[ALBSA-Info] {QIKSH «ALBEUROPA»} NEWS: KosovA/O news on 26 Nov 2000 from FreeB92/FreeSerbia

[Wolfgang Plarre]

http://www.freeb92.net/archive/e/index.phtml?Y=2000&M=11&D=26

FreeB92  Last update: Nov 26, 2000 20:59 CET

Albanians flee Serbia 

18:44 GNJILANE, Sunday - More than a thousand Albanians fled southeast
Serbia for Kosovo today in fear of a Yugoslav army attack. 
     The UN High Commission for Refugees chief in Gnjilane Peter Beck
told France Presse the refugees feared a Yugoslav attack in response to
violence by the Liberation Army of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja. 

Crisis is test for international community says Simic 

17:43 BELGRADE, Sunday - The crisis in southern Serbia is set to
continue and will test Yugoslavia and the international community to its
limits, Radio B92 was told today. 
     Institute for International Policy and Economy co-worker Predrag
Simic warned that Albanian extremists are hindering the democratic
process and putting NATO in the same position as Milosevic, who fought
his first and last battle in Kosovo. He pointed out that, like
Milosevic, NATO and the US have miltary but not political power in the
region. 
     Simic continued that the international community was heading in the
right direction but the UN and its partners must act more decisively.
"If the crisis carries on, I think NATO would face the same fate
Slobodan Milosevic did," he concluded. 

Spotlight on police crimes 

20:59 BELGRADE, Sunday - The Humanitarian Law Centre is to hold a round
table discussion about police abuses of power tomorrow with the aim of
bringing those responsible to justice. 
     The discussion will be attended by dismissed judges, Otpor
activists and possibly the co-ministers of Justice and the Police. 
     Centre official Duska Anastasijevic told Radio B92 the organisation
had already published a report detailing illegal actions by the police
between May and the September elections. She said that the centre aims
to establish who was responsible so that legal action can be taken
against them. 
           
Both sides as bad as each other, says Albanian leader 

16:56 KOSOVO, Sunday - The Albanian leader in the southern Serbia
villages at the centre of the recent clashes has told Radio B92 that
both sides are guilty for the violence. 
     Party for Democratic Action president Riza Halimi said the
demilitarisation of the region was necessary, and that the very presence
of the police was leading to tension. 
     He added that the attacks on the internationally agreed patrols and
checkpoints were absolutely unacceptable. 

Trajkovic: Serbian parliamentary elections in Kosovo 

15:42 KOSOVO, Sunday - Democratic Opposition of Serbia co-ordinator for
Kosovo and Metohija Momcilo Trajkovic said today that the Serbian
parliamentary elections scheduled for December 23 would also be held in
parts of Kosovo populated by Serbs regardless of UNMIK's stance against
this. 
     "Head of the UN Civil Mission Bernard Kouchner's stance that there
are no technical conditions for the Serbian parliamentary elections to
be held in the province and his view that clashes could be provoked
because of the Albanian population's opposition are both contradictory
and politically incorrect", Trajkovic told SRNA. Trajkovic said that the
will of the Serbian population in Kosovo to exercise their right to vote
was legal and legitimate. 
     Trajkovic accused Kouchner of a pro-Albanian bias during his
mandate in the province, labeling him the generator of the crisis in
Kosovo. 

Growing tension as deadline draws near 

15:19 BUJANOVAC, Sunday -- The situation in the demilitarised zone
between Kosovo and southern Serbia remains calm today but B92 reports
growing tension as the expiry of the 72-hour deadline for the withdrawal
of armed Albanians imposed by the Serbian Government draws near. 
     There have been reports of heavy artillery around the Albanian base
and the Serbian police have expressed their readiness to take action
should the order be given. 
     Mayor of Bujanovac Stojance Arsic accused KFOR of being responsible
for the latest clashes in the region. 
     The citizens of Bujanovac have organised guards to protect
themselves from any eventual attacks by Albanian extremists.
Eyewitnesses have reported sightings of Albanian women and children from
the area moving towards the Macedonian border. 

Commission for Missing Persons delegation in Yugoslavia 

14:30 BELGRADE, Sunday - Representatives from the International
Commission for Missing Persons arrived in Yugoslavia today. The
delegation will hold talks with the Yugoslav authorities and
associations representing the families of missing persons concerning
this issue. 
     The commission is planning to open a center in Belgrade where they
will collect blood samples from the relatives of all missing persons to
be compared at a later date with the remains of those who died during
clashes in the former Yugoslavia. 

Ivanovic in favour of talks with Rugova 

14:00 KOSOVO, Sunday - President of Kosovska Mitrovica Serbian National
Council Oliver Ivanovic told the press today that talks with leader of
the Democratic Alliance of Kosovo Ibrahim Rugova could be a positive
move towards the solution of the current crisis in the Presevo valley in
southern Serbia. 
     Ivanovic said that such talks should be preceded by contact between
Albanian representatives and the EU, NATO and the US whose role it would
be to explain the current situation and point them towards a peaceful
solution to the Kosovo problem. "Resolution 1244 is a sound framework
and its full implementation would offer a solid basis for such talks",
concluded Ivanovic. 

No official response to Kostunica's invitation 

13:19 KOSOVO, Sunday - There has been no official response to date to
Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica's invitation to leader of the
Democratic Alliance of Kosovo Ibrahim Rugova to begin urgent talks
regarding the resolution of problems in Kosovo. 
     Pristina's Albanian daily Koha ditore today published Kostunica's
letter to Rugova in both Serbian and Albanian in which the Yugoslav
president urged basic dialogue between Serbs and Albanians in order to
deal with the problems in the region as soon as possible so as to ensure
indefinite peace and stability. 

Prelevic: Force as a last resort 

11:25 BELGRADE, Sunday -Solving the current problems in southern Serbia
in co-operation with KFOR would be much more useful than responding with
force, Internal Affairs Co-Minister Bozo Prelevic told B92 last night.
Prelevic said that there was no doubt as to whether the Serbian police
could take control of the security zone, but the question was should
that be done and if so when. Prelevic said that talks with KFOR were
held on a daily basis and they had shown willingness to be involved in
solving this current crisis. "Force should only be used as a last resort
after all other means have failed but the decision of whether to use
such force is in the hands of Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica",
concluded Prelevic.

Albanian separatists seek political solution 

11:20 BUJANOVAC, Sunday - Albanian separatists in southern Serbia last
night expressed their willingness to find a political solution to the
current crisis in the region, reports Beta. "We are not out for blood
and we do not want to kill or be killed", the leader of the so-called
Liberation Army of Presevo, Bujanovac and Medvedja Jonus Musliu told
France Press last night. Musliu said that they had accepted the
cease-fire but did not specify how long it would last, adding that their
forces would remain in position. 
     KFOR reported last night that Albanian rebels had accepted the
cease-fire on the demilitarised zone between Kosovo and Serbia. 
_______________________________________________________________________
http://www.freeb92.net/archive/e/index.phtml?Y=2000&M=11&D=25

FreeB92  Last update: Nov 25, 2000 21:50 CET

Bodies of policemen handed over 

20:26 MERDARE, Saturday - The bodies of the three policemen killed on
Wednesday by Albanian extremists were handed over by K-For
representatives today. 
     The dead men have been named as Dusko Gligoric, Dusko Djogovic and
Jovan Cvetan. Radio B92 learned from unofficial sources close to the
police that their bodies were found by members of the Liberation Army of
Medvedja, Presevo and Bujanovac. 
     High security surrounded the handing over of the three bodies.
Police blocked the Nis-Pristina road near the village of Rudare and the
border crossing Merdare. Journalists were not allowed to the
check-point, and police in Kursumlija did not issue an official
statement. 
_______________________________________________________________________
http://128.121.251.38/bnews/bnews.php?language=english

Free Serbia  Latest News

11/26/2000 18:30 GMT+1 -- State Security brings heavy weaponry
Tension in Southern Serbia growing

With the end of deadline given by Serbian Government for withdrawal of
armed Albanian groups from the Bujanovac crisis region, tension in
Serbian South is increasing. State Security Forces are bringing heavy
weaponry and getting ready to intervene in the direction of Lucane, Mali
Trnovac and Brezica fronts where the armed Albanian extremists are
fortified, unless the ultimatum be proved to work out. 
The ultimatum of Serbian Government to the armed Albanians ends tomorrow
at 19 o'clock.
Source: FoNet 

11/26/2000 13:46 GMT+1 -- Yugoslav President's appeal to Albanian leader
No official reactions as yet

For the time being there have been no official reactions to the Yugoslav
President Vojislav Kostunica's appeal addressed to the Democratic
Alliance of Kosovo leader Ibrahim Rugova calling for an urgent dialogue
aimed at resolving the Kosovo problem. However, the appeal was published
today by the most of the Pristina Albanian-language dailies, Deutsche
Welle reports.
Source: FreeSerbia

11/26/2000 12:37 GMT+1 -- South Eastern Serbia:
Tensions in Presevo valley

There was a tense calm yesterday in Presevo valley.  KFOR spokesman told
BBC that cease-fire was observed by both sides. He went on to say
that KFOR closed one of the crossings leading towards Presevo valley and
stepped up control of the area along administrative border endeavouring
to prevent illegal crossing of men and weapons to the territory of
Serbia proper. KFOR will not intervene in the demilitarised zone as it
had no mandate to operate there.
Source: FreeSerbia


-------------------------- eGroups Sponsor -------------------------~-~>
eLerts
It's Easy. It's Fun. Best of All, it's Free!
http://click.egroups.com/1/9699/3/_/920292/_/975324607/
---------------------------------------------------------------------_->

Nëse don të çregjistrohesh nga ALBEUROPA, dërgo një Email në:

albeuropa-unsubscribe at egroups.com