Region

India Eases Citizenship Path For Hindus, Rohingya Muslims Fear Expulsion

Afghan Taliban, Kabul Join Moscow Peace Summit Amid Skepticism

The November 9 event, dubbed the Moscow Format Consultations on Afghanistan, met with strong skepticism from former officials and politicians in Afghanistan.

U.S. Exempts Iran's Chabahar Port From Sanctions In Nod To Afghanistan

The U.S. State Department says it is exempting Iran's big port project in Chabahar from sanctions in recognition of its importance to landlocked Afghanistan.

Deserted Streets, Anxious Parents: The Tajik Town That Spawned The Cyclists Attack

Once a go-to town for the young and progressive, the southern Tajik town of Norak was introduced to the world as a terrorist hotbed following a midsummer attack on foreign cyclists.

Internet Freedom Still Sliding Globally, Democracy Watchdog Says

Internet freedom continues to wane worldwide under pressure from attacks on informed democratic debate and notions of privacy, with "a cohort of countries...moving toward digital authoritarianism," U.S.-based democracy monitor Freedom House has warned.

Millions Of Shi'ite Pilgrims Stream Toward Karbala For Arbaeen Festival

Millions of Shi'ite Muslims from around the world are making their way this week to their sect's holy shrines in the Iraqi city of Karbala in an annual holy festival known as Arbaeen or Ziara.

China, India Reported Set To Keep Buying Iranian Oil As U.S. Sanctions Loom

With just days to go before U.S. sanctions take effect on Iran's oil sector on November 5, Tehran’s top two customers – India and China -- are resisting Washington’s call to reduce purchases to zero, arguing there are not sufficient supplies worldwide to replace them, media are reporting.

Majlis Podcast: Untangling Why Thousands Of Central Asians Joined Islamic State

RFE/RL has just released a 10-part documentary film called Not In Our Name, which looks at some of the people from Central Asia who went to Syria and Iraq to join extremist groups there.

Pakistani PM Hopes For Peace Talks With New Delhi After India's 2019 Elections

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan has vowed to try to extend a hand of peace to archrival India following elections in the neighboring country, after a similar offer was "rebuffed."

Tajikistan's Unconquerable Gorno-Badakhshan Region

Tajikistan's president has warned local officials in the eastern Gorno-Badakhshan region to bring order to the area, but that might be a tall order.

Putting An End To 20 Years Of Death Along The Tajik-Uzbek Border

Tajik officials have announced that work has started to demine the border with Uzbekistan with help from Uzbek authorities. Dozens of citizens of Tajikistan have been killed and maimed by these land mines that Uzbekistan laid nearly 20 years ago.