Ainur Saparova is a freelance correspondent for RFE/RL's Kazakh Service.
The Caspian Sea is shared by five states – Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan. But it is Kazakhstan, where the giant lake is most shallow, that arguably faces the most immediate consequences of dropping water levels.
The Caspian Sea's surface level is falling and it's receding rapidly from its former shores, putting large populations in Kazakhstan at risk. A decommissioned nuclear power station is also vulnerable. Climate change and upstream diversions are driving the crisis, experts say.
A former Islamic State fighter who was paralyzed from the waist down by shrapnel in Syria is seeking an early release from Kazakh prison on medical grounds. But officials say there is no reason to parole him, as he is fit to serve his sentence and has failed to help counterterrorism efforts.
The family of a Kazakh man shot dead during deadly unrest in January 2022 is fighting to clear his name. Prosecutors allege that Farkhat Omarov attacked police but, in a rare case, a court ruled there were "serious violations" of the law during the probe and ordered further investigation.
