Balkaninsight.com

The decision of Kosovo’s Prime Minister to replace the national Albanian flag at the entrance to Pristina with the Kosovo flag has drawn mixed reactions from people.

Bulgaria is grieving over the death of the urban legend, hermit and church benefactor Dobre Dobrev, who passed away on Tuesday at the amazing age of 103.

The trial of Marinko Maric and Zeljko Rodin, former Bosnian Croat soldiers accused of abusing Bosniak civilian detainees and prisoners of war in 1993, was told how prisoners were abused and intimidated in camps.

With Valentine’s Day approaching, BIRN tours city addresses that were the scenes of romantic, often tragic, love stories.

As Germany moves towards the installation of a new left-right coalition government, some say that Croatia may have to consider the same option.

Elvedin Konakovic told BIRN he will not quit as premier of the Sarajevo Canton after leaving the Bosniak ruling party, the Party of Democratic Action - and vowed to keep criticising it for alleged corruption.

A Czech NGO, 'Czech Friends of Kosovo Serbs', has announced a protest on the tenth anniversary of Kosovo's independence – when it will urge the Czech Republic to withdraw recognition of the former Serbian province.

Human rights campaigners will lodge a complaint against Serbia with the UN Committee Against Torture because of Kurdish activist Cevdet Ayaz’s extradition to Turkey.

Betim Ibrahimaj, who was wanted by the Kosovo authorities for his alleged role in recording an ISIS propaganda video, is been reported to have been killed in Syria.

A court document obtained by BIRN reveals that two policemen in north Kosovo admitted in court to tampering with evidence at the crime scene where Serb politician Oliver Ivanovic was shot dead.

Serbian media outlets’ economic weakness means journalists are vulnerable to pressure on their reporting, suggests new research conducted as part of a project involving BIRN, the Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia and the Slavko Curuvija Foundation.

Croatian opposition MPs criticised officials in Zagreb for telling journalists not to ask visiting Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic questions about his nationalist rhetoric during the 1990s wars.

The contract for the New Kosova coal-fired power plant is a monumental error – for which the people of Kosovo will be paying, in various ways, for the next six decades.

The authorities have begun to impose financial penalties on media outlets in an attempt to prevent alleged attempts to spread Russian propaganda in Moldova.

A map of last December's YouTube hits shows that music fans in several Balkan countries still prefer their local bands to top international songs – though audiences in Croatia, Macedonia and Romania are now part of the global mainstream.

Serbia's main faith denomination is pitching for a new online audience, with a site that describes itself as a a sign of the Church's embrace of modern technology.

With its poor infrastructure, brain drain and population loss, the north of Bulgaria is falling ever further behind the booming south, creating new social tensions in the country.

Political parties scramble for star endorsements for next month’s election, as bookmakers give Progressive candidates best odds for Belgrade mayor.

A Kosovo court has released two policemen who were arrested after surveillance footage allegedly showed one picking up a bullet shell from the scene of the murder of Kosovo Serb politician Oliver Ivanovic.

Thousands of Albanian children have left home to seek asylum in the EU – claiming their parents abandoned them.