Latest News from Bulgaria

Bulgarian Tourists Stuck on Santorini by General Strike in Greece

About 500 Bulgarian tourists remain stuck on Greece's Aegean island of Santorini due to a strike of ferry companies, Sofia-based broadcaster bTV reported on Friday.

Five Bulgarian travel agencies had sent tourists on package tours to Santorini for the long weekend, a representative of a Bulgarian tour operator told bTV. May 6 is a holiday in Bulgaria.

Bulgaria t? Return Migrants to Turkey from June 1

Bulgaria will be able to send back migrants who have crossed its border with Turkey illegally from June 1, according to the protocol signed between Sofia and Ankara on Thursday.

The country is the first among EU member states to sign the protocol, which sets procedures for sending refugees back to Turkey.

Frenchwoman Runs for Mayor in Bucharest District

Clotilde Armand, an engineer who heads the infrastructure and building company Egis Romania and Bulgaria, has filed to run for the mayoralty in District 1 of Bucharest in the local election on June 5.

Protests Continue over Beating Incident in Bulgaria's Radnevo

More than 1,000 residents of Radnevo gathered in front of the Roma neighbourhood of this town in southern Bulgaria for a third straight day on Thursday to demand justice for three ethnic Bulgarians beaten by a group of Roma men in a scuffle over right of way.

Bulgaria's Ombudsman Could Seek Rejection of Disputed New Election Rules

If Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev doesn't veto much disputed changes to the Electoral Code, the Consultative Council with National Ombudsman Maya Manolova will consider filing a complaint with the Constitutional Court, Manolova has said.

Bulgaria's PM Calls for EU Solidarity on Refugee Relocation Quotas

Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has called on eastern European member states of the EU opposing the bloc's quotas for relocation of refugees to share the burden with their richer partners in western Europe.

Nearly 1,700 foreigners expelled from Greece

Nearly 1,700 migrants were returned to their countries of origin in the month of April following a nation-wide operation conducted by the Greek police. The vast majority of the illegal migrants came from Albania (852), while 157 came from Pakistan, 107 from Morocco, 61 from Iran, 51 from Georgia, 45 from Afghanistan, 29 from Bangladesh and 16 from Bulgaria.

Building Permits Issued in Bulgaria Rise 3.4% Y/Y in Q1

Bulgarian municipal authorities have issued building permits for the construction of 993 residential buildings comprising 3,434 dwellings with total gross building area of 508,473 square meters (sq. m.) in the first quarter of 2016.

Over 60% of Car Drivers Tested for Drugs in Sofia Area Test Positive

Roadside tests have shown the presence of narcotic drugs in the bodies of 63% of car drivers tested by Sofia Traffic Police in 2016, the Ministry of the Interior announced on Thursday.Twenty-six out of 41 car drivers stopped for testing in the area of Sofia have tested positive for the presence of narcotic or intoxicating substances in their systems, the ministry said in a statement.Other regio

Bulgaria Signs Protocol on EU's Readmission Agreement with Turkey

Bulgaria has become the first EU Member State to sign a protocol for implementing an agreement for readmission of irregular migrants by Turkey, Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala has said.

The protocol was signed in Turkey by Efkan Ala and his Bulgarian counterpart Rumyana Bachvarova, the interior ministry in Sofia said in a statement on Thursday.

Panama Papers: First 'Politically Exposed' Bulgarian Name Emerges

Bilyan Balev, the co-chair of the Bulgarian Development Bank, has become the first "politically exposed person" from Bulgarian who se name is revealed in the Panama Papers affair.

The Bulgarian Development Bank is almost exclusively owned by the Republic of Bulgaria and is overseen by the country's Finance Ministry.

Clashes at Anti-Roma Rally in Radnevo, Bulgaria

Three policemen and four protesters suffered injuries after violent clashes broke out the rally in Radnevo, the Bulgarian interior ministry said on Thursday.

Around 2,000 people joined the protest on Wednesday evening, following an incident in which four men of Roma origin assaulted three Bulgarians in a street row on Monday.

US Deputy State Secretary to Discuss Security, Energy on Bulgaria Visit

United States Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken will pay a visit to Bulgaria's capital Sofia on Friday and Saturday.

Blinken will hold a conversation with Bulgaria's top diplomat Daniel Mitov and will also be received by President Rosen Plevneliev and Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry has said.

Ottoman sultans' edicts, Atatürk photos on sale in Antalya auction

The Antalya Antik Müzayede, an auction house in the Mediterranean province of Antalya, will hold a sale of two precious edicts by two Ottoman sultans, along with rare photos from the funeral of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founding father of modern Turkey, on May 15.

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