Kosova Daily Report #1546, 98-09-08

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

Kosova Information Center
KOSOVA DAILY REPORT #1546
Prishtina, 8 September 1998

CONTENTS

[01] Serb Forces Renew Shelling of De^an Villages Tuesday

[02] LATEST REPORT (15:30 hrs) on Serb Offensive in De^an Area: At Least 2 Albanians Killed, 15 Wounded

[03] President Rugova Receives Australian Officials

[04] Around 50 Albanians Killed in Kosova Since Last Weekend

[05] Serbs Renew Offensive in Dushkaj& Region and De^an Area, Sources from Gjakova Confirm

[06] Serb Police Executes Two Albanians in Prizren Monday Evening

[07] Mutilated Bodies of Three Young Albanians Found in Struzhe Villages of Prizren

[08] Three Albanians, Killed and Mutilated by Serb Forces, Buried in Prizren

[09] Serbs Pound Villages in Skenderaj Municipality

[10] Heavy Serb Troops Move along Peja-Prishtina Roadway Tuesday

[11] Thousands of New IDP's Swell Pagarusha

[12] Many Albanians, Taken Captive Last Weekend, Still in Serb Hands

[13] Serb Court Brings Criminal Charges against 72 Albanians in Prizren

[14] Albanian Daily Slams 'Minimization' of Serb Crimes, 'Criminal Silence' over Tragedy in Kosova

[01] Serb Forces Renew Shelling of De^an Villages Tuesday

Half an hour later, Serb forces launched a heavy attack on the villages of Carrabreg i Posht&m, Beleg, Kodrali, Irzniq, Pozhar, Gllogjan and other outlying villages stretching as far as Grama^el.

The Albanian population started moving, but in a very limited area, in the wake of today's attack. It is concentrated in the villages of Isniq, Prapa^an and Strellc.

First reports, still unconfirmed, said a number of Albanians, among whom women and children, have been killed and wounded today, Mr, Sinanaj said.

He quoted eye-witness accounts as saying Serb infantry has advanced into the village of Irzniq by midday today, adding that the villages of Irzniq and Beleg are all in flames.

[02] LATEST REPORT (15:30 hrs) on Serb Offensive in De^an Area: At Least 2 Albanians Killed, 15 Wounded

The Serb shelling of the Albanian villages was being done from Serb military bases and other positions, he said.

Reports said the villages of Carrabreg, Prejlep, Irzniq and Beleg have been all in flames and will probably be razed to the ground as heavy artillery is being used to attack them.

Two parents, Fetah Lush Mazrekaj (55) and Hedije Mazrekaj, have been killed and their children, Lush Mazrekaj and Zyk& Mazrekaj (f) wounded by Serb forces today.

The Mazrekaj family, residents of Prejlep, was killed and wounded at Beleg village, while fleeing area under Serb attack, Mr. Sinanaj said, quoting sources from the ground.

At Grama^el village, Brah& Beqiraj, Gjok& Ibishi and his son, have been wounded. A number of other Albanians have been wounded, and presumably killed, by Serb forces, local sources said, but failed to offer names.

In the afternoon hours today (Tuesday), Serb forces started to shell the village of Pra^a^an. Brothers Haxhi and Haki Krasniqi have been reported wounded there, as well as Muhamet Shala, Feim Shala and Emine Shala (f). Five guests staying with the Shala family, including a child, have been wounded, too.

The endangered population has been on the move in fields and hills, while Serb attacks have been resumed in the villages of Dushkaj& region and Lugu i Baranit.

The population is encircled by Serb forces. They cannot run away to safety. Their situation has been made worse by a stormy rain today.

Local Albanian structures in the municipality of De^an, speaking on behalf of some 200,000 Albanians in the region, called for the international community to do everything in their power to save the endangered population.

[03] President Rugova Receives Australian Officials

The developments in Kosova in the midst of Serbian aggression and efforts towards a political way out were discussed in the meeting.

The Serbian military and police offensive has killed hundreds of Albanians, turned hundreds of thousands into refugees and IDPs, destroyed entire villages and towns, Rugova said, calling this "an ethnic cleansing campaign".

An independent Kosova would bring stability to the entire south- eastern Europe, the President said.

He called for the international community to act so that Belgrade halts its offensive and a political solution to the Kosova issue is pursued.

[04] Around 50 Albanians Killed in Kosova Since Last Weekend

According to estimates by local newspapers, LDK chapters and human rights groups, scores of others were wounded or maimed, many were terrorized in all possible fashions, or even died while attempting to escape from Serb terror, such as the case of a 70-year-old, Abdyl Morina, who was drowned in the waters of Mirusha. The Prishtina-based daily Bujku said in its today's issue that at least 26 Albanians - men, women and children - were killed during a huge Serb offensive against the V&rrini area villages in the Prizren municipality.

Meanwhile, the major Kosova human rights group, the Council for the Defense of Human Rights and Freedoms (CDHRF), circulated Monday a list of other 16 Albanians killed in the communities around Rahovec ('Orahovac') during the past couple of days.

Both Bujku and the CDHRF have offered eye-witness accounts on people being killed and massacred, about communities shelled, about huge amounts of property pillaged and destroyed, about gutted communities, people terrorized under Serb gunpoint, and others rounded up by Serb troops and taken to detention houses or to still unknown places.

Sources from many parts of Kosova, including Rahovec, Prizren, De^an and Lugu i Baranit (Barani valley) south-west of Peja, reported of other killed Albanians during the course of yesterday afternoon, last night and today, as Serb offensive stepped up since morning hours.

Two Albanians were killed in Prizren on Monday evening - Arsim Poniku (18), shot dead in the Tusus suburb of Prizren, and his uncle, Hasret Poniku (36), executed by police near the town's cemetery.

Bodies of three young Albanians - Muhamet Shemsedini (23), Zymri Shemsedini (21) and Sabri Maliqi (18) - were found Monday evening in the forests of the village of Struzhe. The three bodies were mutilated.

Three Albanians, two of whom twin brothers, killed by Serb forces during the last weekend and whose names were not included in the lists of victims circulated so far, were buried in the town cemetery in Prizren on Monday. Their bodies were also mutilated, sources in Prizren said.

At least 2 Albanians were killed and 15 others wounded in De^an area today (Tuesday) morning, while a large-scale Serb troops attack was still unfolding against Albanian communities there this afternoon.

[05] Serbs Renew Offensive in Dushkaj& Region and De^an Area, Sources from Gjakova Confirm

As early as o'clock in the morning, Serb troops positioned din Suka e C&rmjanit and elsewhere started shelling the villages of Prapa^an, Gllogjan and other outlying villages in the direction of Peja, LDK sources said.

Also today morning, a convoy of Serb military and police left Gjakova in the direction of the region of Dushkaj&.

Sources from the ground said today's Serb attack has not spared villages attacked earlier, such as G&rgoc, Krelan, Jabllanic&, etc.

Sources from Gjakova said the shelling lasted till 12;00 hrs. It has been impossible to learn more about the extent of damage and casualties as the area is sealed off by Serb forces.

Large numbers of Albanians displaced from their homes in Dushkaj& region reached the town of Gjakova in the past couple of days, swelling the population of the town even more.

LDK sources from Gjakova said that Sali Maliqi, a middle school teacher, was arrested 5 September at his place in the village of Dallashaj of Reka e Keqe region. He was taken away, in the direction of Gjakova. His whereabouts are unknown, but he suspected being held captive in a Serb military garrison in the region.

Meanwhile, reports said two wounded Albanians, Sejdi Sopjani (1972), from Dobridol and Bedri Sefer Gashi (1960) from Bratotin, municipality of Rahovec, are in the town hospital in Gjakova.

Serbs Shell Village of Lugu i Baranit, Western Kosova PRISHTINA, Sept 8 (KIC) - Early in the morning today, Serb military, paramilitary and police forces, backed up tanks and armored vehicles, renewed their shelling of the villages of Gllogjan and Nepole of the Lugu i Baranit (Barani valley), a region between Peja and Klina in western Kosova, Mr. Rrok Berisha, a local journalist and member of the Kosova Parliament, told the KIC today.

Reinforcements, including tanks, arrived today in Kodra e K&puzit (K&puzi hill), where Serb troops had been stationed on 4 September.

Some of the Serb tanks have been positioned in the hills above Gllogjan, others entered the village itself, Mr. Berisha said.

For six days now, around 500 Albanian civilians, mostly women, children and elderly, have found refuge in the local catholic church at Gllogjan. They are speedily running short of food supplies. The other part of the population is living rough in the open.

Horrendous is the humanitarian situation of a huge number of Albanians driven from villages attacked by Serb forces who have sought refuge in the Barani valley. These people, without shelter, are running short of food and medical supplies.

The KIC source from Barani valley told the KIC at 11:00 hrs that the villages of Gllogjan and Nepole were being shelled with an unyielding intensity, just like the villages of Dushkaj& region of Gjakova.

[06] Serb Police Executes Two Albanians in Prizren Monday Evening

In the immediate aftermath, Serb police arrested Arsim's uncle, Hasret Poniku (36). He was forced into a car with Peja ('Pec') license plates and taken to the vicinity of the cemetery in Prizren, where he was executed by police, LDK sources said.

A highly volatile situation is reported in the historic town of Prizren.

[07] Mutilated Bodies of Three Young Albanians Found in Struzhe Villages of Prizren

Their bodies have been mutilated, sources said.

Reportedly, the three Albanians had gone for firewood in the forests on September 1, never to return.

The three will be buried in their places of permanent residence.

[08] Three Albanians, Killed and Mutilated by Serb Forces, Buried in Prizren

Binak Da^aj and Reshat Da^aj, twins, and Fatmir Bojaxhiu, had their bodies mutilated, the LDK Information Commission in Prizren reported.

[09] Serbs Pound Villages in Skenderaj Municipality

The local chapter of the Council for the Defense of Human Rights and Freedoms (CDHRF) in Skenderaj said the two villages were being attacked today morning from a Serb base at the neighboring village of A^areva.

The CHDRF could not learn if there were any casualties.

The villages of Plluzhina and Tica were attacked during the last weekend, too.

[10] Heavy Serb Troops Move along Peja-Prishtina Roadway Tuesday

Witnesses told the KIC that these were the hugest forces which have been seen moving along this road since the break-out of the conflict in Kosova in early spring.

Still unconfirmed reports said that these Serb troops were heading towards the Lugu i Baranit communities, north-west of Peja, and the areas around De^an which came later under fierce Serb attacks.

[11] Thousands of New IDP's Swell Pagarusha

Activists in the area told the KIC that while Serb infantry advanced towards the Ostrozub village, the local population and others who were temporarily sheltered there fled homes in a panic.

Residents of other villages in the vicinity, such as Dragobil, Maxharaj and Marali, also fled their homes heading for Pagarusha hills.

Over 10,000 people have been camping out in Pagarusha, activists said, who warned of looming humanitarian disaster.

[12] Many Albanians, Taken Captive Last Weekend, Still in Serb Hands

Over 400 Albanian men, separated from clusters of refugees, were rounded up by Serb troops and were forced at gunpoint to sit on the ground with their hands behind their heads. Most of them were released by Sunday, but many were taken to still unknown places.

The LDK Information Commission in Malisheva confirmed the names of 14 other Albanians still in Serb forces' hands: Bislim Gashi (a teacher), Nexhat Morina (farmer), Ramadan Gashi, Zaim Gashi (physician), Ismet Gashi, Brehim Feriz Gashi - all from Sverka village; Hajir Agushi from Drenoci, Bajram Berisha from Volljaka, Imer Gashi from Si^eva, Ramadan Bacaj; and Sali Zenunaj, Ahmet Zenunaj, Kadri Rudaj and Beqir Rudaj from Gremnik village of Klina.

The Commission revealed today the names of two other Albanians who died during the Serb offensives of the past few days: Sinan Gashi (28), from Si^eva was killed on 4 September. Serb troops buried his remains.

A 70-year-old man, Abdyl Morina, resident of Gllareva, was killed in the Mirusha river while trying to run away from Serbs advancing into his direction.

[13] Serb Court Brings Criminal Charges against 72 Albanians in Prizren

The Serb media cited the Serb court authorities in Prizren as saying the defendants will face terrorism-related charges, as well as charges for involvement in "hostile activities" and "smuggling weapons" into Kosova.

Meanwhile, the Serb press said today that 522 Albanians have been rounded up in the municipalities of Prizren and Rahovec during the past few days. Around 80 are being held in custody and in investigations have been instituted against them, the Prishtina- based Serb daily Jedinstvo said. The newspaper refereed to them simply as "terrorists", without describing the nature of their involvement or charges against them, let alone the evidence it has in support of the indictments.

[14] Albanian Daily Slams 'Minimization' of Serb Crimes, 'Criminal Silence' over Tragedy in Kosova

Dole's description of the situation in Kosova is all the more important at the time when "Serb atrocities and the extermination dimension of the Serbian aggression in Kosova have been minimized" in world political and diplomatic circles.

"The past several weeks saw a criminal silence over the fate of the people of Kosova", Enver Maloku writes in his editorial. "With their presence and silence, foreign diplomats and observers who are in Kosova have been serving as a cover-up for Serb crimes in Kosova, including the gravest atrocities such as the killing of an entire family by a shell and the shelling of the make-shift shelter of refugees in Senik, that is the killing of at least 28 refugees, most of whom women and children."

The international community - the UN Security Council, EU, USA, OSCE, etc - have practically made no reaction to these criminal acts, Enver Maloku writes.

The U.S. envoy for Kosova, Chris Hill, "who has been able to travel wherever he wished to in Kosova, was quoted Saturday as saying Albanian refugees are living in 'inappropriate' conditions", the writer notes. It is not known "who is selling whom mild formulations, but one thing is clear: they are serving the Belgrade regime as a cover-up for the continuation of its crimes against the Albanian people of Kosova", Maloku underscores.

Last but not least, it is but natural "for those who wish to legalize Serbian occupation in Kosova...to minimize Serbian terror and crimes, because only through terror and crimes can Kosova be held under occupation", Mr. Maloku concludes his editorial.

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