Europe Austria Austria's largest construction group, STRABAG SE, has been fined 2,79 million euros due to cartel allegations; the German Federal Cartel Office has target its subsidiary based in Cologne for illegal bidding with the renovation of the Zoobrücke bridge
Europe Latvia The annual Riga Book Festival, a gathering of readers, publishers, authors and artists, will be held at the National Library of Latvia on 8 and 9 November hosted by the LNB and the Latvian Publishers' Association with 34 publishers
Europe Bulgaria An additional agreement with Skoda will be signed for the purchase of five new electric trains to expand the railway fleet
Europe Croatia Croatian marathon swimmer Dina Levačić has now been inducted into the International Marathon Swimming Hall of Fame as an honorary member, the first Croatian woman to receive this honour
Europe Estonia The four parties of Tallinn's governing coalition have yet to finalise and present to the City Council the city's budget for next year, with an allocation of around €10 million that has been the subject of hours of discussion also this week
Europe Finland Hurricane-force winds were recorded for the first time in the Finnish sea areas last week; the Finnish Meteorological Institute reported sustained winds of 33,5 metres per second
Europe Hungary The state of emergency introduced in 2022 due to the war in Ukraine has been extended, leaving wider decision-making powers to the Orbán government and to rule by decree, thus also passing laws with no parliamentary procedure until at least May 2025
Europe Iceland Local goat breeders are trying to pursue the same selective breeding that is saving Icelandic sheep from scrapie, but without success; only about 2.000 Icelandic goats, vulnerable to the disease, are left
Europe Andorra The school in Andorra will phase out iPads and start introducing Chromebooks that will be acquired by the ministry; authorities say the move should limit distracting elements outside the teaching environment
Europe Belgium The Belgian potato will be the focus of the 12th edition of 'Potato Week', which will take place from 8 to 15 November, at the initiative of the Walloon Ministry of Agriculture
Europe Vatican City The Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors released its first report; after 10 years of extensive research across five continents, it identifies progress in best practices and steps to be take, calls for more transparency and rigorous response
Europe Serbia At least 12 people were reported dead and others injured after part of the recently-renovated main railway station in the city of Novi Sad in northern Serbia collapsed
Europe Bosnia and Herzegovina The World Uyghur Congress, an international organisation of exiled Uyghurs, which held its general assembly in Sarajevo in October, claimed that the Chinese embassy exerted pressure to cancel the event with a “coordinated and aggressive campaign”