Kosova Daily Report #1456, 98-06-10

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From: Kosova Information Center <http://www.kosova.com/>

Kosova Information Center
KOSOVA DAILY REPORT #1456
Prishtina, 10 June 1998

CONTENTS

[01] President Rugova Receives U.S. Diplomat, Leaves for London

[02] Serbs Kill and Protest Innocence: 120 Years of Ethnic Cleansing Campaign

[03] Serb Forces Kill Three Albanians at Skenderaj Village Tuesday

[04] U.S. Legislator Eliot Engel Urges Force to Halt Ethnic Cleansing in Kosova

[05] Serbian Police Breaks up Meeting of Albanian Faculty

[06] Thousands Rally in Prishtina, Call for Nato Intervention in Kosova

[07] Convoy of Serb Police and Paramilitaries Heads to Border Villages

[08] Two Hours of Serb Gunfire at a Village of Suhareka

[09] Troops Reinforcements Brought from Serbia to Kosova

[10] Increased Movement of Serb Forces

[11] Serb Soldiers and Gypsies Loot Albanian Farmsteads at Brovin& and Molliq

[12] Serb Security Harasses LDK Chairman in Shtime

[13] Albanian Treated with Electric Shock in Serb Police Custody

[01] President Rugova Receives U.S. Diplomat, Leaves for London

The current situation in Kosova and the prospects for a way out of this situation in the wake of Serbian military and police operations against Albanians in Kosova were discussed.

Mr. Miles briefed Mr. Rugova on the impressions after a trip he had taken to De^an and Gjakova areas yesterday.

President Rugova said he appreciated the U.S. diplomat's trip as well as the continued U.S. support for Kosova.

Meanwhile, the Kosova President left for London today. He is expected to meet with British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook and other Contact Group ministers in advance to a meeting the Group will have Friday to address the Kosova situation.

[02] Serbs Kill and Protest Innocence: 120 Years of Ethnic Cleansing Campaign

The latest offensive by Serbian ('Yugoslav') military and paramilitary police troops backed by helicopters and jets started on May 29, targeting the town of De^an and villages in the border municipalities. It has left a trail of destruction along the Kosovar border villages with Albania, and sent tens of thousands of villagers fleeing for safety.

Scores of Kosova Albanians killed, hundreds wounded, hundreds others missing and/or held captive, entire villages shelled, some levelled to the ground. Much of De^an has been destroyed by high-caliber weapons or burned to the ground. 'Yugoslav' air force jets had bombed the border region, too.

This is, no doubt, Serbian scorched earth policy and ethnic cleansing at work.

2. 120 years ago today, on 10 June 1878, the Congress of Berlin started. The League of Prizren, a pan-Albanian pro- independence movement was born in the southern Kosovar town of Prizren that day.

The Berlin Congress in 1878 and the London Conference of Ambassadors in 1913 ceded ethnic Albanian territories to Serbia and Montenegro. Large portions of Albanian-inhabited territories had been ethnically cleansed by Serbian troops in today's southern Serbia (Nis area and Toplica region).

3. "Serbian police has been fighting Albanian terrorists," the Serbian vladika Artemije, the top Serb Orthodox Church cleric for Kosova, told the Voice of America (VOA) TV Serbian feed on Tuesday, 9 June 1998, adding half- heatedly that civilians suffered in the clashes of the good guys (Serb police), doing their legitimate job of fighting/killing the bad guys (Albanian terrorists).

No word about scores of Albanians, women, children and elderly killed, 50.000 Albanians displaced from the De^an region, where the Serb De^an monastery is.

The Bujku writer Jusuf Buxhovi referred yesterday to the Berlin Congress archives, namely a letter of a De^an monastery cleric, sent to the Congress 120 years ago, asking for a number of Albanian villages near the monastery to be ethnically cleansed. It is these very villages that were shelled and cleansed this time by Serbian military and paramilitary troops.

4. "How many more guns, how many more dead soldiers, police and civilians will it take to convince the West these terrorists are not simple victims?", a senior Serb officer asked a foreign reporter yesterday.

Now that NATO is considering air strikes against Serbia to end the ethnic cleansing in Kosova, the Serb officer says "if the West wants to bomb someone, then why not the U^K? We are doing our legal duty in our sovereign country."

Journalists who approached De^an said at least one mosque had been shelled, its minaret cut in two.

Slobodan Milosevic's regime has been accusing the U^K (Kosova Liberation Army) of using mercenaries from Bosnia, Albania, Pakistan and Chechnya, that is Muslims.

We will hear perhaps one day Serb police and Serb orthodox clerics saying it was these alleged mercenaries that shelled the mosque, that levelled to the ground Albanian houses, Albanian traditional manors ('kulla's), Albanian schools in De^an and elsewhere in Kosova.

5. Serbs kill and protest innocence. This was then on 10 June 1878. This is now on 10 June 1998.

[03] Serb Forces Kill Three Albanians at Skenderaj Village Tuesday

The LDK sources in Skenderaj ('Srbica') has named the three killed Albanians as Isuf Rushiti (470, Ujkan Uka (55) and Muhamet Rushiti (55), all of them local resident of Suhog&rll&.

It is feared that the casualty figures may be even bigger, the Deutsche Welle radio has quoted sources in Skenderaj as saying.

The village of Suhog&rll&, which falls administratively in the municipality of Skenderaj, was shelled by Serbian forces for two and a half hours Monday afternoon.

LDK sources in Istog told the KIC that 37 Albanian houses in the village were destroyed or badly damaged. The local primary school was badly damaged too, the source said. Only a few houses remained intact, it added.

[04] U.S. Legislator Eliot Engel Urges Force to Halt Ethnic Cleansing in Kosova

"It is high time that the United Nations Security Council passes a resolution authorizing 'all necessary means' to end Belgrade's ethnic cleansing of Kosova," Rep. Engel said.

"Clearly, the recent talks between Kosovar President Ibrahim Rugova and Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic were manipulated by Belgrade merely to provide cover for stepped-up attacks on Kosovar civilians," Rep. Engel said. "With approximately 300 ethnic Albanians killed already and more being slaughtered every day, it is clear that Belgrade is perpetrating another crime against humanity - ethnic cleansing of the people of Kosova."

"In Bosnia, Milosevic only responded after NATO jets pounded Serb forces there," writes Rep. Engel in his letter to President Clinton.

More than 30 members of the House of Representatives have thus far consigned Rep. Engel's letter, his office said in a statement.

Eliot Engel is Co-Chair of the Congressional Albanian Issues Caucus and Chairs the House Democratic Foreign Policy Task Force.

[05] Serbian Police Breaks up Meeting of Albanian Faculty

The police intervened at 13:15, broke up a meeting of the Teachers Board, and beat up all 26 teachers regardless of their age or sex, she said.

A number of police were staying in the narrow corridor of the building and kicked Albanian teachers while chucking them out, Professor Edi Shukriu said.

Some of the Albanian teachers were reported chased out in the streets, too.

The University of Prishtina has been operating in alternative and private buildings since 1991, when the Serbian regime kicked the Albanian students and teachers out of the University premises, which have been used by Serbs alone ever since.

[06] Thousands Rally in Prishtina, Call for Nato Intervention in Kosova

Organized by the Republican Protest Committee - representing political parties, youth, human rights and trade-union organizations - the manifestation was aimed at urging World organizations, including Nato, to prevent the conflict from further escalating in Kosova.

During a half-an-hour peaceful manifestation, ralliers walked along the Mother Teresa square, chanting slogans in support of Kosova's independence, freedom, President Rugova, U^K, etc, and holding up placards in English and Albanian reading "Nato - save Kosova", "Intervene now, tomorrow will be too late", etc.

The manifestation in the town square ended peacefully. However, the Serb police cracked down brutally against a number of protesters while on their way home, at the "Kodra e Diellit" neighbourhood.

Witnesses told the KIC that ahead of the Serb police crackdown on the Albanians, a group of Serb students attacked the people returning home with stones and other objects. The police then cracked down against the Albanians only, beating many of them brutally.

[07] Convoy of Serb Police and Paramilitaries Heads to Border Villages

Serb military troops have been reported stationed in the suburbs of Gjakova in the direction of Reka e Keqe.

A police checkpoint has been set up at Osek& Pash&, in the suburbs leading in the direction of De^an villages, reports said.

Serbian police opened fire in the Piskot& neighbourhood of Gjakova at around 21:00 yesterday.

Meanwhile, LDK sources said the body of a man, in his mid-thirties, was taken to the Gjakova town morgue today.

[08] Two Hours of Serb Gunfire at a Village of Suhareka

The Serb gunfire was reported terminated after two hours, with police staying still in the vicinity of Sllapuzhan.

[09] Troops Reinforcements Brought from Serbia to Kosova

Reports said later in the day other reinforcements were brought into Kosova from Serbia, with as many as 54 vehicles, including 23 buses, heading for Prishtina.

Eyewitnesses said buses had two-fold license plates: civilian and police ones.

[10] Increased Movement of Serb Forces

At 10:30 a.m., a 12 busloads of Serb police, 7 trucks, two armored vehicles and 10 "landrovers" of Serb forces headed for Prizren.

At 11:15, a convoy of 12 police and military busloads, backed up by 10 trucks and heavy armament, as well as two dozen APCs left Suhareka for Prizren. Tow police armored vehicles escorted the column.

Later in the day, reports said 24 Serb military vehicles returned from Prizren to Shtime.

[11] Serb Soldiers and Gypsies Loot Albanian Farmsteads at Brovin& and Molliq

Besides valuable, Serb soldiers and their hands have been plundering agricultural equipment in the villages.

[12] Serb Security Harasses LDK Chairman in Shtime

Sources in Shtime, a town 25 km south of Prishtina, said Ali Sadrija was threatened he would be apprehended and face 'terrible consequences' if he failed to report to the police station by Thursday morning.

Over the past couple of years, Ali Sadrija was subjected to continuous Serb police harassment and intimidation. He was treated for over a month two years ago, after having been beaten brutally at a Serb police station.

He was summoned to appear at the police station by the same officer, Vujovic, who had tortured him two years ago.

[13] Albanian Treated with Electric Shock in Serb Police Custody

Sources in Hani i Elezit said Vesel Kalisi was held in Serb custody from 9 a.m. through 6 p.m. yesterday.

He was arrested for having chanted slogans in support of the Liberation Army of Kosova (U^K) during a rally in the town.

Vesel Kalisi was reportedly treated with electric shock.

He received severe body injuries and had to seek medical assistance later, sources in Hani i Elezit said, adding that Kalisi is still in a very bad health condition.

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