10 EUobserver investigations from 2026 so far you shouldn’t miss

From secret deportations and European-funded projects destroyed in Gaza to EU recovery funds and mining lobbying, these ten investigations expose the widening gap between Europe’s rhetoric and the realities of its policies and actions. Together, they show how European policies can have consequences that reach far beyond the continent, and sometimes contradict the values European governments claim to defend. Here’s a look back at some of the investigations you may have missed: Frontex returned almost 50 people to Afghanistan this year with help from NGO fronted by UK security veterans Israel has bombed and bulldozed €150m of EU-funded buildings in Gaza and West Bank – but never paid back a cent Who is Karen Malayan: Russia’s top diplomat in Brussels, or yet another spy? Germany bankrolled Tesla buyers with €860m to help hit EU Covid recovery targets – and now gives €71m to Musk’s Berlin gigafactory too Leaked memo: EU has known since 2017 it had legal right to freeze Israel trade deal Inside the mining lobby attack on key EU water law Leaked legal advice questions legality of EU Commission’s Israeli police data-deal How the Kremlin turns schoolchildren into future soldiers in occupied Ukraine The secret European Commission group driving EU deportations Pitchfork politics and sausage-making: how the farmers ‘crisis’ rewrote EU green rules behind closed doors Frontex returned almost 50 people to Afghanistan this year with help from NGO fronted by UK security veterans By Nikolaj Nielsen and Romy van Baarsen Almost 50 people have been returned to Afghanistan so far this year with support from Frontex, the EU’s border agency. Marketed as “voluntary returns,” the cases are being handled in Afghanistan by Irara, a little-known Belgium-based NGO headed by people from the UK’s private security industry. The revelations come amid European Commission efforts to indirectly normalise relations with the ultra-conservative Taliban regime, in the hope of facilitating deportations to a country devastated by decades of war and governed by a regime accused of systematic repression and human rights violations. Read the full story Women and girls under Taliban rule are excluded from public life — described as 'gender apartheid' by UN officials (Photo: Sacha Myers / Save the Children) Israel has bombed and bulldozed €150m of EU-funded buildings in Gaza and West Bank – but never paid back a cent By Andrew Rettman, Nikolaj Nielsen, Elena Sánchez Nicolás and Róisín Northcote Israel has damaged at least €150m of European taxpayer-funded structures in Gaza and the West Bank, but not paid back one euro, amid concern its impunity will cause further destruction. The European Gaza Hospital in Khan Younis (€50.5m) and the Southern Gaza Seawater Desalination Plant in Deir al-Balah, plus its 18km pipeline (€30m), were the most expensive EU-funded structures hit by Israeli airstrikes since 7 October 2023, when the current war began. Only Israel knew how much it has destroyed, as it was still not letting in foreign diplomats or press. Read the full story EU Commission official in Gaza on 5 February 2025 (Source: ECHO) Who is Karen Malayan: Russia’s top diplomat in Brussels, or yet another spy? By Andrew Rettman and Petra Pavlovičová Karen Malayan speaks to Europe on behalf of Russian president Vladimir Putin, but his irregular CV invites the question: Is the acting head of Russia’s embassy to the EU another spy sent to recruit assets, steal secrets, and direct sabotage attacks? He used to meet with EU officials and diplomats, Russia–friendly MEPs, and European business executives. But Malayan did little by way of face-to-face EU diplomacy nowadays, due to a cordon sanitaire imposed on Russia after Putin’s full invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Read the full story Karen Malayan (circled) at Russia’s mission to the EU (Source: Russian embassy ) Germany bankrolled Tesla buyers with €860m to help hit EU Covid recovery targets – and now gives €71m to Musk’s Berlin gigafactory too By Nikolaj Nielsen Elon Musk’s wealth soared to stratospheric levels last month after he became the world’s first trillionaire, primarily driven by SpaceX’s stock market launch. At the same time, €860m subsidies for Tesla owners helped Germany tap EU Covid money, while Musk’s gigafactory in Berlin is now receiving over €71m in state aid, according to internal documents obtained by EUobserver. An investigation by EUobserver sought to trace to what extent, if any, the EU’s post-pandemic Covid bailout funds were directed towards Tesla in Germany, where Musk openly supports the neo-fascist Alternative for Germany (AfD) – while declaring the EU a civilisational threat – views shared by Donald Trump and Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin. Read the full story Donald Trump with Tesla billionaire Elon Musk (Photo: President Donald J. Trump) Leaked memo: EU has known since 2017 it had legal right to freeze Israel trade deal By Elena Sánchez Nicolás and Lorenzo Di Stasi A historical opinion by the European Commission’s then top lawyer, obtained by EUobserver, said the bloc was legally entitled to suspend cooperation with Israel, such as its ‘Horizon Europe’ science grants and ‘Erasmus’ student-exchange scheme, already in 2017 due to Israel’s violations of international law in the West Bank. A total or partial suspension of the EU-Israel trade agreement “would comply with customary international law”, the memo said. Read the full story The EU legal opinion said that a total or partial suspension of the EU-Israel trade agreement 'would comply with customary international law' (Source: Rosie Gabrielle ) Inside the mining lobby attack on key EU water law By Rachel Sherrington The EU’s flagship water law is under threat amid a concerted lobbying blitz from the mining industry. New analysis by DeSmog reveals sector meetings with EU officials tripled in the year before the release of a European Commission strategy document pledging to “review and revise” the Water Framework Directive. Read the full story here Sweden is a leading European mining nation, serving as the EU's largest producer of iron ore (Source: Pudelek/Wikimedia) Leaked legal advice questions legality of EU Commission’s Israeli police data-deal By Giacomo Zandonini In December 2022, negotiations over a long-delayed agreement between Europol and the Israeli government were reportedly frozen. Diplomatic sources attributed the impasse to disagreements among EU member states and concerns that Benjamin Netanyahu’s emerging coalition with the far-right Religious Zionist party could undermine the principle that EU-Israel cooperation should not, even formally, legitimise Israel’s occupation policies. According to leaked documents and internal files, the UK-based NGO Statewatch, in collaboration with EUobserver, ND and Apache, has reconstructed what happened, offering new insight into an institutional standoff between the European Commission and EU member states. Read the full story How the Kremlin turns schoolchildren into future soldiers in occupied Ukraine By Julia Kalashnyk When Russian forces occupy a Ukrainian town, schools are often targeted first. An investigation into hundreds of Telegram posts from Russian propaganda channels operating in occupied Ukraine since 2022 reveals a systematic campaign to militarise and indoctrinate children through schools. Channels such as “Genichesk in the foreground”, “Berdyansk is ours”, “New Melitopol” and “Official Berdyansk”, which publish reports and images from classrooms, expose how education has been transformed into a tool for erasing Ukrainian identity and cultivating loyalty to Russia — preparing even the youngest pupils for future military roles. Read full story When the war began, a school director in the occupied Zaporizhzhia region refused the Russian curriculum and spent years under threats from Russian forces (Photo: Olena Polishchuk) The secret European Commission group driving EU deportations By Cosette Molijn and Anas Ambri A secretive network of officials within the European Commission is leading the push for more pro-deportation policies across the European Union amid intense political pressure to expel as many people as possible. First launched in late 2022, the so-called High Level Network for Returns (HLNR) used the 7 October Hamas terror attack on Israel as a justification to enforce the exchange of data of individuals with a deportation order and flagged as “potential terrorists”, according to documents released through a freedom of information request. Read full story A group photo of the High Level Network for Returns, taken during a visit to Vienna in June 2023. (Source: BMI / Gerd PACHAUER) Pitchfork politics and sausage-making: how the farmers ‘crisis’ rewrote EU green rules behind closed doors By Natasha Foote Legal experts call it undemocratic; the official watchdog calls it a failure of integrity. After a wave of farmers’ protests rocked the continent, Brussels gutted its green protections at record speed, leaving a permanent scar on European law. This investigation goes inside the closed-door meetings and exclusive interviews to reveal who really sat at the table to rewrite the rules of Europe’s most expensive policy. It is rare that the ‘making of the sausage’ aphorism is so literal. Yet, it was while eating sausages with farmers at the side of the road in Szczecin, Poland, some 900km from Brussels on a rainy day early in 2024, that the simplification story first started for the then-agriculture commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski. Read full story EUobserver will continue publishing original investigations throughout the year. Sign up for our newsletters to stay informed. Tips? Feedback? Reach out directly to our journalists, editor-in-chief (esn@euobserver.com) or contact us at euobserver@proton.me.