https://www.rferl.org Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is an international news organization serving Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East and Balkan countries https://www.rferl.org/Content/responsive/RFE/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.rferl.org en Copyright 2026 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Fri, 17 Apr 2026 08:39:49 +0200 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL Russian influencer Victoria Bonya made a personal address to Russian President Vladimir Putin: In a country where political debate and criticism of the authorities is tightly controlled, she brought up problems people face in their everyday lives. Except the war in Ukraine. https://www.rferl.org/a/russian-influencers-make-up-ukraine-war/33733737.html https://www.rferl.org/a/russian-influencers-make-up-ukraine-war/33733737.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:09:01 +0200 FeaturesRussiaThe Rundown Stories A US blockade on ships entering Iranian ports and coastal areas has taken effect, following failed peace talks between the US and Iran. And it already poses a dilemma: risk attack from Iranian assets near the Strait of Hormuz or hold back and hope to catch vessels breaking out into the open seas. https://www.rferl.org/a/us-naval-blockade-iran/33731316.html https://www.rferl.org/a/us-naval-blockade-iran/33731316.html Mon, 13 Apr 2026 18:02:17 +0200 IranFeaturesThe Rundown Stories Hungarians vote in elections on April 12 as war rages in neighboring Ukraine and the government’s relationship with Russia is under intense scrutiny. Polls suggest that after 16 years in office, Prime Minister Viktor Orban may lose power to opposition leader Peter Magyar. https://www.rferl.org/a/hungary-election-orban-magyar-opposition/33729297.html https://www.rferl.org/a/hungary-election-orban-magyar-opposition/33729297.html Fri, 10 Apr 2026 15:13:37 +0200 FeaturesRussiaUkraineHungaryThe Rundown Stories The US-Israeli war with Iran has continued following US President Donald Trump’s TV address to the nation, with a series of reported air strikes, defiant messaging from Tehran, and a US warning in Iraq of an imminent attack in Baghdad by Iranian proxy forces. https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-speech-war-threats-iran-strikes/33723158.html https://www.rferl.org/a/trump-speech-war-threats-iran-strikes/33723158.html Thu, 02 Apr 2026 12:37:13 +0200 IranNewsThe Rundown StoriesMiddle East It's not just oil and gas. Iran’s shipping blockade is also holding up supplies of other key commodities and causing price spikes on global markets that will affect everyone. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-hormuz-blockade-chokes-global-trade-oil-gas-trump/33722449.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-hormuz-blockade-chokes-global-trade-oil-gas-trump/33722449.html Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:18:02 +0200 IranFeaturesThe Rundown HeadlineMiddle East Iran announced the execution of two political prisoners on March 31, a day after the death penalty was also carried out on two others, in a sign that the clerical authorities are stepping up a crackdown on internal opposition in the country. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-us-war-executions-repression/33721498.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-us-war-executions-repression/33721498.html Tue, 31 Mar 2026 16:03:42 +0200 IranFeaturesThe Rundown HeadlineMiddle East Iran is inviting children 12 and older to sign up under a new program “for combatants defending the homeland,” with applicants directed to mosques and registration booths. Iran has a track record of recruiting children for security and even combat roles, and used child soldiers in the war with Iraq. https://www.rferl.org/a/33718169.html https://www.rferl.org/a/33718169.html Fri, 27 Mar 2026 22:37:16 +0100 IranFeaturesThe Rundown Stories Three days of Ukrainian drone attacks on ports and refineries in Russia’s Leningrad region have led to what one analyst called “the most serious threat” to Russian oil exports since the beginning of the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-strikes-russia-oil-exports/33717215.html https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-strikes-russia-oil-exports/33717215.html Thu, 26 Mar 2026 18:12:51 +0100 UkraineFeaturesRussiaRussia Invades UkraineThe Rundown Stories Iran appears to have dismissed a 15-point US plan to end the war that has spilled across the Gulf and roiled global energy markets. https://www.rferl.org/a/us-iran-competing-peace-plans/33716391.html https://www.rferl.org/a/us-iran-competing-peace-plans/33716391.html Wed, 25 Mar 2026 18:13:22 +0100 FeaturesIranThe Rundown Headline Pakistan has offered to host talks aimed at bringing the Iran conflict to an end, highlighting the country's strengthened ties in both the Middle East and with Washington. https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-iran-diplomacy-us-israel-conflict/33714484.html https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-iran-diplomacy-us-israel-conflict/33714484.html Tue, 24 Mar 2026 16:20:06 +0100 FeaturesIranPakistanThe Rundown Headline Israel has hit Hezbollah hard in recent weeks, amid the US-Israeli war with Iran, yet the Lebanon-based group -- designated as a terrorist organization by Israel and the United States -- continues to intensify its attacks. Here's what's happening. https://www.rferl.org/a/hezbollah-iran-israel-lebanon-attacks-irgc/33713722.html https://www.rferl.org/a/hezbollah-iran-israel-lebanon-attacks-irgc/33713722.html Mon, 23 Mar 2026 18:34:35 +0100 Middle EastFeaturesIranThe Rundown Stories The Iran war offers huge lessons for the effectiveness of Chinese military doctrine and hardware, both used by the Iranian military, according to Eran Ortal, a reserve Brigadier General in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-war-chinese-doctrine-tech-ortal-idf-israel/33707130.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-war-chinese-doctrine-tech-ortal-idf-israel/33707130.html Sun, 15 Mar 2026 22:44:21 +0100 FeaturesIranThe Rundown StoriesMiddle East Inside Israel’s largest hospital, doctors work two stories underground as the war with Iran continues. At the Sheba Medical Center, much of the facility has moved below ground to keep operating despite the threat of Iranian missile strikes. https://www.rferl.org/a/underground-hospital-israel-war/33706639.html https://www.rferl.org/a/underground-hospital-israel-war/33706639.html Sat, 14 Mar 2026 15:33:38 +0100 VideosIranVideo Archive Israel’s largest hospital says it learnt lessons from the 12-day war with Iran last year, and shifted its operations below ground at an unprecedented scale after a heads-up from the authorities. https://www.rferl.org/a/israel-underground-hospital-sheba-medical-center-iran-missile-threat/33706574.html https://www.rferl.org/a/israel-underground-hospital-sheba-medical-center-iran-missile-threat/33706574.html Sat, 14 Mar 2026 12:33:31 +0100 FeaturesIranThe Rundown StoriesMiddle East As the US-Israeli war with Iran continues, a second front between Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon and Israel is heating up. Israel sees a chance to finally remove a long-standing enemy on its doorstep, and Hezbollah also reportedly sees this as a “last war.” https://www.rferl.org/a/israel-hezbollah-lebanon-war-second-front/33704698.html https://www.rferl.org/a/israel-hezbollah-lebanon-war-second-front/33704698.html Fri, 13 Mar 2026 17:37:35 +0100 FeaturesIranThe Rundown StoriesMiddle East The exchange of fire between Iran and Israel continued on March 12, with strikes hitting civilian sites in central Israel. Speaking to RFE/RL, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said his country aims to keep up the intense campaign to "remove [Iran's] capabilities" to wage war. https://www.rferl.org/a/israel-iran-lebanon-military-strikes/33703943.html https://www.rferl.org/a/israel-iran-lebanon-military-strikes/33703943.html Thu, 12 Mar 2026 20:10:43 +0100 IranVideo ArchiveVideosThe Rundown StoriesMiddle East Speaking to RFE/RL in Tel Aviv, Raz Zimmt, head of the Iran program at the Institute for National Security Studies, said the question is whether Khamenei is capable of maintaining "daily contacts with the political and security establishment" to preserve "the ability of the regime to function." https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-mojtaba-khamenei-absence-raz-zimmt/33702088.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-mojtaba-khamenei-absence-raz-zimmt/33702088.html Wed, 11 Mar 2026 16:09:33 +0100 IranFeaturesThe Rundown StoriesMiddle East Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks of “historic” military cooperation with US forces striking Iran. But are the two allies entirely in lockstep? https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-us-israel-war-aims/33700711.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-us-israel-war-aims/33700711.html Tue, 10 Mar 2026 19:27:16 +0100 IranFeaturesThe Rundown StoriesMiddle East After President Donald Trump remarked that US attacks on Iran may end "very soon," experts in Israel say their country's own campaign will likely follow Washington's lead. But as RFE/RL's Ray Furlong reports from Tel Aviv, Israel is pursuing its own security priorities with strikes in Lebanon. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-war-israel-lebanon-hezbollah-oil/33700720.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-war-israel-lebanon-hezbollah-oil/33700720.html Tue, 10 Mar 2026 19:13:22 +0100 IranVideo ArchiveVideos For Aviad Apirion, a 40-year-old teacher in a special needs school, the war with Iran has meant sleeping every night at an underground railway station to avoid the danger of incoming Iranian ballistic missiles. https://www.rferl.org/a/tel-aviv-subway-stations-shelters/33699455.html https://www.rferl.org/a/tel-aviv-subway-stations-shelters/33699455.html Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:56:17 +0100 FeaturesIranThe Rundown StoriesMiddle East