From igeuweb at usia.gov Thu Apr 1 16:03:36 1999 From: igeuweb at usia.gov (IGEUWEB) Date: Thu, 1 Apr 1999 16:03:36 -0500 Subject: [kcc-news] Fact Sheet: Ethnic Cleansing in Kosovo Message-ID: <70E0033701BD1180@xgate.usia.gov> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC): http://www.alb-net.com Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- FACT SHEET: ETHNIC CLEANSING IN KOSOVO (Based on Information from U.S. Government Sources) (The following Fact Sheet was released April 1.) Reports of Serb war crimes in Kosovo -- including forced expulsions of large segments of the ethnic Albanian civilian population, the detention and summary executions of military-aged men, rapes, and the destruction of civilian housing -- have increased dramatically over the past week. Serb forces, including Yugoslav Army (VJ) and Serbian Interior Ministry (MUP) units, have attacked towns and villages throughout the province of Kosovo in a pattern of widespread and systematic violence against the ethnic Albanian population of Kosovo. We have incontrovertible evidence that tens of thousands of ethnic Albanians have been forcibly expelled from Kosovo and that thousands of dwellings have been torched. Due to the removal of western government observers and most of the non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and journalists from the province, it has been difficult to obtain independent corroboration of specific allegations of violations of international humanitarian law in Kosovo. Nonetheless, the overwhelmingly consistent nature of the thousands of reports from official observers across the border in Albania and Macedonia, from journalists and NGOs still in contact with their local staff in Kosovo, and from Kosovar Albanians themselves (both refugees and the Kosovo Liberation Army-UCK) paint an unambiguous picture of an accelerating campaign of ethnic cleansing by Serbian forces in the past week. The following types of war crimes or violations of international humanitarian law have been reported in Kosovo: Forcible Displacement of Ethnic Albanian Civilians: For the past year, Serb tactics in Kosovo were dominated by attacks by the security forces on small villages. While as many as 300,000 people were displaced either internally or abroad at the height of last summer's fighting, the bulk of them left their houses voluntarily, out of legitimate fear for their safety. Yugoslav Army units and armed civilians have now joined the police in systematically expelling ethnic Albanians from both villages and the larger towns of Kosovo. Many of these places had not been the scene of any previous fighting or UCK activity, which removes any pretense that the Serb expulsions are part of a legitimate security operation. There are numerous reports from refugees and the press of Serb forces going house-to-house to force the residents out at gunpoint before looting and burning their homes. There have been uncorroborated reports that the majority of the 1.8 million ethnic Albanians in Kosovo may already have been displaced from their homes. The UN High Commission of Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that Serb forces have forcibly expelled upwards of 70,000 persons into Albania over the weekend and expects another 90,000 may cross over in the next few days. This is in addition to the nearly 20,000 refugees who fled to Albania last year. Although refugees were expelled from their homes at gunpoint, Serbian authorities have been forcing these refugees to sign disclaimers saying they left Kosovo of their own free will. According to the refugees, Serb forces have been confiscating their documentation -- including their national identity papers -- and telling them to take a last look around because they will never return to Kosovo. Looting of Homes and Businesses: Prior to the forced expulsions, Serb forces have reportedly looted the homes and businesses of ethnic Albanians in at least 20 towns and villages throughout the province. In addition, Serb soldiers have reportedly occupied some Albanian homes in at least Pristina. Widespread Burning of Homes: Albanian refugees report widespread burning of homes in 13 towns and countless villages throughout Kosovo. This activity is not only more extensive than Serb destruction last summer, it is more thorough. Many settlements are being totally destroyed in an apparent attempt to ensure that the ethnic Albanian population cannot return. Reported Detention of Ethnic Albanian Men: Refugees entering Albania claim that Serb forces are separating military-aged men from the groups. An NGO reports that 10,000 Albanian men may have been herded into the Sports Stadium Complex in Pristina for detention, while the press and refugees report that as many as 20,000 ethnic Albanians were force-marched from the town of Cirez to Srbica and are being detained in a factory. The vast majority of refugees crossing international borders out of Kosovo have been women and children. We are gravely concerned by the whereabouts and fate of the missing men numbering at least in the tens of thousands and possibly in the hundreds of thousands. Reports of Summary Executions: Refugees have provided accounts of summary executions in at least 20 towns and villages throughout Kosovo. Serb forces appear to be targeting members of the Albanian Kosovar intelligentsia including lawyers, doctors and political leaders. In particular, UCK political leaders who attended the Rambouillet talks are being targeted. Reported Atrocities and War Crimes by Location: The following is a list of the reported war crimes or violations of international humanitarian law that occurred in many of the larger population centers in Kosovo: Bela Cervka: Serb forces reportedly killed 35 people, then dumped their bodies near the Bellaja River, between the Rogova and Bela Cervka railroad. By March 28, Serb forces reportedly killed as many as 500 civilians. Cirez: 20,000 Albanian Kosovars were reportedly used as human shields against NATO bombings. Drakovica: Ethnic Albanians have reportedly been executed by MUP and paramilitary units. Seventy bodies were found in two houses. 33 Albanian bodies were found in a nearby river and men are being separated from women and children. A prominent surgeon, Dr. Izet Hima, was murdered. All Albanian Kosovars remaining in the town have been warned to leave by 29 March. In addition, Serb forces are burning down ethnic Albanian homes. Glogovac: The Albanian residential area has been burned, sending displaced persons to the Cicavica mountains. Goden: Serb forces executed 20 men, including schoolteachers, on March 25. The town was reportedly burned down. Klina: The expulsion of the entire population of ethnic Albanians in the town began on 28 March. Serb forces are removing villagers from their homes and ordering them out of the country. Kosvoska Mitrovica: Serb forces have reportedly expelled all Albanian Kosovars from this city since 23 March. In addition, over 200 Albanian homes and shops have been torched, and Serb forces reportedly have killed prominent Albanian Kosovars. Latif Berisha, a poet and President of the Democratic Alliance of the Mitrovica Municipality, was executed in his home, and Agim Hajrizi, Chairman of the Assembly of the Independent Workers' Union, was murdered with his mother and 12-year-old son. Orlate: This small village located on the crossroads between Pristina, Pec, Malisevo was reportedly set on fire by Serbian forces on 30 March. Pec: Serb forces may have expelled 50,000 Albanian Kosovars from Pec. At least 50 ethnic Albanians were killed, then buried in the yards of their homes on the evening of March 27. On the same day, all ethnic Albanians seeking shelter in the Albanian Catholic Church of Pec were extracted and forced out of town. To further terrorize ethnic Albanians, Serbs reportedly have looted and burned their homes and shops throughout the town. Refugees claim that Zeljko Rasznjatovic (a.k.a. Arkan) was responsible for the atrocities. Podujevo: Serb forces may have executed 200 Albanian Kosovars. In addition, Serbs reportedly are removing ethnic Albanians from their cars and shooting them on the spot. Ninety percent of the town reportedly has been burned. Pristina: Serb forces have moved into former Albanian Kosovar homes to avoid NATO attacks. Serb forces have also executed male ethnic Albanians, including Bjram Kelmendi, a prominent human rights lawyer, and his two sons. Serb paramilitary units have burned and looted Albanian homes and stores throughout the city. Mixed Serb police and paramilitary units are reportedly separating men from women and children. Serbs are passing out pamphlets admonishing Kosovars to leave or else they will be killed. Fehmi Agani and Venon Surroi, prominent ethic Albanians from Pristina who served on the Rambouillet negotiating team, were reportedly kidnapped and executed by Serb forces, along with the husband and children of Ibrahim Rugova's secretary. As many as 10,000 Albanian Kosovars have reportedly been herded into the city's Sports Complex in downtown. This information has been disputed by an eyewitness, however. Prizen: Serb forces reportedly transported ethnic Albanians to the border and executed 20 to 30 civilians. At the border, Serb forces confiscated all personal documentation, removed all license plates and warned them never to return to Kosovo. Rogovo: Serb forces reportedly executed at least 50 ethnic Albanians. Srbica: Serb forces executed 115 ethnic Albanian males from the age of 18 and over. Serb forces reportedly are holding 20,000 prisoners in an ammunition factory in town. Stimlje: Serb forces reportedly burned the headquarters of a human rights committee and the Democratic League of Kosovo. In addition, nearly 25,000 civilians have been expelled. Suva Reka: On 25 March, Serb forces massacred at least 30 Albanian Kosovars, most by burning them alive in their homes. Serb forces have reportedly killed over 100 civilians in the past week, and the town has been "cleansed" of its Albanian population. Sixty percent of the town has been burned. On March 28, Serb forces reportedly encircled the town to conduct operations. Velika Kruska: Serb forces have reportedly killed 150-160 Albanian Kosovars and dumped 50 bodies in a mass grave. Vuciturn: On March 27, Serb forces reportedly killed four young Albanian Kosovars, including a 14-year old girl. By March 29, Serb forces had reportedly herded Albanian Kosovars in a school in the city. Zhuri: On March 28, local police reportedly ordered all ethnic Albanians to leave town. As many as 7000 Albanian Kosovars may be displaced as a result. Zulfaj: Serb forces reportedly expelled all ethnic Albanians from this village, then burned it down. U.S. Policy: Milosevic's forces are clearly committing crimes against humanity in Kosovo. There are indicators that Yugoslav forces also are engaged in genocide. The departure of international non-governmental organizations, press and other independent sources of information has complicated international efforts to determine precisely the scale of the crimes being committed by Yugoslav forces against ethnic Albanians. International personnel are interviewing refugees to help collect evidence for possible war crimes indictments. We will make a decision on whether Yugoslav actions against ethnic Albanians constitute genocide once we have sufficient information on which to base a judgement. The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia will indict those responsible for crimes against humanity and genocide, both of which carry the maximum sentence the Tribunal can impose, life imprisonment. The Tribunal Prosecutor, Louise Arbour, issued a statement on March 31, 1999 announcing the indictment of Zeljko Raznjatovic, also known as Arkan, one of Yugoslavia most notorious warlords. The Prosecutor also announced that her investigation of reports of crimes against humanity in Kosovo is progressing. The United States reminds those responsible for the actions of the Yugoslav army and the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Kosovo that these attacks directed against the civilian population and the summary execution of detained persons are war crimes under international law. Commanding officers and political leaders will be held responsible for the actions of their subordinates as well as those committing the crime. (end Fact Sheet) ************************************************************* For more information regarding the latest policy statements and other materials related to the Kosovo crisis, visit http://www.usia.gov/regional/eur/balkans/kosovo/ To subscribe to KOSOVO, send the command/message SUBSCRIBE KOSOVO Firstname Lastname to: LISTSERV at INFO.USIA.GOV --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From mentor at alb-net.com Sat Apr 3 23:17:51 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Sat, 3 Apr 1999 23:17:51 -0500 (EST) Subject: [kcc-news] EYEWITNESSES TELL OF MASSACRE OF FORTY ETHNIC ALBANIANS BY YUGOSLAV SECURITY FORCES (HRW Flash #18) Message-ID: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC): http://www.alb-net.com Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- HRW KOSOVO FLASH # 18 April 4, 1999 http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/kosovo98/ EYEWITNESSES TELL OF MASSACRE OF FORTY ETHNIC ALBANIANS BY YUGOSLAV SECURITY FORCES Human Rights Watch interviewed six refugees late on April 2 who reported that Yugoslav forces shot and killed forty male ethnic Albanian villagers in the town of Velika Krusa (Krusha e Madhe in Albanian) on Friday, March 26. The village, on the main road between Dakovica and Prizren, was reputed to have had sympathies for the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) over the past year. Human Rights Watch fears the men may have been slain in reprisal for their village's suspected support for the Albanian insurgents. The six witnesses -- three men and three women--had driven through the mountains on a tractor for seven days before crossing into Albania at the Morina crossing point near Kukes in northern Albania, where they were interviewed by Human Rights Watch. One of the men was wounded, having suffered shrapnel wounds in his legs and lower back. The refugees said Yugoslav infantry raided their village on the afternoon of Thursday, March 25, the day after the NATO air campaign began. One of the witnesses, who was in the fields tending cattle, was shot and wounded as he ran towards the village. He hid that night with the five others, he said, who were discovered early the next morning by Yugoslav security forces wearing green camouflage uniforms. "They gathered us together with the rest of the people from the village," said X.S., aged sixty-four. "Then, at about seven in the morning, they separated out forty younger males and shot them with machine guns." The five other witnesses -- C. R., a forty-seven-year-old male, N. G., a seventy-seven-year old male, R. R., a fifty-year-old woman, Z. R., a fifty-year-old woman, and X. G., a sixty-five-year-old woman -- told similar stories. On April 3, the BBC broadcast exclusive footage of an alleged massacre in Velika Krusa. The video, smuggled out by an amatuer cameraman and edited because of its graphic content, shows the bodies of several young men who were, according to the BBC, "killed with a single bullet to the head after trying to escape." According to the cameraman, more than one hundred people were killed when Serb forces shelled the area. He told the BBC: "A group of Serbs were on top of the hill. Others came from behind. Our men were captured and the Serbs killed them one after the other." The cameraman gave the BBC a list of twenty-six victims, many of whom were known to him, which is reprinted below. He claimed that there were thirty-one bodies in total, but five of the corpses were burned beyond recognition. The consistent and credible reports of killings at Velika Krusa supplement the testimonies of three other refugees interviewed by Human Rights Watch on March 30 and 31, who said that they had seen at least fifteen ethnic Albanians killed on the road around Velika Krusa (see Human Rights Watch Flash #14). According to these refugees, the killings took place near a police and army checkpoint on the main road between the villages of Zrce and Velika Krusa. In recent days, two international journalists have gathered the testimonies of eyewitnesses from Mala Kruse (Krushe e Vogel in Albanian), another village located a few miles to the southeast of Velika Krusa. CNN correspondent Christiane Amanpour interviewed a badly burned refugee late last night form the village, who said he had been placed in a pile of 112 bodies that were covered with petrol and set on fire by Yugoslav forces. The witness survived, however, and made it out to the border. New York Times correspondent John Kifner interviewed another witness from Mala Krusa on March 30. The refugee, N.Z., reported having seen a mass killing, although no details were provided ("Kosovars Flee to Beat Serb Deadline of Death," The New York Times, March 31). The article said that her claims "conformed with other accounts given by refugees" and with accounts heard by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Based on its own research, as well as the coverage of the international media, Human Rights Watch believes that two separate massacres may have taken place in the two villages, Velika Krusa and Mala Krusa. It is possible the the killings were security force reprisals or "revenge killings" for the villages' suspected support for the KLA. Human Rights Watch researchers have determined that such a pattern of reprisal killings is indeed underway in south-western Kosovo, and it has been a pattern over the past year of the Kosovo conflict. Reportedly Killed in Velika Krusa: 1. Ramadan Krasniqi 2. Ramadan Shait Hoti 3. Eqrem Jemin Duraku 4. Ibrahim Myrteza Duraku 5. Gjevgjet Syljman Duraku 6. Fahri Haxhilaf Hoti 7. Bajram Ali Duraku 8. Haxhi Halim Hoti 9. Hasaf Nexhat Hoti 10. Habib Haxhilat Duraku 11. Fraidin S. Dina 12. Flyrin S. Dina 13. Nimetullahli i Hoxhes 14. Shaban Rasim Duraku 15. Ali Selim Duraku 16. Azem Jonuz Duraku 17. Haxhi Arif Shala 18. Jeton Abdyl Duraku 19. Faredin Shemsedin Hoti 20. Kresnik Faredin Hoti 21. Sami Sadik Nalli 22. Sali Sadik Nalli 23. Selim Bajrami 24. Dahim Bajrami 25. Qamil Bajrami 26. Ismet Jemin Duraku --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From mentor at alb-net.com Mon Apr 5 18:25:40 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (M.C.) Date: Mon, 5 Apr 1999 18:25:40 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [kcc-news] HRW: EYEWITNESSES TELL OF MASSACRE OF FORTY ETHNIC ALBANIANS BY YUGOSLAV SECURITY FORCES Message-ID: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC): http://www.alb-net.com Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Human Rights Watch KOSOVO HUMAN RIGHTS FLASH #18 April 4, 1999 EYEWITNESSES TELL OF MASSACRE OF FORTY ETHNIC ALBANIANS BY YUGOSLAV SECURITY FORCES Human Rights Watch interviewed six refugees late on April 2 who reported that Yugoslav forces shot and killed forty male ethnic Albanian villagers in the town of Velika Krusa (Krusha e Madhe in Albanian) on Friday, March 26. The village, on the main road between Dakovica and Prizren, was reputed to have had sympathies for the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) over the past year. Human Rights Watch fears the men may have been slain in reprisal for their village's suspected support for the Albanian insurgents. The six witnesses -- three men and three women--had driven through the mountains on a tractor for seven days before crossing into Albania at the Morina crossing point near Kukes in northern Albania, where they were interviewed by Human Rights Watch. One of the men was wounded, having suffered shrapnel wounds in his legs and lower back. The refugees said Yugoslav infantry raided their village on the afternoon of Thursday, March 25, the day after the NATO air campaign began. One of the witnesses, who was in the fields tending cattle, was shot and wounded as he ran towards the village. He hid that night with the five others, he said, who were discovered early the next morning by Yugoslav security forces wearing green camouflage uniforms. "They gathered us together with the rest of the people from the village," said X.S., aged sixty-four. "Then, at about seven in the morning, they separated out forty younger males and shot them with machine guns." The five other witnesses -- C. R., a forty-seven-year-old male, N. G., a seventy-seven-year old male, R. R., a fifty-year-old woman, Z. R., a fifty-year-old woman, and X. G., a sixty-five-year-old woman -- told similar stories. On April 3, the BBC broadcast exclusive footage of an alleged massacre in Velika Krusa. The video, smuggled out by an amatuer cameraman and edited because of its graphic content, shows the bodies of several young men who were, according to the BBC, "killed with a single bullet to the head after trying to escape." According to the cameraman, more than one hundred people were killed when Serb forces shelled the area. He told the BBC: "A group of Serbs were on top of the hill. Others came from behind. Our men were captured and the Serbs killed them one after the other." The cameraman gave the BBC a list of twenty-six victims, many of whom were known to him, which is reprinted below. He claimed that there were thirty-one bodies in total, but five of the corpses were burned beyond recognition. The consistent and credible reports of killings at Velika Krusa supplement the testimonies of three other refugees interviewed by Human Rights Watch on March 30 and 31, who said that they had seen at least fifteen ethnic Albanians killed on the road around Velika Krusa (see Human Rights Watch Flash #14). According to these refugees, the killings took place near a police and army checkpoint on the main road between the villages of Zrce and Velika Krusa. In recent days, two international journalists have gathered the testimonies of eyewitnesses from Mala Kruse (Krushe e Vogel in Albanian), another village located a few miles to the southeast of Velika Krusa. CNN correspondent Christiane Amanpour interviewed a badly burned refugee late last night form the village, who said he had been placed in a pile of 112 bodies that were covered with petrol and set on fire by Yugoslav forces. The witness survived, however, and made it out to the border. New York Times correspondent John Kifner interviewed another witness from Mala Krusa on March 30. The refugee, N.Z., reported having seen a mass killing, although no details were provided ("Kosovars Flee to Beat Serb Deadline of Death," The New York Times, March 31). The article said that her claims "conformed with other accounts given by refugees" and with accounts heard by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Based on its own research, as well as the coverage of the international media, Human Rights Watch believes that two separate massacres may have taken place in the two villages, Velika Krusa and Mala Krusa. It is possible the the killings were security force reprisals or "revenge killings" for the villages' suspected support for the KLA. Human Rights Watch researchers have determined that such a pattern of reprisal killings is indeed underway in south-western Kosovo, and it has been a pattern over the past year of the Kosovo conflict. Reportedly Killed in Velika Krusa: 1. Ramadan Krasniqi 2. Ramadan Shait Hoti 3. Eqrem Jemin Duraku 4. Ibrahim Myrteza Duraku 5. Gjevgjet Syljman Duraku 6. Fahri Haxhilaf Hoti 7. Bajram Ali Duraku 8. Haxhi Halim Hoti 9. Hasaf Nexhat Hoti 10. Habib Haxhilat Duraku 11. Fraidin S. Dina 12. Flyrin S. Dina 13. Nimetullahli i Hoxhes 14. Shaban Rasim Duraku 15. Ali Selim Duraku 16. Azem Jonuz Duraku 17. Haxhi Arif Shala 18. Jeton Abdyl Duraku 19. Faredin Shemsedin Hoti 20. Kresnik Faredin Hoti 21. Sami Sadik Nalli 22. Sali Sadik Nalli 23. Selim Bajrami 24. Dahim Bajrami 25. Qamil Bajrami 26. Ismet Jemin Duraku *** This human rights flash is an occasional information bulletin from Human Rights Watch. It will include human rights updates on the situation in Yugoslavia generally and in Kosovo specifically. For further information see the Human Rights Watch website (www.hrw.org) or contact Fred Abrahams at (212) 216-1270 or Abrahaf at hrw.org *** --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From kosova at justiceforall.org Thu Apr 8 01:40:20 1999 From: kosova at justiceforall.org (Kosova Task Force USA) Date: Wed, 7 Apr 1999 23:40:20 -0600 Subject: [kcc-news] KosovaTaskForce: Stop Macedonia from Aiding Genocide: Treat Refugees Right Message-ID: <199904080536.WAA05751@newshub1-work.home.com> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC): http://www.alb-net.com Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Action Alert: 4.7.99 Kosova Task Force, USA *** Stop Macedonia from aiding Genocide: Treat Kosova Refugees better! *** March Against Genocide: Saturday, April 10th Macedonia would not let them in. Tens of thousands of Albanian were choking from disease and hunger on the border. Now they have disappeared. Where have they gone? While Serbs were driving out Albanians from Kosova, Macedonia was making sure that they were treated in the worst possible manner. The United Nations and other Western aid agencies have accused Macedonia of using bureaucratic delays to slow the influx of both refugees and aid. What?s more, Macedonian authorities have also prevented the reunion of any arriving refugees with their own relatives in Macedonia. Yugoslavia is kidnapping Kosovars from its border to an unknown future. They have closed the main border crossing from Kosova into Albania early Wednesday and the flow of refugees, which had been running at 30,000 to 40,000 a day, was dramatically halted. We pray that these refugees are not being put in another concentration camp. Please call the Macedonian embassy in Washington, DC to request more humane treatment of refugees in Macedonia. Chief of mission: Ambassador Ljubica Z. Acevska Embassy: 3050 K Street, NW, Suite 210, Washington, DC 20007 Telephone: (202) 337-3063 *** Some Data on Macedonia: Ethnic groups: Macedonian 65%, Albanian 22%, Turkish 4%, Serb 2%, Gypsies 3%, other 4% Religions: Eastern Orthodox 67%, Muslim 30%, other 3% --------- *** March Against Genocide: Saturday, April 10th: Momentum is building up against Genocide in Kosova. Please Inform us of your March location, time, and contact person. ==================================== To be removed from this list, send the following command to unsubscribe Kosova-List To be added to this list, send the following command to subscribe Kosova-List ==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ==================================== The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From mentor at alb-net.com Thu Apr 8 01:25:44 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (M. Cana) Date: Thu, 8 Apr 1999 01:25:44 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [kcc-news] HRW: Kosovo Flash #23: MACEDONIA MUST PROTECT KOSOVO REFUGEES, KEEP FAMILIES INTACT Message-ID: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC): http://www.alb-net.com Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Human Rights Watch KOSOVO HUMAN RIGHTS FLASH #23 April 7, 1999 MACEDONIA MUST PROTECT KOSOVO REFUGEES, KEEP FAMILIES INTACT Human Rights Watch condemns the Macedonian government's forcible relocation of tens of thousands of Kosovo refugees during the past 48 hours, in total disregard of obligations under international refugee law. Since Monday, Macedonian authorities have forced tens of thousands of refugees onto planes or buses, and transported them to Albania and other countries. Some refugees have been separated from their families. In addition, a large number of Kosovo Albanians who had been waiting for days on the Yugoslav side to enter Macedonia, were apparently forced back into Kosovo by the Serbian police. Their whereabouts are unknown and Human Rights Watch is deeply concerned about their fate. "The treatment of Kosovo refugees in Macedonia has been deplorable" said Holly Cartner, executive director of the Europe and Central Asia division of Human Rights Watch. "There are clear international norms that must be adhered to and the treatment of refugees in Macedonia is an extremely troubling development." Until Tuesday, April 6, as many as 65,000 refugees had been trapped for days in Blace, a muddy "no-mans land" between the borders of Kosovo and Macedonia, waiting to enter Macedonia. Refugees were held in appalling conditions, with no shelter, humanitarian relief, or medical assistance. During Tuesday night, most of the refugees in this area were forcibly cleared by the Macedonian authorities. The passports, blankets, and clothing found at the empty site today by UNHCR officials indicates that refugees were removed in haste. Refugees were given no information about where they were being taken and did not give their consent to be moved. UNHCR and IOM officials were not informed about plans to move the refugees and were not present during the relocation. Reports now indicate that thousands of refugees were taken to the new transit center at Brazda. Some were transported out of Macedonia by plane to Turkey, and thousands of others were taken by bus to Albania and Greece. A Human Rights Watch representative in Skopje reported that the whereabouts of an estimated 10,000 refugees apparently relocated during this period remains unknown. Human Rights Watch is deeply concerned that those transported out of Macedonia were not registered prior to their departure and that UNHCR was given no information about their identities. In some cases, family groups were not allowed to travel together, and no proper records were kept to facilitate family reunification. In addition, the whereabouts of a large number of persons who had been waiting inside Kosovo at the Jazince and Blace border crossings is unknown. International monitors reported receiving telephone calls throughout the day from persons who had been waiting at the border and were then forced to go back to Pristina by Serbian police units. Human Rights Watch visited the Macedonia-Yugoslav border crossings at Jazince and Blace today. Both were empty of people and reportedly closed on the Serbian side. Human Rights Watch urgently calls on the Macedonian government to keep its borders open and to uphold its obligations under international refugee law. Refugees should not be moved out of Macedonia against their will, and every effort should be made to keep families together. UNHCR and relief agencies should be given unhindered access to provide assistance and protection to the refugees. For further information contact: Fred Abrahams (1-212) 216-1270 Holly Cartner (1-212) 216-1277 ***For further information about violations of human rights and humanitarian law in Kosovo, see the Human Rights Watch website at www.hrw.org on the "Crisis in Kosovo" page. To subscribe to Kosovo Human Rights Flashes, send an E-mail to Donalds at hrw.org.*** --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From mentor at alb-net.com Fri Apr 9 12:36:38 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Fri, 9 Apr 1999 12:36:38 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [kcc-news] HRW: Kosovo Flash #24: KOSOVO REFUGEES DESCRIBE "NIGHTS OF FEAR" IN BELANICE VILLAGE Message-ID: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC): http://www.alb-net.com Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Human Rights Watch KOSOVO HUMAN RIGHTS FLASH #24 April 8, 1999 KOSOVO REFUGEES DESCRIBE "NIGHTS OF FEAR" IN BELANICE VILLAGE Refugees fleeing into northern Albania described an atmosphere of utter terror in the Kosovo village of Belanice, which was used by Yugoslav forces as a gathering point for ethnic Albanians living in the Malishevo district. Dozens of witnesses interviewed by Human Rights Watch reported that they were robbed, threatened with death, suffered physical deprivation, and that refugees were occasionally murdered. On April 1, their ordeal in Belanice came to an abrupt end, when they were forcibly expelled from the village toward the Albanian border. According to refugees, Serbian police and Yugoslav Army soldiers forced some 50,000 villagers in the Malishevo and Suva Reka region of south-west Kosovo to gather in Belanice village beginning on or about March 26. The Yugoslav authorities forced the dispersed rural inhabitants into Belanice by shelling their homes or sending raiding parties into their villages. Villagers were instructed by the authorities to flee towards Belanice, one of the few villages in the area that had not been shelled. After spending several days and nights in the central square of Belanice village, the authorities drove the bulk of the refugees southwards towards the Albanian border, telling them that they were no longer welcome in Kosovo. After traveling in a slow-moving refugee column for up to three days, many of the Belanice survivors reached Kukes, a northern Albanian border down, on or about April 4, where they were interviewed by a representative from Human Rights Watch. Refugees -- the bulk of whom were women, children and older men -- said they were forced to gather in the Belanice central square, where they were surrounded by Yugoslav security forces who repeatedly and persistently ordered them to hand over their money. Several witnesses recalled that Qemal Bytyci, a bus driver from the village of Semetisht, was repeatedly ordered by Yugoslav soldiers to search his passengers for money, which he then turned over the to the surrounding troops. The bus was parked in Belanice's central square for several days along with hundreds of tractors and cars brought by the refugees. "After they had forced him to search the passengers on three separate occasions," recalled eighteen-year-old Shukrie Bytyci, "he could no longer find any money in the bus. So they took him away and beat him so badly that you could see the marks all over." Despairing of saving his vehicle, the bus driver abandoned the bus to the police, who then "drove all around the village, singing and shouting that they had captured the bus," the witness recalled. Other witnesses said that soldiers repeatedly and persistently threatened them with death if they refused to hand over their money. "The nights were full of terror," one elderly woman recalled, "with the Serbs roaming around the square shooting in the air and pulling out their knives to threaten you with death if you didn't pay. We gave them everything, even the earrings in our ears and the rings off our fingers." In many cases, refugees were beaten and cut with knives if they refused to comply with demands for money. On occasion, the Serb forces also killed refugees in Belanice. On April 1, for example, all refugees gathered in the town were ordered to leave for Albania. Batisha Hoxha, seventy-two years old, told Human Rights Watch that her husband, seventy-five-year old Izet Hoxha, was shot dead on the afternoon of April 1 after failing to join the mass flight. "He tried at first to leave when they ordered us to clear out," she recalled, "but he then said he was too old and tired to leave." After returning home, the elderly couple was attacked by four security force personnel who broke in through the front door. "My husband couldn't see who they were at first," Mrs. Hoxha recalled, "and offered them cigarettes. One of the soldiers knocked the pack from his hand, and then shot him twice. The first bullet hit him in the arm; the second hit him in the chest and killed him." Batisha Hoxha was then ordered to join the other refugees in the central square, who were making preparations to leave for Albania. Dozens of witnesses who arrived in the northern Albanian town of Kukes after traveling from Malishevo district to Albania through Rahovec, Suva Reka, and Prizren said that most of the villages and towns in south-western Kosovo had been burned down and are empty of ethnic Albanian inhabitants. "Everywhere you go, you only see burnt homes and Serbian police or army," one refugee said. "All of Kosovo is empty of its people." For further information contact: Fred Abrahams: 1-917-293-3090 Holly Cartner (New York): 1-212-216-1277 Jean-Paul Marthoz (Brussels): 322-736-7838 ***For further information about violations of human rights and humanitarian law in Kosovo, see the Human Rights Watch website at www.hrw.org on the "Crisis in Kosovo" page. To subscribe to Kosovo Human Rights Flashes, send an E-mail to Donalds at hrw.org.*** --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From mentor at alb-net.com Sat Apr 10 20:05:44 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Sat, 10 Apr 1999 20:05:44 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [kcc-news] SOS: People are dying in Kosova (fwd) Message-ID: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC): http://www.alb-net.com Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- _____________________________________________________________________ National Albanian American Council 1899 L Street, NW Suite 1130 Washington, DC 20036 (202) 955-1428 Fax: (202) 955-1429 Email: NAACDC at aol.com ________________________________________________________________________ PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Aferdita Rakipi April 10, 1999 (202) 955-1428 SOS:PEOPLE ARE DYING IN KOSOVA DROP FOOD AND MEDICINE ASAP Washington - As reported by James Rubin State Department spokesman, who maintains on-going contact with Hashim Thaci, appointed Prime Minister is reporting that Albanians trapped by Serb soldiers in the Drenica region are beginning to die of starvation. It is important to remember that there are over 1 million people within Kosova who are on the constant run from Serb paramilitary forces with no food, water or shelter. Although we understand the concern that food may fall into the hands of Serb soldiers, the more important immediate risk is that tens of thousands of people will die very soon if we do not act. Also, it was reported that Serb soldiers are capturing and raping Albanian women. In one incident 20 Albanian women were raped and killed. Therefore, we call on NATO to save the people of Kosova by dropping food and medicine immediately and to send in ground forces to protect the lives of innocent women and children. ### --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From kosova at justiceforall.org Sun Apr 11 21:52:21 1999 From: kosova at justiceforall.org (Kosova Task Force USA) Date: Sun, 11 Apr 1999 19:52:21 -0600 Subject: [kcc-news] KosovaTaskForce: Air Drop Food Now to Kosovars in Mountains Message-ID: <199904120048.RAA16378@newshub1-work.home.com> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Task Force, USA Action Alert 4.11.99 While we have all witnessed hundreds of thousands of refugees pouring out of Kosova, there are still an alarming number of Kosovars stranded in the mountains unable to escape to safety. 50 cities and towns in Kosova have been leveled to the ground, forcing the citizens to flee into the mountains to escape the murdering Serb army. They are attempting to survive without any food or shelter in frigid climate, absolutely uncertain of their fate. As yet the NATO Alliance has not agreed to send in ground troops to combat the Serb army nor to provide safe escort to civilian victims stranded in the mountains. Kosova's internal situation will undoubtedly result in the death of thousands unless those people stranded in mountains have some means of being sustained until they can be saved or are given means to save themselves. On Monday, call the White House (202-456-1111) to demand the following: Immediate airdrops of food (at the very least) to genocide victims. With more than 70% of public opinion in favor of taking measures to help these victims, it would be irresponsible not to continue putting pressure on our representatives. The second call you make on Monday should be to call your representatives (202-224-3121) asking them specifically: "What will you do to stop genocide now?!" The Kosova Task Force has sent all Masjids in America a poster which lists the numbers of the President, your Congresspersons, and important media contacts . It is a blue and white poster customized for your Masjid area to be displayed in a prominent place. If you do not see it in your Masjid, please call us with your zip code and we will mail it to you. ***Do you have a Kosova Room in your Masjid or the organization you are working with? If not, contact us for details on how to get one started.*** ==================================== To be removed from this list, send the following command to unsubscribe Kosova-List To be added to this list, send the following command to subscribe Kosova-List ==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ==================================== The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From kosova at justiceforall.org Mon Apr 12 21:32:25 1999 From: kosova at justiceforall.org (Kosova Task Force USA) Date: Mon, 12 Apr 1999 19:32:25 -0600 Subject: [kcc-news] KosovaTaskForce: Say No to Secretary Albright! Message-ID: <199904130028.RAA19108@newshub1-work.home.com> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Action Alert Kosova Task Force, USA 4.12.99 *** YOU MUST TALK TO SECRETARY ALBRIGHT *** DEMAND MACEDONIA TO RETURN MONEY STOLEN FROM YUSUF ISLAM *** HOW SERB ARMY DESTROYED 50 KOSOVA TOWNS IN THEIR LATEST ETHNIC CLEANSING. *** YOU MUST TALK TO SECRETARY ALBRIGHT! US Secretary of State Albright?s hint on Monday that NATO is willing to accept anything less than total Serb withdrawal from Kosova is a very unfortunate statement of appeasement to the butcher of Belgrade. This statement comes at the end of a BBC report where about 100,000 young Albanian men in Kosova are believed to have been killed. NATO satellite photos of mass graves provides evidence of this horrific crime. This is a very unfortunate statement. All people of moral consciousness who have stood up against genocide must protest this statement and demand Secretary Albright to take it back. The Kosova Task Force, USA encourages everyone to write, phone, fax, or email Secretary of State Madeleine K.Albright at: 2201 "C" Street NW, Wash. DC 20520 Phone: 202-647-6575 Fax: 202-647-7120 Email: secretary at state.gov. For detail about this news item see: http://cnn.com/US/9904/12/us.kosovo.01/ Call and demand that we should not accept anything less than total Serb troop withdrawal from Kosova. You should also add in your letter and email the following demands: o Use ground troops to Stop Genocide now o Air drop food for 600,000 Albanians on the mountains of Kosova o Sustain air strikes until total Serb withdrawal. o Recognize Kosova?s independence. o Arm Kosovars to defend themselves. o Arrest and Try War Criminals. BE FIRM BUT POLITE! WE MUST NOT TOLERATE THIS WEAKNESS IN US POSITION! --------------- *** DEMAND MACEDONIA TO RETURN MONEY STOLEN FROM YUSUF ISLAM (CAT STEVENS) MEANT TO AID REFUGEES. Yusuf Islam, formerly known as Cat Stevens, was robbed by Macedonian border guards who took 60,000 deutsch marks from him as he crossed into Albania to distribute aid to Kosovar refugees according to an AP report. Macedonia continues to have a hostile attitude towards the poor refugees and is impeding aid from reaching them. Please call the Macedonian Embassy and demand that they immediately return Yusuf Islam?s money to him for distribution among refugees and stop aiding Serbs and their genocide. http://news2.thdo.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid%5F316000/316338.stm Chief of Mission: Ambassador Ljubica Z. Acevska Embassy of Macedonia: 3050 K Street, NW, Suite 210, Washington, DC 20007 Telephone: (202) 337-3063 Fax: Permanent Representative of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to the United Nations 866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 4050 New York, N.Y. 10017 Telephone: 212-308-8504, 8723 Fax: 212-308-8724 Email: mkdun at undp.org --------------- *** How Serb Army Attacked Civilians: Story of last 2 weeks. Please read a good account of how Kosovars were systematically attacked and destroyed by the Serb army during the last two weeks. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/daily/april99/milosevic11_full.h tm ==================================== To be removed from this list, send the following command to unsubscribe Kosova-List To be added to this list, send the following command to subscribe Kosova-List ==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ==================================== The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From kosova at justiceforall.org Fri Apr 16 12:21:46 1999 From: kosova at justiceforall.org (Kosova Task Force USA) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 1999 10:21:46 -0600 Subject: [kcc-news] KosovaTaskForce: Support Kosova Self-Defense Act of 1999 Message-ID: <199904161518.IAA29203@newshub1-work.home.com> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- -------> Want to HELP the people of Kosova?? <-------- http://www.alb-net.com/kosovahelp/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Task Force, USA Action Alert April 16, 1999 *** SUPPORT HOUSE RESOLUTION 1408 *** VISIT YOUR CONGRESSPERSON: *** TEXT OF "KOSOVA SELF-DEFENSE ACT OF 1999 House Representatives Engel with Sanford, Olver, Goodling, Moran of Virgina, Kelly, Bonior, and Rohrabacher have introduced House Resolution 1408 also called "Kosova Self-Defense Act of 1999". This bill calls for the support of the Kosovars in asserting their right of self defense against the perpetrators of genocide. The rights of the Kosovars must be recognized and supported. We must push for the following: - Use ground troops to STOP GENOCIDE now - Air drop food for 800,000 Kosovars on the mountains of Kosova - Arm Kosovars to defend themselves - Sustain air strikes until total Serb withdrawal - Recognize Kosovar independence - Arrest and Try War Criminals, including Slobodan Milosevic *** VISIT YOUR CONGRESSPERSON: The Kosova Task Force, USA is urging all to: o Visit local Congresspersons office to talk about it even if he is not there. o Take a delegation to Washington DC to meet your representative. We can guide you in DC. o Call your Congressperson and request them to support House Resolution 1408 and stress the above demands. (202) 225-3121 Or email them from www.house.gov/writerep Keep calling President Clinton for ground troops to stop genocide now! (202) 456-1414 ******************TEXT OF THE BILL****************** SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the "Kosova Self-Defense Act of 1999". SEC. 2. POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES. It shall be the policy of the United States to provide the interim government of Kosova with the capability to defend and protect the civilian population of Kosova against armed aggression. SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR SECURITY ASSISTANCE. (a) Authorization of Appropriations.--In addition to funds otherwise available to carry out section 23 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2763), there are authorized to be appropriated to the President to carry out the provision of such section, $25,000,000, which amount shall be made available only for grants to the interim government of Kosova to be used for training and support for the established self-defense forces to carry out the policy of section 2. (b) Availability of Funds.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to subsection (a) are authorized to remain available until expended. SEC. 4. RELATION TO EXISTING AUTHORITIES IN LAW. Assistance provided under section 3 may be made available notwithstanding any other provision of law (including any executive order or directive or any rule or regulation). ==================================== To be removed from this list, send the following command to unsubscribe Kosova-List To be added to this list, send the following command to subscribe Kosova-List ==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ==================================== The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From mentor at alb-net.com Fri Apr 16 10:53:06 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 1999 10:53:06 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [kcc-news] ACTION REQUIRED: STOP GENOCIDE NOW! (DISTRIBUTE THIS FLIER) Message-ID: Kosova needs your help! STOP GENOCIDE NOW! PLEASE distribute this flier to: - schools - libraries - friends - humanitarian organizations - government officials - TV and radio stations - journalists - newspapers and magazines - NGOs - and any other place you think is necessary to raise awareness about the current situation in Kosova -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: kosovaflier1.doc Type: application/msword Size: 25600 bytes Desc: Url : http://www.alb-net.com/pipermail/kcc-news/attachments/19990416/0952780d/attachment.doc From mentor at alb-net.com Sat Apr 17 13:16:45 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Sat, 17 Apr 1999 13:16:45 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [kcc-news] HRW: Massacre of Over Sixty Villagers Near Bela Crkva; Five witnesses describe killings to Human Rights Watch (Kosovo Flash #27) Message-ID: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- -------> Want to HELP the people of Kosova?? <-------- http://www.alb-net.com/kosovahelp/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- For Immediate Release: April 17, 1999 KOSOVO HUMAN RIGHTS FLASH #27 Massacre of Over Sixty Villagers Near Bela Crkva Five witnesses describe killings to Human Rights Watch Five witnesses, interviewed separately, have described in detail how Serbian security forces executed more than sixty ethnic Albanian men in the village of Bela Crkva (Bellacerka in Albanian) just hours after NATO bombing began in Yugoslavia on March 24. Human Rights Watch researchers in Kukes, Albania, interviewed the five witnesses yesterday. The refugees' detailed accounts were consistent with one another and matched the testimony of a sixth witness given to a journalist from the French newspaper Le Monde. According to the witnesses, the killings took place on the morning of March 25, some twelve hours after NATO began bombing targets in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The witnesses described in consistent detail how residents of the village of Bela Crkva were forced to flee their homes at approximately 4 a.m., an hour after Serb forces started burning the village. The villagers fled into the fields toward Rogovo, hiding themselves by the banks of the Bellaj (in Albanian), a stream flowing from Bela Crkva to Rogovo. In the early morning of March 25, Serb forces found the ethnic Albanians hiding near a bridge where the railroad tracks crossed the stream. The families of Clirim Zhuniqi and Xhemal Spahiu, who were approximately fifty meters away from the main group of villagers, were the first to be discovered. Twelve members of the two families were summarily executed with automatic weapon fire, witnesses said. There was one survivor: a two-year-old boy whose mother had protected him with her body. Nesim Popaj, an Albanian doctor from Bela Crkva, reportedly tried to negotiate with the Serb commander, pleading with him to spare the lives of the hundreds of villagers. He explained that they were not members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), witnesses told Human Rights Watch. The commander responded by saying: "You're terrorists, and NATO will have to save you." During this discussion, the commander was stepping down on the neck of Shendet Popaj, the doctor's seventeen-year-old nephew, who was lying prone on the ground. Abruptly ending the discussion, the commander -- described by one witnesses as a medium-height man, around thirty-five years old, in a green camouflage uniform with three stars on his shoulders -- mowed down Nesim with an automatic weapon in front of Nesim's wife and three children, after which he killed Sh?ndet. The witness noted specifically that the commander, believed by the witness to be a captain, had a distinguishing feature: a recognizably scrunched up mouth. The Serb forces then separated men and boys as young as twelve from the rest of the villagers. The men were told to undress, in an apparent attempt to humiliate them in front of their wives and children. The Serb forces, described by witnesses as "special police forces," then proceeded to search the mens' clothes and strip them of money, jewelry, and documents. One witness reported that the men had to hand over their wedding rings. The women and children were then told to walk along the railroad track towards Zrze (Xerxe in Albanian), a village on the Dakovica-Prizren road about a mile southwest of Bela Crkva. Robbed of their possessions, the men were told to dress again, and then to go to the nearby stream. At that point, Serb forces opened fire with automatic weapons. The female villagers who were walking along the railroad tracks told Human Rights Watch that they heard a burst of gunfire, lasting for several minutes without interruption. Human Rights Watch also spoke with one man, who did not wish to be identified, who claimed that he was shot with the group of men near the stream, and survived. When interviewed in Kukes he had bandages on his right shoulder, right arm and head from wounds he said he had sustained during the shooting (to his right shoulder), as well as some shrapnel wounds he had sustained later while trying to escape Kosovo (to his head and arm). In a detailed testimony that was highly consistent with the other witnesses, the man told Human Rights Watch that a bullet had struck him in the right shoulder, forcing him back onto the bank of the stream. He was then covered by the bodies of several dead men, he said, which hid him from the Serb forces who were examining the bodies for signs of life. He told Human Rights Watch: "I was lucky. I was in front of the group. I was shot in the shoulder and flew into the stream, where I pretended to be dead. About twenty dead bodies fell on top of me. They then shot into the pile of bodies to be sure they were dead... They shot people one by one, but I didn't get shot because they didn't see me." Roughly ten minutes later, still hiding under the pile of bodies, the witness heard another round of automatic weapons fire nearby. Some thirty minutes after that, when the witness realized that the Serb forces had moved on, he stood up and saw the dead bodies of seven elderly people from his village, as well as two persons unknown to him, lying in a field about a hundred meters away from the stream. He then proceeded to walk towards Zrze, where he told the women from Bela Crkva who had arrived around 10:00 a.m. what had happened. The witness' account closely matched the testimony of another apparent survivor given to French journalist Nathaniel Herzberg (see "The Refugees of Kosovo Witness Executions by Serb Forces," by Nathaniel Herzberg, Le Monde, April 14, 1999). This witness told Herzberg that the men were forced to undress and then dress again before being marched to the stream bed, where they were shot. He said: "It was then that they opened fire. I was thrown into the water, and others fell on top of me. And then nothing. Five minutes later, I heard another burst of machine-gun firing, far away. After about 20 minutes, I moved. There were six survivors, but four were wounded. I didn't have anything [I wasn't hurt.] I think there were between thirty-five and forty dead, of which four were my cousins." According to other witnesses interviewed by Human Rights Watch, who also wished to remain anonymous, a man and several women near Zrze went back to the stream by tractor to see if there were any other survivors. They told Human Rights Watch that they found five or six men who were wounded near the stream and brought them to Zrze. Two of the men later died of their wounds, and it is unknown what happened to the others. Two days later, on the Muslim holiday of Bajram, a group of villagers buried the bodies in a field near the river. A participant in the burial told Human Rights Watch that the villagers had to work two nights in a row to bury all the bodies. The massacre in Bela Crkva reveals a pattern of mass killings along a seven-mile stretch of villages on the Djakovica-Prizren road between March 25 and March 27. Human Rights Watch has confirmed that at least forty ethnic Albanian males were killed in the town of Velika Krusa (Krusha e Madhe in Albanian) on March 26 (see Human Rights Flash # 18, April 4). There are highly credible reports from individual witnesses of mass killings in the nearby villages of Mala Krusa, Celina, and Pirane. One possible explanation for the spate of mass killings in this specific area may be revenge for the past activity of the KLA, which at times controlled territory to the northeast of Velika Krusa in the direction of Orahovac. It is also possible that these killings can be attributed to one particularly brutal group of soldiers or police, although this is speculation. List of Those killed in Bela Crkva on March 25: 1. Hajrullah Begaj (village imam), 29 2. Murat Berisha, 62 3. Adem Berisha, 33 4. Hysni Fetoshi, 50 5. Halim Fetoshi, 70 6. Fatmir Fetoshi, 30 7. Ardian Fetoshi, 16 8. Fadil Gashi, 47 9. Musat Morina, 60 10. Zyraje Morina (wife of Musat), 55 11. Nesim Popaj (doctor), 36 12. Shendet Popaj, 17 (nephew of doctor) 13. Etihem Popaj, 40 14. Krashnik Popaj (son of Etihem), 48 15. Isuf Popaj, 65 16. Mehmet Popaj (son of Isuf), 46 17. Vehap Popaj, 60 18. Bedrush Popaj, 50 19. Avdullah Popaj (son of Bedrush), 16 20. Sedat Popaj, 50 21. Ifan Popaj, 40 22. Rrustem Popaj, 63 23. Mersel Popaj, 50 24. Sahit Popaj, 42 25. Behlul Popaj, 14 26. Nazmija Popaj, 45 27. Albani Popaj, 20 28. Agon Popaj, 14 29. Hysni Popaj, 38 30. Lendrit Popaj, 17 31.-37. Xhemajl Spahiu, 70 (from village of Apturush, he and 6 family members were killed together with Clirim Zhuniqi in first group of 12) 38. Eshref Zhuniqi, age 60 39. Fatos Zhuniqi, 42 40. Labinot Zhunici, age 17 41. Mahamet Zhuniqi, 65 42. Reshit Zhuniqi (son of Muhamet), 25 43. Qamil Zhuniqi, 72 44. Ibrahim Zhuniqi, 70 45. Abedin Zhuniqi, 36 46. Bajram Zhuniqi, 50 47. Qemajl Zhuniqi, 57 48. Hysni Zhuniqi, 62 49. Kasim Zhuniqi, 30 50. Mehdi Zhuniqi, 60 51. Ahmed Zhuniqi 52. Agim Zhuniqi, 55 53. Destal Zhuniqi, 65 54. Bilal Zhuniqi, 75 55. Shemsi Zhuniqi (son of Bilal), 52 56. Muharem Zhuniqi (son of Shemsi), 28 57. Qlirim Zhuniqi (killed in first group of 12), 40 58. Lumnije Zhuniqi, 39 59. Dhurata Zhuniqi, 10 60. Dardana Zhuniqi, 8 61. Dardan Zhuniqi, 5 62. Hysen Zhuniqi, 22 For further information contact: Fred Abrahams (1-212) 216-1270 Holly Cartner (1-212) 216-1277 Jean-Paul Marthoz (322) 736-7838 ***For further information about violations of human rights and humanitarian law in Kosovo, see the Human Rights Watch website at www.hrw.org on the "Crisis in Kosovo" page. To subscribe to Kosovo Human Rights Flashes, send an E-mail to Donalds at hrw.org.*** --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From mentor at alb-net.com Wed Apr 21 04:57:05 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 1999 04:57:05 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [kcc-news] Kosovo Flash #28: Killings and Scorched Earth in Southern Kosovo Message-ID: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- -------> Want to HELP the people of Kosova?? <-------- http://www.alb-net.com/kosovahelp/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE APRIL 20, 1999 Human Rights Watch KOSOVO HUMAN RIGHTS FLASH #28 Killings and Scorched Earth in Southern Kosovo Over the past ten days, Human Rights Watch researchers in Macedonia independently interviewed more than twenty refugees from villages in the area between Urosevac (Ferizaj in Albanian) and the Macedonian border. The refugees, many of whom were on the move inside Kosovo for more than two weeks, described military style operations against their home villages, including heavy shelling and the use of tanks, followed by the wholesale burning of villages and crops and the deliberate slaughter of livestock. Refugees from several villages also provided consistent accounts of the killing of civilians by Serbian police and paramilitary units, as well as reports that some of the corpses had been mutilated. In the village of Bajnica (close to Doganovic), eyewitnesses described how tanks entered the village without warning on the morning of April 3, followed by Serbian police and paramilitaries who set fire to houses, shot farm animals and beat residents in the street. Qamil Rhexepi, a sixty-year-old resident of Bajnica, and Demir Sulemani, a forty-eight-year-old man from Brod, were shot by Serbian forces during the operation, witnesses said. One witness saw Rhexepi being shot by masked men in green camouflage uniforms as he tried to flee the village. When the witness and three other men, all interviewed separately by Human Rights Watch, returned to the scene of the shooting later that day, they found the mutilated bodies of Rhexepi and Sulemani. Sulemani's eyes had been removed, and his throat had been cut, they all said. Describing the scene, one of the witnesses said: "the village was destroyed -- it was horrible to see. They just did it so we can't go back." A refugee from the village of Rakaj told Human Rights Watch that Serbian police had entered the village on April 3, forcing the residents to flee to neighboring Cakaj. The village was subsequently looted and burned, he said. On Tuesday, April 13, Cakaj's inhabitants and those being sheltered there (including persons from nearby Lamaj and Duraj) also fled after Duraj was shelled at around 11:00 a.m. The women, children and elderly, who took refuge in a canyon, were subsequently caught by armed police in masks who told them that they "couldn't leave until they [the police] had burned all the houses." Three witnesses hiding in the area heard shots after three men (forty-year-old Shiqiri Halili, forty-year-old Jakup Caka, and forty-six-year-old Mahmut Caka) tried to escape from the area around the canyon. After the police left around 3:00 p.m., one witnesses found Halili shot eight times, but still alive. Nearby, the witness said, were the mutilated corpses of Jakup and Mahmut Caka. Halili died later that same day. Four witnesses interviewed by a Human Rights Watch researcher indicated that an additional eight bodies were discovered when the villagers returned to Cakaj, bringing the number of dead to eleven. Those killed included: Rahman Lama, 50; Ibrahim Lama, 20; Habib Lami, 18; Ilir Caka 19; and Qemal and Sabri Saliu, as well as their brother. The village was completely burned, witnesses said, including the bodies of farm animals. Human Rights Watch representatives also spoke with multiple witnesses from the area who claimed that the police had destroyed the following villages: Slatin, Gabrica, Elezaj, Gatchka, Duraj and Lamaj. Three witnesses from the village of Firaj (on the road between Strpce and Brod) interviewed independently by Human Rights Watch also reported forcible evictions and scorched earth tactics in their area. They described the widespread looting and burning of villages, including Firaj, Brod, Vica, Upper and Lower Bitinja. These interviews indicate a consistent pattern of killings and literal scorched earth tactics by Serbian and Yugoslav forces in the southern region of Kosovo. Most villages along the Macedonian border have been ethnically cleansed and destroyed. For further information contact: Fred Abrahams (New York): 1-212-216-1270 Holly Cartner (New York): 1-212-216-1277 Jean-Paul Marthoz (Brussels): 322-736-7838 --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From kosova at justiceforall.org Fri Apr 23 23:34:40 1999 From: kosova at justiceforall.org (Kosova Task Force USA) Date: Fri, 23 Apr 1999 21:34:40 -0600 Subject: [kcc-news] KosovaTaskForce: May 2nd March Against Genocide Message-ID: <199904240230.TAA18772@newshub1-work.home.com> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- -------> Want to HELP the people of Kosova?? <-------- http://www.alb-net.com/kosovahelp/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Task Force, USA Action Alert 4.24.1999 Its time to stand up against racism and genocide. On Hitler's birthday 18 kids were slaughtered in Colorado. But Hitler is alive in the shape of Milosevic. Hitler called it Final Solution. He is calling it ethnic cleansing. Is your community planning to March on May 2nd Against Genocide? If not start working on it now. If you like we can send you a complete kit. Good public opinion in favor of Kosova must be translated into good public policy. Consider taking a community delegation to DC. Guidelines to a visit to Washington D.C.: 1) Locate people in your community who are already in contact with your Congress person or Senator. 2) Ask them if they are aware of our demands 3) Ask them if they are willing to go to DC 4) Before leaving inform us of the date and time of arrival in DC such that we can have a guide meet you. 5) If you can not afford boarding in DC we may be able to provide it. 6) Before departing call and make an appointment with your Congress person or Senator. 7) If you are having difficulty contacting your Congress person or Senator, call the local office in your city and make an appointment through them. 8) Take as many signatures from people who support our demands. 9) After meeting with your Senator or Congress person, we recommend you try to visit other Senators and Congress persons from your state. 10) After you meeting, follow it up with a call asking them whether they are voting for or against our demands 11) Inform us on how the trip went. ==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ==================================== The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From kosova at justiceforall.org Thu Apr 22 01:06:05 1999 From: kosova at justiceforall.org (Kosova Task Force USA) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 1999 23:06:05 -0600 Subject: [kcc-news] KosovaTaskForce: Stop the Hitler now! Message-ID: <199904220402.VAA00501@newshub1-work.home.com> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- -------> Want to HELP the people of Kosova?? <-------- http://www.alb-net.com/kosovahelp/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Action Alert Kosova Task Force, USA. April 22, 1999 Yes. Stop the Hitler Now. He is called Milosevic now. He is taking his "final solution" to Montenegro. The Butcher of Belgrade has expanded his campaign of evil and terror once again. News reports indicate that Serbian Forces have started targeting ethnic Albanians in neighboring Montenegro, many of them already refugees who have escaped the atrocities in Kosova over the last few weeks. A large number of reports also indicate that many refugees, still trapped in Kosova, are being used as human shields, many of them left standing in the rain in front of tanks for as long as two days. Others are being used as a blood bank for wounded Serbian soldiers. These atrocities against humanity must be stopped. We are requesting you to take the following actions: 1) Organize a delegation from your town or community to visit your Senator or Representative in Washington D.C. We can provide a guideline on how to organize a trip to the Capital. You can also contact and visit their local office if you are unable to go to D.C. 2) Write, call and fax the President, Secretary of State and all others listed below in order to request that they use ground troops now to stop genocide - Recognize Kosovar independence - Arm Kosovars to defend themselves - Arrest and Try War Criminals, including Slobodan Milosevic President William J. Clinton Phone: (202) 456-1111 Email: president at whitehouse.gov Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright Phone: (202) 647-7120 Fax: (202) 647-7120 secretary at whitehouse.gov Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senator Jesse Helms, (NC) Chairman Phone: (202) 224-4651 Fax: (202) 224-0836 Email: jesse_helms at helms.senate.gov House Committee on International Relations Congressman Benjamin A. Gilman, (NY) Chairman Phone: (202) 225-5021 Fax:(202) 225-2035 Email: ben at mail.house.gov Congressional Albanian Issues Caucus Congressman Eliot L. Engel, Co-Chair Jason Steinbaum, Staff Coordinator Phone: (202) 225-2464 Fax: (202) 225 5513 Email: jason.steinbaum at mail.house.gov Embassy of Great Britain in the US Ambassador Sir Christopher Meyer, KCMG 3100 Massachusetts Avenue Northwest, Washington, DC 20008 Phone: (202) 462-1340 fax: (202) 898-4255 Embassy of France in the US 4101 Reservoir Road Northwest, Washington, DC 20007 Phone: (202) 944-6000 fax: (202) 944-6072 Embassy of Germany in the US Ambassador Jurgen Chrobog 4645 Reservoir Road Northwest, Washington, DC 20007 Phone: (202) 298-4000 fax: (202) 298-4249 Embassy of Italy in the US Ambassador H.E. Ferdinando Salleo 1601 Fuller Street Washington, D.C. 20009 Phone: (202) 328-5500 Fax: (202) 462-3605 May God bless and protect the oppressed in Kosova and the innocent in Serbia. ==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ==================================== The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From kosova at justiceforall.org Mon Apr 26 23:53:59 1999 From: kosova at justiceforall.org (Kosova Task Force, USA) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 1999 21:53:59 -0600 Subject: [kcc-news] KosovaTaskForce: KosovaTaskForce: Religion's at the root of Balkan evil Message-ID: <199904270250.TAA07468@newshub1-work.home.com> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- -------> Want to HELP the people of Kosova?? <-------- http://www.alb-net.com/kosovahelp/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Task Force, USA Action Alert 4/26/99 NEW YORK - Serbia?s savagery in Kosovo has finally exposed one of Europe?s darkest and dirtiest secrets: the long racial and religious war against the Muslims of the Balkans. Hatred of Muslims is the 1990?s version of the anti-Semitism of the 1930?s that led to the extermination of Europe?s Jews. Just as many Europeans were overtly or secretly happy during the Nazi era to be rid of the Jews, so today, some modern Europeans actively or tacitly support the latest campaign by Serbia?s Muslim-hating racist regime to impose a `final solution? to the `problem' of the Balkan Muslims. After the Ottoman Empire in Eastern Europe collapsed in 1912, hundreds of thousands of Muslim Turks were slaughtered or driven out. At the end of Turkish-Greek war 1920-1928, 400,000 Turks were expelled from the Balkans; simultaneously, one million Greeks were driven from Aegean Turkey. From 1912-1928, large numbers of Slav and Albanian Muslims were expelled from Bosnia, Kosovo, and Serbia. Today, there are almost 2 million people of Bosnian descent and some 1 million of Albanian origin living in Turkey. These vast expulsions still left some Turks, and millions of native Balkan Muslims, the descendants of Serbs, Albanians, Greeks, and Bulgarians who had voluntarily converted to Islam in the 15-16th Centuries to escape fierce religious persecution by the Catholic or Orthodox Churches, or to avoid a head tax on Christians levied by the Ottomans. Today, there are some 10 million Muslims in the Balkans: nearly 3 million nominal Muslims in Albania; 2.3 million in Kosovo and Sanjak; 2 million in Bosnia; 2 million in Bulgaria; 180,000 in Greece; and 600-700,000 Muslim Albanians in Macedonia. In the 1980?s, Bulgaria expelled 300,000 Muslim citizens and forced the remaining Muslims to Slavicize their names and adopt Orthodox Christianity. A few years later, Serbia began attempts to exterminate or drive out Bosnia?s Muslims. France and Britain, nervous over their own large Muslim minorities, and traditionally anti-Muslim because of their colonial past, thwarted US efforts to halt ethnic warfare against Bosnia?s Muslims. Greece, Bulgaria, and Macedonia gave the Serbs economic and diplomatic support. The west?s tacit approval, or ineffectual opposition, to this ethnic-religious warfare opened the way for Serbia?s `final solution? in Kosovo. Today, there is wide support among Orthodox nations of Eastern Europe for Serbia?s merciless campaign to eradicate its Muslim and Catholic Albanian minority. What we are seeing is not just a war over land, it is an eruption of the most vicious medieval hatred against non-Slavs and non-Orthodox people, encouraged and enflamed by demagogue Slobodan Milosevic and some extremist elements of the Orthodox clergy. Slavs in Bulgaria, Macedonia and Russia, and, sadly, some Greeks, are cheering on this massive pogrom, just as Europe?s Catholic right applauded Germany?s `purification? of Jews from their midst. Serb propaganda paints Albanians and Muslims as `dirty, violent Turks,? who `breed like rabbits,? `run drugs,? and flood Slav lands with their alien offspring, the vanguard of a vast `Islamic horde about to invade Christian Europe.? Orthodox priests preach revenge for events 500 years past, even urging a new crusade to `liberate Constantinople (modern Istanbul) from the Turks? Milosevic began the horrors of ethnic warfare, vowing, a decade ago, `we will send all the Muslims back to Mecca.? Ironically, Albania was always renowned for religious toleration. Muslims drank and celebrated Christmas and Easter; Catholics often observed Ramadan; Muslim, Orthodox, and Catholic Albanians mixed freely and without the slightest rancor. Every member of Albania?s small Jewish community was hidden from the Nazis and Italian fascists. Yet the easy-going, unreligious Albanians and other Balkan Muslims now are paying a terrible price for long past centuries of religious and racial hatred. They have become scapegoats for the frustrations, economic ruin, and low self-esteem of the failed, only semi-Europeanized nations of the darkest Balkans. Copyright: Eric Margolis, 1999 Circulated with permission. ==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ==================================== The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From mentor at alb-net.com Wed Apr 28 22:54:49 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 1999 22:54:49 -0400 (EDT) Subject: [kcc-news] HRW: RAPE OF ETHNIC ALBANIAN WOMEN IN KOSOVO TOWN OF DRAGACIN Message-ID: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- -------> Want to HELP the people of Kosova?? <-------- http://www.alb-net.com/kosovahelp/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovo Human Rights Flash #31 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 28, 1999 RAPE OF ETHNIC ALBANIAN WOMEN IN KOSOVO TOWN OF DRAGACIN (April 28, 1999) Two ethnic Albanian refugees from Kosovo told Human Rights Watch yesterday that they had been raped by Serbian security forces while being held captive in Kosovo. Three other rape victims from the same village have also reported their cases to doctors in northern Albania. The two victims, from the village of Dragacin in the Suva Reka municipality, gave testimony that was detailed and credible. Many aspects of their stories were corroborated by eight other women villagers, interviewed separately. Human Rights Watch is withholding the names of the victims at their request to protect them from government retaliation. All of the women interviewed told how the police surrounded the village of Dragacin on April 21. Most of the men fled into the mountains, but between 200 and 300 women (including fifty women from the nearby villages of Mujlan and Dujle (in Albanian)), as well as eleven elderly men, stayed behind. The security forces gathered the entire group in a field, where they searched and then separated the eleven elderly men, including a ninety-three-year-old man named Ymer. None of the men have been seen since, although three of the women interviewed said they later saw one of the eleven men lying dead in a Dragacin street. The government security forces divided the women randomly into three private houses in the village (the houses of Shahin T., Avdi T. and Halil T.), where they were held for three days. During this time, the women were repeatedly threatened and harassed. One woman said that the police held a knife to her three year-old boy, saying that they would kill him if she didn't produce gold or money. Certain women were compelled to cook and clean for Serb forces. Some were forced to have sex with their captors. The two rape victims interviewed by Human Rights Watch were held in the same house, which was crowded with frightened women and children. Women held in other houses described similar conditions. One of the victims described how she was sexually abused on two occasions, during one of which she was raped. At approximately 4 p.m. on her second day of captivity, she was "chosen" from among a large group of women by a man in a green camouflage uniform. The man took her to another house and raped her, she said. The following day another man demanded she go with him to a different house some ten minutes' walk away. According to the woman's account, the man did not tell her where he was taking her or why, but instead pushed her forward with his gun when she started crying. The house was full of members of the Serbian security forces, she told Human Rights Watch. They asked her questions, using a mixture of gestures and very basic words to communicate, as the woman hardly understood Serbian. They asked her age -- twenty-three, she said -- whether she had any children, and the whereabouts of her husband. They asked her for money. When she told them that she had none, they ordered her to take off her clothes. She started crying and pulling out her hair, which made the men laugh. They put on some music. After she took off her clothes, the men approached her one by one as she stood before them naked. She told Human Rights Watch that all of them looked at her, then they left her alone in the room with the man she believed to be their commander, and another officer. The commander, whom she recognized as such because he had gold stars on his cap and he issued orders to others, had ordered another the others around, reclined on his back about ten feet away from where the victim and the officer were lying on a bed. The man on the bed, who was nude, touched her breasts but did not force her to touch him. "I kept crying all the time and pushing his hands away," she said. "Finally he said to me, I'm not going to do anything. The commander just stared at us." After about ten minutes, the other soldiers returned to the room and, still nude, the woman was forced to serve them coffee. She was then ordered to put her clothes back on and clean up. She picked up the dirty cups and dishes and swept the floor, she said. Then she was returned to the house with the other women. When the others asked what had happened to her, she refused to tell them. The second rape victim, age twenty-nine, reported to Human Rights Watch that the police took her away from the house where she was being held and brought her to another house. There she was placed in a room and forced to strip naked. One after the other, five members of the Serb forces entered the room to look at her body, but it was only the last man who raped her, she said. While he was assaulting her, the other four entered the room and watched. The woman also stated that someone had placed a walkie-talkie under the bed in the room, and that throughout the ordeal the Serbian forces shouted at her via the walkie talkie to scare her. In all, she was held in the room for about half an hour. A doctor at the camp in Kukes where the refugees from Dragacin are currently living told Human Rights Watch that three other women had come to him yesterday to report that they had been raped. The doctor said that one of these women showed obvious signs of severe emotional distress. Other women held in the Dragacin houses told Human Rights Watch that they had seen or heard women being taken by the Serbian forces during their three days in captivity. One elderly woman from Mujlan said that, on the third night, the police entered the house of Avdi T., shining a flashlight in the faces of the women, many of whom were trying to cover their heads with their scarves. They found one woman and said, "You come with us." She returned approximately two hours later and, when asked what happened, said, "Don't ask me anything." On Saturday, April 24, all of the women in Dragacin were forced by government forces to walk to the nearby village of Dujle, where they were held in the local school for two days without food or water, although no one reported further physical abuse. On April 26, they were taken in two buses to the village of Zhur, where they were forced to walk across the border into Albania. Human Rights Watch has received unconfirmed reports that rapes occurred between April 24 and 26. Witnesses' descriptions of the uniforms ? green camouflage and blue camouflage ? indicate that the incidents described above were a joint operation by the Serbian special police (MUP) and Yugoslav Army (VJ). Some of the perpetrators also wore black ski masks. ***For further information about violations of human rights and humanitarian law in Kosovo, see the Human Rights Watch website at www.hrw.org on the "Crisis in Kosovo" page. To subscribe to Kosovo Human Rights Flashes, send an E-mail to Donalds at hrw.org.*** For further information contact: Holly Cartner (New York): 1-212-216-1277 Jean-Paul Marthoz (Brussels): 322-736-7838 --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS From kosova at justiceforall.org Thu Apr 29 22:57:54 1999 From: kosova at justiceforall.org (Kosova Task Force, USA) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 1999 20:57:54 -0600 Subject: [kcc-news] KosovaTaskForce: Voice your opinion to Congress Message-ID: <199904300153.SAA16727@newshub1-work.home.com> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ! READ & DISTRIBUTE FURTHER ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Crisis Center (KCC) News Network: http://www.alb-net.com --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosovapress http://www.kosovapress.com/ Kosova Information Center http://www.kosova.com/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- -------> Want to HELP the people of Kosova?? <-------- http://www.alb-net.com/kosovahelp/ --------------------------------------------------------------------- Kosova Task Force Action Alert 4/29/99 Congress failed to clearly support or oppose the President on Kosova. While the House vote had no practical effect on NATO?s air war, the vote on Resolution 21 served as the first indication of where the Congress stands. It is vital to take decisive action by contacting our Congressional Representatives and letting them know where we stand on this issue and how you feel about his vote. IF YOUR CONGRESSPERSON VOTED YES: Thank him/her for standing up against genocide, and casting his/her vote for justice. Also, emphasize that air strikes is only a temporary solution, and that resolution of this conflict lies only with Kosova independence and the arming of the Kosovars so they can defend themselves. IF YOUR CONGRESSPERSON VOTED NO: Express your dismay at this vote and ask him/her what solution, if any, he/she has to offer to stop the genocide. Ask him/her to vote now to arm Kosovars so they can defend themselves. Emphasize the urgency of recognizing Kosova independence and insist that they provide you with an answer. A member-by-member count of how the House voted can be found at: http://www. msnbc.com/modules/Kosovo_WarAct_Votes/VoteNoArt.asp or you can call us at the Kosova Task Force office: (312) 829-0087. The first group of refugees from Macedonia to the US will arrive in Chicago on Friday, April 30th. A rally will be held on Sunday, May 2nd at the Federal Building in downtown Chicago. The Federal Building is located at the corner of Dearborn and Jackson and will begin at 11:00 am. Rallies so far will be held in 25 cities across the nation. If you are organizing a rally in your city please send us an email providing the time and place of the rally. May God bless and protect the oppressed in Kosova and the innocent in Serbia. ==================================== Kosova Task Force, USA 730 W. Lake St., Suite 156 Chicago, IL 60661, USA Phone: 312-829-0087 Fax: 312-829-0089 Email: kosova at justiceforall.org Internet: http://www.justiceforall.org ==================================== The following organizations constitute the Kosova Task Force, USA: Albanian Islamic Cultural Center, American Muslim Council, Balkan Muslim Association, Council of Islamic Organizations of Chicago, Council of Islamic Organizations of Michigan, Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), Islamic Council of New England, Islamic Medical Association, Islamic Shura Council of Southern California, Islamic Society of Greater Houston, Islamic Society of North America (ISNA), Majlis Shura New York, The Ministry of Imam W.D. Muhammad, Muslim Students Association of US and Canada, The National Community. --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from this list send a message to majordomo at alb-net.com In the body of the message include: UNSUBSCRIBE KCC-NEWS