CIS (ex-USSR)

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife MOSCOW/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- A congregation of evangelical Christians in Russia's capital Moscow were without a church building Tuesday, September 11, after workers with bulldozers and other equipment destroyed their Holy Trinity Pentecostal Church complex, backed by local police, witnesses said.  

By BosNewsLife News Center ZAPORIZHIA/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- An elderly human rights activist who was forced to spend more than two weeks in a Ukrainian psychological hospital for "socially dangerous behavior" said Wednesday, August 14, she remains confined to her home amid fears of more persecution.

Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio:  By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- Braving freezing temperatures, thousands of protesters were weighting their options amid confusion if and when the president would meet their demands for early elections, closer ties with the European Union, and more freedom in this former Soviet nation.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife BISHKEK/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- New clashes in southern Kyrgyzstan have killed dozens of people and wounded more than 500 in the city of Osh, a little over two months after the uprising that toppled the Central Asian nation's former government. The United States and Russia - both of which have military bases in Kyrgyzstan - and China are watching the situation with concern.

Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent, BosNewsLife BUDAPEST/ASTANA (BosNewsLife)-- A global Christian rights group welcomed a "landmark decision" by Kazakhstan’s Constitutional Council to reject as “unconstitutional” a draft law which would “further restrict freedom of religion and belief in the country," BosNewsLife learned Saturday, February 14.

By BosNewsLife News Center MOSCOW/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- Evangelical Churches and Christian groups in Russia that are involved educational, social and charitable work are facing harassment from authorities resembling the Soviet-era, rights activists say. One church was reportedly liquidated over alleged illegal "non-religious educational activity", in the heavily Orthodox, post-Communist nation.

Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio:  By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife reporting from Uzhhorod, Ukraine UZHHOROD, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)-- Ukraine’s detained former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko has launched a hunger strike to protest alleged vote rigging in Sunday's parliamentary election. Western observers have also expressed concerns about the ballot, in which the ruling Party of Regions claimed victory, while a far-right party entered the political arena for the first time.

By BosNewsLife News Center in Budapest BAKU/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- Devoted Christians on Tuesday, August 14, prepared to go to Azerbaijan's Supreme Court after a lower tribunal upheld a decision to close down their Baku Greater Grace Protestant Church, adding to concerns about a reported crackdown on Protestants in Azerbaijan.

By BosNewsLife News Center MINSK/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- Some 50 Protestant pastors, many of whom were punished for religious activities, have written to President Aleksandr Lukashenko complaining of long-standing restrictions, an advocacy group said Tuesday, August 25.

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife TBILISI/BUDAPEST (BosNewsLife)-- The opposition in Georgia has condemned a fake television report about the invasion of the former Soviet Republic by forces from neighboring Russia. Georgia President Mikheil Saakhasvili has defended the report, following widespread panic caused by the broadcast.