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Dying Kalashnikov Wrote of His Guilt
 Dying Kalashnikov 
 Wrote of His Guilt 
in case you missed it
Jan 18, 2014 7:34 AM CST

Dying Kalashnikov Wrote of His Guilt

Russian daily: He wrote of 'unbearable ... spiritual pain'

(Newser) - In our own obituary of AK-47 inventor Mikhail Kalashnikov last month, we included this quote: The rifle was invented "for the protection of the Motherland," he said. "I have no regrets and bear no responsibility for how politicians have used it." It turns out "no...

Putin: Gays Are Fine—If They Steer Clear of Kids

Russian president seeks to reassure, as best he can

(Newser) - He was apparently trying to be magnanimous toward gay people, but it didn't quite come out that way. Asked today about Russia's views toward homosexuals, Putin said those in his country should "feel calm and at ease," reports the Washington Post . And then he added, "...

Russia Kicks Out First US Journalist Since Cold War

No explanation offered for expulsion

(Newser) - Looks like the Kremlin thaw that saw the release of Pussy Riot members may have been short-lived: Radio Free Europe's David Satter has become the first American journalist to be kicked out of Russia since Newsweek bureau chief Andrei Nagorski got the boot in 1982, reports the Guardian . Satter...

6 Found Shot Dead in Cars in Southern Russia

Attacks investigated in counter-terror operation

(Newser) - A series of unexplained killings in southern Russia involving booby-trapped bombs has further heightened security fears ahead of next month's Winter Olympics in Sochi. Investigators were scrambling today to determine who had killed six men whose bodies were found yesterday in four cars abandoned in an area just north...

Crazy Restricted Zone Goes Up Around Sochi Today

Vladimir Putin's measures may be most extreme of any Olympics

(Newser) - An ominous new report on Vocativ says the Sochi Olympics may be the most extreme, security-wise, in the history of the Games—the site describes "a gulag-style restricted area" instituted by Vladimir Putin. The Christian Science Monitor calls the restricted zone the "ring of steel," an area...

US Joins in Antarctic Ship Rescue Effort

Coast Guard cutter to aid Russian, Chinese ships

(Newser) - First a Russian ship got trapped in Antarctic ice; then a Chinese ship got stuck trying to rescue it. Finally, passengers on the MV Akademik Shokalskiy were rescued late this week via helicopter while crew members remained. The saga continues amid concerns about the Chinese vessel : Now the US Coast...

Behind the Bombings: 'Russia's Osama'?

Doku Umarov linked to series of attacks

(Newser) - After three bombings in Volgograd in three months , the name Doku Umarov is coming up frequently as a possible link. Who is the 49-year-old who has dubbed himself the "emir of Caucasus Emirate"? London's Times (via the Australian ) calls him "Russia's Osama bin Laden....

Olympic Fears Mount as 2nd Blast Rocks Russia

Officials believe Volgograd bombings linked

(Newser) - A second major terrorist attack in the space of 24 hours has shaken the Russian city of Volgograd, less than six weeks before the start of the Sochi Olympics. Authorities say at least 14 people were killed in an apparent suicide attack on an electric trolleybus close to a hospital...

Suicide Bomber Kills 13 in Russia Train Station

Scores wounded in Volgograd attack; no one has claimed responsibility

(Newser) - At least 13 people were killed and scores were wounded today by a suicide bomber at a railway station in southern Russia, officials said, heightening concern about terrorism ahead of February's Olympics in Sochi. The National Anti-Terrorist Committee said the explosion at the central railway station in the city...

Pussy Riot to Form New Group
 Pussy Riot to Form New Group 
Dec 27, 2013 11:21 AM CST

Pussy Riot to Form New Group

It's a human rights group called Zona Prava

(Newser) - It seems prison only put more fire in the bellies of Pussy Riot members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina. While they continue to be no fans of Vladimir Putin, in a press conference today the two announced their new focus: forming a human rights group to fight for prison reform,...

Russia Lets Greenpeace Activists Leave

7 of 30 people detained are issued visas

(Newser) - Russian authorities today issued visas to seven of 30 members of a Greenpeace ship crew that allow the protesters to leave the country. The move comes after Moscow dropped criminal charges against them over a protest outside an Arctic oil rig. Greenpeace said other foreign members of the crew were...

Pussy Riot&#39;s Alyokhina: &#39;I Was Always Free&#39;
 Pussy Riot's 
 Alyokhina: 'I Was 
 Always Free' 
'ROLLING STONE' INTERVIEW
Dec 25, 2013 8:25 AM CST

Pussy Riot's Alyokhina: 'I Was Always Free'

Punk rocker talks frankly about prison, amnesty, future

(Newser) - If Vladimir Putin expected the pardoned members of Pussy Riot to fall over in thanks, well, hopefully Santa brought him some oxygen so he can keep holding his breath. Newly free Maria Alyokhina sat down for a Q&A with Rolling Stone , and her answers are as defiant and frank...

Russia Tossing Charges Against Greenpeace Activists

They could be home for New Year: rep

(Newser) - Yesterday, Pussy Riot members left prison under Russia's new amnesty measure ; today, the country's charges against at least some Greenpeace activists are being dropped. RT reports that at least three of 30 crew members from the organization's Arctic Sunrise ship have seen charges dropped; the same will...

Pussy Riot Members Freed —Much to Their Displeasure

Maria Alyokhina says she wishes she was still in prison

(Newser) - The high-profile prisoner exodus continues in Russia: The last two jailed members of Pussy Riot were today freed, after being in prison since August 2012. Their sentences were scheduled to end in March. The release came under an amnesty declared by Vladimir Putin , which Maria Alyokhina—the first band member...

Newly Freed Russian Tycoon Back With Family

Khodorkovsky arrives in Germany, free after a decade

(Newser) - After Vladimir Putin pardoned oil tycoon and outspoken government critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky yesterday, Khodorkovsky wasted little time in getting out of Russia. He arrived in Germany and spent his first night of freedom in 10 years inside a Berlin hotel, reports the BBC . He has been reunited already with his...

Air Force Nuke Chief Fired for Being Drunken 'Boor'

Michael Carey insulted hosts, cozied up to 'suspicious women' in Russia

(Newser) - When the Air Force fired Maj. Gen. Michael Carey in October, it said only that it was for "personal misbehavior." Now we know what that means. Carey essentially appears to have made a drunken spectacle of himself during a three-day official trip to Moscow in July, insulting his...

Putin Pardons One of His Biggest Foes

Mikhail Khodorkovsky says he never asked for pardon

(Newser) - Vladimir Putin has freed famous oil-tycoon-turned-Kremlin-critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky, after announcing he would do so yesterday. Putin signed a pardon that allowed for Khodorkovsky's release today on the basis of "the principles of humanity," reports the BBC , which confirms Khodorkovsky left prison after eating lunch. Putin's foes...

Obama to Skip Olympics, Send Gay Delegates

Napolitano to head up delegation as VP, first lady will also skip

(Newser) - For the first time since 2000, neither the US president, first lady, vice president, nor a former president will be attending the Olympic Games. But the US is sending a delegation to Sochi—a delegation that includes two openly gay athletes, the AP reports, calling it "a clear message"...

Putin's 2014 Goal: Station Lots of Military in Arctic

BBC terms it 'one of his most direct orders yet' regarding the region

(Newser) - Canada is planning to claim the North Pole as part of its territory, and Russia has something to say about that: Oh, heck no. President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian military to boost its presence in the Arctic, and though he's discussed the idea before, the BBC calls...

Putin May Free Jailed Pussy Riot Members

Planned amnesty also affects Greenpeace activists

(Newser) - It looks like the two members of Pussy Riot who remain locked up in jail in Russia will be free this month. President Putin plans to release thousands of prisoners under an amnesty to mark the anniversary of the nation's post-Communist constitution of 1993, reports Reuters . Serious criminals won'...

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