Exposing Scams, Probing the Powerful: A Year of BIRN Investigations
As 2026 begins, we look back on some of the most important investigations published by BIRN in its 20th anniversary year – from brutal migrant-smuggling gangs and arms deals with…
Letter From Washington: The US Just Blasted Balkan Authoritarians – Or Did It?
The recently-passed Western Balkans Democracy and Prosperity Act shows that some US lawmakers still care about the region. But it doesn’t mean that Donald Trump is going to tell Aleksandar…
North Macedonia in 2025: Deadly Nightclub Blaze Causes Nationwide Grief and Fury
A nightclub fire claiming 63 lives, the biggest tragedy in the country’s recent history, became a major national trauma and triggered protests against deep-seated systemic corruption. KAYNAK: Balkan Insight
Monday Briefing from the Balkans: December 15, 2025
Catch up on the weekend’s most important developments with Balkan Insight’s digest of news from countries across the region. KAYNAK: Balkan Insight
Week in Review: Between Optimism and Gridlock
Our selection of Premium stories this week brings a note of optimism that some long-standing problems and deadlocks could be resolved in the near future, tempered with an inevitable dose…
North Macedonia ‘Not Doing Enough’ to Protect Women Victims of Violence
Predictable dangers are often ignored and systemic gaps in services leave victims of gender-based violence without the protection they need, campaigner Ana Avramovska-Nushkova tells BIRN. KAYNAK: Balkan Insight
New Anti-Graft Chief Raises Cautious Optimism in North Macedonia
Lawyer Adem Chuchulj faces a fight to restore the credibility of North Macedonia’s State Anti-Corruption Commission. KAYNAK: Balkan Insight
Defendants Plead Not Guilty in North Macedonia Nightclub Fire Trial
All 35 defendants and the representatives of the three companies who are being tried for the deadly fire at the Pulse nightclub in Kocani in March pleaded not guilty. KAYNAK:…