Smoke over Arachinovo, Iva Mihailova's escape, suspensions in Saraj, pricier rents

Arachinovo smoulders while responsibility gets passed from desk to desk

The fire at the illegal landfill near Arachinovo broke out on October 10 and was quickly contained, but the remains are still smoking towards Skopje these days. Residents report a burning throat and nose and watering eyes. According to Levica, the crisis management centre tells them to go to the media, the municipality sends them to the public utility company, and the utility company says it already reported the case. What exactly they are breathing - so far nobody has told them.

The backdrop is colder than the smoke itself. According to the Ministry of Environment, only three landfills in the country hold a permit under the Law on Landfilling: Drisla, Gevgelija and Gostivar. Everything else runs on somebody's decision, habit or silence. Meanwhile, 99.8% of collected municipal waste ends up in landfills, while the European Union requires member states to cut landfilling to no more than 10% by 2035.

Iva Mihailova: a stop-list that existed only on paper

Twenty-three-year-old Iva Mihailova, charged over a fatal traffic accident, is in Sofia. Both her passports had been confiscated since October 2025, she was banned from leaving Kochani, and her name was on the Interior Ministry's stop-list. According to the Macedonian and Bulgarian border police, she officially never crossed the border. She and her Bulgarian lawyer say otherwise, and the lawyer himself admits this may amount to a breach of the measures set by the court.

The prosecution says it did its part, and the opposition is demanding the resignation of Interior Minister Pance Toshkovski. The question that remains is simple: who was checking whether the measures were being respected? A measure nobody enforces is not a measure. It's a form.

Saraj: suspensions after the video, the report under lock

The Interior Ministry announced suspensions for six police officers over the intervention in Saraj, in which two young men, aged 21 and 23, ended up beaten. The reaction came four days after the incident, and only once the footage was already circulating in public. The police union offers its own version about an operation against drug trafficking, DUI is demanding the patrol's initial report, and VLEN fires back that the institutions reacted in record time.

The document that would settle the dispute has so far not been seen by anyone in the public. If the officers' version matches the footage, publishing it will protect them. If it doesn't, the suspension is only the beginning.

Rents that keep climbing and a consumer basket the government calculates lower

Rents in Macedonia rose by 9.2% between the second quarter of 2025 and the second quarter of 2026, according to Eurostat - three times faster than the EU average of 3%. A flat that rented for 300 euros now costs 327.60 euros, while sale prices of flats in Skopje rose by 13.3% year on year.

Meanwhile, the government's consumer basket for a family of four comes to 58,475 denars for August, while the unions' basket comes to 68,675 denars - a gap of 10,200 denars. The government measures how much households actually spent, the unions how much they need for a decent life. The new methodology goes before the Economic and Social Council on October 19, while the minimum wage is on the table. A lower basket doesn't fill a single fridge.

A motorway, a fast train and district heating: promises with very different deadlines

Construction of the Kichevo - Bukojchani motorway has begun: 11.5 kilometres in four years, backed by a 119-million-euro loan, a 20-million grant, five bridges and a tunnel. That the road will be "toll-free" is so far only an announcement. Even further off is the fast train from Bitola to Skopje airport in 80 minutes - it sits in a draft plan with a 2040 deadline, and the money and construction still have to be secured.

Winter is closer: district heating in Skopje starts on October 13, two days early, and Chair and Butel are promising possibly cheaper heating - so far without a single figure.

Crime desk: a postman in Shtip, a brawl in Banica, migrants near Bogorodica

In Shtip, criminal charges were filed against a postman who, according to police, signed in place of the recipient of a registered letter from the Ministry of Education - and she missed her deadlines for appeal. In the village of Banica near Strumica, eight people fought with objects, four ended up with serious bodily injuries, and the cause has not been disclosed yet. Near Bogorodica, a Skopje man was caught with seven migrants in his car, and a 17-year-old from Egypt was also arrested on smuggling charges.

The region and the world: a ceasefire by post, mines in Hormuz

A few hours after Trump's announcement of an energy ceasefire, at least six people were killed in Kharkiv and Ivano-Frankivsk. Kyiv learned about the deal from the media, and Moscow never said "yes". At the same time, according to the Financial Times, Washington is threatening Kyiv that it will halt weapons and intelligence if strikes on Russian refineries continue.

In the Strait of Hormuz, Iran claims a third tanker has hit a mine, and there is no independent confirmation so far. Next door, Vucic sees the Russian diesel deal as an alibi for Serbia's refusal to sanction Moscow. In Slovenia, the referendum on the public broadcaster fee hangs on a 692-vote margin, and the postal ballots get the final word. In Germany, meanwhile, a leadership member of the AfD youth wing stepped down after a map of "Greater Germany" with territory from 12 other countries was posted. The Balkans know that maps like that rarely stay on paper.

Sport: Vardar still pointless, Jakimovski a question mark

Vardar are still without a point after three rounds of the Champions League, even though Faduil scored 14 goals from 14 attempts, and the return game in Plock on Wednesday could decide the season. In England, City beat Liverpool 3-0 at Anfield, while Elmas provided an assist and then got a red card. In basketball, Macedonia is worried about Jakimovski, who has a torn muscle ahead of the November qualifiers.

The heavier part of the day is tied together by one thread: institutions that answer with press releases instead of documents. The smoke near Arachinovo still hasn't been measured, the stop-list didn't stop Mihailova, and the Saraj report is under lock. Who answers for any of it - so far, not a single press release says.