The world marks 25 years since the worst nuclear disaster in history at Ukraine’s Chernobyl nuclear plant Tuesday amid new debate on the safety of atomic energy in the wake of concerns over Japan's damaged Fukushima plant.
This week, our Observers tell us about violent clashes between Iranian opposition activists and the Iraqi army, they witness the military crackdown on Syrian protesters, and comment a provocative art event in Ukraine.
International donors came together in Ukraine’s capital of Kiev on Tuesday to pledge 550 million euros to build a new containment shell over the country’s destroyed Chernobyl nuclear plant, nearly 25 years after it exploded.
The European Commission said Monday it would provide an extra 110 million euros to help build a new shelter over Ukraine’s Chernobyl reactor, the site of the world's worst-ever nuclear accident.
"Liquidators". That was the name given to Chernobyl's equivalent of the Fukushima Fifty, the team who went in to clear up after the nuclear disaster in 1986. They fought to contain the disaster, much as their Japanese counterparts have been doing 25 years later; but as time has passed, they've seen the price that exposure to high levels of radiation can have on the health of these heroes.
Ukraine's ex-President Leonid Kuchma on Wednesday denied charges he was complicit in the 2000 murder of opposition journalist Georgiy Gongadze. Kuchma says he is ready to endure "all the torments of hell" to prove his innocence.
As Japan struggles to contain the fallout from Fukushima, memories of the Chernobyl disaster surface in Ukraine. A grisly case of suspected organ trafficking in Eastern Europe. Finally, find out how one company has made an extremely collectible Royal Wedding souvenir.
The numbers of migrants trying to cross into the EU from Ukraine appear to be falling, no doubt because EU assistance has reinforced Ukrainian border patrols. But an alarming report by Human Rights Watch suggests that ill-treatment of migrants on the Ukrainian side may also be part of the deterrent.
Merkel's main man resigns as it's revealed he'd been economic with the truth over his much acclaimed doctorale thesis. A German political star fades.
Hungary has used the EU regulations to look after their own even though they are in Ukraine.
And the Tripoli Connection - how a major London academic institution has been rocked by revelations over its financial links to Muammar Gaddafi.
Ukrainians are excitedly awaiting the Euro 2012 football tournament, to be co-hosted with Poland. But some suspect those close to the authorities are benefiting disproportionately from the event. Gulliver Cragg reports from Kiev.
