Caspian Sea

(Newser) - About 2,500 Caspian seals have been found dead on the Caspian Sea coast in southern Russia, officials said Sunday. Authorities in the Russian province of Dagestan initially said it was unclear why the mass die-off happened, but a top Russian environmental official on Monday said the cause of death...

(Newser) - Azerbaijan's got oil money to burn, and officials want to show off the country's modernity—so they're planning to construct the tallest building on the planet. The Azerbaijan Tower is set to rise nearly 3,450 feet over a collection of 41 artificial islands near the capital,...

(Newser) - Eighteen months before the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the company experienced a similar huge leak in Azerbaijan, WikiLeaks cables reveal. The firm was tight-lipped about the incident, angering its partners, the cables note, adding that BP was fortunate in getting its 212 workers to safety, the...

(Newser) - The poor and homeless in Milan will get a pricey treat this holiday season, the BBC reports. Officials will distribute 88 pounds of beluga caviar seized from smugglers to the city’s shelters and soup kitchens. The sturgeon roe, confiscated in November en route from Poland, is valued at around...