Balkan Legal News – 08 October 2025
- Ned Vucijak
- 6 days ago
- 3 min read
The following media round-up on international, legal and foreign policy issues from around the Balkans for the period from 02 October to 07 October 2025.
Guernica 37 will provide weekly media updates with a focus on Bosnia and Hercegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia. Should you wish to contribute or submit a media summary, opinion piece or blog, please send to Ned Vucijak at nenadv@guernica37.com for consideration.
Bosnia and Hercegovina – 7 October 2025
Bosnia is mourning the loss of beloved folk singer Halid Bešlić, who died on 7 October 2025 at the age of 72 in Sarajevo. Known across the former Yugoslavia, his music was a staple at social gatherings, and during the Bosnian War he held over 500 benefit concerts to support refugees. He leaves a legacy as both a cultural icon and a compassionate humanitarian. The full article is available here.
Montenegro – 6 October 2025
Montenegrin police on Monday arrested Predrag Bošković, an opposition Democratic Party of Socialists official and former government minister, for allegedly belonging to a criminal organisation that targeted political opponents via the media. Bošković was arrested as part of a Special State Prosecutor’s Office investigation into Montenegrin businessman Aleksandar Mijajlović, former police and National Security Agency officials Milovan Pavićević and Drago Špićanović, and state prosecutor Andrijana Nastić, all of whom were arrested on 3 October 2025 for forming a criminal organisation. The full article can be found here.
Montenegro – 3 October 2025
All seven people accused of digging a tunnel into the underground depot of the Higher Court in Montenegro’s capital and stealing evidence were acquitted on Friday in a first-instance verdict. Veljko Marković, Milan Marković, Dejan Jovanović, Vladimir Erić, Predrag Mirotić, Katarina Bacović and Nikola Milačić were acquitted of forming a criminal association for aggravated theft, while Marijan Vuljaj was acquitted of assisting the perpetrators. A lack of evidence was given as the reason for the acquittal. The full article can be found here.
Albania – 3 October 2025
A group of suspected human traffickers, who had trafficked over 50 women, were arrested in Albania and Colombia as a result of cooperation between the Albanian and Colombian authorities, it was announced on Friday by Eurojust, the European Union Agency for Criminal Justice Cooperation. Eurojust said the group had created a human trafficking network to recruit vulnerable women from Colombia for sexual exploitation in Europe. The full article can be found here.
North Macedonia – 3 October 2025
The Judicial Council in North Macedonia has dismissed a US-sanctioned judge, Enver Bexheti, citing “a serious disciplinary violation” that renders him unfit for office, according to a decision published on Thursday. The council noted “actions that damage public trust”, and “behaviour harming the reputation of the judiciary”. Bexheti’s removal follows the imposition of US sanctions on him last year. He has not commented publicly on the allegations so far. The full article can be found here.
Kosovo – 2 October 2025
James ‘Jock’ Covey, the fourth witness for the defence of former Kosovo President Hashim Thaçi in his trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity in The Hague, told the court this week that Thaçi was not a fighter but a politician who had called out ethnic-based violence in post-war Kosovo. Covey was deputy to the UN representative in Kosovo, Bernard Kouchner, from 15 July 1999 to January 2001, just after the war ended. On Wednesday, Covey told the court that “our judgment was quite clear that this person standing next to us [Thaçi] was not a fighter and I do not believe there is any evidence that this man ever fired a bullet as a result of boredom or anger”. The full article can be found here.