SARAJEVO: Bosnia’s first census since the 1992-1995 inter-ethnic war kicked off on Tuesday, amid intense campaigns by political and religious leaders urging people to declare their ethnicity.
The results could affect the balance of power in the Balkan country, where civil service jobs are allocated in proportion to the size of each ethnic group, based on a pre-war 1991
census.
“For the first time in 22 years we will get a complete image of Bosnia-Hercegovina’s population,” head of the country’s statistics bureau Zdenko Milinovic told AFP.
“We will get demographic, economic and social data as well as indicators of migration.”
Respondents do not have to declare their ethnicity, but Muslim, Serb and Croat leaders have strongly encouraged their communities to do so, making the census highly political.
Bosnia was the most ethnically diverse republic of the former Yugoslavia, which collapsed in a series of 1990s wars.
Bosnia’s first post-war census kicks off
Bosnia’s first post-war census kicks off
At least three dead as migrant boat capsizes off Greek island
- An accident occurred when the vessel approached the migrants’ wooden boat
- The search for survivors was continuing with four patrol boats
ATHENS: The bodies of three migrants were picked up in waters off the Greek island of Crete during a rescue effort involving a commercial ship, authorities said Friday.
Twenty migrants were rescued by the commercial vessel which was directed to the area on the orders of the Greek Search and Rescue Center.
According to Greek public broadcaster ERT, an accident occurred when the vessel approached the migrants’ wooden boat. As the passengers tried to climb up ladders into the vessel a sudden movement caused the small boat to capsize.
The search for survivors was continuing with four patrol boats, an aircraft, and two ships from the European border agency Frontex, a spokesperson for the Greek coast guard told AFP.
According to ERT, survivors said about 50 people were aboard the wooden boat.
A second boat carrying around forty migrants was spotted in the area, triggering another rescue operation.
For over a year, migrants have been attempting the perilous crossing from Libya to Crete, the gateway to the European Union.
According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 16,770 people seeking asylum in the EU arrived in Crete in 2025.
Faced with the surge in arrivals, the conservative Greek government suspended the processing of asylum applications for three months last summer, particularly for those arriving from Libya.
UNHCR says 107 people died or went missing in Greek waters in 2025.
