Vladimir Putin wins election in landslide

Russian president Vladimir Putin won his country’s presidential election, winning 76% of the vote. He will continue to lead Russia for at least another six-year term as his main opponent in the election, Alexei Navalny, was barred from running in December.

Former Russian spy poisoned in Britain

A former Russian spy and British citizens were poisoned by a Soviet nerve agent, which has since been traced back to the Russian government.

Zambia pardoned 3,000 inmates to depopulate prisons

Zambia pardoned 3,000 prison inmates, citing far too crowded prisons and the need to lessen the cost of sustaining inmates. Those on death row will have their sentences changed to prison for life.

Russian mall fire kills 64, 16 still missing

A fire killed 64, many of whom were children, at a crowded Winter Cherry mall in Kemerovo, Russia. An investigative committee revealed that the fire alarm system had been disabled before the fire by a security guard and that many exits leading out of the mall had been blocked.

This piece was originally published in the pages of the Winged Post on March 29, 2018.