John Mastrini is a multimedia editor for RFE/RL in Prague.
A murder case against three sisters who killed their abusive father in Moscow has sparked a nationwide debate over Russia's treatment of domestic violence.
Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoev has ordered top public officials to live like average citizens, but giving up the perks of high office might be easier said than done.
In Russia's conservative Muslim republic of Chechnya, women have launched their own taxi service to avoid the discomfort and cultural pitfalls of riding with male drivers. An Emirates-based fund hopes the service will promote Islamic "norms and traditions."
A group of adventurous cyclists have taken to the hills above Kabul. They have their eyes on making it to the world stage after adopting a new sport for Afghanistan.
Moscow's garbage dumps are overflowing, but plans to transfer waste to Russia's provinces have infuriated local residents. Some Muscovites are taking the trash troubles into their own hands.
Poorly paid Russian health-care workers are pushing for higher wages and forming local branches of a union promoted by anti-Kremlin activist Aleksei Navalny.
For more than a millennium, the city of Bukhara, in what is now Uzbekistan, had been home to one of the biggest Jewish communities in Asia. But their numbers have dwindled after decades of Soviet rule.
A video of Kazakhs criticizing aspects of life in their country went viral and sparked a widespread debate ahead of June's presidential election.
Kosovo's police for detained several officers and border guards they said were suspected of organized crime in the mainly Serbian northern part of the country. Belgrade said this was a provocation and put its military on high alert.
A Russian boy who learned to love hotels during frequent visits to doctors far away, has become a hotelier in his remote hometown, thanks to his mother.
A team of online sleuths in Montenegro is electronically combing the Internet in search of fake news.
One of Russia's most prominent journalists is being eulogized in Moscow after a controversial career. Sergei Dorenko often got under the skin of Kremlin officials and others for his investigative reporting, his commentaries, and his often acerbic style.
Fourteen people were found guilty and sentenced in Montenegro for a plot to overthrow the government in 2018. Those convicted included two alleged agents of Russian military intelligence. Prosecutors believe they were trying to stop the Balkan country's membership in NATO.
Dozens of people have been detained by police recently as protests have grown across Kazakhstan. One man tried a more novel approach, to no avail.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, numerous cities and streets have been renamed, and statues have been destroyed to forget the past. But many Russians still have nostalgia for some of the most ruthless leaders.
The Russian Orthodox Church has been building numerous places of worship in recent years, but some residents have objected to plans to place them in previously public spaces.
The distinct tones of traditional Kyrgyz musical instruments are born in the hands of a master craftsman. In creating a komuz or kyl kiak, Maratbek Berikbaev has been giving life to raw lumps of wood for 30 years.
A small town in Tartarstan has struggled after losing two major sources of employment before and after the fall of the Soviet Union. Many residents have moved out of the place once called Tat Vegas.
For more than a century, people have been going to an oil producing town in Azerbaijan to soak in tubs of petroleum. Locals say it helps cure various ailments, but research shows the crude treatment might be more dangerous than it's worth.
A budding Pakistani music star is pushing the boundaries of what women can do in particular conservative corners of this Islamic society. She's following her dream but fearing for her safety.
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