ICE - special | All stories

Her murder one year ago sent shockwaves through Russia and around the world, but attempts to shed light on the case have largely come to nothing. When the campaigning journalist Anna Politkovskaya was found shot dead in the elevator of her Moscow apartment on October 7th, 2006, many linked her death to her work exposing human rights violations in Chechnya and her harsh criticism of the Kremlin. On Thursday the U.S. broadcaster Radio Free Europe held a special conference on Russia one year after her death, attended by many former friends and colleagues.

The European Union's eastern border controls are moving further east. By the end of the year what's known as the Schengen Zone - the area in which you can enjoy passport free travel - will expand to include Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland. Austria has borders with four of those countries and under Schengen rules can end its eastern border patrols once its neighbours join Schengen, as it has done with other neighbours, Germany and Italy for instance. But Vienna is suggesting army recruits will still be deployed along the

Europe is a bit of a tower of Babel when it comes to languages. Within the EU alone there are nearly two dozen official languages and quite a few more unofficial. Not to mention dozens of dialects. And it's generally presumed that just about all Europeans have mastered a couple of languages. But as Michael Manske reports from Radio Slovenia International - that's not the case. Although Slovene's are among the most multi-lingual.

Only 16 percent of Slovaks would like to see United States as a leader on the international stage. The European average is 36%. This surprising conclusion comes from a survey called Transatlantic Trends. which looks at relations between Europe and the United States. So why are Slovaks so suspicious of the US as a global leader? Michal Groch spoke to Ivo Samson, a senior research analyst from the Slovak foreign policy association.

Poland is having something of a baby boom. Statistics show the generation born in the early 80's are starting families and they're being joined by slightly older group who've decided to do their bit for the country's demographics. So why are poles suddenly discovering parenting? Joanna Najfeld of Polish Radio has been off to the maternity ward to investigate.

Karel Havlicek Borovsky was a 19th century Czech journalist, writer and politician. Now the name my mean little to you unless you are Czech. In fact while Borovsky is little known outside the country, almost every Czech schoolchild knows that he was exiled by the rulers of the Austro-Hungarian empire to the town of Brixen in South Tyrol. Now the towns of Havlickuv Brod, where he went to school, and Brixen have established a closer relationship.

The Slovenian government has recently had a big cabinet shake-up and as part of that the health minister tendered his resignation. Hot on the heels of this, an epidemic of salmonella was reported at a psychiatric hospital in the east of the country. Michael Manske of Radio Slovenia International reports on politics and public health.

When it comes to discussing sex, Slovaks may be among Europe's most conservative. About 60% of people claim to be Catholic and this is leading to some very lively discussion over attempts to introduce sexual education into school.

In five weeks time, two years earlier than scheduled, the Polish people elect a new Parliament. Opinion polls show it's going to be a close-run event between the two main parties. So is Poland in for a repeat of the scenario of two years ago when no party gained enough votes to form a majority government?

In recent weeks, two high-profile cases of art theft have caused headlines in the Czech Republic. Both local talent Jiri David and the Zimbabwean artist Gladios Mohumba have fallen victim to some sculpture thieves. They both had art works disappear while on public display. So what's the future for outdoor sculpture displays?