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Mladic Funeral Draws Thousands, Reigniting Balkan War Memories

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Thousands gathered in Belgrade on Monday for the funeral of former Bosnian Serb General Ratko Mladic, who died last week while serving a life sentence for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity. Mourners carried Serbian flags and images of Mladic as his coffin was taken through the streets before he was buried at a nearby cemetery.

The funeral was among Serbia’s largest public burials since the fall of communism in 1990, highlighting the continued support Mladic receives from some Serbs despite his convictions. He was found guilty by a United Nations tribunal for his role in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, in which about 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys were killed, as well as for crimes committed during the siege of Sarajevo.

The event also renewed tensions between Serbia and Bosnia and drew criticism from the European Union, which condemned the glorification of convicted war criminals. Bosnia’s Foreign Minister said the country would withdraw most staff from its embassy in Belgrade in protest, while the funeral reopened painful memories for many victims and survivors of the 1990s Balkan wars.

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Sarajevo Imposes Curbs After Ranking as World’s Most Polluted City

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Sarajevo authorities issued an air quality warning and introduced emergency restrictions after the Bosnian capital was ranked the world’s most polluted city on two consecutive evenings by Swiss air quality monitor IQAir. The move came as hazardous air conditions gripped the city of around 350,000 people, following days of dense fog and smog. Officials said pollution levels had risen sharply, prompting immediate intervention to protect public health.

The cantonal government banned trucks weighing over 3.5 tonnes and vehicles that fail to meet European Union emissions standards from entering the city, while also suspending construction work in open areas and prohibiting outdoor public gatherings. Experts say pollution in Sarajevo is largely driven by winter heating, with around 40,000 households relying on firewood and coal, as well as heavy traffic, with nearly 180,000 registered vehicles in the city.

Sarajevo’s location in a valley surrounded by mountains worsens the problem due to temperature inversion, which traps cold air and pollutants near the ground for days. Bosnia ranks among Europe’s worst countries for fine particulate matter (PM2.5) pollution, which the World Bank links to thousands of premature deaths annually and significant economic losses. Health experts warn that prolonged exposure increases the risk of lung cancer and poses serious dangers to vulnerable groups, including children, pregnant women and the elderly.

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Balkans hit by blackouts as heatwave persists

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On Friday, four Balkan countries—Albania, Bosnia, Montenegro, and significant parts of the Croatian coast—experienced simultaneous power outages lasting several hours amid a summer heatwave. The blackouts, which began at 13:00 local time (11:00 GMT), were triggered by a surge in power demand as residents used air conditioning to cope with the high temperatures, which approached 40°C.

In Bosnia and Croatia, the outages disrupted traffic lights, leading to transportation chaos in major cities such as Sarajevo and Split. Montenegro’s capital, Podgorica, saw even water pumps cease operation. Power suppliers managed to largely restore electricity by the evening but were still investigating the cause of the failure within the interconnected power systems of the four nations.

The power loss affected Croatia’s tourism sector, with Dubrovnik’s restaurants, pubs, and supermarkets closing and leaving tourists in disarray. Montenegro’s Energy Minister, Sasa Mujovic, attributed the blackouts to a sudden spike in power consumption due to the heat. Reports from Montenegro’s Vijesti TV mentioned a fire in a power transmission line near the Bosnian border, though its connection to the blackouts was unclear.

In Albania, power was restored within half an hour, but officials warned of a high risk of further outages due to continued high energy usage. The western Balkans are transitioning from coal-based energy production, a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, to solar energy. However, industry officials indicate that the aging power infrastructure is not yet fully equipped to handle this shift.

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