North Macedonia opposition stages anti-government protest

Some 2,000 protesters staged an opposition rally in North Macedonia late Thursday to demand the resignation of the country's Social Democrat prime minister, Zoran Zaev.

The conservative opposition leader Hristijan Mickoski spoke at the event and accused the Zaev government of being too conciliatory to neighboring Bulgaria, which recently blocked the start of negotiations for North Macedonia to join the European Union.

Bulgaria's demands for the talks to begin include that the former Yugoslav republic acknowledge that the roots of its language are Bulgarian.

North Macedonia formally joined NATO earlier this year and furthered its efforts toward EU membership after reaching a landmark agreement with another neighbor, Greece, changing its name.

[AP}