera and Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of the president of Uzbekistan.
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Rejected presidential candidates Esfandiar Rahim Mashaie (left) and Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani

Khamenei Strengthens Hand Ahead Of Poll

The decision by Iran’s powerful Guardians Council to bar former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani from running in next month's presidential election paves the way for the country’s establishment to bring a loyalist to power.
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The chairman of the Guardians Council, Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati

Explainer: Iran's Process For Vetting Presidential Candidates

Millions of Iranians will flock to the polls on June 14 to vote for a successor to President Mahmud Ahmadinejad. RFE/RL looks at the vetting process that determines the final list of presidential candidates.
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Ahmadi community members carry a coffin during a funeral ceremony in 2010 for victims of a militant attack on one of the sect

Pakistan's Ahmadis Face Rising Persecution, Violence

One of the many religious minorities whose plight is documented in the latest U.S. State Department report on religious freedom is the Ahmadiyya community, or the Ahmadis.
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Prosecutors have "brought us to the brink of sanctions on the one hand and are undermining our authority and business reputation on the other," says Levada

Levada Center, Russia’s Most Respected Pollster, Fears Closure

The director of the independent Levada Center says the polling organization could be forced to close down after Russian prosecutors warned that it must register as a "foreign agent."
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PHOTO GALLERY: Huge Tornado Devastates Oklahoma Town

Photogallery Explainer: Why Do Tornadoes Occur And Why Are We Seeing More Of Them?

In the U.S. state of Oklahoma, at least 24 people have been killed and scores of others injured by a huge tornado. The twister was nearly a kilometer wide and packed winds of up to 320 kilometers per hour. RFE/RL correspondent Antoine Blua talked to Dr. Liz Bentley, a member of Britain’s Royal Meteorological Society, to get the lowdown on this often devastating natural phenomenon.
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The Alley of Russian Poets is the brainchild of Uli Zislin, a Russian-born poetry collector and songwriter.

A Walk Down Washington's Alley Of Russian Poets

In a corner of a park in the U.S. capital lies an unexpected memorial to some of Russia's greatest writers. Washington's Alley of Russian Poets, a short path lined with trees and plaques, recently celebrated its 10th anniversary.
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