Latvia Topples Soviet World War II Monument in Swipe at Russia

Latvia knocked over an 80-meter (262-foot) Soviet World War II monument in the capital Riga in the latest challenge to relations with Russia.

The obelisk crashed into a pool of water in the monument complex hours after construction machinery began to hammer away at its base. The demolition followed Baltic neighbor Estonia’s removal of a Soviet monument last week that triggered the biggest wave of cyber attacks there in over a decade.