Bulgarian National Radio

A non-governmental organization called European Initiative for Media Pluralism (EIMP) is registering a Bulgarian unit.

The NGO aims to encourage Bulgarian journalists to state their demand for dignified working conditions directly to the European Commission, according to reports of the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR).

Employees of Bulgaria's State Agency for National Security (DANS) have confiscated a large quantity of explosives and blasting caps in the capital city of Sofia.

The operation was conducted on May 12 in Sofia district of Slatina, Bulgarian National Radio reports.

Two people have been detained, and one of them will remain in custody for 72 hours for possession of explosives.

Bulgaria was among the first countries to offer Serbia assistance for coping with the damage caused by the heavy rains, according to EU Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva.

Georgieva's press office announced Friday that the Serbian authorities had sought cooperation under the European Civil Protection Mechanism, according to reports of the Bulgarian National Radio.

Bulgarian border police authorities seized 55 kilograms of heroin on the Danube Bridge, at the crossing point leading out of the country.

In a joint operation of Ruse's customs unit and the Border Police, officials found the drug divided into fifty separate packages in a lorry with an international license plate, according to reports by the Bulgarian National Radio.

The heavy rains in Serbia have claimed three lives, leaving large parts of the country flooded.

Serbia's Emergency Situations HQ adopted Thursday a statement urging the Serbian government to declare state of emergency on the entire territory of Serbia due to the heavy rainfall and floods over the past few days, according to InSerbia News.

Bulgarian healthcare workers across the country are staging a one-hour symbolic protest against the insufficient funding for the sector.

The protest is part of an EU-wide initiative aimed at demanding better working conditions, better pay for medical workers and an efficient fight against corruption in the sector.

Six complaints from five prisoners have been united in one trial, Neshkov et al. against Bulgaria, which indicates that the Strasbourg court intends to review Bulgaria's poor prison conditions as a systemic problem, Bulgarian National Radio reported.

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Strasbourg is preparing a new pilot-judgment procedure, the third in a row, against Bulgaria over poor prison conditions.

More than half of Bulgarians must set money aside in order to pay their taxes on time, according to a recent study.

Some 40% of respondents would use card payments at the National Revenue Agency if they had access to POS terminals, the survey of Noema agency cited by Bulgarian National Radio showed.

Margarita Popova, Bulgaria's Vice-President, has voiced criticism at President Rosen Plevneliev.

She made her position clear following Plevneliev's decision not to attend a session in a Committee allegedly targeting his activities.