RT: Features

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Features

Fake Obama offered free petrol to Twitter users: The accounts of US president-elect Barack Obama and a number of celebrities, including pop singer Britney Spears and CNN anchor Rick Sanchez, with the social networking site Twitter have been hacked.

Living on the front line – for eight years: Sderot, Israel – The contrails of jets trace linked circles, like an Olympic symbol being doodled in the sky, and two silver observation dirigibles hover overhead, perhaps watching the Gaza Strip for outgoing rockets or tracking potential targets for the circling planes.

Time to grin and bear it in ‘Land of Smiles’: Thailand is often known as the ‘Land of Smiles’, but nowadays people have fewer reasons to look happy as the global recession gets into full swing. In Bangkok the usually festive New Year mood has been overshadowed by the crisis.

Been there, done that – at eleven: Most young boys dream of a life of adventure, but one 11-year-old from St Petersburg, is actually living it. Sergey Davitaya is the first child to make a zero-gravity simulated flight into space. He spent more than seven minutes flying in the air.

Apocalypse now – could the internet seize up altogether?: Life without the internet – American I.T. experts say it could happen within just six years.

Totalitarian society invades screens: A classic Soviet science fiction story has been the big New Year hit in Russian cinemas. The Inhabited Island, the story of an astronaut struggling to survive on a totalitarian planet, is the most expensive Russian film ever produced.

Ukrainian becomes fourth wife for German football legend: One of the greatest footballers in the history German football, Lothar Matthaus, has married in Las Vegas on Sunday. His other half is Ukrainian model Kristina Liliana.

9 Muslims kicked off jet: As the saying goes the best cloth may have a moth in it. Just so the American law enforcement system has shown its drawbacks.

Poor blood donations make way for synthetic alternatives: While progress has been made in Russia's blood transfusion services, experts say they still need a moral boost, as the number of blood donors is still insufficient.

Russian toons go global: They're round, colourful, and completely non-violent - and they are becoming a global success. The Russian cartoon ‘Smeshariki’ is following in the foot-steps of the Teletubbies, and becoming the cartoon of choice for a new generation of children.

Elephant muscles in on festive present-giving: The Secret Santa game is gaining popularity in Russia, and one Internet company has added a new twist, which sees people giving presents to complete strangers.

Cuban revolution’s anniversary marked: Cuba is celebrating its 50th anniversary of the revolution which brought Fidel Castro to power. RT recalls the build up toward that fateful New Year’s Eve of 1959 and sees what has changed in the country.

Business nudes: Pirelli tradition heads east: With pulses racing due to the New Year festivities, one Russian company has decided to celebrate by printing a raunchy new calendar which features its staff stripping off.

New Year celebrated in South Ossetia: After a tough 12 months, people in South Ossetia greeted 2009 amid the ruins left after the war with Georgia. The celebrations lasted all day, but instead of welcoming a new year, South Ossetians celebrated the fact that 2008 was finally over, mourning those lost in the conflict.

Russia’s frontier guard first into 2009: Russia has entered the year 2009. The country’s frontier guardsmen were the first people on Earth to mark the New Year.

Queen’s knighthood list tinted with polonium: The British Queen Elizabeth II has granted a knighthood to fantasy writer Terry Pratchett. She has also honoured Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant, and… a health official whose team broke the news over the radioactive polonium-210 scare in 2006.

Fir trees more impressive than presents: With Christmas trees being one of the best-loved symbols of the season, Russian designers are resorting to some unusual styles for decorating them.

Natalya Vodyanova – a Russian Cinderella with a big heart: Russia can hold its own on the world's catwalks with a number of leading international models, but few can claim the same rise from rags to riches as Natalya Vodyanova.

Moscow pays drivers for going green: With the New Year holidays on the way, the number of cars on Moscow's streets is seeing a dramatic increase. The traffic jams are causing growing frustration at a time when people are hoping to celebrate.

Construction endangers wild forest: Environmentalists say unique Russian woodlands are under threat with plans to build a resort. The Utrish forest near the Black Sea coast includes the country's only forest to contain juniper and pistachio trees.

Snow bull competition sweeps Siberian city: One of Siberia's biggest cities, Krasnoyarsk, has launched a 'snow cow' competition, and claims to have put together a fir tree that outdoes the one taking pride of place at Moscow’s Kremlin.

Abramovich, buy us!: A group of Latvians have put their country up for sale on the internet. The Baltic state has been badly hit by the global credit crunch, and they want a Russian billionaire, Roman Abramovich, to buy it.

RT Expert View: Looking back at 2008: With the end of the year just step away, RT’s experts take a look at the outgoing year. What were the main events and trends in 2008 and what can we expect next year?

Harmony in the heavens: A four-day deadline from the Russian space agency to find a solution to bringing astronauts safely back to earth is enough pressure for any NASA engineer.

Brave youngsters show fight against cancer can be won: New Year's Eve is a time for making wishes, but for thousands of children with serious illnesses there's just one request - to become healthy again. More than 5,000 children in Russia are diagnosed with cancer every year.

Only fir-st is good enough in quest for perfect tree: Decked out in baubles, tinsel and sparkling lights, New Year trees adorn the streets of Moscow year after year. And while most people seem happy enough with them, specialists say the pitch of perfection is yet to be reached.

'Israeli air strikes represent massive violations of international law': The Israeli air strikes on the Gaza Strip represent severe and massive violations of international humanitarian law as defined in the Geneva Convention, both in regard to the obligations of an occupying power and in the requirements of the laws of war.

Solzhenitsyn’s work a lasting tribute to Gulag victims: The Soviet Gulag system ruined the lives of millions, and memories of it remain disturbing to many Russians today. The late writer Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn immortalised the Gulag through his famous publications, which were read behind closed doors in the USSR for many years.

Meet the tallest New Year tree: The city of Krasnoyarsk is preparing to greet the New Year with the tallest festive tree in the whole of Russia.

UN 2008: a hard year at the office: At the United Nations, 2008 was a complicated year filled with conflict and controversy.

Church bells strike false note with Muslims: The Muslim community in Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region is opposing plans to include church bells in a proposed new regional anthem. Local authorities had earlier set a competition to compose an anthem for the region.

Bhutto remembered one year on: Saturday marks one year since the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan. The former prime minister was killed in a suicide bomb attack after an election rally near the capital, Islamabad.

Bones of contention: A village in central Russia is having trouble with its neighbours - even though they're buried underground. Villagers say graves are being dug to close to their homes and that it’s causing a health hazard.

Does terrorism make India a no-Goa destination?: As India recovers from last month's attack in Mumbai, fears of new attacks remain and popular tourist destinations are feeling the pinch. However, locals in Goa say there is nothing to worry about.

Kremlin ghosts are alive and kicking: The Kremlin in Moscow has always been a shadowy place, steeped in mystery. Myths and legends grew up around it - including some blood-curdling ghost stories. A new book aims to throw some light on the Kremlin’s secrets.

CIA’s weapon against Taliban - Viagra!: The KGB was once notoriously known for using attractive women as ‘honey traps’ to achieve their goals. Now, as time and technology move forwards, US intelligence has found a new way of exploiting the sexual angle…Viagra.

Politkovskaya trial: prosecution case unravelling?: The defence for the three men charged with the murder of prominent Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya claims the DNA of their clients does not match the specimens found at the crime scene.

Truckers’ treats threatened by red tape: For years residents of a village between Moscow and St Petersburg have been offering traditional Russian snacks to drivers travelling between the two cities. Now, however, one of the oldest small businesses in the country is under threat.

Today Grozny - tomorrow the world!: Chechnya TV’s main channel, which was founded five years ago, is now available on global satellite networks. With nearly 200,000 Chechens living outside Russia, it thus becomes the major information outlet for the diaspora scattered around the world.

Indian IT sector hit by financial crisis: India's Information Technology sector is a world leader, and a driving force for the economy. But the industry, which greatly depends on business from the US, is suffering severely in the economic slowdown.