ICELAND: Outsourcing of Hospital Services Opposed

"I was so shocked when I went there just now," said Arndis Lilja Nielsdottir, referring to the situation in a new ward at Landakot geriatric hospital. The ward is now being run by Grund, a company providing residential and nursing home care for the elderly.

DEATH PENALTY-BELARUS: Officials Hint Moratorium a Step Away

Belarus - the last country in Europe to apply the death penalty - will eventually abolish capital punishment by presidential decree or parliamentary vote, rather than by calling on the people to decide the issue in a referendum.

SCIENCE: Paint that Purifies the Air

Rooms with foul odours? Cigarette smoke? A new paint for interior walls is capable of breaking down toxic substances in the air.

ENERGY: Only Nuclear Dreams Mushrooming

The proposal by the Paris-based International Energy Agency for more than 1,400 nuclear power plants to be built over the next 40 years is unfeasible, environmental activists say.

ENVIRONMENT: Beavers Returning From The Dead

Scotland and Wales look set to import a bunch of beavers from Norway 400 years after the rodent was hunted to extinction. This will be the first ever official reintroduction of a native mammal to the United Kingdom.

SPAIN: Truck Strike Continues, Despite Deal

Although the Spanish government reached an agreement with the main truckers’ unions, around 10 percent of drivers continued blocking roads Thursday on the fourth day of a strike over soaring oil prices.

Q&A: 'Multicultural Society Can't Be Dissolved Like a Marriage'

"This looks like a toothpaste commercial. People in the Netherlands don't buy that." Rachida Azough shows a flyer of the European Union to promote the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue. It depicts a model with a bright smile holding a camera, with the tag line 'Cultures in my street'.

ROMANIA: State Grows Up in Looking After Children

Romania used to be infamous for its nightmarish orphanages. Since 2001, however, the national system of care for vulnerable children has been undergoing a successful reform process.

CZECH REPUBLIC: U.S. Radar Makes Some People Hungry

Both opponents and supporters of the U.S. radar to be built on Czech soil have turned to hunger strikes to voice their opinions, with some politicians following suit.

POLAND: Washing the Dirty Laundry

The former conservative government's abuse of the Polish secret services for ideological and political aims has left Polish intelligence in complete disarray.

SLOVAKIA: Hungarians See Hardships Ahead

The sizeable Hungarian minority in Slovakia believes that plans to change education laws cast doubts on the Slovak state's commitment to multiculturalism.

EUROPE: No Asylum, Now Go To Jail

Asylum-seekers whose bid to live in the European Union has been rejected could be detained for up to 18 months under a new law approved by the bloc's 27 governments.

ENVIRONMENT-SPAIN: Activists, Business Join Forces on Solar Energy

An environmental organisation, a private company and an international bank signed an agreement Thursday in the capital of Spain to promote, install, manage and sell power plants fuelled by renewable energy sources.

RUSSIA: The Siberian Giant Is Waking Up

Ludmila Nikolovna, an ethnic Russian from Moldova, has no misgivings about her decision to come and study economics at Tomsk State University, even though she had to leave her two-month old daughter with her grandparents in Moscow.

FRANCE: Noble Ignorance Fails the Minorities

According to the French constitution, France has no minorities. French law makes it illegal to record citizens' ethnic origin or religion. But in the face of mounting discrimination, France recently introduced corrective institutions. However, the system is still in its infancy.

Q&A: Bulgarian Greens Go Political

Members of a group of environmental NGOs have announced the formation of green party, Zelenite. Among the founders are activists who have been engaged for two years in a campaign to prevent large-scale tourism development in protected natural sites in the Rila Mountains and the Black Sea shore (the NATURA 2000 campaign).

HUNGARY: Cultural Heritage Held Hostage to Real Estate

A standoff over the likely demolition of a cultural centre is only the latest in long wrangling over the fate of Budapest's crumbling cultural and architectural landscape.

IRELAND: Less Bombs Here, More There

Irish diplomats won plenty of kudos from governments across the world over the past week for brokering a ban on cluster bombs during an international conference in Dublin. It may seem ironic, then, that despite having a decades-old tradition of military neutrality, Ireland has deepened its involvement in the arms trade in recent years.

UKRAINE: Nuclear Power Seen As the Answer to Russia

Ukraine is embarking on a costly and inefficient path of nuclear development, hoping it will halt its energy dependence on Russia.

FILM: An Apocalyptic, Hopeless Den of Iniquity

The room is packed, the film ends with pounding music, and the word "Gomorra" is shown in an uncomfortable fuchsia over black. The audience applauds and leaves quietly while the music continues to hammer home the message.

BALKANS: And They Call It All Patriotism

Following the parliamentary elections in Serbia earlier this month, many are asking just what it means to be patriotic.