Call on the citizens in the north to protect themselves

Call on the citizens in the north to protect themselves
• Call on the citizens in the north to protect themselves (Koha)
• Kurti calls for mobilization (dailies)
• Judah: Situation in the north could drag on (dailies)
• Rohan: The north unavoidable (Express)
• Rexhepi: Saturday’s blast carried out by a professional (Bota Sot)
• Thaçi thanks Ban Ki-moon for refusing organization of Serbian elections in Kosovo (Koha)
• Government wants dialogue on the north without Belgrade (Koha)
• Pacolli criticizes government’s actions in the north (dailies)
• Nojkic: The north, a safe haven for criminals (Zëri)
• EULEX website attacked (Express)
• Dell: Some people in the Government don’t want to fight corruption (Express)
• Serbia continues to delay signing of IBM (Zëri)
• Mustafi: They got rid of me because I was working on four big cases (Koha)
• Pristina and Brussels do not comment on lines at Merdare (Koha)

Kosovo Media Highlights

Call on the citizens in the north to protect themselves (Koha)
“Who called you, EULEX, to come here”, were the words of the Kosovo Police Regional Director for Mitrovica, Nehat Thaçi, to the commander of EULEX’s special forces placed at the bridge over the Ibër River. “Why have you came here, don’t you see that you are tensioning the situation with all these warnings, because of you these curious people have gathered here”, added Thaçi, while the EULEX commander attempted to prevent media from hearing this discussion. “We came because there is a protest”, was the answer of EULEX commander. Thaçi then asked him how he knows there will be a protest. “There are no protests and please leave, if we need you we will call you”, told Thaçi to EULEX commander.

This conversation began shortly after 1500 hrs on Tuesday when a large number of EULEX forces with sirens blaring barreled through the southern part of Mitrovica to the bridge over the Iber River. They were placed at the bridge, as well as at the three towers neighbourhood.

The placement of EULEX police forces caused more than 100 citizens to gather near the bridge and ask questions to the Kosovo police. After EULEX left to return to their base the citizens dispersed. However, the situation in Mitrovica remains tense with heightened Kosovo police presence visible in the streets. They are asking citizens to be calm and demonstrate restraint.

The head of Mitrovica Municipality, Avni Kastrati, congratulated citizens for their national and citizenship maturity, despite the constant provocations by Serb illegal structures. He then called on citizens to open their eyes to the situation. He went on to encourage them to protect their property and their families if attacked. “Everybody should contribute to calming the situation. However everyone has the right to protect the doorstep of their house, if attacked”, said Kastrati to the Albanian citizens in the north of Mitrovica.

Kurti calls for mobilization (dailies)
Vetëvendosje leader Albin Kurti has written to Albanian President Bamir Topi, Kosovo President Atifete Jahjaga and the Speaker of Kosovo Assembly Jakup Krasniqi asking them to act according to their competencies and undertake concrete steps to take control of the north and to create a safe living environment there. Kurti called on Jahjaga to declare a state of emergency, Topi was asked to call for mobilization of NATO and a meeting of the UN Security Council while Krasniqi was asked to set up an extraordinary Assembly session. “The situation in Mitrovica is extraordinary. In face of this situation, we cannot behave ordinarily,” said Kurti in his letter.

Judah: Situation in the north could drag on (dailies)
In an interview for Radio Free Europe, British analyst Tim Judah said that for as long as Kosovo is not able to convince Serbs in the north that their interests will be protected, the situation there could drag on forever. Judah said a political solution is needed in the north but elaborated that he doesn’t expect serious talks to get underway this year. “I don’t expect something will change and if you contact me in a year, the chances are the situation will still be the same,” said Judah.

Rohan: The north unavoidable (Express)
In an interview for Express, former deputy of the Envoy in the discussions between Kosovo and Serbia, Ambassador Albert Rohan, said that Kosovo should be discussing with the people in the north of the country. He added that Belgrade’s inclusion in these discussions is natural because it has influence in this part of Kosovo. According to him this process could start immediately after the elections in Serbia. “It is clear that the problem of the north exists, otherwise we would not be speaking about it,” said Rohan, adding that the solution should be out of Ahtisaari’s plan.


Rexhepi: Saturday’s blast carried out by a professional (Bota Sot)
Interior Minister Bajram Rexhepi is quoted as having told RTK that the Kosovo Police is determined and will continue to try to convince Serbs in the north that rule of law is in the interest of everyone. At the same time, Rexhepi said the explosion on Saturday was carried out by a professional and that the investigations are being conducted by the police department’s anti-terrorism unit.

Thaçi thanks Ban Ki-moon for refusing organization of Serbian elections in Kosovo (Koha)
Prime Minister of the Republic of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, on Tuesday, was welcomed at the United Nations Headquarters by UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, informed the Prime Minister’s press office. In the meeting Thaçi thanked Ki-moon for his support for Kosovo and refusal to organize Serbian elections on the territory of the Republic of Kosovo. In the meeting the technical dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia, the latest developments in the country, and political and economic reforms were discussed.

Government wants dialogue on the north without Belgrade (Koha)
Koha Ditore reports that the Government of Kosovo has decided to resist calls for a dialogue on the north immediately after elections in Serbia. The government will try to push forward the idea of talking only to representatives of northern Serbs and not Belgrade.

Commenting on calls by Western diplomats in Kosovo that dialogue on the north should start immediately after Serbian elections, Kosovo’s Deputy Prime Minister Hajredin Kuçi said the approach of U.S. Ambassador Christopher Dell is realistic. “It is realistic and it is in line with the position of the government to talk to our Serb citizens,” Kuçi said. “This process is completely separate from relations between Kosovo and Serbia and the dialogue.”

Kuçi also added that the solution for the north would safeguard Kosovo’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. “The Ahtisaari Plan and our Constitution will be implemented. We will reach out to our citizens, the same way we did in other parts of Kosovo in 2008,” he added.

Pacolli criticizes government’s actions in the north (dailies)
KTV reported last night that partners of the ruling coalition don’t share the same opinion about the approach to the situation in northern Kosovo. Deputy Prime Minister Behxhet Pacolli strongly criticized the deployment of only two police officers to protect Albanians in the north. He criticized the decision by Interior Minister Bajram Rexhepi to establish a static police point at the Three Towers with only two police officers. Pacolli said he has economic plans for the northern part of Kosovo but added that he was being impeded by the interests of other people.



Nojkic: The north, a safe haven for criminals (Zëri)
Randjel Nojkic, a political representative of northern Kosovo Serbs, said in an interview for Radio Free Europe that the north has become a safe haven for criminals from both Serbia and Kosovo. According to Nojkic, these groups are connected to politics. “I don’t understand some police officers - I am talking about members of the Kosovo Police – who lack the courage to stand up to these criminal groups in the north,” he added.

EULEX website attacked (Express)
Express reports that the official site of EULEX was hacked on Tuesday afternoon. This daily reports that television coverage of Selver Haradinaj’s murder and funeral was shown on the page instead. The footage carried a subtitle which said “How many more have to die?” Based on indexonline, this daily reports that the hacking lasted only for a few minutes before returning back to normal. This daily adds that the European mission for the rule of law did not comment on the recent developments in the north, at the time when Albanians living in that part continue to be endangered by criminal Serb gangs.

Dell: Some people in the Government don’t want to fight corruption (Express)
Express reports that American Ambassador in Kosovo, Christopher Dell, has resumed making statements on corruption. This time from Washington, he said some people in the Kosovo Government don’t want to fight corruption. “It is a difficult question to answer in general terms. I think that there are people in the Government who don’t want the eradication of this phenomenon, because they are benefiting considerably from it, however, those people should be identified, be removed from institutions and then legal bodies should deal with them”, said Dell for media representatives.

Serbia continues to delay signing of IBM (Zëri)
Zëri reports that Serbia has yet to sign the protocol on the Integrated Border Management, an obligation stemming from the agreement that Pristina and Belgrade reached in Brussels in December last year. Sources from Brussels told the paper that the EU facilitator of the dialogue, Robert Cooper, keeps calling on Serbia to sign the protocol. “Cooper has recently called on Belgrade to sign the document for the implementation of the IBM, as Pristina did, but Belgrade is not dealt with the issue,” said the source.

The paper also quotes Kosovo’s chief negotiator Edita Tahiri as saying that the signing of the IBM protocol would give meaning to the continuation of dialogue between the two countries. Tahiri however could not say if Pristina would condition the start of the next round of dialogue with the signing of the document.

Mustafi: They got rid me because I was working on four big cases (Koha)
The paper reports that Nazmi Mustafi, head of the anti-corruption task force, who was recently arrested on corruption charges, sent a letter to EULEX claiming that he is innocent and that the process against him is a setup because he was working on four big cases. “This is a setup against me, in order to discredit my name and that of my family. I was working on four big cases of people who misused some tens of millions of Euros, they are all associates of people who set me up,” Mustafi wrote in his letter.

Pristina and Brussels do not comment on lines in Merdare (Koha)
The situation at the border point in Merdare has improved. Kosovo police informed that traffic at this border point is flowing normally. Kosovo police spokesman, Baki Kelani, said that the long lines of vehicles have reduced. The violation of the agreement for free movement by the Serbian side was not commented on by officials in Brussels or in Kosovo. KTV requested an explanation from the Spokeswoman of Baroness Catherine Ashton, Maja Kocijancic, for the frequent situations created by the Serbian side but did not receive an answer.

Kosovo Press Headlines

Koha Ditore

Front page
• Calls on citizens of the north to protect themselves
• Thaçi thanks Ban for refusing to organize Serbian elections in Kosovo
• Government wants dialogue on the north without Belgrade
• Kurti calls for mobilization for the north
• The constitution with non-constitutional amendment
• Without law on banks there can be no agreement with IMF

Other headlines
• Pristina and Brussels don’t comment on lines at Merdare (2)
• Pacolli criticizes government’s actions in the north (3)
• Osmani: Footnote was a cardinal mistake, Assembly should turn it down (4)
• Mustafi: They got rid of me, because I was working on four big cases (5)
• HRF calls for resolution of interethnic incidents in the north (5)
• Judah: Situation in the north can be dragged (6)

Zëri

Front page
• Bosniacs of the state
• Border Police backs down
• Vetëvendosje alone in the frontline
• Dell: Jahjaga example of battle against theft

Other headlines
• The north, hotbed of criminals (2)
• Corruption preventing development (2)
• Nikolic and Vucic, campaign in Mitrovica (2)
• Thaçi: US support, necessary (4)
• Gashi asks Saudi Arabia to use its influence for Kosovo’s recognitions (4)
• Kurti asks for action from Krasniqi, Jahjaga and Topi (5)
• Serbia continues to delay IBM (5)

Kosova Sot

Front page
• Exclusive: Amendments of the Government revealed
• Mitrovica: Residents burst, can’t take it anymore
• Transmission, €60mil loss from Serbia
• Editorial: Snoozing on the north

Other headlines
• Council for Regional Reconciliation criticized (2)
• Delays in the north (2)
• Thaçi: Killing in Mitrovica, terrorist act (3)
• Dell: People in the Government gain from corruption (4)
• Kosovo asks for Saudi Arabia’s help in new recognitions (4)
• Radicals head to Mitrovica for election campaign (4)
• Kosovo deep in the mud of corruption (4)
• Kurti’s letters alarm over Mitrovica (5)
• Qehaja: Intervention without analyzed plan (9)

Epoka e Re

Front page
• Opposition: Only the Package
• Dell: There are corrupted people in the Government
• Feith: Corruption is harming Kosovo’s economy
• Thaçi: Support us

Other headlines
• Gashi lobbies in Saudi Arabia and Egypt (2)
• The suspects of burning the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade, arrested (2)
• Serbian radicals visit Mitrovica (2)
• Albanian’s death paralyzes Brussels (2)
• PM Thaçi met with Ban Ki-moon (3)
• Judah: Conflict in the north can be dragged on (5)
• KFOR has not suspended the plan for the north (5)
• Albanians in the north can organize on their own (6)
• Kastrati: Everyone has the right to defend the house threshold, if attacked (6)
• Kurti: A state of emergency to be announced for the north (7)
• EULEX creates spectacle in the south of Mitrovica (7)

Express

Front page
• Protect yourself, message from Kastrati
• Rohan: The north unavoidable
• Kurti’s requests

Other headlines
• Ibrahim Rexhepi: Thieves are still strong (2)
• Pacolli, criticism for the Government (5)
• Dell: Some people in the Government don’t want to fight corruption (6)
• Nikolic and Vucic in Mitrovica (6)
• The north, shelter of criminals (7)
• UNMIK condemns the murder (8)

Bota Sot

Front page
• Something is cooking among the coalition partners, PDK and AKR
• Who told you that you could set up at the bridge without informing us!
• Irish Times: Mired deep in the mud of Kosovo's corruption
• Kurti: Emergency state to be announced for the north

Other headlines
• Gashi requests recognition of Kosovo by Islamic countries (2)
• Nikolic and Vucic expected to visit Mitrovica (2)
• Judah: A political solution required for the north (3)
• KFOR has not suspended its plan for the north (3)
• Feith: Corruption is harming Kosovo’s economy (3)
• EULEX Police at Ibër bridge, induce panic among Albanians (4)
• Thaçi: Fragility of peace in my country (5)
• UNMIK condemns the murder in Mitrovica (6)
• Rexhepi: The explosion in the north done by professional (6)
• EULEX web page hacked. Message: How many more have to die? (7)

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Gjirokastër/ Makina përplas këmbësorin teksa kalonte rrugën, 62- vjeçari dërgohet në spital

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