Thursday, 27 August 2020 21:35
Belarus: election protests update
Two senior figures in Belarus's protest movement were given ten-day jail terms at the notorious Okrestino detention centre for organising demonstrations. Olga Kovalkova and Sergei Dylevsky are high-profile members of the National Coordination Council, set up…
Thursday, 27 August 2020 21:32
Germany scraps plans for Brexit talks
The German government, which holds the rotating presidency of the EU council, had intended to discuss Brexit during a meeting of EU ambassadors on 2 September, but has now decided to drop the Brexit issue because…
Thursday, 20 August 2020 21:09
Belarus: winds of change?
Belarus is known as ‘Europe’s last dictatorship’. After being elected on an anti-corruption platform President Lukashenko ruled for 26 years, betraying his mandate and the trust of his people. When citizens cast their ballots recently they…
Thursday, 20 August 2020 21:06
Migrant boy found dead on Calais beach
Two teenagers unsuccessfully tried to cross the Channel in a three-foot dinghy using shovels as oars. They wanted to cross by themselves, bypassing people smugglers who charge high prices. One was a 16-year-old Sudanese boy who…
Thursday, 20 August 2020 21:00
Russia: persecution of missionaries
Individuals of almost every religious affiliation continue to face prosecution under Russia’s ‘anti-missionary legislation’ for exercising their right to freedom of religion and belief. Despite a 2018 constitutional court decision which offered some clarification of what…
Thursday, 13 August 2020 20:39
Russia: vaccine approved for use
Vladimir Putin said a vaccine for Covid-19 has been given regulatory approval after less than two months’ testing on humans. It has passed all the required checks, and he added that his daughter had already been…