Thousands of people are being stopped and searched by British police under their counter-­terrorism powers – simply to ­provide a racial balance in official statistics, the government's anti-terror law watchdog has revealed. Moreover, said Lord Carlile, the utility of the section 44 stop and search powers is questionable: "none of the many thousands of searches has ever resulted in a conviction for a terrorism offence."

More than a 100 Romanian immigrants in Northern Ireland were spending the night in a church after fleeing their Belfast homes following racist attacks. Some of their homes had been attacked, and earlier in the week there was an attack on an anti-racism rally in support of immigrants. Bottles were hurled and people made Nazi salutes at those taking part.

Growing right-wing extremism in the Czech Republic will continue to result in violent attacks targeting the Roma, and a new government initiative is unlikely to improve the situation, writes Anna Dunin. In two recent incidents, arsonists burned a Roma house down, leaving a two-year-old girl gravely injured, and over 500 neo-Nazis marched to celebrate the anniversary of Hitler’s birthday.

Italy's so-called "security pact" addresses issues from organised crime to road safety and illegal immigration. But some measures violate or threaten fundamental rights and have come under fire from the UNHCR and the Council of Europe. A summary of some of the main provisions relating to immigration.

A global event to promote literacy has drawn attention to the increasing number of Romanian and Bulgarian children who are not getting minimal education. School dropout rates have tripled since the late 1990s among categories such as Roma kids, children from rural areas and poor families in the cities. Cost cuts have led to the closing down of many kindergartens and village schools.

82% of those asked in a recent Hungarian survey expressed negative feelings concerning the Roma minority. 84% said that Roma people disliked working and that is why they were in a bad situation. Both percentages were slightly higher than the figures of a similar survey conducted last autumn.

Panicked Roma communities in Hungary are forming self-defence groups after a spate of attacks on their settlements claimed five lives in 10 months. Police has doubled the size of a task force investigating anti-Roma crimes. Far-right groups have denied any links to the attacks, but emphasise the need to fight "Gypsy crime".

Lack of parent initiative, coupled with an outdated education system, contributes to poor academic performance by children from low-income Roma families, often leading to their placement in schools for children with learning difficulties. 30% of Roma children attend practical schools, while only 8% of other children does.

Violence flared in northern Kosovo, with shots fired in an ongoing confrontation between minority Serbs and EU police. The confrontations centre on the Brdjani neighbourhood of Kosovska Mitrovica. Serbs, who dominate the town's northern section, are trying to prevent the rebuilding of houses that belong to ethnic Albanians who were ousted during the war.

Gurkhas who risked their lives for Britain suffered a major blow in their attempts to win the right to settle there. The Home Office announced that a High Court ruling meant 10,000 more former soldiers and family members could live in Britain, but campaigners say the new rules may help fewer than 100 and that the criteria are "unattainable".