💥🇵🇸 A computer scientist who escaped war-torn Gaza thanks to a student foundation, promised to bring his family to Europe. Instead, he’s spent over a year battling harsh Slovak bureaucracy while his loved ones remain trapped. @investigacecz.bsky.social

💥✈️ INVESTIGATION: A private jet landing near Basel turned into a major bust: police found 600 kg of cocaine in 21 suitcases. The smuggling trail led to a Balkan drug cartel that employed Czech pilots. @investigacecz.bsky.social

🇷🇴👨‍💻🇵🇱 Romanian social media operatives quietly boosted Karol Nawrocki’s Polish presidential run on Facebook. 🕵️🇷🇺 The same network works for other Law and Justice figures and is linked to Romania's pro-Kremlin, far-right leader George Simion. 🔗FULL STORY: vsquare.org/how-romanian...

🕵️ Aéza, linked to the pro-Kremlin Doppelganger disinfo network, has been sanctioned by the US, Australia, and the UK for aiding cybercriminals. The EU, however, has taken no action. @investigacecz.bsky.social

💥Sanctioned oligarch Petr Aven met in Latvia with a high-ranking Russian Orthodox priest based in Budapest at the time — while Viktor Orbán’s government was simultaneously lobbying to remove Aven from the EU sanctions list. @rebaltica.bsky.social @vsquare.bsky.social

💥Pro-Russian far-right leader George Simion may have lost Romania’s presidential race, but the online campaign machine behind his rise helped Karol Nawrocki win in Poland—and is now powering the populist Law and Justice’s comeback push. Check out our new investigation & follow @vsquare.bsky.social!

Slovak-made Grand Power weapons are still sold in Russia because a licensed factory in Nizhny Novgorod produces them. The Investigative Center of Ján Kuciak & The Insider found the license was granted pre-2022, but some arms still reached Russia illegally.

🔎INVESTIGATION: Behind the "Make Europe Great Again" slogan, Romania’s far-right AUR party and its leader George Simion didn’t just endorse Poland’s Law and Justice—their social media operatives helped it win elections. While Viktor Orbán's star is fading, Simion and Karol Nawrocki are on the rise.

🔎🌊Crystal clear at its source in Ukraine, the Tisza river carries tons of plastic waste by the time it reaches Hungary. A new investigation shows how poor waste management in Transcarpathia, compounded by Russia’s war, has worsened the river’s pollution.

💥🇵🇸 A computer scientist who escaped war-torn Gaza thanks to a student foundation, promised to bring his family to Europe. Instead, he’s spent over a year battling harsh Slovak bureaucracy while his loved ones remain trapped. @investigacecz.bsky.social

💥✈️ INVESTIGATION: A private jet landing near Basel turned into a major bust: police found 600 kg of cocaine in 21 suitcases. The smuggling trail led to a Balkan drug cartel that employed Czech pilots. @investigacecz.bsky.social

💥Sanctioned oligarch Petr Aven met in Latvia with a high-ranking Russian Orthodox priest based in Budapest at the time — while Viktor Orbán’s government was simultaneously lobbying to remove Aven from the EU sanctions list. @rebaltica.bsky.social @vsquare.bsky.social

🕵️ Aéza, linked to the pro-Kremlin Doppelganger disinfo network, has been sanctioned by the US, Australia, and the UK for aiding cybercriminals. The EU, however, has taken no action. @investigacecz.bsky.social

Slovak-made Grand Power weapons are still sold in Russia because a licensed factory in Nizhny Novgorod produces them. The Investigative Center of Ján Kuciak & The Insider found the license was granted pre-2022, but some arms still reached Russia illegally.

💥🍲 Fresh 'Goulash' newsletter is out with spicy Central Europe scoops: the plan (and the man) behind U.S. ambassador picks to Poland and Hungary, Babiš’s Budapest base revealed, and an Orbán proxy (MCC) set to enter Slovakia’s book market. @vsquare.bsky.social vsquare.org/goulash-the-...

🔎🩺INVESTIGATION: Doctors who lost their licenses for serious misconduct can relocate and continue practicing abroad. Reporters uncovered 100+ cases of banned doctors relicensed in other countries — many are still treating patients. #BadPractice

👌🍲 Goulash is back this evening! Don’t miss our bi-weekly newsletter — this issue is going to be tasty, packed with fresh scoops and standout investigations from Central Europe’s top non-profit outlets. 📨 Subscribe: http://vsquare.org/n...

⚡️Before Russia’s war, Czech firms were among the biggest importers of Russian birch plywood. Though now banned under EU rules, loopholes let it slip back via Kazakhstan or Georgia. The EU warns such Russian wood still likely ends up in Czech homes.

💥🔎 On X/Twitter, Visegrád24 became famous for its anti-Muslim and anti-migration stance as well as waves of disinformation. A recent report brings to light people, funding and political actors tied to their Central Europe-based but international network.

👌🍲 Our Goulash newsletter is back this Thursday! Get fresh scoops and hard-hitting investigations from Central Europe’s top non-profit outlets delivered straight to your inbox every two weeks. 📨 Subscribe: http://vsquare.org/n...

🔎💰INVESTIGATION: During Hungary’s EU presidency, Viktor Orbán’s government pressured visiting delegations to stay at an Orbán family-owned luxury hotel. The Finnish PM & his team was even redirected there by organizers despite booking a different hotel.

⚡️Investigation, visualized: we reveal full details of 2024’s arson attacks & parcel bombs across Europe. The sabotage was carried out by Russia’s GRU, masterminded by a smuggler of radioactive materials with perpetrators recruited via Telegram. 🔗Link: vsquare.org/crossing...

🔎🌊Crystal clear at its source in Ukraine, the Tisza river carries tons of plastic waste by the time it reaches Hungary. A new investigation shows how poor waste management in Transcarpathia, compounded by Russia’s war, has worsened the river’s pollution.

💥Sanctioned oligarch Petr Aven met in Latvia with a high-ranking Russian Orthodox priest based in Budapest at the time — while Viktor Orbán’s government was simultaneously lobbying to remove Aven from the EU sanctions list. @rebaltica.bsky.social @vsquare.bsky.social

💥🇵🇸 A computer scientist who escaped war-torn Gaza thanks to a student foundation, promised to bring his family to Europe. Instead, he’s spent over a year battling harsh Slovak bureaucracy while his loved ones remain trapped. @investigacecz.bsky.social

💥✈️ INVESTIGATION: A private jet landing near Basel turned into a major bust: police found 600 kg of cocaine in 21 suitcases. The smuggling trail led to a Balkan drug cartel that employed Czech pilots. @investigacecz.bsky.social

🕵️ Aéza, linked to the pro-Kremlin Doppelganger disinfo network, has been sanctioned by the US, Australia, and the UK for aiding cybercriminals. The EU, however, has taken no action. @investigacecz.bsky.social

💥🔎INVESTIGATION: High-ranking Russian priest Hilarion — seen here shooting at the FSB’s Moscow HQ — may have acted as a middleman between sanctioned oligarch Petr Aven & Viktor Orbán’s government, per @rebaltica.bsky.social (Aven denies.) 🔗More on @vsquare.bsky.social: vsquare.org/fsb-linked-r...

🍲 We named our newsletter on Central Europe 'Goulash' — and the final 2025 issue drops next week, packed with fresh scoops and sharp stories from across the region. (Here I’m juggling a bowl of goulash in Budapest. I didn't spill!) 📨Subscribe: vsquare.org/newsletter/ ✅Follow: @vsquare.bsky.social

💥Sanctioned oligarch Petr Aven met in Latvia with a high-ranking Russian Orthodox priest based in Budapest at the time — while Viktor Orbán’s government was simultaneously lobbying to remove Aven from the EU sanctions list. @rebaltica.bsky.social @vsquare.bsky.social

Slovak-made Grand Power weapons are still sold in Russia because a licensed factory in Nizhny Novgorod produces them. The Investigative Center of Ján Kuciak & The Insider found the license was granted pre-2022, but some arms still reached Russia illegally.

🕵️ Aéza, linked to the pro-Kremlin Doppelganger disinfo network, has been sanctioned by the US, Australia, and the UK for aiding cybercriminals. The EU, however, has taken no action. @vsquare.bsky.social @investigacecz.bsky.social

💥Sanctioned Russian oligarch Petr Aven met in Latvia with a high-ranking Russian Orthodox priest who at the time represented the Church’s interests in Hungary. Meanwhile, Viktor Orbán's government was lobbying to remove Aven from the EU sanctions list.

⚡️Before Russia’s war, Czech firms were among the biggest importers of Russian birch plywood. Though now banned under EU rules, loopholes let it slip back via Kazakhstan or Georgia. The EU warns such Russian wood still likely ends up in Czech homes.

🔎🩺INVESTIGATION: Doctors who lost their licenses for serious misconduct can relocate and continue practicing abroad. Reporters uncovered 100+ cases of banned doctors relicensed in other countries — many are still treating patients. #BadPractice

⚡️🔎 In the 2010s, Hungarian intelligence began spying in Brussels against the EU and tried to recruit Hungarians working in EU institutions. However, Orbán's spies did it so blatantly that they were exposed. The EU Commission has now launched an internal investigation.

🇭🇺 EXCLUSIVE: An in-depth look at how Viktor Orbán and Fidesz underestimated Péter Magyar until it was too late. Direkt36 reveals how Orbán’s spring offensive against him backfired—fueling internal tensions and exposing cracks inside the government.

🔎💰INVESTIGATION: During Hungary’s EU presidency, Viktor Orbán’s government pressured visiting delegations to stay at an Orbán family-owned luxury hotel. The Finnish PM & his team was even redirected there by organizers despite booking a different hotel.

🔎🩺INVESTIGATION: Doctors stripped of their licenses for gross misconduct can still work abroad. Reporters found 100+ cases of banned doctors relicensed elsewhere. In Germany, one lost his Swiss license for sexual assault yet still practices. #BadPractice

⚡️Investigation, visualized: we reveal full details of 2024’s arson attacks & parcel bombs across Europe. The sabotage was carried out by Russia’s GRU, masterminded by a smuggler of radioactive materials with perpetrators recruited via Telegram. 🔗Link: vsquare.org/crossing...

🔎🌊Crystal clear at its source in Ukraine, the Tisza river carries tons of plastic waste by the time it reaches Hungary. A new investigation shows how poor waste management in Transcarpathia, compounded by Russia’s war, has worsened the river’s pollution.

💥✈️ INVESTIGATION: A private jet landing near Basel turned into a major bust: police found 600 kg of cocaine in 21 suitcases. The smuggling trail led to a Balkan drug cartel that employed Czech pilots. @investigacecz.bsky.social

Slovak-made Grand Power weapons are still sold in Russia because a licensed factory in Nizhny Novgorod produces them. The Investigative Center of Ján Kuciak and The Insider found the license was granted pre-2022, but some arms still reached Russia illegally.

⚡️🔎 In the 2010s, Hungarian intelligence began spying in Brussels against the EU and tried to recruit Hungarians working in EU institutions. However, Orbán's spies did it so blatantly that they were exposed. The EU Commission has now launched an internal investigation.

🔎🩺INVESTIGATION: Doctors stripped of their licenses for gross misconduct can still work abroad. Reporters found 100+ cases of banned doctors relicensed elsewhere. In Germany, one lost his Swiss license for sexual assault yet still practices. #BadPractice

💥SCOOP: Viktor Orbán arranged his upcoming Moscow trip behind NATO allies’ backs, just like last summer. He’ll discuss with Putin gas, oil, nuclear & Hungary’s MOL buying a stake in Serbia’s NIS oil firm. 🔗More details in @vsquare.bsky.social's fresh Goulash newsletter: vsquare.org/goulash-rend...

🔎🩺INVESTIGATION: Doctors who lost their licenses for serious misconduct can relocate and continue practicing abroad. Reporters uncovered 100+ cases of banned doctors relicensed in other countries — many are still treating patients. #BadPractice

⚡️Viktor Orbán faces a big challenge to his rule in April 2026. Polls show him losing. Regardless of whether Orbán remains in power, his government's appeal as an "illiberal model" for like-minded leaders worldwide is weakening. Read this smart analysis.

⚡️Before Russia’s war, Czech firms were among the biggest importers of Russian birch plywood. Though now banned under EU rules, loopholes let it slip back via Kazakhstan or Georgia. The EU warns such Russian wood still likely ends up in Czech homes.

💥✈️NEW INVESTIGATION: A 2019 private jet landing near Basel turned into a major bust: police found 600 kg of cocaine in 21 suitcases. The smuggling trail led to a Balkan drug cartel that employed Czech pilots. @investigacecz.bsky.social @vsquare.bsky.social