Bulgaria, North Macedonia condemn ethnic-related violence

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — The foreign ministers of Bulgaria and North Macedonia have paid a joint visit to a hospital Sunday where a North Macedonian citizen who identifies as Bulgarian is being treated after he was severely assaulted. Hristiyan Pendikov, an employee of a Bulgarian cultural center in Ohrid, North Macedonia, was transported to Sofia on a Bulgarian government plane with a severe brain injury, after he was attacked and beaten on Thursday. Bulgaria’s foreign minister demanded that the attackers be brought to justice. His North Macedonian counterpart said his country will have zero tolerance for interethnic violence.