Charles Recknagel is standards editor for RFE/RL.
The Turkish government has obtained parliamentary approval for military operations outside its borders -- meaning Syria. Does that mean Ankara is ready to go to war with Damascus?
What happens when a president's party loses a parliamentary election to the opposition before the president's term is over? The result is "cohabitation," not unlike when a divorced couple continues to live under the same roof. Here are four things to know about it.
Azerbaijan has jailed a young activist and blogger critical of President Ilham Aliyev and his family, recalling earlier crackdowns against bloggers who have dared to criticize the government.
The Ukrainian government is pushing through a host of measures that opposition parties say will restrict their ability to fully compete in October parliamentary elections. Among them, a law on political rallies to be voted on September 20.
The UN nuclear agency has passed a resolution rebuking Iran for failing to cooperate fully over its nuclear program.
When security forces burst into bars and social clubs in Baghdad last week, they did more than beat people and break bottles. They raised fears that Iraq could be heading toward an Islamic theocracy.
Women used to feel free to come to Baghdad's market district of Kadhimiya. Now, as vigilantes impose strict Islamic dress codes on female visitors and residents, the mood has changed.
The Pakistani Taliban's use of safe havens in Afghanistan is complicating Islamabad's efforts to clear tribal areas of militants.
The death of Daghestan's Sufi spiritual leader, Said Efendi Chirkeisky, in a suicide bombing threatens to add new fuel to the cycle of violence in the North Caucasus republic.
The European Union says it wants to know why German police continued a program to train Belarusian security forces months after the EU sanctioned Minsk for cracking down on opposition protestors.
India, the world's most populous democracy, and the microblogging site Twitter are at odds over the issue of limits on free speech. As RFE/RL correspondent Charles Recknagel reports, it's a debate that involves issues of life and death.
Syria is the first country with weapons of mass destruction (WMD) to be ripped apart by civil war. The United States and Britain have both warned Damascus not to use its chemical weapons. Here are five things to know about Syria's WMD.
If President Bashar al-Assad's regime is defeated in Syria's war, where will it go? One possibility is to the mountains -- to create a ministate of its own.
The Olympics are supposed to be about winning and good sportsmanship. But things aren't always that clean-cut. Here we look at some of the game's more notorious moments and figures.
The fatal bombing that killed several senior Syrian officials in Damascus on July 18 marks a turning point in the Syrian uprising. The rebels are shifting the fight to Damascus to convince Syrians that Assad is weaker than he looks. And to convince Russia that backing Assad will create chaos, not contain it.
Uzbekistan's suspension of the country's largest mobile-phone provider has left millions of people with no service. What's behind the move is less clear.
As Egypt's election results are delayed, tensions are climbing. The tension is not just over who will win, but also over the military's moves to limit the powers the new president will have.
When Egyptians vote for a president on June 16-17, they will choose between two extremes: a former military man and a conservative Islamist. Sidelined are the moderates in the middle.
Western officials warn Syria could turn into a sectarian civil war. There are signs it already has, including the visibility of the Shabiha militia.
Britain's inquiry into press wrongdoings is increasingly pulling in the country's politicians to testify. The probe has already shed light on how close the relationship between Britain's press and its politicians has become -- and many hope it will suggest ways to remedy the problems.
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