We know you're busy and probably don't have the time to read all of our coverage each and every day. That's why we've put together The Week's Best. Here are some of the highlights produced in English by RFE/RL's vast team of correspondents, multimedia editors, and visual journalists over the past seven days.
'I Couldn't Just Stand By': Russian Fighters Explain Why They Took Up Arms Against The Kremlin
RFE/RL spoke with two Russian men who are fighting side by side with Ukrainian forces against the Russian military in the beleaguered city of Bakhmut as part of a group called the Free Russia legion. By Yauhen Lehalau
Reporter Films Frantic Battlefield First Aid After Bakhmut Bombing
An RFE/RL reporter was interviewing a Ukrainian soldier in Bakhmut when a Russian bomb hit a neighboring house. His dramatic footage captures what happened next: frantic battlefield first aid to save a man's life. By Borys Sachalko, Current Time, and Ray Furlong
Special Investigation: How Russia And Political Insiders Cash In On Uzbekistan's Lucrative Gas Sector
As gas outages and power shortages left Uzbekistan freezing during one of its coldest winters in decades, President Shavkat Mirziyoev in January fired senior officials and technocrats he blamed for the crisis. But an investigation by RFE/RL's Uzbek Service found that Mirziyoev's administration was warned as early as three years ago that his ambitious projects to boost gas and oil output were riddled with problems. By RFE/RL's Uzbek Service
Ukrainian Wives Of Fallen Soldiers Come Together For Support Online
Women who have lost their partners in battle against Russian invaders say the word "widow" is too painful to accept. Coming together in a Facebook group, they offer the mutual support and understanding they say can only come from someone going through the same kind of grief. By Current Time, Yulia Zhukova, and Will Tizard
Inside The Obscure Russian Agency That Censors The Internet: An RFE/RL Investigation
A massive leak of internal correspondence and documents shows how a little-known Russian government agency keeps a watchful eye on the Internet -- for opposition protests, for investigations on official corruption, for discussion of the Ukraine war -- and how it works to censor it for Russians. By Daniil Belovodyev and Anton Bayev
Rebranding McDonald's In Kazakhstan Is A Minefield Of National Identity, Geopolitics
Weeks after McDonald's announced it was leaving the country, Almaty restaurants that once bore the name of the global fast food chain have reopened nameless -- or so it seems. Rumors that they might become part of the Russian McDonald's replacement, Tasty And That's It, have caused controversy. By Chris Rickleton
Djokovic Family Takes Serbia Open From Belgrade To Bosnia, And The 'Edge' Of Legality
After a rent scandal and politicized controversy dogged the event in Serbia, preparations for a majority-Serb region of Bosnia to host the Djokovic family's tournament have been marked by a lack of transparency. By Goran Katic and Andy Heil
Taliban Seizes Afghan Professor For Giving Out Free Books To Women And Girls
A man who wheeled books around Kabul and gave them out for free in response to a Taliban ban on higher education for girls and women was arrested on February 2. The day before, RFE/RL interviewed him as he made his rounds through the Afghan capital. By RFE/RL's Radio Azadi and Neil Bowdler
Former British Air Commander Makes The Case For Sending Fighter Jets To Ukraine
First the debate was about sending tanks to Ukraine; now it's about planes. RFE/RL's Georgian Service spoke to Greg Bagwell, a former British Royal Air Force commander and combat pilot, about the deficiencies in Russian air power and why sending fighter aircraft to Ukraine could be a game changer. By Vazha Tavberidze
Ukrainian Nobel Peace Prize Winner: 'This Violence, This Cruelty Have Become Part Of Russian Culture'
In a wide-ranging interview, Oleksandra Matviychuk, a lawyer and rights activist, said Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine was the result of decades of impunity for the Kremlin. The 2022 Nobel Peace Prize winner said Russian President Vladimir Putin and other high-ranking officials must ultimately be brought to justice, while acknowledging that process is likely to be lengthy. By Vazha Tavberidze
