When Covid ravaged the Balkans, relatively few Kosovars became sick – but those who did were more likely to die. How much longer can a youthful population mask the cracks in the healthcare system?

Read the newest Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence's story 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/05/02/for…

If there is one location in Trieste that Yugoslavs associated with shopping in the 1970s, it was Ponte Rosso.

Get the premium subscription to read the opinion piece: balkaninsight.com/2024/05/02/ita…

“We hoped for better results but it is clear that the people punished us and we accept that,” the Social Democrats’ leader Dimitar Kovacevski said after the first round of the presidential election.

Read more 👉 balkaninsight.com/2024/05/06/nor…

Esat Bicurri was a singing star in Kosovo, but 25 years ago, he was shot dead by Serbian forces and his body hidden in a mass grave as part of a war crimes cover-up. His son tells BIRN about the family’s search for truth.

Read more 👉 balkaninsight.com/2024/05/06/a-s…

Slovakia remains the only Visegrad Group country to have introduced the euro, with generally positive results. Now the country needs a new driver to further develop.

Read more 👉 balkaninsight.com/2024/05/06/20-…

If the first round of the presidential election is an indicator of the outcome of the May 8 parliamentary contest, the right-wing VMRO DPMNE party seems poised to oust the pro-European Social Democrats from power.

Read more 👉 balkaninsight.com/2024/05/06/nor…

With the collapse of Yugoslavia, Trieste was no longer a destination for budget shopping sprees. War, refugee outflows, and migration meant that countless Bosnians ended up living in faraway corners of the globe.

Get the premium subscription to read more:
balkaninsight.com/2024/05/02/ita…

Some people believe fences protect them from external threats in Greece, Hungary, and Poland, regardless of the form they might come from.

Read the three stories from three countries on how fences won’t stop migration but will make lives more miserable.

balkaninsight.com/reporting-demo…

According to the United Nations Population Fund, in societies where sex-selective abortion is practiced, sex-ratio imbalances have emerged; they include Albania, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Kosovo.

Read more 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/04/30/boy…

Violent language and promotion of criminal activities on platforms like TikTok and Instagram are rampant in Albania, posing severe risks to users' safety.

The lack of legislation to address cyberbullying and hate speech exacerbates the problem. 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/04/30/alb…

Since 2019, the Greek Consumer Ombudsman has received 632 complaints concerning so-called beauty clinics; a further 22 were submitted to the National Transparency Authority, NTA.

Read the story 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/04/30/gre…

Unruly and aggressive religious celebrations are damaging ethnic harmony in the multi-ethnic region - and reminding some of the dangerous atmosphere of the 1990s.

Get a premium subscription to read the analysis. 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/05/01/riv…

North Macedonia built a border crossing to Bulgaria some three decades ago – but it remains unused and abandoned, depriving the isolated eastern town of Berovo of a future.

Read our investigation 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/03/25/for…

“I saw on the ultrasound that it was a girl; I was very happy,” the woman said, “but it was not such happy news for my husband, my mother-in-law, or father-in-law.”

The woman, now 35-years-old, ended up having an abortion.

Read the story 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/04/30/boy…

Violent, toxic language on social media, particularly TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat, is on the rise in Albania, spilling over into offline harassment, violence, and, in several cases over recent months, deaths. 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/04/30/alb…

Maria [not her real name] was lured to the beauty clinic by a person canvassing for customers on a busy shopping street in the Greek port town of Piraeus. It was 2020, and the clinic promised a cure for the deep wrinkles on the 65-year-old’s face. 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/04/30/gre…

Governments fighting Covid often compare it to war, but Arbnora Fazliu, who experienced both, believes Covid was worse. “In the war, we had the enemy,” she said.

Read the latest Fellowship for Journalistic Excellence's story. 👇

balkaninsight.com/2024/05/02/for…

On the anniversary of the mass shooting in the Ribnikar elementary school in Belgrade, we remind you of our investigation on what teachers and parents could do in response to peer violence becoming increasingly widespread. 👇

balkaninsight.com/2023/11/03/tea…

On the anniversary of the mass shooting at a school in Belgrade, we remind you how Serbian media’s ethics are under question after tabloids rushed to spread unconfirmed and sometimes sensitive information about the shooting. 👇

balkaninsight.com/2023/05/05/ser…

Four Balkan states slipped down the latest press freedom rankings compiled by Reporters Without Borders.

Read more 👉 balkaninsight.com/2024/05/03/bal…