Tagesnachrichten 7. August 1998
von ALBANEWS und anderen
Daily Report No 1514 August 7, 1998
Kosova Information Center
Tagesnachrichten 7. August 1998
7. to call on the Commission and the Council to provide all necessary humanitarian aid to the victims of and the refugees from the acts of violence and call on member states to stop returning refugees and asylum seekers to Kosova where protection cannot be guaranteed;________________________________________________________________________
Geplant sind Fußball-Begegnungen zwischen
FC Bayern München und FK Obilic Belgrad am
12. und am 26. August. - An sich schön, a b e r
Scheduled are football-maches between FC Bayern
München and FK Obilic Belgrad on 12th and 26th August. - Very nice,
b u t
"If you look at: http://www.sport1.de/vereine/bayern/verein/obilic.html
you will find that Bayern Munchen is writing NOTHING at all about the background
that the leader of FK Obilic Belgrad is having !!!!!
... About -Arkan-, official name Zeljko Raznjatovic´,
You can read about him in the final report of the United Nations Commission
of Experts established pursuant to Security Council Resolution 780 (1992).
For futher info about this facts please look at: http://mprofaca.cro.net/kosovo04.html
This man is a
- wellknown criminal,
- member of the Serbian Parliament,
- Leader of the notorius pramilitarian force
the Serbian Tigers who are accused for
murdering 200 croatian patients
when they were still lying in their hospital bed
at the hospital of Vukovar in
Croatia,
- international wanted by INTERPOL for heavy
robbery and suspected for other
things in Sweden as f.e. organizing
to Sweden heavy smuggling of ciggarets;
alcohol;narcotica and so on,
- on the run from a prison sentence in Belgium,
- accused for murder in Holland, Croatia,
Bosnia-Hercegovina and Kosova."
P R O T E S T !
Protest against the football match between
FC Bayern Munchen and
Arkan´s propaganda weapon, the team
FK Obilic.
If FC Bayern Munchen refuses to boycott the
match, urge them to have a
SILENT MINUTE for all the victims of the
GENOCIDE IN KOSOVA, CROATIA and BOSNIA-HERCEGOVINA
( all the countries that Arkan is suspected
of conducting genocide)
before the match starts as an emphasis
of their feeling.
Please protest by e-mail :
info@bayernmuenchen.de Mail 
senden
or by FC Bayern Munchen Treffpunkt -Forum at
internet
http://www.sport1.de/vereine/bayern/treffpunkt/index_treffpunkt.html
or by fax:
+49 (0) 89 64 41 65
or make a protest telephone call
to the President of FC Bayern Munchen
Franz Beckenbauer: +49 (0) 89 699 31-0
or at the address:
FC Bayern Munchen
Postfach 900451
D-81504 Munchen
Germany
Thank you for your support to the people of Kosova !
Anders Wessman
member of the council of the
Swedish Albanians Friendship Ties
President Rugova Talks on the Phone with Secretary of State Madeleine Albright
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - The President of the
Republic of Kosova, Dr. Ibrahim Rugova, had a telephone conversation today
with the U.S. Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, Rugova's Office said.
Madame Albright expressed the strong U.S. support
for peaceful policies advocated by President Rugova, as well as a political
solution to the Kosova issue.
The President of the Republic briefed Madame
Albright on the situation in Kosova. He thanked the U.S. Administration
for its commitment to Kosova. In view of the highly difficult situation
in the country, Rugova pressed for action to end the violence and stepped
up efforts to solve the Kosova issue.
President Rugova's Press Conference
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - The President of the
Republic of Kosova Dr. Ibrahim Rugova said today after Rahovec and Malisheva,
the Serbian offensive is going on in the Drenica region, driving out of
their homes tens of thousands of the Albanians, who are in need of humanitarian
care.
In many Kosovar lands, like in the regions of
Drenica and Dukagjin, Serb forces killed tens of civilians and wounded
many others, Ibrahim Rugova told a press conference in Prishtina today.
"Children, women and the elderly bear the brunt of the Serb offensive,
and they have taken shelter in the mountainous forests in central Kosova".
President Rugova recalled that the huge village
of Junik, in western Kosova in the border area with Albania, is under siege
by Serbian military and police forces.
The Serb regime has been killing and destroying
Albanian farmsteads and property, at a time that" Serb-run jails in Kosova
have been turned into camps where hundreds of Albanians are being held
in pre-trial detention," the President said.
Ibrahim Rugova called for international protection
for the people of Kosova, appealing to the United States, the European
Union, Nato, the OSCE, and the UN to provide this protection.
The best solution for Kosova and its citizens
is an independent status, with all guarantees for local Serbs, and an international
protectorate as an interim stage, Rugova said. "An independent Kosova would
stabilize the region, in the first place Macedonia, Albania and Serbia."
President Rugova hailed the introduction of a
Resolution in the United States Congress, which calls for recognition of
the right of Kosova to self-determination and independence. The Kosova
friends, Engel, Moran, and others introduced the Resolution, he said at
the end of his introductory remarks in the press conference.
The BBC correspondent asked for Rugova's comments
regarding the U.S. efforts to finalize plan for a possible military intervention
in Kosova.
"We welcome intervention so as to halt the Serbian
military machinery in Kosova. The unprotected people of Kosova should be
saved, and the region stabilized", Rugova said. He said the United States
and the West were serious about Kosova.
There is a unified position amongst the Albanians,
the President said, in reply to a question which implied the contrary was
the case. "All the political parties and the people of Kosova stand for
independence. It is but normal that there are differences regarding tactics
and the steps that should be taken", Rugova said, adding that there was
"unity and a democratic order" in Kosova.
The UÇK is willing to come on board to
create a unified front, the President said in reply to a question by a
reporter.
The Kosova team for negotiations with the 'Yugoslav'
side will be formed in the coming days, Rugova said, adding that this was
not a big problem. "It is very hard, though, to talk under the circumstances."
The negotiating position of Kosova in the wake
of the Serb position has not weakened, according to the President. It will
stronger, he said, reiterating his call for the Serb offensive to end first.
The West can end the offensive, Rugova stressed.
Rugova Meets with Ambassador Chris Hill
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - The President of the
Republic of Kosova Ibrahim Rugova received today for talks Ambassador Chirs
Hill, the U.S. diplomat who has been mediating on the Kosova issue The
most recent developments in Kosova were discussed.
The situation in Kosova is extremely grave, the
President said, adding that the Serb military and police offensive against
the Albanian people is going on.
The political solution has not alternative, Rugova
and Hill agreed, adding that there was need for the creation of preconditions
for the start of a political, negotiating process in pursuit of a resolution
in Kosova.
President Rugova and Ambassador Hill took part
in a regular meeting of the Democratic League of Kosova (LDK) branch leaders.
The U.S. envoy told LDK activists that the United States will continue
to be engaged in search of a political solution for Kosova.
President Rugova thanked Ambassador Hill for
his assistance to a search for a resolution to the Kosova issue.
Ambassador Hill to the Press
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - Chris Hill, the U.S.
Ambassador to FYROM, and an envoy for Kosova, spoke to the press in Prishtina
after a meeting he had with President Ibrahim Rugova of Kosova.
"I had a good meeting with Dr. Rugova. We discussed
the situation on the ground, especially the issue of displaced people,
who have moved now in the northern parts of Kosovo. We also discussed where
we are in the political process, and some ideas on moving that forward,
to get the negotiations started, negotiations that will lead to some results
in a short order of time. That was a good discussion," Ambassador Hill
said.
He told reporters he met also with branch chiefs
of the LDK, "and talked to them a little about the situation out in the
countryside, not just in Prishtina."
Asked by reporters to comment on his meeting
with 'FRY' President earlier this week, the U.S. diplomat said: "I talked
to President Milosevic two days ago, and acquainted him directly with some
of the observations that I had on the situation on the ground, including
of what I was concerned about - the fact that the police are not creating
any conditions for the return of people."
President Rugova Receives Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - The President of the
Republic of Kosova Ibrahim Rugova received today for talks Mr. Nikolai
Afanasyevsli, the Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, and his aides.
The dramatic developments in Kosova in the wake
of the Serbian offensive as well as the possibilities for a political solution
to the Kosova issue were discussed in the meeting.
Albanian civilians are being killed and massacred
in the ongoing Serb military and police offensive in Kosova, Dr. Rugova
said.
Serbs are systematically destroying and burning
Albanian settlements, which has resulted in huge numbers of people being
displaced from their homes, he added. "This is massive-scale ethnic cleansing
in Kosova, conducted by the Serb regime."
The President called for an urgent international
intervention to end the Serbian offensive and to avert a humanitarian catastrophe
in Kosova. The displaced population should be allowed back to their homes
and the process has to be carried out with international guarantees, he
said.
An independent and neutral Kosova, with all guarantees
for local Serbs, is the best solution, President Ibrahim Rugova said. "This
arrangement would bring stability to the entire region", he said, calling
on the Russian Federation to engage for a just and political solution to
the Kosova issue.
The Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Afanasyevsky
said he was here, in Prishtina, as an envoy for President Yeltsin and Foreign
Minister Primakov. The Russian Federation stands for a political solution
in Kosova, and maintains that there can be no military solution to the
Kosova issue, Afanasyevsky said.
Afanasyevsky to the Press in Prishtina
The recent situation in Kosova was the result
of "the offensive actions of armed groups of the Albanians and the reply
of the Serbian security", according to the Russian diplomat
PRISHTINA, Aug 8 (KIC) - Russian Deputy Foreign
Minister Nikolai Afanasyevsky spoke to the press after his meeting with
President Ibrahim Rugova of the Republic of Kosova.
"We discussed with Dr. Rugova about the situation
in the county", he said at the outset, referring to Kosova as a 'county'.
His assessment was that the recent situation
in Kosova was the result of "the offensive actions of armed groups of the
Albanians and the reply of the Serbian security".
Speaking in English, the Russian diplomat said
the there is no military solution of "the problems in Kosovo", and negotiations
should resume for a political, peaceful solution to "the problems of Kosovo,
including status of the county".
Using language reminiscent of official Belgrade's
rhetoric about the situation in Kosova, Afanasyevsky spoke of the need
for the solution of "immediate problems of the population, resumption of
normal life."
With regard to the return of displaced persons,
refugees, to their homes in Kosova, Afanasyevsky said "we received assurances
in Belgrade, from President Milosevic and the Government of Yugoslavia
and Serbia, that the return of these people is the first priority."
A reporter said there were no results from the
Moscow agreement of mid-June between Milosevic and Yeltsin. "Are you satisfied
with your diplomatic activities, because the situation has worsened since
the Moscow agreement?", she asked.
What happened in the past two weeks has created
"serious risks for the peace process, for the perspectives of negotiations.",
the Russian diplomat replied.
He did not reply to repeated questions about
reports on the existence of massive graves in Rahovec.
Asked to comment on President Rugova's remarks
earlier in the day today that there is no chance for talks under the prevailing
conditions in Kosova, Afanasyevsky said: "We are trying with our American
and European colleagues to promote a formulation amongst the Albanian leaders
of a platform, a unique platform, for the resumption of the negotiations.
We hope that in the coming days it will happen. We hope that negotiations
will resume..."
Seven Albanians Buried in the Radisheva Mountainous Forests Thursday
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - Seven Albanians, killed
13 days ago, were buried yesterday in the mountainous forests of Radisheva,
local sources said.
The Albanians, residents of the villages of Radishevë
and Kotorr in the municipality of Skenderaj ('Srbica'), were killed in
defense of their homes in clashes with Serb soldiers and paramilitaries.
LDK sources from Mitrovica said Beqir Mujë Hajrizi (65) and his sons
Azem Hajrizi (32) and Faik Hajrizi (28 from Kotorr, and Shyqri Azem Ahmeti
(56), Haxhi Imer Ahmeti (56), Sabit Sadri Ahmeti (27) and Alban Muhamet
Ahmeti (17) from Radisheva, were buried yesterday.
Albanian Boy Killed, Man Wounded, by Serb Snipers in Billushë Village of Prizren
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - A 12-year-old Albanian
boy, Idriz Krasniqi, was shot dead by sniper bullet(s) in the village of
Billushë, in the municipality of Prizren, on Thursday evening, around
19:00 hrs, the LDK Information Commission in Prizren said.
Veli Gashi (55), who tried to help the Albanian
boy, was also shot and seriously wounded. The Albanian boy was getting
back home from work in the fields, LDK sources said. He was reportedly
shot by Serbs from a position called 'Laku i Keq', along the Prizren-Dragash
road. The killed boy was buried today in his native village.
Likoc and Other Drenica Villages Turned into Bonfire, Witnesses Claim
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - Late Thursday afternoon,
Serb forces began torching houses one after another in Likoc village, in
the municipality of Skenderaj ('Srbica'), the local LDK chapter in Gllogovc
said.
Likoc and the neighboring village of Rezallë
were successively pounded with Serb artillery during the whole course of
Wednesday and Thursday. Serb infantry troops entered parts of the village
of Rrezallë earlier on Thursday to advance into the neighboring Likoc
later in the afternoon of the same day. Most of the local population was
evacuated from both the villages, though it was believed that there were
still some people holed up there, according to accounts of human rights
activists.
The KIC sources in the area could not still authenticate
the real consequences of the Serb offensive and possible casualties in
the village. The LDK Information Commission in Gllogovc said it has learned
so far that a 16-year-old boy, Hamit Hamiti, was wounded yesterday in his
native village of Likoc.
Today's reports from Drenica said the Serb offensive
resumed in parts of central Kosova. A couple of Serb missiles landed in
the Shtutica village today morning at around 7 a.m., witnesses said. At
around midday, Serbs forces began shelling the villages of Nekoc and Kizhareke
in Gllogovc municipality, south of Komoran village.
12 Villages Entirely Deserted in Deçan in the Wake of Serb Offensive
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - The houses which were
not burned or destroyed during the Serb offensive are begin torched by
Serbs on a daily basis, local sources said.
This comes at a time the Serb regime demagoguery
speaks of willingness to allow the displaced people back to their homes.
There are 12 entirely deserted villages, and
four partially deserted villages, in the municipality of Deçan,
LDK sources said. The villages had 2,400 farmsteads. Reports said 60 percent
of them have been burned or destroyed, the rest having suffered damages.
The LDK Information Commission in Deçan
said it had reports indicating 42 killed persons have not been buried at
all. It is suspected they were interred in a massive grave. Amongst the
killed in the municipality of Deçan 19 were women and 5 children.
92 persons are considered as missing in Deçan, LDK sources said.
At Least 27 Ethnically Cleansed Villages in Gjakova
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - Fighting in the Reka
e Keqe and Dushkaja regions in the municipality of Gjakova resumed today
(Friday), but the intensity was a bit lower, the LDK Information Commission
in Gjakova said this morning.
An report circulated by the LDK chapter in Gjakova
said that at 8least 27 villages in the municipality have become ethnically
cleansed since the beginning of the Serb offensive in south-west Kosova.
The entire Albanian population has left the villages of Koshare, Batushë,
Molliq, Brovinë, Popoc, Morinë, Ponoshec, Shishman, Nec, Smolicë,
Stubëll, Berjah, Nivokaz, Dobrosh, Sheremet, Ramoc, Cërmjan,
Gërgoc, Zhabel, Bardhaniq, Jabllanicë, Krelan, Rakovinë,
Meqe, Zylfaj, Pnish, Goden. Thousands of residents, mainly children, women
and elderly, have fled other villages in the area, the report said, adding
that at least 40.000 people from this region fled their homes, many being
still on the run and others sheltered in other parts of Kosova.
Entire farmhouses leveled, wheatfields burned,
the smell of charcoal from yet smoldering houses, smoke billowing from
the villages - this is how human rights and LDK activists described the
scorched villages in many parts of Gjakova.
Humanitarian catastrophe is looming over the
Gjakova region, the local LDK chapter said. Thousands of refugees have
been hiding in the open for day, lacking basic necessities. The situation
in the town itself is appalling, swelled as it is by uprooted persons,
and packed with Serb troops who have restricted the flow of goods to the
minimum, the LDK chapter said.
Many Albanians Feared to Have Been Killed in Meqe of Gjakova
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - Bodies of two men were
taken Thursday by the Serb forces to the town morgue in Gjakova. They have
not been yet identified, though it is presumed that the two killed men
were Prekë Krasniqi and Prelë Krasniqi, residents of Meqe village.
Sources in Gjakova said that at least two other
male corpses were taken to the local morgue later in the day on Thursday,
also supposed to be originating from Meqe.
The LDK chapter in Gjakova said it feared that
more people have been killed in the village of Meqe during the Serb onslaught
over the past two days.
Returned Albanians Flee Homes Again in the Wake of Serb Attacks
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - The village of Nerodime
e Epërme and Nerodime e Poshtme in Ferizaj municipality have been
under intermittent Serb fire since Wednesday. The villages were pounded
with heavy artillery guns for over two hours on Wednesday - from 22:00
through around midnight.
Nerodime e Epërme and Nerodime e Poshtme
villages have been for a couple of weeks attacked repeatedly by Serb troops.
Part of the local population who had returned to the Nerodime villages
was forced to move again in the wake of the recent attacks, LDK sources
in Ferizaj said.
Local sources said that besides Serb troops attacking
villagers in Ferizaj municipality, armed Serb civilians have been intimidating
the Albanian population on a daily basis.
Abdullah Kashtanjeva (68) was beaten up brutally
by a Serb in Nerodime on Wednesday, local sources said.
Zabërxha Is a Ghost Village, Local LDK Leader Says
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - Rexhë R. Salihaj,
chairman of the local LDK sub-branch at Zabërxha village of Klina,
told the KIC that 50 houses have been shelled by Serbs in his village alone.
Mr. Salihaj who has been sheltered in a Vushtrri
village said all the residents of his village were forced to flee amidst
successive attacks by Serbs for months, which escalated last week. He said
that the fate of six villagers of Zabërxha, apprehended by Serbs several
days ago, remains unknown.
The Serb have burned wheatfields, looted the
villages and took away livestock. Zabërxha is now a deserted, ghost
village with no life in it, the local LDK leaders said.
Volatile Situation in Suaharekë
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - A 60-year-old Albanian,
Isuf Suka, was wounded in Bllaca of Suhareka Thursday when the village
came under renewed Serb fire.
LDK sources said that at last 120 houses in the
Bllaca village have been hit by Serb shells over the past two weeks. The
local population has fled their homes, and has been hiding in the mountain
forests around it.
Witnesses said Serb forces have been looting
the abandoned Albanian homes, and setting some of them ablaze.
The situation in the town of Suhareka has been
deteriorating quickly, local sources said. The area has been packed with
Serbs and three new checkpoints have been set up around the town over the
past two days alone.
Gunfire Reported in Mitrovica Thursday Night
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - Machine-gun fire was
reported in two Mitrovica suburbs, "Bair" and "Kroi i Vitakut", local sources
said.
The LDK chapter in Mitrovica said it could not
learn what actually happened in the too suburbs last evening. However,
it noted that there have been stepped up provocations by Serb troops and
armed civilians in the streets of the town.
Sources in Mitrovica said over 20 heavily armed
Serb policemen raided the home of an Albanian, Bajram Avdiu (72), at Tavnik
neighborhood. The same Serb expedition was involved later in raiding several
other Albanian houses in the area, including Ismail Mustafa's.
Serb Policemen Smash Windows and Cars in Peja
PRISHTINA, Aug 7 (KIC) - Serb policemen smashed
window shops and cars in the streets of Peja ('Pec') last night, sources
in the town said.
The LDK chapter in Peja said the Serb police
offices driving in two cars, one Opel Ascona and a VW, drove for a couple
of hours through 2the streets of the town, shouting and smashing windows.
Windows in over a dozen shops and several cars parked in the sidewalks
were smashed, sources said.
Kosova Information Center
Last page!
AMERICAN ALCIMY WITH MACEDONIA
An independent and stable Macedonian, a normal
neighbouring with independent Kosova, is the strongest stop against Serb
hegemony, diagonally orthodox confederation and Russian fascists, and from
this side Albanians are motivated to defend it.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Frequent coming of NATO secretary general Xavier
Solana in Macedonian and Uesli Clark, alliances commander for Europe, did
not avoid at all the permanent risk that threatens Macedonians stability.
We are giving here only a few points that feed this risk.
1. An incident in Albania-Macedonian border,
weapons contraband, is only increasing, including shooting, that resulted
with dead and wounded.
2.Unexplained exploding in Macedonian cities,
including Skopje, creating tensions, uncertain and coldness of interethnic
relations in this republic.
3.In this same period, Serb soldiers made some
brutal intervention in some villages with Albanian population in Macedonian,
violating its territory. Serbia also minimised a part of a border, which
is two-side threat, for population in Kosova and Macedonia.
4. With all the repression conducting against
Serbia, the line of the border between Macedonia and Zhablak's(1991) Yugoslavia
is still not excepted, because Yugoslav side still wants some influence
points through the border, with which it still keeps a latent repression
against Macedonia.
These are things that keep floating in the surface.
The great pushovers of Macedonian nationalism
During August a NATO and other Partnership for
Peace Countries military manoeuvre, is planned to be held in Macedonia.
Sure the concept of this manoeuvre consists of the demonstration of NATO
alliance presence, in this republic, on which the USA has manifested a
sentiment with protection elements.
The continuation of UNPREDEP mandate for six
more month's, is also in a context of a protector umbrella over Macedonia,
in this period filled with risks, because of Kosova Crises. During this
September, Parliamentary elections will be held in Macedonia, on which
this presence of UNPREDEP and NATO military, for sure it is planned to
have its direct influences. The help for Macedonian moderate parties that
are today in power, is VMRO and other nationalist Macedonian branches that
work for greater Macedonia starting from breaking of Saint Jeremy's agreement
in 1992, the leader of VMRO, Lupcho Giorgievsku, had promised that if he
comes to power, in four years he would internationalise the Macedonian
issue.(From 66 thousand square kilometres, that Macedonia had before Balkan
wars, in Macedonia today is included 26 thousand square kilometres, including
here 5 thousand square kilometres where Albanian live as overwhelming majority.
This tells that Macedonian nationalism has its strong pushovers in history).
The fact remains that all kinds of high visits
made in Macedonia, any kind of international military presence kept in
this country, they only prolong the facing with the real problem that this
republic has with geopolitical constellations of Balkans. The regular dose
of a therapy, without precise diagnostic of an illness, has no chance of
curing the patient. They could even make a new complication.
Advances that independence for Kosova produces
In the contest of Macedonian stability, the precise
diagnose is this: Independence and stability of this republic is secured
in a package Kosova's stability and independence. The cutting of incidents
with weapon traffic, the cutting of reasons for unresolved exploding (which
could be made by numerous services and then put the blame on Albanians),
clearing of the mine fields in the border with Macedonia and resolving
border contest, bending Kosova refugees to pas from Kosova to Macedonia,
is directly connected with the resolving of Kosova crises. The resolving
of Kosova crises has only one possible option - recognition of its independence,
in its known borders even within constitution of ex Yugoslavia (1974).
In the contest of Macedonian stability, independence
of Kosova would produce these advances.
1. The weakening of Serbia that its pressure
over Macedonia would not increase, through economy which is equal to Macedonian,
with secret services, which work very close, Through system of propaganda
which dominates in Macedonia, etc.
2. The turning of the crisis epicentre, Kosova
war, would make possible foreign investments in Macedonia, good conditions
credits and intensive economic corporation with Kosova, especially in energetic
and agriculture, where the two countries interests meet. One of the big
plants of Macedonia for example was fed with electricity from Kosova.
3. Independence of Kosova permanently satisfies
Albanians of Macedonia, because priority of all Albanians is independence
of Kosova. Albanians in Macedonia are ready to participate in this project,
by accepting Macedonia as there's state, because they are aware that they
can not have the privilege of creating several states in Balkan. The economic
and cultural collaboration with Kosova and Albania, will be the best way
of moving on.
4. Alternatively if Albanian factor is weakened
in Kosova, then the frustration of Albanians will be bigger. They will
attempt to compensate the loss in a terrain in which they have more chances,
this terrain will be Macedonia. Radicalisation and crackdown will be for
certain. The fact is also counted that in Albania, in future there will
come in power a Right force that is more sentimental then Nano's government.
5. Within one package of recognition of Kosova's
independence, it would be included the signing of a guarantee of Macedonian
Borders, from Kosova and Albania.
If this reality is accepted this procedure would
be followed, then Albanians would be the most serious protectors of stability
in Balkans as they would be included in NATO alliance, which they see as
the only guarantee again Russian fascists.
Then the prophecy of Mark Uiller: "Macedonia
can never exist alone", would not be trough anymore.
American symbol of Jalta
Every logic analyse and one with facts, out of
short terms calculation, and partial interests, verifies that independent
Kosova is the best guarantee of the stability and independent Macedonia.
An independent and stable Macedonia, a normal
neighbouring with independent Kosova, is the strongest stop against Serb
hegemony, diagonally orthodox confederation and Russian fascists, and from
this side Albanians are motivated to defend it. its very unknown why official
American policy has supported Serb theory that Kosova independence risks
Macedonian sovereignty. This theory has no arguments and does not stand.
It is absurd in what scale the phobia against
Kosova's independence went at some international politicians, where minister
Kinkel leads, who for German daily said that Kosova independence is a risk
for opening Kurd issue. As long as Serb's view Kosova's independence as
risk for Macedonia, Mr. Kinkel goes even further with its speculation's.
American defending the theory that Kosova's independence endangers Macedonia,
although they have different motivations from Serbs, even so, they make
alchemy with amateur procedures. We are talking about the long-term plan.
When it sees that there's no chance of repeating what Roosevelt did in
Jalta, when he made lot's o compromises in Stalin's favour, which merely
repaired after half century. Russian ambition shows its trough face again,
in Kosova crises. Tomorrow in orthodox Macedonia they could be even more
arrogant.
Milazim KRASNIQI
The writer is analyst and chief editor of Albanian
daily. He is also a writer and one of the founders of LDK- leading Albanian
political party.
_______________________________________________________________________US sees Serb ethnic cleansing in Kosova
BY SID BALMAN Jr.WASHINGTON -- The United States announced Monday that NATO has approved plans for the use of military force in the Kosova crisis. The announcement was intended to push President Slobodan Milosevic of Yugoslavia to end the current offensive against ethnic Albanians in Kosova. At a meeting last week, the North Atlantic Council, which consists of NATO member representatives, approved a set of options that are being turned into detailed military plans, so that NATO forces can act quickly, if required, senior American and NATO-country officials said.
The Clinton administration has acknowledged for the first time that Serbian forces are carrying out ethnic cleansing against Albanians in Kosova. ''It's clear to us the use of force is directed at one ethnic group,'' State Department spokesman James Rubin said. ''That looks a lot to us like the kind of ethnic cleansing that went on before'' in Bosnia- Herzegovina. U.S. and European officials said Monday that NATO military planners have completed a battle plan for stopping the fighting in the Serbian province of Kosova that includes a ban on military flights over the region and the deployment of up to 10,000 soldiers along the borders of Macedonia and Albania. Rubin said that the planning had been completed so NATO could jump into action quickly should the situation on the ground in Kosova. But when pressed on how quickly NATO could act and what would trigger the action, Rubin said nothing could happen until NATO's 16 leaders discuss the situation and approve military intervention to end another nation's internal domestic dispute.Kosova Solution Needs Outside Help
Janez Drnovsek has been prime minister of Slovenia since 1992. As the conflict between Serbs and ethnic Albanians in Kosova approaches all-out war, Slovenia begins a six-month term as chairman of the UN Security Council.
Q. Kosovar militants want Kosova recognized as an independent state. Slovenia won recognition after its brief war with Yugoslavia. What will you tell the Kosovars?
A. The situation is still very complicated. The main problem is the lack of confidence on both sides, especially on the Albanian side. They don't trust the Serbian leadership. They waited eight years during the Yugoslav crisis for their moment to come. Now they started hostilities, and, if I may say so, it's war. I am quite sure the international community will have to find a solution, not Serbs and Albanians alone. No one can win 100 percent. I think the Albanians in Kosova will have to accept a certain form of self-governance with international guarantees. What exactly it would be - autonomy or a republic within the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia - I can't say at this moment.
Q. And recognition as an independent state? This is what Slovenia asked for and what Bosnia asked for. Why should the Kosovars get less?
A. I do not expect that the position of the international community would be this, at least at the present stage. But it's very legitimate that they claim more, that they claim independence as the Slovenes did. But I must say that I will not say now that Slovenia or I would demand this independence. We would like to find a realistic solution that both sides would accept.
Q. Can Mr. Milosevic be trusted in any dealings with the Kosovars?
A. Only if there is sufficient power behind (any agreement) that can make it work, so that there will be consequences if he doesn't follow the agreement. If there is not sufficient international power and decisiveness behind (it), then it will be more difficult.
Q. Military power or economic sanctions?
A. He will accept an agreement when he sees that there is no other way, that the international community is united. Then he will accept agreements and also follow them. The economic and financial situation there is very bad, so the question is how long it can go on, especially with the war now in Kosova. The economic factors are forcing some kind of political solution. I think he needs a solution. He cannot go on with years of war in Kosova with such an economic situation in Yugoslavia.
Q. Can you have peace in the Balkans as long as Mr. Milosevic is in any position of power?
A. That's a very difficult question for me. I don't know if anybody can answer it. It's true that he started these politics in the former Yugoslavia, with Kosova. But he is also pragmatic. When there is no other choice he accepts pragmatic solutions.
Interviewed by Peter S. Green; International Herald Tribune
Serb forces bomb and set on fire villages Rrezalle and Likoc_______________________________________________________________________PRISHTINE, August 7 (ata) - An activist of the human rights and freedoms in village Likoc told Information Centre of Kosove that Serb forces are continuing to bomb villages of Rrezalle and Likoc, while Serb infantry forces have moved to a part of Rrezalle yesterday. The village quarters are in flames caused by shells and the benzine that Serb special groups have poured to set ablaze the remaining buildings there. Continuous shells are being blasted also on villages Likoc, Plluzhin, Izbice etc. A part of the population has moved out of Likoc, the above sources said.
Target of Serb artillery pieces yesterday has also been village Pantine. A LDK source in Vushtrri told ICK that a day before, observers of the Serb army have been seen near the village and the inhabitants fled during the past night relating the Serbs' presence with possible attacks from them.
Pantina is one of the most attacked villages by Serb forces in the commune of Vushtrri. During the past three days, 25 000 Albanian refugees from Kile, Malisheve and Skenderaj have arrived in that commune. ICK reports that there is no report of the fate of scores of Albanian citizens caught by Serb police in Gorozhec of Peje. It is 30 days yesterday since Serb police and paramilitaries caught in villages Gorozhec of Peje 10 Albanians from Rudica of Kline, a LDK source in Kline reports. Seven of the Albanians were sent to the police station in Peje, while no report is available for the fate of the three others. /p.ta/xh/Over 10 thousand Albanians to face humanitarian catastrophe
PRISHTINE, Aug 7 (ATA) - Since three August when the Serb military-police forces entered the village of aeskove, Jabllanica and Gjakova have come under rocket propelled grenade launchers from the aeskova hill while over 10 thousand Albanian residents of the attacked villages of the commune of Klina are on the edge of a humanitarian catastrophe because they have run short of food, medicaments and other necessary things to live, Center for Information in Kosova (QIK) said.
The number of Albanians who have fled the war zones in Drenica and settled in Vushtri is estimated at 25.000 persons. Their health situation is deteriorating and they are running short of foods, clothes, medicaments and others. Around five thousand displaced people are settled in the building of an elementary school and the mosque of Qirez.
Some 10 thousands Albanians have been settled at a place called Fusha e Molles in the village of Verbofc.
It is said that the communal emergency council of Vushtri has offered 15tons of wheat to refugees for no aid has arrived until Wednesday from the humanitarian organisations in Vushtri. pta/das/ak/Godo says diplomacy be strongly active to halt catastrophe in Kosova
TIRANA, Aug 7 (ATA)- By Ylli Pata: Head of the parliamentary foreign commission Sabri Godo urged that the Albanian diplomacy be strongly active now to halt the human catastrophe in Kosova.
"The government should put into its head that now there is no time for holidays but it should be strongly active through the international community to halt the human catastrophe which is under way in Kosova," Godo said to ATA on Friday.
Meanwhile, officials of Foreign Ministry have said that the diplomacy will not stop in any moment but will always be in contact with the Euro Atlantic chancelleries to find ways of preventing human tragedy in Kosova and finally resolve the issue which is threatening peace in the region.
The Albanian parliament passed on Thursday a resolution urging the international community to urgently intervene in Kosova using the NATO military force. ypa/pas/ak/
Fassino and Meta visited Italian naval mini-base in Durres_______________________________________________________________________DURRES, August 6 (ata) - By G Kabashi:
In the course of his visit to Albania, Italian State Deputy Secretary Pierro Fassino accompanied by Albanian State Secretary for European Integration, Ilir Meta and the Italian Ambassador in Tirane, Marcelo Spatafora visited the Italian naval mini-base in the port of Durres, Thursday.
They were welcomed by leaders of the 28th naval group of the Italian nacy and the missions of Guardia di Finanza and CAMSEA (Customs Assistance Mission at Sea) deployed in Durres.
After passing in review, the military marine troops and Guardia di Finanza, senior representatives of the respective ministries talked for 30 minutes without the presence of reporters. /s.sh/das/xh/Council for Human Rights in Kosove confirms mass graves existing in Kosove
PRISHTINE, August 6 (ata) - ATA correspondent B Jashari reports:
Unfortunately it is true that that mass graves exist in Kosove where Serb forces have put Albanian victims most of whom massacred children and women, sources of the Human Rights Council in Prishtine report.
Even before western press uncovered the fact that mass graves do exist in Rahovec, the Human Rights Council in Kosove has informed the opinion several times of such macabre acts by Serb forces.
In March this year, Serb forces placed in a common mass grave more than 50Albanians massacred and killed in Prekaz of Drenice. In July, at least 10 Albanians, massacred and killed, were put in mass graves in Prizren, but many eyewitnesses have declared that their number is much greater. Witnesses have also declared of mass graves in Rahovec, after the massacre in that town. Such mass graves also exist in the outskirts of Decan, while many unidentified killed Albanians in Gjakove, Peje, Prizren, Prishtine and some other cities in Kosove have been violently buried on order of Serb police.
According to the Human Rights Council in Prishtine, at least 430 Albanians are reportedly missing this year in Kosove.
They are suspected to have been killed and secretly buried by Serb forces in an effort to cover the traces of crime. In Rahovec alone according to information of the Council, around 140 Albanians are missing while at least 60 others are supposed to have been massacred and killed. /la/das/xh/KLA kills seventeen Serb soldiers - Albanian sources
PRISHTINE, August 7 (ata) - ATA/ANSA/ - Liberation Army of Kosove (KLA) has killed 17 Serb soldiers in the fighting over the recent days, Information Centre of Kosove (ICK) reports.
The source says that although fighting between KLA and Serb forces of security were "rather intensive" Albanian fighters "managed keep their positions in the Decan-Gjakove-Kline triangle."
Serbs killed four Albanian civilians, said ICK without giving further details. Reports by Albanian sources have not been confirmed by Serb party. /sh.dha/xh/Albanian democrats to join Kosova fighters on front of war - Gazeta Shqiptare
TIRANE, August 7 (ata) - Berisha is wearing the uniform of the Kosova Liberation Army. What so far was considered a political support for the fighters of Kosove will soon be materialised also with volunteers on the front of war, writes an article in today's issue of Gazeta Shqiptare entitled "Berisha is wearing KLA uniform."
Further on the paper stresses that reliable sources in the Democratic Party state clearly yesterday that the democrat leader is still in a dilemma to join or not the KLA ranks, at a time when almost half of the DP deputies have voiced their readiness to take this step.
The paper writes that such an act has been proposed by Azem Hajdari, presently holding the post of the chairman of the Parliamentary Commission of Defence and that the Hajdari-led DP Security Department has longsince started registering the volunteers who want to fight in Kosove.
In its today's issue, Gazeta Shqiptare also publishes an article entitled "After a few hours Azem Hajdari will be in the judiciary pincers," in which Sokol Kociu, chief of police commissariat in Kucove and charged with the investigation into the tragedy of Ura Vajgurore last year, in an interview with this paper tells some of the dark points of Ura Vajgurore event.
He declared in his interview that in a few days he will interrogate Azem Hajdari, as one of the politicians thought to have had a finger in the pie. Kociu said that the motives of the tragedy have its basis on the strife among gangs, but everything has been instigated by political forces.
About one year ago an armed battle, which turned into a tragedy, took place in the centre of Ura Vajgurore. Involved in the event have been chiefs from two political forces. Confrontation between democrats and socialists during the fierce electoral campaign of June 1997, caused nine people killed, and the number could have been greater if residents in nearby buildings did not hide to escape the rain of bullets. /das/xh/
Bonn, 6 August (ARTA) 1600CET--
German media and political circles continue intensively
to comment the report of "TAZ" correspondent Erich Rathfelder about the
mass graves in Kosova. Nevertheless, the "voyage" of EC's commission, that
has claimed that "there are no mass graves in Rahovec", is being perceived
as ironic. The mere fact that this Commission rushed there and came up
with the hastened conclusion, speaks for an already familiar experience
from Bosnia, when the journalists were discovering mass graves, while the
politicians kept silent or denied the existence of massacres and such graves.
The German journalist Erich Rathfelder, from Berlin leftist daily "Tageszeitung",
was yesterday in the main focus of all German media. This correspondent
has been writing about the Balkans since 1988, meaning one year before
Milosevic stripped off the autonomy of Kosova — thus initiating the disintegration
of Yugoslavia.
He has reported from the crises in Slovenia,
Croatia and especially in Bosnia. In addition, he has regularly been writing
about the situation and the oppression Milosevic conducted over Kosova
Albanians. What could be said about Rathfelder in short, is the statement
made by Hans Koschnik in yesterday’s "Express". He said that "Erich Rathefelder,
who wrote of the mass graves in Kosova, has a broad knowledge of the Balkans
and we ought to believe in him".
Other German newspapers continue to harshly criticize
the International Community for its lack of engagement in Kosova. They
also bring other reports on the EC Commission that has started the fact-finding
mission on the mass graves. Some other newspapers also publish reports
that state that "this Commission could not have verified the existence
of these graves".
On the other hand, Rathfelder reappears again
with another report from Rahovec, stating that "Washington Post" also published
pieces on these mass graves. He provides the evidence of his Albanian source
who "not only has seen the victims, but has also counted them, while local
Romany were piling them in tractors and sent the corpses in the direction
of Prizren".
He showed to the German journalist "a huge blood
stain" and told him that "in that place alone, ten children and three Albanian
women were killed".
KOSOVA (massacred civilians – Deçan)
Deçan: Civilians of the village Meqe
massacred
Deçan, 6 August (ARTA) 1920CET--
The villages of Prejlep and Voksh were turned
into an arena of fierce clashes, yesterday from 0530CET to 1200CET, local
activist, Musa Berisha informs. The village of Jabllanicë was the
target of Serb shooting from the military base in Hulaj. Surface to surface
missiles were mainly used during this attack. Dozens of houses were burned
and great material damages were caused. The majority of local population
fled to the nearest forests. Thousands of residents of Deçan, Gjakovë
and Klinë found shelter in several villages of Deçan and in
Gryka e Bardhaniqit.
Only during the last couple of days, 13 people
were killed, 5 of which were from Jabllanicë e Dushkajë. In the
Deçan mountains, two nights ago, the Serb police shot at the mass
of over 100 people, fleeing to Montenegro, killing 4 people. The number
of the wounded is also very high.
Lulzim Krasniqi, from the village Meqe, informed
that on 2 August, his village was surrounded by over 50 tanks of the Serb
police\military forces. They later entered the village burning and destroying
everything. According to this source, the Serb police abducted more that
60 members of the following families: Kolë Gjon Krasniqi, Mark Sokol
Krasniqi, Pjetër Ndue Krasniqi, Marash Ndue Krasniqi, Prekë Shaban
Krasniqi, Çun Sokol Krasniqi, Prelë Sadri Krasniqi and Zef
Gjon Krasniqi.
Witnesses claim that the Serb police and army
threw Pjeter Kolë Krasniqi into a well, while 8-12 people from Meqe,
were massacred at the place called Lugu i Baranit.
KOSOVA (shelling – Drenica)
Continuous shelling
Drenica, 6 August (ARTA) 2000CET--
The villages of Rezallë and Likovc were
stricken by missiles, throughout last night. Sources from the ground inform
that the Serb forces recommenced with the shelling at 1000CET as the Serb
infantry entered in one part of the village Rezallë. The localities
of this village are still on fire. Continuous shelling is also taking place
in the villages of Likovc, Plluzhinë and Izbicë.
One part of the population has been evacuated
from the village of Likovc.
The villages are being defended by KLA units
only. Two destroyed tanks could be seen near the village of Marinë.
The humanitarian situation is serious. The civilian
population continues to move on the side-roads leading to Mitrovicë,
Vushtrri and to the less threatened parts of Gllogoc.
KOSOVA (shelling – Vushtrri)
The Serb army shells the village of Pantinë
Vushtrri, 6 August (ARTA) 2115CET--
The Serb forces started shelling the village
of Pantinë ever since this morning. Serb army observers were seen
near the village, ever since yesterday, local sources claim. Fearing a
possible attack, one part of the population was evacuated, however there
are many people left in the village.
Pantinë is one of the most attacked villages
by the Serb forces.
KOSOVA (clashes – Gjakovë)
New victims in the villages of Dushkajë
Gjakovë, 6 August (ARTA) 2030CET--
All the villages of Rekë e Keqe have no
more local population. They have all fled to find shelter in less threatened
villages and in towns, as a very small number of people are in the surrounding
forests. The clashes also took place throughout yesterday and today, in
the villages of Dushkajë (municipality of Gjakovë), and they
mostly focused in the village of Rakovinë, but also in the villages
on the other side of the Drini river.
The Serb police\military forces, settled over
the hill of Bec and in Suka e Biteshit, continuously shelled the village
and other villages of Anadrini.
Last night, the Serb army opened a new front
line. Hence, in the area of Has, municipality of Gjakovë, starting
from 2100CET to 2400CET, the Serb army and police, positioned inside and
around the building of the elementary school "Pjeter Bogdani" in Pnish,
shelled using heavy artillery arms the Albanian owned houses in this village.
There is no information on the killed or wounded, but the material damages
appear to be very large.
The Serb police, on the other hand, brought two
Albanian corpses at the Hospital morgue in Prishtina. LDK sources in Gjakovë,
notify that, they were killed during the attack of the Serb forces in the
village of Meqë, in the area of Dushkajë (municipality of Gjakovë).
Their identity is still unknown.
KOSOVA (shooting – Ferizaj)
Shooting for two hours
Ferizaj, 6 August (ARTA) 1815CET--
A very tense situation took over the village
of Nerodime e Epër, last night. Local inhabitants that managed to
escape to Ferizaj inform that Serbs police forces and the Serb locals started
firing at 2200CET. According to them "they shot in the direction of the
house yards probably to provoke a conflict. They were kicking the doors,
while we were closed inside". The constant shootings lasted until 2400CET,
but fortunately, there were no victims. Nerodime e Epër is a village
bordering with Jezerc, which for some time now has been under police siege.
The Serb forces attack this village time after time in order to move the
KLA positions, which have not been moved for some time now.
Two representatives of the Humanitarian Law Fund,
stayed today in Ferizaj trying to get information about the state of the
arrested from Ferizaj and about other cases of human rights violations.
The LDK and CDHRF representatives and the attorneys of the arrested assisted
them.
KOSOVA (Serb civilians "impose rules" – Gjilan)
Local Serbs apply curfew for Albanians
Gjilan, 6 August (ARTA) 1800CET--
In every Serb inhabited area in Gjilan, armed
locals are organizing guard shifts, and have even implemented a curfew,
namely a "martial law" applicable only in the case of Albanians, local
CDHRF in Gjilan informs.
Makresh village is the example where this situation
is prevailing since ten days. The curfew here commences at 2100CET and
ends at 0500CET. All Albanians are warned not to walk around during this
period of time, otherwise they will be killed.
KOSOVA (military movements)
The "`Yugoslav’ military" observes the field
through the frontier between Kosova and Macedonia
Gjilan, 6 August (ARTA) 1830CET--
Three lorries with armed soldiers have gone toward
Bujanoc yesterday, followed by the escort of other military vehicles.
Nonetheless, an intensified movement of police
and military forces have been noticed in the mountainous villages of Karadak,
near the border with Macedonia where the police patrols and VJ soldiers
are observing the field. Yesterday, afternoon one army helicopter has monitored
the villages situated in the border area, inform the sources of CDHRF in
Gjilan.
Local sources inform that yesterday in Graçanicë,
weapons were distributed to Serb civilians, while in Novobërdë,
armed policemen got installed in the building of the local elementary school.
The Serb civilians in this town are mobilized and armed as well. A "Koha
Ditore" source informed that local Serb claim that "they are forced to
sign that they are voluntarily going to the front, while in fact, they
are compelled to go there".
The Serb military and police offensive is worsening
the situation even more and so is that fact that some policemen from Novobërdë
and Kamenicë have been killed.
Today from 0830CET, 20 Serb policemen got stationed
in the axis Karaçevë-Rogoçicë-Breznicë. They
have stopped, checked and identified every passerby and vehicle that passed
through.
KOSOVA (killing – Pejë)
Agim Zekaj from Raushiq found dead
Pejë, 6 August (ARTA) 1715CET--
Agim Zekaj (25) from the village of Raushiq (Pejë
mun.) was found dead last night. His body was found on the road to Gryka
e Rugovës, several meters far from the police checkpoint. The circumstances
of his death remain unclear. His body was sent to the Council of the Islamic
Union, and was buried in the cemetery of Pejë.
On the other hand and according to unconfirmed
information, an unidentified body is in the Hospital morgue in Pejë.
KOSOVA (burial – Prizren)
Behamir Rustem Memaj buried
Prizren, 6 August (ARTA) 1700CET--
Behamir Rustem Memaj (28) was buried today, in
the graveyard of Zhur. He was killed in the first confrontations between
Serb forces and KLA units in village Buçe (municipality of Dragash).
His corpse was been found in the Buçe
mountain, near the border with Albania. Because of the prevailing circumstances
of insecurity, only a symbolic number of local inhabitants attended the
funeral.
Sources from the ground also inform that Teki
Ramshaj, from Rahovec, died as a consequence of the tortures he was subjected
to by the police. He had fled Rahovec and was sheltered in Prizren. After
settling in Prizren, he was arrested and was beaten ruthlessly. He ended
up hospitalized in Prizren Hospital and died a couple of days after he
was released. His burial took place in Rahovec.
KOSOVA (shooting – Podujevë)
Shooting in town
Podujevë, 6 August (ARTA) 2100CET--
Continuous shooting was heard today at around
1535CET, coming from a Serb owned apartment, situated close to the center
of the town. Shortly after, shooting was also heard from the direction
of the street that leads to the Health Unit in Podujevë. No victims
were reported.
Otherwise, today was the day of increased police
movements in the streets of town and of the surrounding localities.
KOSOVA (humanitarian assistance - Mitrovicë)
The first assistance for the sheltered in
Mitrovicë arrived
Mitrovicë, 6 August (ARTA) 1500CET--
Today is the eighth day in which IDPs from Drenica
are coming to Mitrovicë. The intensity of the flux remains almost
the same.
The situation now has further deteriorated as
the Serb offensive over Pantinë has caused the fleeing of the civilian
population from villages Pantinë, Okrashicë and Shtitaricë.
Finally, today Mitrovicë received the first
convoy of humanitarian assistance comprised five trucks of "Mother Teresa
Association" and "Medicins sans frontieres". These associations have helped
the "newcomers" with flour, ovens, mattresses, blankets, and family parcels.
KOSOVA (LDK communiqué)
Only NATO can stop the Serb crime in Kosova
Prishtina, 6 August (ARTA) 1900CET--
The LDK Leadership issued a press release in
which it condemns the Serb genocidal policy which is being applied against
the Albanian people in Kosova aiming at conducting ethnic cleansing, burning
and destroying Albanian localities, keeping hundreds of thousands of Albanian
civilians under military siege and under the threat of a mass execution.
The horrifying testimonies about the mass graves in Rahovec made public
by the foreign media are an indisputable proof of the Serb policy that
aims at physical extermination of the Albanian people in Kosova. Even the
Serb police officials have admitted that there are mass graves in Rahovec,
containing the bodies of 43 killed Albanians. There is ground to believe
that the Serbs are conducting a maneuver to conceal the other mass graves,
because many witnesses have confirmed that large-scale massacres took place
in the town.
We make an appeal to the US, EU and UN Security
Council, to urgently engage and put light to these monstrous crimes and
punish their directors and executors.
If an urgent and determined action to stop the
Serb military aggression is not undertaken, Milosevic will commence to
open mass graves, just as he has done in Bosnia, until the moment of the
NATO military intervention.
The NATO military mediation and intervention
is the only alternative to stop the Serb aggression and Belgrade's genocidal
policy conducted against the Kosova Albanians.
USIS
Office in
Prishtina
Fax: 038 32 226
APPEAL
We have just received information that in the village of Tushilla, district of Skënderaj, the villagers and refugees from the villages of Rakinica, Kopiliq, Açareva and Llausha have remained stuck for three days now. Thousands of inhabitants of these villages are under the iron siege of the Serbian military- police and paramilitary forces. Therefore, we appeal to you to make pressure on the Serbian officials and open a humanitarian corridor in order to supply the civilian population with food, drugs and protect the very same. We also inform you that police, military and paramilitary reinforcements were brought in Junik and its surrounding.
Prishtina, 4 August 1998 Information Service
The decision of the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia to widen the border line to 5 km will affect the
population of this part and will result with negative consequences.
The border belt is inhabited
by Albanians. The right to free movement is seriously violated; the possibility
of supplying the population with vital articles is limited; the ethnic
cleansing in this part is possible. The limitation of the freedom of movement
affects the right to development of the Albanians, as well as the right
to free gathering.
According to these facts,
Council for the Defence of Human Rights and Freedoms states that the decision
of the Government of the FRY for widening the border line between Albania
and Kosova is unjust and non-durable, the aftermath of which will be felt
for a long time.
Prishtina, 5 August 1998 Information Service
ON THE WIDESPREAD REPRESSION
AND HARASSMENT PERPETRATED BY
THE SERBIAN POLICE AND
OTHER AUTHORITIES IN KOSOVA
FROM JULY 26, UNTIL
AUGUST 2, 1998
The text you can read at week427b.htm
Serbs raze ethnic Albanian villages
By Preston Mendenhall
CUBRELJ, Yugoslavia - Heavily armed Serb special
police units attempted to push further into areas held by ethnic Albanian
rebels Wednesday, wiping entire villages off the map as they advanced.
Meanwhile, Richard Holbrooke, architect of the Dayton peace accord in Bosnia
and the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said the Serb offensive
"increases dramatically" the likelihood of military intervention by the
West.
Holbrooke said he personally
believed there was sufficient reason for the Western powers to move against
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic but that any decision needed to be
made by President Bill Clinton in consultation with Congress and NATO.
On Wednesday, elite
forces of the feared "Frankies" division of the Serb state police were
close to capturing the highest points in Kosovo's Drenica region - strategically
important for spotting rebels of the Kosovo Liberation Army.
The Serb forces lobbed
hundreds of shells on villages in the valley below Kosovo's Drenica region.
The small hamlets of Ocareva, Vuroje and Turicevac, whose residents fled
on foot Tuesday, received the brunt of the barrage. Fires raged on ethnic
Albanian homesteads and spread to the fields surrounding the area, obliterating
crops vital to the survival of ethnic Albanian refugees hiding in the hills.
A tattooed Serb commander
was concerned his assault would hit colleagues nearby.
"Give me your exact
coordinates; I don't want to kill you guys, too," Brazil screamed into
a microphone concealed in his bulletproof vest.
Beyond the farmhouse
where the Frankies had established a temporary headquarters, Serb police
in camouflage inched up the hill on their stomachs while hundreds of mortar
rounds whooshed over their heads to aid the advance.
The rarely encountered
"Frankies" are professional Serb soldiers named after Franky Simatovich,
their feared commander who gained fame in the 1992-95 Bosnia war.
The group unloaded mortar
and ammo from a stream of armored supply vehicles arriving at the farmhouse
headquarters. A sophisticated communications room with satellite phones
had been set up on the ground floor of the barn. Backup Serb police in
standard blue uniforms arrived by the truckload to support the front-line
battle.
"Get off the road!"
Brazil screamed at them, apparently fearing return fire from the KLA rebels.
In Kladernice, a 30-minute walk away, an ethnic Albanian described the
nerve-racking nightmare of the advancing Serb forces.
"They fire at us; we
came down to the village today to make some bread and wash the baby's clothes
and then we're heading back to the hills," said Xhemajm, 46.
He told of hundreds
of other stranded villagers surrounded by the Serbs on three sides waiting
for their village to be overrun. The road to the front line was desolate,
and houses burned in tens of villages. Houses not burned were shelled beyond
recognition.
Xhemajm's wife, Nazise,
feared the same would happen to her home. "I think we'll be the next to
go," she said, holding their 11-month-old baby girl, Astrite. The child
was covered in red rashes because she had to live for weeks in dirty clothes,
Nazise said.
Kosovo is in southern
Serbia, the dominant of two republics that make up what's left of Yugoslavia.
Milosevic has promised
to restore Kosovo's autonomy, which he canceled in 1989. But he and major
world powers oppose independence for Kosovo, whose population is overwhelmingly
ethnic Albanian.
The United States and
European nations fear independence could lead to demands by Albanian-speaking
communities in Macedonia and Yugoslavia's other republic, Montenegro, to
establish a "Greater Albania" in the southern Balkans.
KLA rebel leaders are
expected to announce this week whether they will accept a U.S. plan for
ethnic Albanian politicians to enter peace talks with Milosevic. The current
Serb offensive appears designed to deliver a strong blow against the rebels
and force them to negotiate from a position of weakness.
Mitrovica, another village
near Cubrelj, has been flooded by refugees fleeing the fighting in the
Drenica region.
An ethnic Albanian refugee
cries while sitting with her daughter on the way home to Orahovac Monday.
Residents of the villages
of Ocareva, Vuroje and Turicevac have joined more than 20,000 refugees
who fled to Mitrovica in the past few days. Aid workers struggled to reach
refugees still in the hills Wednesday. A convoy of six members of Medicin
Sans Frontiere, or Doctors Without Borders, reached areas of Drenica Wednesday,
after long delays at Serb police checkpoints. Turned away at one checkpoint,
the group registered an official protest with the Yugoslav Interior Ministry.
"We were promised the
right to travel anywhere our help was needed, but we are constantly stopped,"
Keith Ursel, the group's coordinator for the Kosovo region, told MSNBC.
The Interior Ministry eventually radioed the checkpoint to let the aid
workers pass.
"We have seen thousands
of refugees in the hills," Ursel said. "We are equipped to handle 400 a
day with medical supplies, baby food, water purification tablets and temporary
shelter."
Click here for more top stories from MSNBC
A brush with 'ethnic cleansing' in Serbia
By Preston Mendenhall, MSNBC
CUERELJ, Serbia - Our armored car rounded a small
knoll in the Drenica region of Kosovo. My ethnic Albanian translator, Rebeka,
and I had passed village after empty village, all of them on fire, none
of them likely ever again to house the tens of thousands of people who
once called them home. We pressed on to find the main road back to Pristina
but instead we came face to face with an elite forward unit of the Serb
special police - the point of Serbia's spear in Kosovo.
The Serbs were just
as surprised as we were, and Rebeka and I immediately understood the gravity
of the situation. Arriving unannounced in the middle of an active assault
by Serb soldiers on an insurgent force was bound to anger our hosts. Adding
to the tension were reports Wednesday from the International Committee
of the Red Cross that Serb units were setting fire to ethnic Albanian villages
already emptied of their populations by shelling.
As we feared, our hosts
were not happy to see us.
With 20 sniper rifles
and AK-47s trained on our armored Land Rover, we waved our hands in a small
white towel in the windshield. Through the heavy steel plating on the car,
we failed to understand the order to get out. So, screaming, four Serb
police dragged us out by our shirt collars, pushed us on to our stomachs
and held us with the heels of their boots and gun muzzles. We were then
separated on either side of the road and one soldier sped off with our
car.
We failed to understand
the order to get out. So, screaming, four Serb police dragged us out by
our shirt collars, pushed us on to our stomachs and held us with the heels
of their boots and gun muzzles.
As I was frisked and
the contents of my pockets and pack were removed, Rebeka reasoned with
the police. Their voices were drowned out by mortar launches about 50 feet
away. Herded into the back of a jeep, we were brought to an abandoned farm
house, crawling with chiseled and heavily tattooed security police.
The most visible Serb
police forces man the frequent check points in the Kosovo region and they
tend to be a swarthy, overweight bunch. The contrast of the special forces
was astounding. Seemingly efficient and extremely well equipped, the elite
police were a cut above their colleagues - in a totally different league.
They did the heavy work and coordinated the deployments of truckloads of
reinforcements who arrived even while we waited anxiously inside. The special
police forces did countless tours in the Bosnian war and given that "live"
training, are considered to be among the most seasoned fighters in the
world. Their experience in Bosnia, as well as my own, weighed on my mind
as the minutes ticked away.
Finally, the commander,
who used the nom de guerre Brazil, confiscating my video and audio tapes
and my paper notebook. He turned to us bluntly and said, "Never come here
again."
The car was returned
and Rebeka and I were escorted the 20 miles to Mitrovica, from where we
headed back toward Pristina.
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