The Week's Best: 9 RFE/RL Stories You Need To Read (Or Watch)

We know that rferl.org isn't the only website you read, and it's possible that you may have missed some of our most interesting journalism from the past week. To make sure you're up-to-date, here are some of the highlights produced by RFE/RL's team of correspondents, multimedia editors, and visual journalists over the past seven days.

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Conflict And COVID-19: Twin Threats Plague Residents Of Nagorno-Karabakh

Conflict And COVID-19: Twin Threats Plague Residents Of Nagorno-Karabakh

As fighting rages, the threat of COVID-19 has been partially, if not completely eclipsed for those living in and around the breakaway Azerbaijani region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Hundreds of people have been killed since the conflict between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces began last month -- but cases of the coronavirus are also mounting. By Ray Furlong

Norwegian Asylum Case Points To Polish, Hungarian 'Deviation' On Western Values

Norway has granted temporary political asylum to Polish human rights activist Rafal Gawel, ruling that Poland’s populist government had undermined judicial independence and the rule of law. Analysts say the case demonstrates a “fundamental disagreement” in the West over core values that have united it in the past. By Marek Hajduk and Robert Coalson

The Cartographers Case: How A Border Dispute Became Georgia's 'October Surprise'

The Georgian Orthodox Davit Gareja monastery complex lies along the border with Azerbaijan. The two countries have been trying to demarcate the border there since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. Now, two ex-members of the demarcation commission have been arrested and the opposition claims the ruling Georgian Dream party engineered this for political reasons ahead of the elections. By RFE/RL's Georgian Service

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Scrap Metal For Food Scraps: A Tajik Widow's Struggle To Survive

Scrap Metal For Food Scraps: A Tajik Widow's Struggle To Survive

Mahbuba Ghanieva, a 45-year-old widow, says she was kicked out of her house in Tajikistan by her husband's family after he died in 2012. She and her two daughters now survive by collecting scrap metal and other trash along mountain paths and dusty roads. They earn $3 per day and receive no support from the government. But she still wants an education for her children. By RFE/RL's Tajik Service

'There Is No Insulin': Desperate Iranians Tweet Calls For Life-Saving Drug

Iranians have taken to social media to highlight shortages of insulin pens, blaming Iran's leadership and U.S. sanctions. By Golnaz Esfandiari

'We Mustn't Live In The Stone Age': Russian Authorities Probing Claims Of Coerced Sterilization In Yekaterinburg

At least two women have publicly claimed they underwent sterilization after being threatened by doctors at a state-run residential facility in Yekaterinburg. The Sverdlovsk region rights ombudswoman and local prosecutors are investigating allegations that at least 15 residents were sterilized under duress in the past 15 years. By Robert Coalson

Lawyers In Belarus Face Disbarment, Arrest Just For Representing Opponents Of Lukashenka

As they defend fellow citizens swept up in the state's crackdown on postelection protests, Belarusian lawyers face a rising caseload -- and often find themselves targeted for arrest and detention as well. By Alena Shalayeva and Tony Wesolowsky

'Fake News' Sites In North Macedonia Pose As American Conservatives Ahead Of U.S. Election

U.S. researchers say websites in North Macedonia are gathering ad money by pretending to be conservative Americans and spreading disinformation ahead of next month's U.S. presidential election. By Ron Synovitz and Marija Mitevska

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Pensioner Power Boosts Protests In Belarus

Pensioner Power Boosts Protests In Belarus

Marches by senior citizens have become a regular feature on the streets of Minsk. They are boosting anti-government protests that have occurred daily since the August 9 Belarusian presidential election, which was widely seen as rigged. As one participant put it: "If they arrest me, I'll be proud in front of my grandkids." By Ray Furlong, Current Time, and RFE/RL's Belarus Service