From mentor at alb-net.com Tue Dec 7 10:05:39 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Tue Dec 7 10:05:39 1999 Subject: [Kcc-News] Mass Grave Dug Up in Kosovo (AP Dec. 3, 1999) Message-ID: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/aponline/19991203/aponline224604_000.htm Mass Grave Dug Up in Kosovo By Elida Ramadani Associated Press Writer Friday, Dec. 3, 1999; 10:46 p.m. EST TERSTENIK, Yugoslavia -- Villagers in this small northern Kosovo community began excavating a mass grave Friday, refusing to wait for international investigators to restart operations in the spring. Residents of Terstenik, some 35 miles northwest of Pristina, found the bodies of four people Friday. They began digging in an effort to find 13 people who have been missing since forces loyal to Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic swept through their village, only days before NATO peacekeepers entered the province in June. Villagers began the digging after investigators for the International War Crimes Tribunal suspended their exhumations for the year, in part because the hard frost of Kosovo's winters makes digging difficult. But villagers anxious to know the truth gathered at a meeting and decided to exhume the grave themselves. Avdyl Qalapeku, 75, who was too old to run, hid from Serb forces sweeping into the village and heard the bulldozers covering up the bodies. After the bulldozers left, he heard a Serb policeman in a blue uniform say, "'Let's go. We're finished here.'" "After several days, I was thinking and thinking. I couldn't sleep at all," he said. He returned to the area where he had heard the bulldozers. "I took my cane and ... just put it down," he said. "I saw (the ground) was soft." Villagers began digging where Qalapeku suggested and found the four bodies. One child was identified by his shoes, which he had secured to his feet with a wire cord. A family member recognized the cord, which was intended to keep his shoes from slipping off his feet as he ran. More than 50 people died in the village. ? Copyright 1999 The Associated Press From mentor at alb-net.com Mon Dec 13 10:50:41 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Mon Dec 13 10:50:41 1999 Subject: [Kcc-News] Kosovo Report Executive Summary (KOSOVO - Official U.S. Government Documents, 9 Dec 1999) (fwd) Message-ID: ____________________________________________________________________ RELEASE THE KOSOVAR POLITICAL PRISONERS FROM SERBIA NOW! Sign the petition at: http://www.khao.org/appkosova-petitionsign.htm ____________________________________________________________________ http://www.usia.gov/regional/eur/balkans/kosovo/ Text: Kosovo Report Executive Summary (Ethnic Cleansing in Kosovo: An Accounting) The State Department's second report on Kosovo -- titled "Ethnic Cleansing in Kosovo: An Accounting" -- documents such human rights violations as forced expulsions, looting, burning, detentions, use of human shields, summary executions, exhumations of mass graves, systematic and organized mass rape, violations of medical neutrality and identity cleansing. The report, released in Washington December 9, is an effort to come to a better understanding of how to avert future ethnic cleansings. It is a follow-up to the May 1999 report titled "Erasing History: Ethnic Cleansing in Kosovo." The new report's executive summary notes that its information was drawn from refugee accounts, NGO documentation, press accounts, and declassified information from government and international organization sources. Following is the text of the executive summary: "Ethnic Cleansing in Kosovo: An Accounting" is a new chapter in our effort to document the extent of human rights and humanitarian law violations in Kosovo, and to convey the size and scope of the Kosovo conflict. The information in this report is drawn from refugee accounts, NGO documentation, press accounts, and declassified information from government and international organization sources. The atrocities against Kosovar Albanians documented in this report occurred primarily between March and late June, 1999. This document is a follow-up to the U.S. Department of State's previous human rights report, Erasing History: Ethnic Cleansing in Kosovo, which was released on May 10, 1999. A central question is the number of Kosovar Albanian victims of Serbian forces in Kosovo. Many bodies were found when KFOR and the ICTY entered Kosovo in June 1999. The evidence is also now clear that Serbian forces conducted a systematic campaign to burn or destroy bodies, or to bury the bodies, then rebury them to conceal evidence of Serbian crimes. On June 4, at the end of the conflict, the Department of State issued the last of a series of weekly ethnic cleansing reports, available at www.state.gov/www/regions/eur/rpt_990604_ksvo_ethnic.html, concluding that at least 6,000 Kosovar Albanians were victims of mass murder, with an unknown number of victims of individual killings, and an unknown number of bodies burned or destroyed by Serbian forces throughout the conflict. On November 10, 1999, ICTY Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte told the U.N. Security Council that her office had received reports of more than 11,000 killed in 529 reported mass grave and killing sites in Kosovo. The Prosecutor said her office had exhumed 2,108 bodies from 195 of the 529 known mass graves. This would imply about 6,000 bodies in mass graves in Kosovo if the 334 mass graves not examined thus far contain the same average number of victims. To this total must be added three important categories of victims: (1) those buried in mass graves whose locations are unknown, (2) what the ICTY reports is a significant number of sites where the precise number of bodies cannot be counted, and (3) victims whose bodies were burned or destroyed by Serbian forces. Press accounts and eyewitness accounts provide credible details of a program of destruction of evidence by Serbian forces throughout Kosovo and even in Serbia proper. The number of victims whose bodies have been burned or destroyed may never be known, but enough evidence has emerged to conclude that probably around 10,000 Kosovar Albanians were killed by Serbian forces. Death represents only one facet of Serbian actions in Kosovo. Over 1.5 million Kosovar Albanians-at least 90 percent of the estimated 1998 Kosovar Albanian population of Kosovo-were forcibly expelled from their homes. Tens of thousands of homes in at least 1,200 cities, towns, and villages have been damaged or destroyed. During the conflict, Serbian forces and paramilitaries implemented a systematic campaign to ethnically cleanse Kosovo-aspects of this campaign include the following: * -Forcible Displacement of Kosovar Albanian Civilians: Serbian authorities conducted a campaign of forced population movement. In contrast to actions taken during 1998, Yugoslav Army units and armed civilians joined the police in systematically expelling Kosovar Albanians at gunpoint from both villages and larger towns in Kosovo. * -Looting of Homes and Businesses: There are numerous reports of Serbian forces robbing residents before burning their homes. Another round of robbery occurred as Serbian forces stole from fleeing Kosovars as they crossed the border to Montenegro, Albania, or Macedonia. * -Widespread Burning of Homes: Over 1,200 residential areas were at least partially burned after late March, 1999. Kosovar Albanians have reported that over 500 villages were burned after March, 1999. * -Use of Human Shields: Refugees claim that Serbian forces used Kosovar Albanians to escort military convoys and shield facilities throughout the province. Other reporting indicates that Serbian forces intentionally positioned ethnic Albanians at sites they believed were targets for NATO airstrikes. * -Detentions: Serbian forces systematically separated military-aged men from the general population as Kosovars were expelled. These men were detained in facilities ranging from cement factories to prisons. Many of these detainees were forced to dig trenches and were physically abused. At least 2,000 Kosovar Albanians remain in detention in around a dozen Serbian prisons today. * -Summary Executions: There are accounts of summary executions at about 500 sites across Kosovo. * -Exhumation of Mass Graves: Serbian forces burned, destroyed, or exhumed bodies from mass graves in an attempt to destroy evidence. Some were reinterred in individual graves. * -Rape: There are numerous accounts indicating that the organized and individual rape of Kosovar Albanian women by Serbian forces was widespread. For example, Serbian forces systematically raped women in Djakovica and Pec, and in some cases rounded up women and took them to hotels where they were raped by troops under encouragement of their commanders. Rape is most likely an underreported atrocity because of the stigma attached to the victims in traditional Kosovar Albanian society. * -Violations of Medical Neutrality: Kosovar Albanian physicians, patients and medical facilities were systematically attacked. Many health care facilities were used as protective cover for military activities; NGOs report the destruction by Serbian forces of at least 100 clinics, pharmacies, and hospitals. * -Identity Cleansing: Kosovar Albanians were systematically stripped of identity and property documents including passports, land titles, automobile license plates, identity cards, and other forms of documentation. As much as 50 percent of the population may be without documentation. By systematically destroying schools, places of worship, and hospitals, Serbian forces sought to destroy social identity and the fabric of Kosovar Albanian society. * -Aftermath: Following the withdrawal of Serbian forces in June, Kosovo saw manifestations of a new set of human rights problems. These include acts of retribution against the Serb minority, including the killing of 200-400 Serb residents. In addition, as many as 23,000 conscientious objectors, draft evaders, and deserters in Serbia are threatened with legal action. (The entire report is available from http://www.usia.gov/regional/eur/balkans/kosovo/hrreport/1299/ ) From kosova at JPS.NET Wed Dec 15 06:06:01 1999 From: kosova at JPS.NET (kosova at JPS.NET) Date: Wed Dec 15 06:06:01 1999 Subject: [Kcc-News] New Distribution List: Albanian Prisoner Advocacy List Message-ID: <199912151059.FAA26485@alb-net.com> A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: not available Type: text Size: 3369 bytes Desc: not available Url : http://www.alb-net.com/pipermail/kcc-news/attachments/19991215/e8c255ff/attachment.ksh From mentor at alb-net.com Wed Dec 22 13:36:00 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Wed Dec 22 13:36:00 1999 Subject: [Kcc-News] Kosova: Developments on the prisoner issue for the week of December 12, 1999 Message-ID: Taken from: http://www.alb-net.com/pipermail/a-pal/1999-December/000001.html Welcome to Albanian Prisoner Advocacy List -- Prisoner Pals Newsletter, No.002, December 20, 1999 This report highlights the developments on the prisoner issue for the week of December 12, 1999. ========================================== A-PAL STATEMENT: ========================================== Despite massive demonstrations in Prishtina last week, a European Summit on Human Rights, an OSCE Conference on Human Rights in Kosova, repeated statements from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch about the legal violations and political control of trials, and an outpouring of international outrage over the Flora Brovina sentencing to 12 years in prison, no major organization such as the UN, NATO, OSCE, or European Parliament has yet to make a public statement, nor set a course of action for resolving the issue of the 1,900 Kosovar prisoners in Serb prisons, who have now been detained for over seven months. ========================================== THIS WEEKS TOPICS: ========================================== * Women in Black: Words of Flora Brovina * KosovaPress: The International Human Rights Conference in Kosova has ended its sessions * KosovaPress: Protest in Kamenica, demanding the release of Albanian Political Prisoners * Radio 21: U.S. Official Interviewed in Pristina * The Balkan Action Council: Week in Review * Laura Kay Rozen: Teki Bokshi Released * HRW: Belgrade Tries Ethnic Albanian Students for ?Terrorism?, Defendants Allege Torture * AFP: Trial resumes of six Kosovo Albanians accused of terrorism * Recommended Action: Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC), London ========================================== QUOTES OF THE WEEK: ========================================== Mr. Kouchner , December 16, 1999, also appealed for extra police to investigate the disappearance of an estimated 4,000 to 7,000 missing Kosovo Albanians, some of whom he said had been "kidnapped" from their beds by the Serb secret police. His "hundreds of letters" to Belgrade on their fate remained unanswered..."Where are they?" he demanded. Human Rights Watch executive director Holly Cartner, December 16, 1999, on the trial of 5 Albanian students charged with terrorism. ?Allegations of torture and a lack of evidence have marred a political trial against five ethnic Albanian students in Belgrade.? Holly Cartner, Dec. 16, 1999 -- "This trial is proceeding at the whim of Serbian political authorities, not the facts of the case. This is the pattern we've seen again and again in such trials against ethnic Albanians from Kosovo. We will call on the court to resist political pressure and to judge this case on the basis of facts. This is an opportunity to re-impose the rule of law in Serbia's judicial system." ========================================== WEEK?S REQUESTED ACTION: ========================================== Contact your country?s secretary of state to bring resolution tothis intolerable issue of the illegally detained Kosovar Political Prisoners. For those in the United States, please send your letters to: secretary at state.gov ========================================== FULL REPORTS AND ARTICLES BEGIN HERE: ========================================== WORDS OF FLORA BROVIINA, TRIAL IN NIS December 09, 1999 On this trial Flora Brovina, Albanian poet and medical doctor, was sentenced to 12 years of inprisonment by serbian authorities. This is what she said: "I dedicated my whole life to children and children do not choose their ethnicity, children do not know what ethnicity they are if their parents do not tell them. With my patients, I have never divided them according to their ethnicity, according to religion or the ideological choice of their parents. I feel proud because of this and even if I was not an Albanian woman I would have done the same thing. I am one of the persons most involved in humanitarian work in Kosovo; I have sacrificed my health in order to help women and children. If I were free, I would have had much work, I would help those that are suffering more now; now it is not Albanians that are suffering the most, now it is others, and I would work with all my strength in order to help them, Serb, Roma people. My duty has been to dedicate myself also as a woman, as a doctor, as a poet to the emancipation of the Albanian woman, to her consciousness, to women's human rights, to help them fight for their freedom, to understand that without independence economics cannot succeed nor can freedom. In the League for Albanian Women, I have created bridges of friendship in the country and in the whole world. We have cooperated the most with Serbian women. Serbian women have given me the strongest support, perhaps they knew our problems best, and they have presented our problems best. The Albanian women of Kosovo should never forget this. I am very sorry that the court underestimates the role of women in the world. It is very important that women enjoy the same equality as men. I will never renounce the right to fight for the rights of women. I will always fight for women's rights. What the court has accused me of having fought for the secession of Kosovo and the annexation of Albania, I repeat: My country is where my friends are and where my poems are read. My poems are read in Switzerland, India, Brazil, Poland, in each of these countries it is as if I am in their own house. My poems have been published in the Encyclopedia of Poets of Yugoslavia (ex-Yugoslavia) and it is something very important for Albanian women. The Albanian community has never behaved in this manner with their neighbors, women, and children. Right now in Kosovo, they have gone back to revenge at the end of the twentieth century. I am very sorry for not being free, for being in jail, for not being able to influence more what is happening now in Kosovo, for not being able to do more to lend a hand, to help those that are expelled, displaced. I believe that they will do it as if I were with them; I hope that they will make it because they are women, I hope that they behave in a just manner. I would do anything for them so that they could return to their houses, I would do anything so that the Serbian community and the Albanians reconcile. The intellectuals of Kosovo should give their support to reconciliation, other communities have also fought, they have made even larger wars between each other and now they have reconciled." Flora left the court walking slowly; the police showed with harsh and arrogant words to the family and friends of Flora that they were not permitted to have any contact with her. Flora's two sisters that arrived from Kosovo, the poet Radmila Lazic, and I went to accompany Flora up to the police car. For a moment, we succeeded in putting the palms of our hands on the window of the police car. At that moment one of the policemen said with an insolent voice, "She's in safe hands. . ." Two policemen were in the front seat of the vehicle. Before my eyes surged imprisoned women: Leyla Zana, Kurdish, imprisoned in Turkey, Rigoberta Menchu, Aung Suun Ki . .. . . We waved goodbye to Flora until the police vehicle was gone, while we could see it. I was in a state of "black shame," as Ana Ahmatova says, because each one of us could have been on her place. Stasa Zajovic Women in Black Belgrade, 14. December 99 ========================================== KOSOVAPRESS The International Human Rights Conference in Kosova has ended its sessions December 12, 1999 Prishtin? - The International Human Rights Conference in Kosova, last night has ended italive. The participants also discussed about the women's rights, as they contain 50% of the general population in the society. In the end of the Conference Mr. Dan Evers said that the conference has ended its sessions in a very positive way particularly, because in the conference have taken part all the Albanian Political leaders of the parties in Kosova and after such devastated experience. The Conference ended the work with the final speech of the symbol of the resistance of the Albanian people, Mr. Adem Dema?i, who has suffered the sentence in the Serb prison for 28 years. ========================================== KOSOVAPRESS Protest in Kamenica, demanding the release of Albanian Political Prisoners December 13, 1999 Prishtin? - At least 7000 Albanian Political Prisoners are being held in the Serb jails, so for that in the city of Kamenica, about 1500 citizen took part in the protest to demand the release of the Albanian prisoners. They appealed with the strong voice to the International Community try people that you mentioned, Albin Kurti and Flora Brovina. We understand there may be a trial in Serbia of Flora Brovina. Such a trial has no legitimacy in our viewpoint. Again, our influence is limited. But let me assure you that we'll continue to work with all the means at our disposal to find out the fate of these people and to try and bring them back to Kosovo, safe and sound. (...) The entire transcript may be found: http://www.usia.gov/cgi-bin/washfile/display.pl?p=/products/washfile/geog/eu &f=99121307.wwe&t=/products/washfile/newsitem.shtml ========================================== BALKAN WATCH ? WEEK IN REVIEW The Balkan Action Council December 7 - 14, 1999 (...) KOSOVO VIOLENCE. On Monday UNMIK head Bernard Kouchner and KFOR commander Gen. Klaus Reinhardt revealed a new package of law enforcement measures designed to curtail lawlessness and establish a functioning legal system. Measures included the appointment of 400 new judges and prosecutors, as well as increased numbers of KFOR patrongs correspond with the estimates given by other international investigations. Aconvention of human rights organizations met in Pristina on Friday under OSCE auspices and condemned violence against Kosovo Serbs and Roma, while thousands of Albanians marched outside the meeting, calling for the release of Kosovo Albanians held in Serb prisons. Canadian soldiers confiscated a cache of KLA weapons near Komorane on Thursday. A Polish officer was killed and four others were wounded when a grenade exploded after a weapons search near the Macedonian border on Saturday. (...) Full review may be found at: http://www.balkanaction.org/bw/bw2-49.html ========================================== LAURA KAY ROZEN Teki Bokshi Released December 16, 1999 Teki Bokshi was released today by five kidnappers, after Bokshi's family paid 100,000 DM. The Belgrade attorney Tomas Stojkovic, formerly of Pristina, arranged the deal, he said to save Bokshi's life. Bokshi said he had five kidnappers, some seemed to him to be Bosnian 16, 1999 (New York, December 16, 1999)?Allegations of torture and a lack of evidence have marred a political trial against five ethnic Albanian students that resumed today in Belgrade, Human Rights Watch said. The five male defendants, all of them students at Belgrade University, are charged with terrorism and anti-state activities due to their alleged involvement with the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA). They testified in court that they had been tortured to extract confessions. The trial in Belgrade District Court, under way since late November, has failed to produce any credible evidence against the accused, said Human Rights Watch, which has been monitoring the proceedings. "This trial is proceeding at the whim of the Serbian political authorities, not on the facts of the case," said Holly Cartner, executive director of Human Rights Watch's Europe and Central Asia Division. "This is the pattern we've seen again and again in such trials against ethnic Albanians from Kosovo." Petrit Berisha (age 30), hn. The defendants face charges of conspiracy for enemy activities. Between February 1998 and April 1999, they are alleged to have collected money from ethnic Albanians in Belgrade to purchase weapons, ammunition, and propagandistic material for the KLA. The indictment also charges them with planning terrorist acts in Belgrade during the NATO military intervention against Yugoslavia. Petrit Berisha is also accused of having fought with the KLA in Kosovo in July and August 1998, and of having killed a number of policemen. In the first part of the trial, held on November 23, 25, and 26, the defendants rejected all charges in the indictment. The trial continued today with witness testimonies, and the court's decision is likely to be rendered next January. At the beginning of the trial in November, Judge Slijepcevic, president of the five-member chamber, made several remarks suggesting that a guilty verdict will be rendered regardless of the facts. He told defense attorneys that they were free to complain abhroughout the fall. On December 9, a prominent doctor and women's rights activist, Dr. Flora Brovina, was sentenced to twelve years in prison for anti-state activities. In related news, a well-known human rights lawyer from Kosovo, Teki Bokshi, was released today after thirteen days in police detention. Bokshi was arrested by plain-clothes policemen on December 3, about ten miles outside of Belgrade, as he returned from visiting his ethnic Albanian clients in prison. For more information about political prisoners in Serbia, see the Human Rights Website: http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/kosovo98/index.shtml. See also the website of the Kosova Association of Political Prisoners: http://www.khao.org/appkosova.htm ========================================== AFP Trial resumes of six Kosovo Albanians accused of terrorism December 17, 1999 BELGRADE, Dec 16 (AFP) - The trial of six Kosovo Albanians accused of terrorism resumed in a Belgrade court Thursday, with a hearing of witnesses to the police search for evidethree to 15 years. Last week, Kosovo Albanian human rights activist Flora Brovina was sentenced to 12 years in prison for "terrorist activities," in a trial condemned by the United States and international human rights groups. Copyright ? 1999 AFP. ========================================== ACTIONS TO TAKE: ========================================== ACTION ALERT UPDATE - FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF YUGOSLAVIA Poet sentenced to twelve years in prison 15 December 1999 SOURCE: Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC), International PEN, London **Updates IFEX alerts of 11 November, 9 November, 30 August, 23 June and 30 April 1999** (WiPC/IFEX) - On 9 December 1999, Flora Brovina, an ethnic Albanian poet, pediatrician and women's rights activist, was sentenced to twelve years in prison in a court in Nis, Serbia. International PEN considers Brovina to be convicted solely for her condemnation of Serb human rights abuses in Kosovo, and for her humanitarian work in Pristina before and during the NATO bombardment of Serb forcugoslavia Savezna Skupstina 11000 Belgrade Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Fax: + 381 11 636 775 For those meeting difficulties with this contact number, try: Zivadin Jovanovic Minister of Foreign Affairs Fax: + 381 11 367 2954 PEN also recommends that letters of protest be sent to the Serb embassies in your own countries. Please copy appeals to the source if possible. For further information, contact Sara Whyatt at the WiPC, International PEN, 9/10 Charterhouse Buildings, Goswell Road, London EC1M 7AT, U.K., tel: +44 171 253 3226, fax: +44 171 253 5711, e-mail: intpen at gn.apc.org The information contained in this action alert update is the sole responsibility of WiPC. In citing this material for broadcast or publication, please credit WiPC. ========================================== Albanian Prisoner Advocacy List -- Prisoner Pals Newsletter, No. 002 From mentor at alb-net.com Wed Dec 29 12:57:33 1999 From: mentor at alb-net.com (Mentor Cana) Date: Wed Dec 29 12:57:33 1999 Subject: [Kcc-News] Kosova COUNCIL FOR THE DEFENCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS: Weekly Report #474: Message-ID: ____________________________________________________________________ RELEASE THE KOSOVAR POLITICAL PRISONERS FROM SERBIA NOW! Sign the petition at: http://www.khao.org/appkosova-petitionsign.htm ____________________________________________________________________ K?SHILLI P?R MBROJTJEN E T? DREJTAVE E T? LIRIVE T? NJERIUT COUNCIL FOR THE DEFENCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS Rr. Zdrini, 38000 Prishtin?-Kosov?; tel. 381 (0) 549006 fax: 381 (0) 38 549007 E-mail:kmdlnj at albanian.com cdhrf at albanian.com http://www.albanian.com/kmdlnj Report 474 On the situation of the human rights and freedoms in Kosova from December 1 until December 5, 1999 During the first five days of the month of December, 9 citizens were killed, of whom 5 were Serbs, 3 Albanians (one from mines), and one whose identity could not be confirmed; 3 Albanians were wounded (2 from mines); an Albanian lawyer was kidnapped (Teki Vokshi) and 5 cases of attempted kidnappings of Albanian girls were reported in Podujeva. The corpses of 25 KLA soldiers and of 6 Albanian civilians (who were killed by the Serbian forces) were re-buried. The corpses of 5 Albanian citizens were exhumed. According to the UNMIK police, during the previous week (November 29-December 5), 22 citizens were killed, of whom 10 were Albanians, 6 Serbs, 1 Bosniac and 5 persons whose identity could not be confirmed. 28 houses were burned. 79 cases of robbery and 69 arrests were reported. Killings December 2 ? According to the KFOR spokesperson the corpse of an unidentified male was found 8 km to the West of Prishtina. December 3 ? 2 Serbs were killed in the vicinity of Ho?a e Madhe (a village inhabited by Serbs near Rahovec). - A Serb woman was killed in an explosion in Kamenica. The house was destroyed in the explosion. Her husband and her son were wounded. December 5 ? at 10 a.m., the corpses of two Albanian youngsters (who were killed by fire arms) were found in Prishtina. Later on, the two were identified as Xhevat Jashari (1976) and Isuf Halimi (1980), from the village of Breca near Podujeva, former soldiers of the ?Shaban Shala? 152 Brigade of the Llapi operational zone. - The corpse of an unidentified Serb was found in the vicinity of the hotel in the village of Zhegovc near Gjilan. Unidentified persons had kidnapped the victim, two days before. - A Serb (56) was found killed in front of his house in the vicinity of Ferizaj. The victim was shot 4 times on his chest. Mass graves, reburials-the identification of the killed December 2 ? The following 19 KLA soldiers (who were killed by Serb forces) were re-buried at the cemetery in the ?Lagja e Muhaxher?ve? quarter in Prishtina: brothers Albert (1983) and Agron Ismet Rama (1969) as well as Faruk Izet Rama (1976) ? from the village of Shkabaj; Dalip Hajrullah Alshiqi (1950), Behxhet Musli Brajshori (1961) and Besim Ragip Berisha (1976) ? from Sharban; Isuf Zeqir Ferizi (1951) and Sylejman Nazmi Jashari (1980) ? from Prapashtica; Januz Zeneli (1955) ? from Ballaban, Enver Shahin Berisha (1970) ? from Si?eva, Florim Shaip Imeri (1976) ? from Zllatar, Selim Bislimi (1976) ? from Keqekolla, Sokol Mustaf? Sopi (1977) ? from Prishtina and Fadil Mehmet Balaj (1979) ? from Rimanishta (Prishtina), Isa Sabit Kastrati (1947) ? from Kamenica and Hajrullah Sylejman Abdullahu (1941) ? from Krilev? (Kamenic?) as well as Ziaver Ali Vllasaliu (1972) ? from Vllasalia (Novob?rd?), Ferid Curri (1978) ? from Mazgit (Obiliq) and Naser Zeqir Sekira?a (1978) ? from Fush?-Kosova. December 3 - 3 KLA soldiers were reburied in the village of Shipol near Mitrovica - Bajram Xhafer Musa (1980) from Bajgora, Asllan Ramadan Cimili (1972) from Melenica and Ahmet Ibish Haxha (1971) from Magjera. - 6 Albanians were reburied in the village of Mazhiq near Mitrovica: Shahin Muharrem Ademi (1949) and his twin sons Fadil and Shk?lqim (1980) from Rashan; brothers Veton (1977) and Elmaz Mustaf? Peci (1964) from Rahova and Xhevdet Mexhit Ahmeti (1982) from Mazhiq. Until a few days ago, the above mentioned were considered missing. - The following were reburied in the village of Stanoc near Vushtrria: Shemsi Xhafer Istrefi - Shemi (1977) from Vushtrria, Rrustem Nezir Hyseni - Rrusta (1972) from Gumnishta and Enver Istref Musa - Divi (1971) ? soldiers of the ?Meh? Uka? 141 Brigade of the Shala operational zone. The above mentioned were killed in Melenica, on April 27. - The corpse of Xheladin Salih Idrizi (74) from Fush?-Kosova (who was killed by Serb paramilitaries in his house in Fush? Kosova, on April 13) was exhumed from a grave in the village of Vragolia. It is believed that there is another mass grave in the vicinity of the bridge over the Sitnica river, between the villages of Vragolia and Kuzmin. December 5 ? On December 2, 4 corpses (3 males and a female) were exhumed from a mass grave in the vicinity of the village of Bresje near Fush? Kosova. The corpses were taken to the Forensic Institute of the Prishtina Hospital. The other corpses buried in this mass grave will be exhumed during the next 4 days. Killings and woundings DE?AN: On December 2, at about 10 a.m., Isuf Smajl Lokaj (51) from the village of Lumbardh, stepped on a land mine and was killed. GJAKOVA: On December 3, at about 9.30 a.m., 2 persons were heavily wounded when their tractor hit an unexploded bomb. Woundings GJAKOVA: On December 5, at about 5 p.m., Jeton Gola opened fire towards V?llaznim Arif Podrima. The latter was heavily wounded and in a deteriorated health condition was taken to the Prishtina Hospital. Disappearances and kidnappings PRISHTINA: On December 3, at about 4.30 p.m., Teki Bokshi from Gjakova, a lawyer of the Humanitarian Law Fund, was kidnapped 20 km from Belgrade. Mr. Bokshi was returning from the prison in Sremska Mitrovica, where he had visited the Albanian prisoners from Kosova. Mustaf? Radoniqi and Ibish Hoti, lawyers from Peja, were stopped for several hours and then allowed to continue their way to Kosova. PODUJEVA: On December 3, in the vicinity of the Technical Secondary School in Podujeva, a group of men tried to kidnap 4 girls. The next day, on December 4, at about 9 p.m., in the vicinity of the Podujeva Hospital, unidentified persons, who came out of a car, tried to kidnap a girl. Ill-treatments, attacks, provocations PRIZREN: On December 1, in the evening hours, some 30 graves were damaged in the Catholic Cemetery in Prizren, including that of bishop Nik? Prela and Dom Nikoll? Mini. KAMENICA: On December 2, Serb locals from the village of Gra?anica near Prishtina threw stones on the ?Alp-Comerci? bus from the village of Hodonoc, traveling between Prishtina and Gjilan. 2 Swedish soldiers, who happened to be in the bus, caught two of the assaulters. At 2 p.m., the very same happened to the ?Kosovatransi? bus from Gjilan. At 4.30 p.m., the ?Kosovatransi? bus from Kamenica was attacked at the very same place. Its windows were broken. On December 3, Serb locals from Gra?anica (carrying axes, hammers and metal bars) tried to stop an Albanian from Bujanoc, while driving through the village. The car was badly damaged. At 12.40 p.m., some 200 Serbs threw stones on the bus of the ?P?rparimi? Travel Agency (owned by Ramadan Morina). The bus was badly damaged. PRISHTINA: On December 2, at 7 p.m., fire was opened on the car driven by Musa Hoxha, a physician. Musa was attacked while driving through the village of Gra?anica (inhabited by Serbs). Musa stated that he had reported the case to KFOR soldiers. Yet, no measures were undertaken. MITROVICA: On December 3, at about 4.30 p.m., a car was stopped by a group of Serbs in the vicinity of the place called Polet. Two Albanian women, who were in the car, were threatened. The women were saved by a KFOR patrol and by the UNMIK police who escorted them home. Among the policemen, there was a Serb cadet of the Kosova Police Service. The policeman tried to help the attacked women but was beaten by a group of Serbs. The policeman was saved by an UNMIK police officer who fired his gun in the air. The very same day, three Serbs beat an Albanian. Another group of Serbs beat an Albanian woman. On December 5, at 2 p.m., a group of Serb hooligans aged between 13-14 physically ill treated Francika Palush Kelaj (38) and Monika Zef Gjoka (16), from the ?Kodra e Minator?ve? quarter. The attack occurred in the vicinity of the Ibri bridge and in the presence of French soldiers. At the very same place, a group of Serb hooligans, led by paramilitaries Dushko Shilikoviq and Slavko Mandiq, severely ill treated and threatened Habib Imer Hetemi (70), Hajrullah Ajet Azemi (65) and Shaip Aziz Zhilivoda (58), from the ?Ibri? quarter. The incident happened at about 3.30 p.m. The very same day, a shop in the southern part of Mitrovica caught fire. Later on, the fire spread to two neighboring shops (owned by Albanians). DE?AN: According to KFOR sources, on December 3, at about 11.30 p.m., unidentified armed persons through a hand grenade on the offices of the LDK branch in De?an. The offices were badly damaged. According to local LDK officials, first, automatic fire was opened and then two bombs were thrown. Inventory as well as computers was damaged. LIPJAN: On December 4, at about 6 p.m., two local Serbs from Lipjan (man and wife) attacked Isuf Kelmendi, a teacher. The attack occurred between the old bus station building and the ?Ulpiana? Secondary School in Lipjan. Isuf was saved by a group of pupils who caught the assaulters and handed them to the Finnish soldiers. GJAKOVA: Between December 4-5, an explosive device was thrown at the shop owned by Agron Vula in the Mulla Jusufi quarter in Gjakova. Windows were broken and extensive material damage was caused. Family members were distressed. MALISHEVA: Tahir Javori from the village of Llazica, stated to the sub-CDHRF in Malisheva, that Russian soldiers stationed at the check-point in the vicinity of his house, went into his house and damaged his property. The soldiers looted firewood and opened automatic fire causing panic among the children. Prisoners FERIZAJ: According to a lawyer from Mitrovica, who paid a visit to the Albanian prisoners in Kraleva (Serbia), Murat Idriz Zeqiri from Ferizaj, who was believed to be dead, is alive and in this prison. KLINA: Xhevat Adem Desku (1970) from Klina was released from the prison in Sremska Mitrovica. On May 22, he had been heavily wounded during the massacre of the Serbian military and paramilitary forces over those imprisoned in the prison of Dubrava. Xhevat stated that the following were among those killed in the prison of Dubrava: Tefik Salihu (54) from Ferizaj, Arsim Krasniqi from Prishtina, Januz Krasniqi from Prizren, Sejdi Spahiu from the village of Kastriot near Sk?nderaj and Valentin Nikoll? Bibaj from Gjakova; Bedri Kokola from the village of Prejlep near De?an and Sali Kajtazi from Slivova near Gjilan, died due to being tortured in the prison in Lipjan. Xhevat stated that the following are still being kept in detention in Sremska Mitrovica: Sinan Tafilaj, Martin Zefi, Alban Shala and Ndue Malota. PEJA: Met? Isuf Ademaj (53) from the village of Raushiq, who was arrested several months ago, was released from the prison in Pozharevac. KFOR interventions MALISHEVA: Nasuf Rexhep Morina (1974) from the village of Krojmir near Lipjan, member of the local police in Malisheva, was arrested by the UNMIK police. A youngster had accused him of confiscating his firecrackers (with which he disrupted public order). Prishtina, December 5, 1999 COUNCIL FOR THE DEFENCE OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS Information Service