Stories from Quick Reads
Turkish mayor is likened to Game of Throne's Khaleesi, shaking social media
Rather than the mayor's visit, it was the town's acting Mayor Melek Mızrak Subaşı whose name has been trending on Twitter.
Azerbaijan evacuates its embassy staff after deadly attack in Tehran
A gunman stormed the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran, Iran's capital city. This is the latest attack on the country's diplomatic missions abroad.
Georgia facing backlash over possible flight resumption with Russia
Flights between Georgia and Russia have been banned since 2019, on President Putin's orders. After Russian lawmaker, Sergey Gavrilov, visited the country in June 2019, and a bout of violence followed.
In Guatemala, Mayan families ask for wisdom, health, and strength for 2023
"This Mayejak is carried out to ask permission from our Mother Earth, the hills and valleys that surround us and the 20 Nahuales that represent the days of the Mayan month."
The band that Lukashenka declared extremist sang ‘Zhyve Belarus’ (Long live Belarus!)
Rarely covered by the international media, Lukashenka’s regime is using Stalin-like repression on its citizens. Dissidents are detained and prosecuted and, in many cases now, their family members are too.
In Russia, video games are unsafe for kids. But not for the usual reasons
Nikita Uvarov, a teenager from Siberia, is serving a five-year jail sentence for planning to build the FSB building and blow it up in Minecraft.
Popular Russian singer answers ‘Glory to Ukraine’. Now they want to revoke his citizenship
Singer Valerii Meladze has been openly against the war since February 2022. Now he may face harsh consequences for the words he said off-the-record in Dubai in support of Ukraine.
For school New Year's Eve parties in Moscow, some music is apparently deemed inappropriate
The list includes 29 artists. Some of them, such as Little Big and Manizha, represented Russia at Eurovideo contest. All of them have explicitely condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Police in Azerbaijan detain protesters on the day of activist's trial
On December 23, as an appeals court in Baku ruled to keep Hajiyev behind bars, a group of supporters attempted to stage a protest in support of Hajiyev.
Woman dubbed ‘Messi's grandma’ goes viral in Argentina following World Cup win
The tune "Abuelalalalalalala" became Argentina's World Cup anthem
Former president of Georgia facing health problems
Despite treatments at the medical facility since May, Imprisoned former president's health continued to deteriorate medical reports say.
‘How the fuck is it possible?': Russian rapper releases anti-war album
Vladi, a lead singer of popular rap music group, now prohibited in Russia, released a new album, “February Lasts and Lasts.” It describes how incomprehensible and horrifying the Russian invasion of Ukraine is.
Azerbaijan arrests prominent political activist ahead of International Human Rights Day
Prominent activist Bakhtiyar Hajiyev is facing a possible three-year jail sentence if found guilty on two separate charges — hooliganism and contempt of court. Activists say the arrest is politically motivated.
Twitter account “No Context Russia” is sad yet hilarious
A Twitter account shows images from Russia without context, portraying the country in sad and ironic tones.
A viral video of a dog abused at a shelter reveals a polarized Turkey
Animal rights activists say this was not an isolated case, which sparked public outcry over the poor state of shelters and the mistreatment of animals.
Shallow grave: Putin’s dictatorship is slowly killing Russia's main opposition leader Navalny
Putin’s main critic and the Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, has survived an assassination attempt, but now the regime is slowly killing him by harshening prison conditions.
Anti-war Russians find a new home in Turkey
It is not entirely clear how many Russians have arrived thus far to Turkey since Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
Tensions between Azerbaijan and Iran peak again
Azerbaijan and Iran have been saber-rattling and exchanging hostile rhetoric in weeks of heightened tensions.
Twitter and Facebook have suspended accounts affiliated with the Cuban government
For the first time in Cuba, Twitter has also marked some accounts as "government-affiliated"
Relatives of Russian drafted soldiers weep: ‘They were abandoned, like dogs…’
Relatives testify that recently drafted soldiers do not have food or water, cannot go back from a battle through Russian block posts, and cannot refuse to go to the front.
Lives, interrupted: The human cost of resistance in Belarus
Hanna Liubakova, an associated member of the Atlantic Council, journalist and media trainer, posted a Twitter thread about the most recent and most shocking cases of political prisoners in Belarus
