BALKANS: Who’s Afraid of Serbian Violins

The path of reconciliation in former Yugoslavia has taken a musical turn, as the philharmonic orchestras of Ljubljana, Zagreb and Belgrade team up for their first joint season since 1991.

Greek Government on Verge of Collapse

The government in Greece is on the verge of collapse as opposition to the Greek prime minister's proposed referendum on more eurozone bailout funds grows.

MIDEAST: UNESCO Becomes a New Battleground

Palestine’s bid to become a member of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has created a tense atmosphere here, as the United States threatens to cut financing if the application is approved.

SPAIN: Detained Immigrants “Are Treated Like Criminals”

"It was very tough, like being in prison," says 29-year-old Algerian immigrant Sid Hamed Bouziane, in slow Spanish, about his 28-day stay at the Immigrant Detention Centre, or CIE, in the southern Spanish city of Málaga.

SPAIN: ETA Announces End to Europe’s Last Armed Conflict

"This is probably the most important day ever for us, the Basque people, since the death of (dictator) Franco in 1975," journalist and historian Urko Apaolaza told IPS.

Greek Strike Resumes Ahead of Austerity Vote

Thousands of Greeks, furious at the government's austerity measures, gathered outside parliament in the capital Athens, as the second day of a general strike and mass protests began.

BALKANS: Serbs Turn From the State Towards Themselves

Dismayed by the lack of beer and chips at a football game three years ago, Dragan Stancic and Uros Petrovic, two young Belgradians, hatched a plan to take matters into their own hands.

PORTUGAL: Crisis Pushes Women into Prostitution

The severe financial and economic problems in Portugal are driving many women to desperation and pushing them into prostitution as a last resort to support their families.

EUROPE: Agriculture Proposals ‘Failing Development’

The new European Commission proposals on a Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) have dropped every reference to development obligations, NGOs point out. They will not stop the European Union from threatening food security in developing nations, they say.

SPAIN: Renowned Mediators Urge ETA to Lay Down Arms

International mediators meeting in a peace conference Monday in Spain's northern Basque region were hopeful that the armed separatist group ETA would respond positively to their call for the group to lay down arms.

G20 Steps to Boost Economy Welcomed Cautiously

Responding to pressure from civil society and members within their own ranks, the Group of 20 industrialised and emerging countries on Saturday said they were committed to reforming the financial sector and were examining innovative methods to fund development.

SPAIN: ‘Rich Must Share Cost of Crisis’

As global working-class outrage against corporate capitalism explodes in organised protests around the world, scores of citizens in Spain are demanding an end to tax breaks for the wealthy.

“Pirates” Board Berlin Parliament

It was a political sensation: 8.9 percent of the 1.53 million Berliners who participated in the city-state parliamentary elections on Sep. 18 (overall turnout was 60 percent) voted for the Pirate Party (Piratenpartei).

SPAIN: Streets Paved with Evicted Families

As the number of apartments and houses left empty in Spain due to failure to make mortgage or rental payments climbs, tens of thousands of families, including many immigrants, are living on the streets, in shantytowns, or crowded into seedy boarding houses.

EUROPE: Striking at the Heart of Healthcare

Almost half of all doctors working in Slovakia’s hospitals have handed in their notice in a mass protest over working conditions and wages which they warn could cause the Eastern European country’s healthcare system to collapse.

SPAIN: ‘Indignant’ Protests Heat Up Election Campaign

"Ex dockyard worker, now a beggar" reads the sign displayed by a man in a spotless shirt who is panhandling near a square in this southern Spanish city where dozens of demonstrators are chanting: "The bank always wins and I'm against this!" and "What's going on? We have no homes!"

After Torture, Homelessness Is Lucky

When Saoul decided to take the risk of leaving Chechnya for France, he could not imagine how much trouble protection could mean once he got here.

GREECE: Lost Generation Begins to Leave

Every working day a long queue of people forms outside the State Translation Service in Thission in downtown Athens from early in the morning. Most are youngsters processing documents they need to leave Greece for study or work. Many move on to queue later outside embassies for visas.

Barroso: Greece Will Remain in the Eurozone

Greece will remain in the eurozone but must meet its reform commitments in full, Jose Manuel Barroso, the head of the European Commission, has said.

SERBIA: Mixed Feelings on Restitution Law for WWII Property

The Serbian parliament has adopted one of the most long awaited – and most controversial – laws in its recent history: the law on restitution of property confiscated by the communist regime after World War II.

BELARUS: Trading Political Prisoners for Loans

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is releasing political prisoners in hope of getting loans from the IMF. After the unexpected pardons over recent weeks, only about a dozen political prisoners remain in Belarusian jails. Among them are Lukashenko’s rivals in the December 2010 presidential elections, serving up to six years of hard labour.