Bulgaria is the owner of 66 properties in Rila mountain, which are part of the case study with the so-called “royal” restitution. The Sofia District Court recognized Bulgaria as the owner of 66 real estates after more than ten years of legal battle, according to the website of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food. The properties represent forests and lands from the forest fund in Rila mountain with a total area of about 16 thousand decares. and are in the last pending case regarding the case with the so-called “royal” restitution.
The proceedings in the case were initiated by claims of the state through the Minister of Agriculture and Food against the heirs of the former kings Ferdinand I and Boris III. In 2019, a court settlement was concluded with some of the defendants, representatives of the royal family, and the case against them was terminated. With the rendered decision, the court recognizes that the state is the owner of the trial properties ex lege, by virtue of the current Forest Laws, and that there was no basis for the restitution of the trial forest properties. The decision of the Sofia District Court can be appealed.
If the court’s decision remains in force, S.B.S. and his sister M.B.H. (i.e. King Simeon II and his sister Princess Maria-Louise) will have to reimburse the state the compensation awarded to them by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for pecuniary damages in the amount of 1,635,875 euros, as a result of the moratorium imposed by the National Assembly in 2009.
Photo: The Royal Palace “Vrana” (Sofia, Bulgaria) in the first decades of the 20th century. Source: State Agency “Archives” – Sofia.
On January 15, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew announced the start of the International Scientific Conference “Apostle Paul in Antalya (Turkey): Memory, Testimony” organized by the Pisidian Metropolis in the city of Antalya, Orthodox Times reports.
In his address, the Ecumenical Patriarch referred to the universality of the Gospel of Christ and the importance of the preaching of the Apostle Paul, within the framework of which the Ecumenical Patriarchate has taken various initiatives today to promote ecumenical relations and dialogue.
“We have repeatedly emphasized that unity is not just an internal matter of the Church, precisely because it is inextricably linked to the unity of all humanity. The Church does not exist for itself, but for all humanity and, more broadly, for all creation,” the patriarch emphasized and added:
“However, at this critical moment in history, universality is not a luxury or an advantage. It is imperative and necessary for us as Christians because the survival of the world depends on the broad interpretation and broad application of the Gospel. The ecumenical mandate [dialogue] is essential to its existence and sustainability. We are called to be universal. Otherwise we cannot breathe, we cannot exist!’
Elsewhere in his speech, the Ecumenical Patriarch emphasized that in our world, religion is being exploited, manipulated and instrumentalized for various reasons, including nationalism, fanaticism and fundamentalism.
“We see this before our eyes in Ukraine, where Orthodox Christianity is unethically and unjustly used against other Orthodox Christians with the blessing of the Moscow Patriarchate. We see the same violation and outrage in the Middle East and North Africa, where hostilities and wars are waged in the name of religion at the expense of civilian lives and human needs.”
Bishops, clerics, university professors and theologians from different countries participated in the conference.
Illustration: Icon of Saint Ap. Paul by Theophanes the Cretan from the Stavronikita monastery the smallest of all athonite monasteries built in its present form in 1533 by the Abbot Gregorios and the ecumenical Patriarch Jeremiah I.
Mr. Lai is the founder of the campaigning pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper, which was shut down in 2021 in the wake of the June 2020 National Security Law clampdown in the region.
He has spent much of the past three years in solitary confinement after campaigning for decades for freedom of speech and democratic space in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR).
Arrested in August 2020, he was charged with sedition and foreign collusion under the new legislation. Charges related to tweets, interviews and articles he published in Apple Daily outlining the impact of the National Security Law on Hong Kong’s fundamental rights and freedoms, the experts said.
Mr. Lai’s trial on allegedly breaching national security measures got underway after lengthy delays in December. He faces life in prison if found guilty.
“Jimmy Lai’s arrest, detention and series of criminal proceedings over the past few years appear to be directly related to his criticism of the Chinese Government and his support for democracy in Hong Kong SAR,” the experts said.
“We are alarmed by the multiple and serious violations of Jimmy Lai’s freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association and his right to a fair trial, including the denial of access to a lawyer of his own choosing and the handpicking of judges by the authorities,” the four Human Rights Council-appointed Special Rapporteurs added.
Mr. Lai was convicted of unauthorized assembly in 2021 for taking part in previous protests and sentenced to 17 months in prison. He received an additional five years and 9 months for fraud in October 2022.
The UN rights experts previously raised concerns with authorities in 2020 and 2023. In their statement, the rapporteurs said they appreciate and have considered the extensive government responses of 10 July 2020 and 1 May 2023 and stand ready to continue their dialogue with the authorities.
“We expressed our concerns about the National Security Law before it was enacted and will continue to do so, as we believe it is not in line with international legal obligations,” the experts said, echoing the Human Rights Committee’s call on the Hong Kong SAR to repeal the law.
Mr. Lai is the second defendant to be tried under the controversial National Security Law following last year’s trial of 47 pro-democracy activists, who are awaiting a verdict reportedly due next month.
Law ‘misused’
“We reiterate that national security legislation with criminal sanctions should never be misused against those exercising their rights to freedom of expression and association and of peaceful assembly nor to deprive such persons of their personal liberty through arrest and detention,” the experts said.
Special Rapporteurs are part of the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. They do not receive a salary for their work and serve in their individual capacity.
Scientists have engineered the microbiome of plants for the first time, boosting the prevalence of ‘good’ bacteria that protect the plant from disease.
The findings published in Nature Communicationsby researchers from the University of Southampton, China and Austria, could substantially reduce the need for environmentally destructive pesticides.
There is growing public awareness about the significance of our microbiome – the myriad of microorganisms that live in and around our bodies, most notably in our guts. Our gut microbiomes influence our metabolism, our likelihood of getting ill, our immune system, and even our mood.
Plants too host a huge variety of bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other microorganisms that live in their roots, stems, and leaves. For the past decade, scientists have been intensively researching plant microbiomes to understand how they affect a plant’s health and its vulnerability to disease.
“For the first time, we’ve been able to change the makeup of a plant’s microbiome in a targeted way, boosting the numbers of beneficial bacteria that can protect the plant from other, harmful bacteria,” says Dr Tomislav Cernava, co-author of the paper and Associate Professor in Plant-Microbe Interactions at the University of Southampton.
“This breakthrough could reduce reliance on pesticides, which are harmful to the environment. We’ve achieved this in rice crops, but the framework we’ve created could be applied to other plants and unlock other opportunities to improve their microbiome. For example, microbes that increase nutrient provision to crops could reduce the need for synthetic fertilisers.”
The international research team discovered that one specific gene found in the lignin biosynthesis cluster of the rice plant is involved in shaping its microbiome. Lignin is a complex polymer found in the cell walls of plants – the biomass of some plant species consists of more than 30 per cent lignin.
First, the researchers observed that when this gene was deactivated, there was a decrease in the population of certain beneficial bacteria, confirming its importance in the makeup of the microbiome community.
The researchers then did the opposite, over-expressing the gene so it produced more of one specific type of metabolite – a small molecule produced by the host plant during its metabolic processes. This increased the proportion of beneficial bacteria in the plant microbiome.
When these engineered plants were exposed to Xanthomonas oryzae – a pathogen that causes bacterial blight in rice crops, they were substantially more resistant to it than wild-type rice.
Bacterial blight is common in Asia and can lead to substantial loss of rice yields. It’s usually controlled by deploying polluting pesticides, so producing a crop with a protective microbiome could help bolster food security and help the environment.
The research team are now exploring how they can influence the presence of other beneficial microbes to unlock various plant health benefits.
In November 2023, negotiations between the EU and Australia for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) collapsed. This was primarily due to stringent demands from the EU on protected geographical indicators – the ability to market wines and other products as being from a particular region – as well as an inflexible approach to market access for agricultural exports.
A few weeks later, it became apparent that the ongoing impasse in the EU-Mercosur negotiations – largely due to environmental and deforestation demands from Brussels – had not been resolved, with Brazilian President Lula saying that the EU “lacks flexibility”.
At the same time, EU negotiators completed another round of negotiations with Indonesia linked to the proposed FTA: virtually no progress has been made for almost six months, and this latest meeting was no different.
The picture is clear:
trade facilitation and opening up markets has stalled. This is a particular problem because Indonesia is one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing consumer markets. With our exports to China and Russia falling (for obvious and understandable reasons), opening up huge new markets should be a priority. It doesn’t look that way.
The evidence shows this is not a problem with our negotiating partner. In the past 12 months, Indonesia has completed an agreement with the United Arab Emirates (in less than a year). It recently upgraded its existing agreement with Japan, and is negotiating with Canada and the Eurasian Economic Union, among others. It is only in negotiations with the EU that Indonesia has found the progress to be slow and difficult.
It’s not only the FTA negotiations: a World Trade Organization (WTO) case against the EU, filed by Indonesia is expected to rule soon. This case, in addition to existing disputes over the Renewable Energy Directive and nickel exports, means Indonesia sees our policies as protectionist and anti-trade. Presidential elections are scheduled for February: the frontrunner Prabowo has said quite clearly that Indonesia “does not need the EU,” highlighting “double standards” in EU trade policy.
So, what is the path forward for the relationship?
The EU elections, and appointment of a new Commission, need to herald a change of approach. Promoting EU exports, and expanding market access to future giants like Indonesia and India, needs to be a priority. The technocratic obstructionism needs to be replaced with strong political leadership and commitment to new trading partners.
Engaging these partner countries on areas of EU policy that affect them – such as the Green Deal – is also essential. The Commission seems to have misjudged how big a reaction the EU Deforestation Regulation would trigger: 14 developing nations, including Indonesia, signed an open letter denouncing it, and WTO challenges are surely imminent. Proper consultation and diplomatic outreach could have prevented this from becoming a problem. That consultation needs to reach beyond Embassies: Indonesia has millions of smallholder farmers who produce palm oil, rubber, coffee, and will be badly affected by the EU regulation. A lack of outreach means that those voices are now outright hostile to the EU.
Indonesia overall is not antagonistic. It continues to pursue negotiations with the Commission, and some Member States – notably Germany and the Netherlands – are having positive bilateral discussions. But the direction of travel is a concern: we cannot afford another 5 years of stasis in the trade discussions, while political tensions rise around EU trade barriers (most of which have not even kicked in yet).
The elections could, and should, provide a fresh start for both sides. The same is true for India (elections in April-May), and maybe even the United States (November). The key point linking all of these is that they only work if the new Commission is serious about promoting EU export opportunities – and reducing trade barriers rather than erecting more of them.
The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has signed a decree to allocate funds for the legal protection of real estate of the Russian Federation abroad, including those of the Russian Empire and the USSR. At the same time, funds are also allocated for the search for Russian properties abroad.
Russia allocated funds to the request, layout and legal protection of property belonging to a foreign country, including the times of the USSR and the Russian Empire. An order about it was signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on January 18, Izvestia reports.
Subsidy for these purposes was received by a foreign property management company, which is part of the Presidential Administration (UDP) of Russia. It is assumed that the funds must cover all financial costs of carrying out the necessary actions.
Another subsidy for the reimbursement of expenses for the maintenance and operation of federal Russian real estate abroad was allocated to the company by decree of the state government.
“To designate the Federal State Unitary Enterprise “Enterprise for Property Management Abroad” under the Administration of the President of the Russian Federation as a recipient of a subsidy provided by the federal budget for financial support of expenses related to the search for real estate of the Russian Federation , the former Russian Empire, the former USSR, the correct registration of the rights of the Russian Federation in relation to the existing federal real estate and the open real estate of the Russian Federation, the former Russian Empire, the former USSR and legal protection of this property,” the document reads.
According to the decree adopted in 2015, the State Department and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation must deal with the search and layout, as well as the protection of foreign real estate in Russia, within the limits of their competence. A state subsidy was allocated for these purposes. However, starting in 2021, the rules for the allocation of funds were adjusted, and a request for similar property ceased to be the basis for the allocation of new funds. The current decree restores subsidies and appoints a specific authorized enterprise.
Recurring denials and severe access constraints continue to paralyze aid teams trying to respond to the immense needs in northern Gaza, the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, has warned.
The rate of access denials by Israel so far this month marks a “significant deterioration” over December, OCHA said in its latest update, issued late on Wednesday.
Between 1 and 10 January, only three out of 21 planned deliveries of food, medicines, water, and other lifesaving items to the north of Wadi Gaza got through, it revealed.
Denials, delays and insecurity
Partners on the ground were forced to cancel or delay missions in two instances due to excessive delays at Israeli checkpoints or because agreed routes were unpassable.
The @UN and partners are delivering food, water, blankets, health supplies and more in #Gaza.
But we need safe, sustained and unimpeded humanitarian access to help people in need wherever they are and at a meaningful scale.
“Humanitarian partners’ ability to respond to extensive needs in the northern side of Gaza is being curtailed by recurring denials of access for aid deliveries and lack of coordinated safe access by the Israeli authorities,” OCHA said.
The UN agency noted that Israel has denied multiple planned missions this week to deliver urgent medical supplies to the Central Drug Store in Gaza City as well as fuel to water and sanitation facilities, both there and in the north.
‘Significant deterioration’
Since 26 December, requests to reach the Central Drug Store have been denied five times, meaning that “hospitals in northern Gaza remain without sufficient access to life-saving medical supplies and equipment.”
Fuel delivery has been refused six times, leaving people without access to clean water and increasing the risk of sewage overflows and the spread of communicable disease.
“Overall, the rate of access denials seen in January so far presents a significant deterioration when compared to those of December 2023, where more than 70 per cent (13 out of 18) of planned UN missions to the north were coordinated and undertaken, where needs are estimated to be the highest and most severe,” OCHA said.
The agency added that “every day of assistance missed results in lost lives and suffering for hundreds of thousands of people who remain in northern Gaza.”
Meanwhile, OCHA reported that 193 trucks carrying supplies entered the Gaza Strip through the Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings on 10 January.
A cash-for-work pilot project ran by the UN Children’s Fund, UNICEF, has also started at Al Quds University in north Gaza, where 100 workers will be paid to support the cleaning of solid waste and sanitation over the next three months.
People gather at the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the south of the Gaza Strip.
Fighting and fatalities
The update noted that intense Israeli bombardments from air, land and sea continued across much of the Gaza Strip on 9 January, resulting in further civilian casualties and destruction.
Palestinian armed groups also continued to fire rockets into Israel, and ground operations and fighting between the sides were also reported across much of the enclave.
OCHA cited the Gaza health authorities, who said 147 Palestinians were reportedly killed, and 243 injured, between the afternoons of 9 and 10 January. Israel said one of its soldiers was reportedly killed in Gaza during the same period.
The update further noted that the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) reported that four staff and two injured people were killed when one of its ambulances was struck at the entrance of Deir al Balah on 10 January.
Deadly toll
At least 23,357 Palestinians have been killed, and 59,410 injured, since the start of the conflict on 7 October, according to the Gaza authorities.
The hostilities were sparked by deadly Hamas attacks on southern Israel in which over 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 hostages seized, with roughly 136 still being held in captivity in Gaza.
Since the start of the ground operation, 184 Israeli soldiers have been killed, and 1,076 others injured in according to the Israeli military.
Overall, 1.9 million in Gaza, or nearly 85 per cent of the population, have been displaced, with many families uprooted multiple times as they repeatedly move in search of safety.
More than 1.7 million people are now sheltering in facilities belonging to the UN agency that assists Palestine refugees, UNRWA.
Estonian authorities have decided not to extend the residence permit of Metropolitan Yevgeniy (real name Valery Reshetnikov), head of the Estonian Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarchate (ROC-MP), ERR reported, citing the Police and Border Guard Directorate.
Indrek Aru, head of the Border Guard Bureau of the Northern Prefecture (the capital Tallinn), explains the decision by the fact that, according to the authorities, Reshetnikov expressed in his public activities support for Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
“Despite earlier warnings, Reshetnikov did not change his rhetoric, which is incompatible with values and inappropriate for the Estonian legal field. Therefore, Reshetnikov is recognized as a threat to the security of the state,” said the police press service.
The office specified that they took into account the activity of Metropolitan Yevgeniy as a representative of the Moscow Patriarchate in Estonia. His residence permit expires on February 6. According to the authorities, “since Reshetnikov has no reason to stay in the country, such as close relatives in Estonia, he will have to leave Estonia after his residence permit expires.”
Metropolitan Yevgeniy lived in Estonia on the basis of a temporary residence permit for a total of four years. He was issued a shortened residence permit, i.e. twice for two years. The last renewal was two years ago, shortly before the outbreak of war.
In October 2022, the Estonian authorities gave Metropolitan Yevgeniy a two-day deadline to disassociate himself from his superior, Russian Patriarch Kirill, over his infamous statement that Russians who died in the war against Ukraine would go to heaven. Otherwise, they threatened to extradite him. Then a letter appeared on the page of the Estonian Metropolitanate, with which he responded to the authorities and distanced himself from the position of Patriarch Kirill. A little later, however, the letter was removed from the church page.
Metropolitan Yevgeniy (b. 1957 in Kazakhstan) was a long-time chairman of the Educational Committee of the ROC-MP and rector of the Moscow Theological Seminary and Academy (1995-2018).
The experts had previously written to the authorities after receiving information about three cases regarding allegations of sexual abuse of several children by their fathers and violations against the mothers who sought to protect them.
In addition, the experts found that, according to the allegations, the children were victims of sexual abuse or at high risk of sexual abuse at the hands of their fathers or alleged perpetrators against whom there was credible and disturbing evidence of incestuous sexual abuse.
Despite the allegations, and in the absence of adequate investigations, the children were placed in the custody of their fathers.
“We are particularly concerned about the way in which the family court has allowed the alleged perpetrator to accuse the mother of parental alienation in order to undermine the allegations of sexual abuse of the children and divert attention from the alleged abuse to which they are subjecting their partners and children,” the experts said.
They urged the French authorities to respect the “precautionary principle” and the “due diligence principle” in child protection, particularly during legal proceedings, to allow for a preventive approach in cases of uncertainty and complexity.
The views of the child also must be sought and respected, and their best interests must be the main consideration before custody decisions are made in favour of one parent.
Boost law enforcement
The experts also highlighted the need to build the capacity of law enforcement and justice officials to effectively monitor and address human rights abuses affecting these children and their mothers.
“Urgent steps must be taken to alleviate the distressing situation in which children and their mothers are being negatively affected by the lack of adequate consideration for their needs,” they added.
The experts said they have been following the workings of France’s Independent Commission on Incest and Sexual Abuse of Children (CIVIISE), whose findings confirm the concerns expressed to the Government.
Mechanism for complaints
They urged the authorities to establish an effective child-friendly complaint handling system and an investigation mechanism to process victims’ complaints.
“These efforts, including in divorce and custody cases, are essential and should go hand in hand with effective coordination between law enforcement agencies and other service providers, keeping the best interests of the child at the centre of all proceedings or decisions affecting or concerning children,” they said.
They receive their mandates from the UN Human Rights Council and are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual capacity.
They are not UN staff and are not paid for their work.
The EU aims to put an end to greenwashing, when companies claim to be greener than they are, and provide more information to consumers on the durability of products they buy.
In order to better protect consumers’ rights, promote environmentally-friendly decisions and create a circular economy that reuses and recycles materials, the European Parliament is working on an update of existing rules regarding commercial practices and consumer protection.
Natural, eco, environmentally-friendly… Many products have these labels, but very often those claims are not proven. The EU wants to make sure that all information on a product’s impact on the environment, longevity, reparability, composition, production and usage is backed up by verifiable sources.
What is greenwashing?
The practice of giving a false impression of the environmental impact or benefits of a product, which can mislead consumers
To achieve that, the EU will ban:
generic environmental claims on products without proof
claims that a product has a neutral, reduced or positive impact on the environment because the producer is offsetting emissions
sustainability labels that are not based on approved certification schemes or established by public authorities
Promoting products’ durability
Parliament wants to make sure that consumers are fully aware of the guarantee period during which consumers can request a repair of faulty products at the expense of the seller. Under EU law, products have a guarantee of minimum two years. Updated consumer protection rules introduce a new label for products with an extended guarantee period.
The EU will also ban:
advertising goods that have design features that could reduce a product’s lifespan
making unproven durability claims in terms of usage time or intensity under normal conditions
MEPs approved the agreement in January 2024, while the Council has to approve it as well. EU countries will then have 24 months to incorporate the update into their national law.
What else is the EU doing to promote sustainable consumption?
The EU is working on other files with the aim to protect consumers and promote sustainable consumption:
Green claims: the EU wants to require companies to substantiate environmental claims by using a standard methodology
Ecodesign: the EU wants to introduce minimum standards in product development to make nearly all products on its market sustainable, durable and eco-friendly
Right to repair: the EU wants to guarantee the right of consumers to have products repaired and promote repairing over throwing away and buying new products.
