Photographes à Sarajevo

‘It’s defiance’: why some Bosniaks are reviving historic flag as they cheer on World Cup squad

Style rédactionnel, Équilibré: Contains factual reporting with some analytical and subjective commentary from interviewees

Contexte politique, Centre gauche: Critical of nationalist politics and supportive of multiethnic civic identity

A historic lily flag has resurged among young Bosniaks during Bosnia and Herzegovina’s World Cup run, symbolising defiance toward international policies and frustration with entrenched ethnic divisions. Many Bosniaks see the foreign‑imposed national flag as lacking emotional meaning, while the lily emblem reflects deeper cultural identity and discontent with political stagnation. Ethnic divisions continue to shape public displays of support for the national team, with nationalist actors discouraging unity across Serb and Croat areas. Despite these pressures, many citizens privately support Bosnia’s team, highlighting a gap between political rhetoric and everyday attitudes.

Unity in Sarajevo: The Hand Remains Outstretched

Style rédactionnel, Équilibré: Mixture of factual historical narrative with subjective reflections and emotional accounts.

Contexte politique, Centre: Focuses on interethnic reconciliation, minority rights, and critique of ethnonationalist politics without endorsing a partisan stance.

Jakob Finci, an 82-year-old leader of Sarajevo’s Jewish community, reflects on decades spent promoting reconciliation in Bosnia and Herzegovina following the Bosnian War. Renowned for running a multiethnic aid network during the siege of Sarajevo and evacuating vulnerable civilians, he later founded initiatives aimed at national healing, including a proposed Truth and Reconciliation Commission that ultimately stalled due to political resistance. As a co-plaintiff in a landmark European Court of Human Rights case, he successfully challenged discriminatory constitutional rules restricting high office to the three major ethnic groups, though the ruling remains unimplemented. Despite rising tensions affecting Jewish life in Sarajevo and persistent political division, Finci continues fostering interreligious dialogue through a council he established in 1997. His lifelong commitment to coexistence persists amid ongoing disillusionment, demographic decline, and unresolved ethnic grievances in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Anna Lührmann: Representatives of Serb leader Milorad Dodik threaten German minister of state

Style rédactionnel, Informatif: Mostly factual reporting with limited interpretation.

Contexte politique, Centre: Covers diplomatic tensions and governance issues without ideological framing.

German Minister of State Anna Lührmann reported that representatives of Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik threatened her during a visit to Banja Luka in Republika Srpska. She characterized the incident as a sign of Dodik’s growing isolation as the region’s government declared her persona non grata and ordered police to escort her out. The confrontation follows new travel bans imposed by Germany and Austria on Dodik and senior Republika Srpska officials and comes after the Bosnian State Court issued an international arrest warrant for Dodik over moves to undermine state judicial and police authority.

Pro-Russia Bosnian Serb president Dodik sentenced for separatist actions

Style rédactionnel, Informatif: Primarily factual reporting with limited use of subjective political statements from quoted individuals

Contexte politique, Centre: Covers political and legal developments without showing ideological alignment

A Bosnian court sentenced Republika Srpska president Milorad Dodik to one year in prison and barred him from politics for six years for defying the international envoy overseeing Bosnia’s peace agreement, escalating longstanding separatist tensions. Dodik rejected the ruling, threatened radical measures including potential secession, and received vocal support from Serbia’s president Aleksandar Vučić and Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orban. The conviction follows repeated calls by Dodik for Republika Srpska to unite with Serbia and comes amid fears of renewed instability in a region still shaped by the 1990s conflict.

Is Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev Russia’s Next Trojan Horse in Europe?

Style rédactionnel, Équilibré: Analytical commentary with a clear argument that Radev is Russia-friendly but less confrontational and institutionally disruptive than Viktor Orbán.

Contexte politique, Centre: The article critically examines pro-Russian politics while emphasizing evidence and distinctions, without advocating a broader partisan ideological position.

Rumen Radev’s record combines pro-Russian rhetoric and admiration for Viktor Orbán with a more restrained approach to challenging the EU. As president, he did not consistently obstruct aid to Ukraine or EU policy, and his government’s dramatic threats over weapons, sanctions and the Coalition of the Willing were followed by qualifications or reversals. Bulgaria’s new leadership is friendlier to Moscow, but Radev lacks Orbán’s entrenched domestic power and Brussels network, and has not adopted Orbán’s sweeping anti-liberal rhetoric or systematic veto strategy. The author concludes that Bulgaria is likely to maintain a relatively non-confrontational relationship with the EU, while warning that Radev’s Russian sympathies and the Kremlin’s regional ambitions remain risks.

Tsunami of War

Style rédactionnel, Interprétatif: A strongly evaluative book review that praises the book’s scholarship while offering limited criticisms.

Paul Miller-Melamed praises Jesse Kauffman’s The Blood-Dimmed Tide for tracing Central Europe’s “long Great War” from the 1905 Russian Revolution through the 1921 Treaty of Riga. The book argues that the region’s upheavals and the formation of national states were path-dependent rather than inevitable, shaped by military failures, imperial collapse, competing national ambitions, and mass civilian displacement. Its account connects the Eastern Front and Polish-Soviet conflict to later violence in the bloodlands, including the Holocaust, and challenges simplified portrayals of the new interwar states and the Brest-Litovsk settlement. Miller-Melamed acknowledges the study’s demanding geographical and political scope but concludes that it offers an important framework for understanding Central Europe’s twentieth century and the continuing legacy of conflict in the region.

Is Mladen Ivanić returning to the race for the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina?

Style rédactionnel, Informatif: Primarily factual reporting with some quoted subjective assessments from political figures.

Contexte politique, Centre: Objective political news coverage without ideological framing.

Several opposition circles in Bosnia and Herzegovina are considering Mladen Ivanić, former PDP leader and honorary president, as a potential joint candidate for the Serb seat in the state presidency. His acceptance depends on unanimous support from all opposition parties, and some, including Narodni front leader Jelena Trivić, argue that his long absence from active politics makes the candidacy unrealistic. Political analyst Radomir Nešković views Ivanić as the strongest possible opposition candidate but highlights weak opposition unity as a major obstacle.

Disturbing scenes: Turkish fighter jet crashes, fatalities reported

Style rédactionnel, Factuel: Straightforward reporting of facts without subjective language

A Turkish F-16 fighter jet crashed in the western province of Balikesir, resulting in the death of the pilot. The Ministry of National Defense reported loss of radio contact shortly after takeoff, prompting immediate search and rescue efforts that led to the discovery of the wreckage. Authorities have launched an investigation, with senior prosecutors arriving at the crash site, while officials extended condolences to the pilot’s family.

Evaluation of four clinical laboratory parameters for the diagnosis of myalgic encephalomyelitis

Style rédactionnel, Factuel: Complete fact-based analysis with detailed methodology and statistical data.

Myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) is a complex illness with significant public health implications. This study investigates four immunological parameters—IL-8, sCD14, PGE2, and CD57+/CD3− lymphocytes—to improve diagnostic accuracy for ME. The study involved retrospective analysis of clinical data from 140 ME cases and 140 healthy controls. Results indicate that IL-8, sCD14, and PGE2 can be used to subgroup ME cases, potentially leading to better diagnostic tools and treatment options. The study underscores the immunological underpinnings of ME and highlights the need for further research to validate these biomarkers against other diseases with overlapping symptoms.

Photogrammetry of St. Mary’s Church with St. Luke’s Belltower in Jajce

Style rédactionnel, Factuel: Primarily factual description of the church’s history and photogrammetry documentation.

Tatjana Mijatović presents photogrammetry documentation of St. Mary’s Church and St. Luke’s Belltower in Jajce. The church dates to the 12th–13th centuries and was later altered in the Gothic style. In 1528 it was converted into a mosque named for Sultan Suleiman II; it suffered several fires and has not been in use since the mid-19th century.