The headstone of Ivan Mamchur, a Ukrainian murdered by a Russian assassin. Photo / Joseph Sywenkyj, The New York Times
The headstone of Ivan Mamchur, a Ukrainian murdered by a Russian assassin. Photo / Joseph Sywenkyj, The New York Times
Premium is here - nzherald.co.nz's new digital subscriptions have launched, offering more of the best journalism from New Zealand and around the world.
As well as an expanded menu of investigative work from our team of writers at the Herald, there's a glittering line-up of international content on offer.
That includes features and news from the New York Times, The Times (UK), Financial Times and the Harvard Business Review as well as the Washington Post, the Daily Telegraph (UK) and the South China Morning Post.
If you're looking for some features to read over the weekend, here's nine international pieces from the week that are well worth checking out.
Russia ordered a killing that made no sense. Then the assassin started talking
The target, a man named Ivan Mamchur, was called "rose." To Oleg Smorodinov, he was a nobody, an electrician who worked at the local jail. To the handlers in Moscow, though, he was significant. Why did Russia order a hit on a seemingly normal Ukrainian electrician? The assassin explains.
Oleg Smorodinov stands in a defendant's cage, on trial for the murder of Ivan Mamchur, in a courtroom in Rivne, Ukraine. Photo / Joseph Sywenkyj, New York Times
Accidental hit woman: Her 'Prince Charming' turned out to be a hit man
Blanche Wright's childhood was was a blur of violence, sexual abuse and foster homes. At the age of 20 she met the love of her life and was swept up in promises of a new future and a life of pampering. The years that followed were anything but that. Wright's 'Prince Charming' was actually a contract killer who led her on a murder spree. And she took the fall.
"You did good," he told her. "You didn't make a sound. You can be trusted." Image / Becky Cloonan, The New York
Panic on Everest as group's oxygen tanks fail one after another
On a frozen lip of rock near the summit of Mount Everest, climber Adrian Ballinger watched as his team's oxygen regulators failed, one after another. Panic spread among the 25 climbers. The peril faced by the group was not however an isolated incident. Guides, mountaineers and engineers said that efforts by some expedition organisers to maximise their profits has created an epidemic of old and substandard equipment being used on Everest.
Part of the American climber Adrian Ballinger's expedition as it descended just below the Everest summit in May 2018. Photo / Alpenglow Expeditions, The New York Times
Polar powers: Russia's bid for supremacy in the Arctic Ocean
As climate change opens northern shipping lanes, Moscow is spending billions to dominate the region. Fuelled by warmer temperatures that are rapidly shrinking the northern ice cap, the Northern Sea Route has become an arena of growing competition. Its potential as a preferential shipping route between Europe and Asia could change global trade flows. The colossal hydrocarbon reserves that lie beneath it could upend energy markets. And its growing militarisation has caught the attention of world powers.
The 50 Let Pobed nuclear-powered icebreaker operated by Atomflot makes its way through the frozen waters of the Gulf of Ob, the Kara Sea. Photo / Getty Images
Scott Kelly spent a year taking photos in space. They're beautiful
It was not supposed to be a photo safari. Nasa lofted Scott Kelly into orbit aboard the International Space Station in March 2015 for a year so that scientists could learn what happens to the human body during long missions in space. But between blood draws and equipment repairs, Kelly aimed a Nikon D4 toward the windows.
An aurora, seen from the International Space Station, August 15, 2015. Photo / Scott Kelly/Nasa via The New York Times
The lost history of one of the world's strangest science experiments
It was one of the strangest experiments in the history of science. Eight Biospherians would be sealed inside a 3-acre complex containing a miniature rainforest, a mangrove, a desert and a coral reef. It was dismissed as a failure but now, 25 years on, Biosphere 2 might have some lessons to offer about our planet.
Biosphere 2 sits in the desert near Oracle, Arizona in this 1991 photo. Photo / AP
Meet the poster girl for plus-size pop stars
She's the straight-talking poster girl for plus-size pop stars whose new single is 'near perfect', according to Rolling Stone. So how did a 30-year-old classically trained flautist who used to be depressed and homeless become this year's Glastonbury star?
Lizzo performs at Coachella in 2019. Photo / Getty Images
Survival of the throne: The story of Japan's monarchy
There has been an emperor in Japan for more than 15 centuries, making the Chrysanthemum Throne the world's oldest continuous monarchy. This week, the emperor stood down, yielding to his eldest son in the first abdication in 200 years. This is the family's story.
Japan's royal family in 2006. Photo / Getty Images
Interview: Melinda Gates on 25 years with her tech billionaire husband, Bill
In the age of the multibillion-dollar tech divorce, Melinda Gates reveals how her and Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates made it to their silver wedding anniversary unscathed.
