In some schools, “Talks about important things” were dedicated to the Day of Heroes of the Fatherland On December 9, Russian kindergartens and educational institutions hosted events dedicated to the Day of Heroes of the Fatherland. Several hundred institutions posted reports about them on VKontakte, Vorstka noted.

Vladimir Putin granted asylum to Bashar al-Assad “for humanitarian reasons” The ousted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who fled the country amid the advance of rebel groups, flew to Moscow with members of his family. Russian media reported that he received political asylum; this information was soon confirmed by the Kremlin. “Layout” talks about this in more detail.