Ron Synovitz is a senior correspondent for RFE/RL.
Scientists in Uzbekistan say they will soon begin genetically testing children in search of future Olympic athletes. But is Uzbekistan's plan really a good idea? And is it even good science?
Syria has become a magnet for foreign jihadists seeking to wage holy war. RFE/RL correspondents Ron Synovitz and Elenora Beishenbek take a closer look at how an increasing number of Central Asians are being radicalized and recruited to fight there.
Pakistan's transgender community recently has won legal battles that bolster their basic rights. But during the past week the community in Pakistan's northwestern city of Peshawar has been targeted by a wave of violence aimed at driving them from their homes.
As Czech voters prepare to elect a new parliament this week, the Communist Party appears poised for a level of political influence it hasn’t enjoyed since before the 1989 Velvet Revolution brought down Czechoslovakia’s Communist regime.
The European Parliament in Strasbourg has voted for the marketing of electronic cigarettes to be regulated in the same way as tobacco. But the draft law still must be approved by the European Council, which wants e-cigarettes classified as medicinal devices. That sets the stage for a Brussels debate over e-cigarettes in the months ahead.
A new report finds that 35 percent of Russia's household wealth is owned by just 110 people.
Latvia is planning to limit a three-year-old program that offers Schengen visa rights to foreign investors. While officials say the program attracts investment to a battered economy, critics question where the money ends up.
Two days after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake rocked southwestern Pakistan, survivors are digging through rubble in a search for food and supplies.
Islamabad has been trying to bring Taliban militants to the negotiating table. But Pakistan's Taliban has splintered into many small groups and some refuse to join peace talks or to end militant attacks. RFE/RL reports on how the fragmentation of the Pakistani Taliban has dampened the prospects for peace talks.
A British judge has ruled that a Muslim woman must remove her face veil when testifying before the court, sparking a debate on Islamic clothing.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has been busy bolstering Beijing's business ties across Central Asia ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit later this week in Bishkek, but a flurry of bilateral deals agreed on just ahead of the meeting reveals some of the SCO's shortcomings.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has said Syria's opposition has "increasingly become more defined by its moderation." But Russian President Vladimir Putin called Kerry a liar who "knows that he is lying."
Chinese President Xi Jinping is on a tour of Central Asia at a time when NATO is preparing to withdraw from Afghanistan and Russia faces trade disputes that affect its goal of controlling the transit of Central Asian oil.
The Tablighi Jaamat, a conservative Sunni Islamic movement, has been conducting missionary work in Kyrgyzstan for years. But reports that the avowed pacifistic group is expanding its reach among impoverished youth by offering free education abroad is raising concerns among Kyrgyz authorities.
For the first time, Kurdish political parties in Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and Iran plan to meet to foster closer relations in what they're calling the First National Kurdish Congress.
Some religious extremists call it un-Islamic. Other people find it annoying and say it borders on begging. But children across Central Asia love Ramadan caroling -- a tradition that evolved out of Central Asia's pre-Islamic customs.
Pakistan's investigation into the circumstances that allowed Osama bin Laden to hide in the country for almost nine years has been leaked to an international broadcaster. It apparently details the authorities failure to detect his whereabouts while he lived in six different locations in Pakistan.
Washington and Brussels are starting talks on a new trade and investment pact on July 8 aimed at boosting economic growth. RFE/RL takes a closer look at the importance of the proposed accord.
Reports say Muslims from the Balkans are traveling to Syria to help rebels fight President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Georgia’s strict laws on marijuana have become the subject of a hot debate in the former Soviet republic as the government considers decriminalizing the use of cannabis.
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