Roma

Deputy Prime Minister Zorana Mihajlovic chaired on Wednesday the third session of the Serbian government's Coordinating Body for reviewing the implementation of the Strategy for Social Inclusion of Roma in Serbia (2016-2025), at which the project of inclusion of the Roma community in society was discussed.

Greek filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos's "The Favourite," an absurdist period comedy about two cousins courting the favor of Queen Anne in the 18th century England, has received 10 Oscar nominations including Best Picture, Best director and Best supporting actress.

"The Favourite" is leading the pack alongside Mexican director Alfonso Cuaron's "Roma."

The Roma minority in Bulgaria are celebrating on Friday the Roma New Year also known as Vassilitsa, the Day of Vassil (Basil) or Bango Vassili (the Lame Basil).

New Year's Day will see many festivities, organized by the Roma Foundation.

Traditional food will be offered for free to those attending the celebrations.

A 48-year-old woman was arrested on Friday after police found 1 kilo of cocaine buried in her backyard in the northern Athens suburb of Maroussi.

According to reports, the cocaine was found in a glass vase containing rice at a depth of 55 centimeters.

Social Tensions in Assenovgrad, Southern Bulgaria, have not subsided. Thousands of the town's residents met for a rally yesterday to protest against illegally residing Roma Gypsies and their lawless acts.

The protest rally was peaceful but with heavy police presence, especially close to the Roma neighbourhood.

Aleksandar Vulin, representatives of the Roma National Council, and of Belgrade's Cukarica municipality have taken part the removal of anti-Roma graffiti.

The graffiti called for violence against this ethnic minority, including messages such as, "Death to Gypsies," "Serbia for Serbs," "Not for Gypsies," along with swastikas and "SS division symbols."

BELGRADE - Macedonia's "Romany music queen" Esma Redzepova has died aged 73. Redzepova died in the capital, Skopje, following a short illness, hospital and family sources said on December 11.

One of the first vocalists to sing in the Romany language, she performed in some of the world's greatest music halls over the course of her career, which spanned more than five decades.

A year after clashes between ethnic Bulgarians and Roma people living in Garmen new protest action has been scheduled for Monday against illegal dwellings built by Roma people in this village in southwestern Bulgaria.

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.

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.