Kosova Daily Report #1689, 99-02-10
Kosova Information Center
KOSOVA DAILY REPORT #1689
Prishtina, 10 February 1999
CONTENTS
[01] Serbian Forces Shell Several Podujeva Villages Overnight and Today
Morning
[02] 151 Kosovar Albanians Killed in January, Human Rights Council Reports
[03] Re^ak Massacre Bodies Released after almost a Month
[04] If Serbs Refuse to Allow the Peace Implementation Force in Kosova,
They Will Be Subject to Air Strikes
[05] Clinton Presses Ahead with Nomination of Holbrooke as UN Ambassador
[01] Serbian Forces Shell Several Podujeva Villages Overnight and Today
Morning
PRISHTINA, Feb 7 (KIC) - Serbian forces shelled four villages in the
Podujeva municipality overnight and today (Wednesday) morning.
Local LDK sources in Podujeva said just after midnight and beginning at
5:30 a.m. today, the villages of Majanc, Sallabaja, Burica and Katunishta
were shelled.
The Serbs pounded Albanian villages from their positions nearby, as well as
the Dumosh airfield, several km away, a Serb army base for a couple of
months now in clear violation of the October 1998 cease-fire.
The U.S. KDOM (Kosova Diplomatic Observer Mission) said in its Update of
February 9, 1999, that "tensions seem to be escalating in the
Podujeva/Llapashtica region, where patrols have noted recent VJ (Yugoslav)
movements, including the deployment of four T-55 tanks to supplement an
already strong military presence" there.
Meanwhile, local LDK sources in Malisheva said Serbian paramilitary forces
opened machine-gun fire against the villages of Mle^an, Llazic&, Balinc&
and Bubavec from 18:00 through 21:00 CET on Tuesday. There was no immediate
word on casualties, but considerable material damage was reported.
[02] 151 Kosovar Albanians Killed in January, Human Rights Council Reports
PRISHTINA, Feb 10 (KIC) - The Prishtina-based Council for the Defense of
Human Rights and Freedoms (CDHRF) said in a report issued today 151
Albanians were killed in Kosova this past January.
25 Albanians were killed in unsolved circumstances, 2 died as a result of
war, one was tortured to death, the CDHRF said.
January was the month of Serbian massacres in Re^ak, Rakovina and Rogova,
in which some 80 Albanians were slain in three incidents.
The CDHRF said 32 Albanians were shot and wounded in January, 78 were taken
hostage or went missing, while 255 Albanians were arbitrarily arrested.
Of those killed, wounded or ill-treated 28 were children, 28 women, and 36
elderly people, the major human rights organization in Kosova said.
Eleven members of the Serbian community were killed in January, CDHRF
said.
Some 600 Albanian households were raided by Serbian forces allegedly in
connection with arms searches or the tracking down of 'terrorists', the
Council reported.
Two Missing Albanians Found Dead in Rahovec and Ferizaj Two others buried
in Ferizaj today
PRISHTINA, Feb 10 (KIC) - The body of Isuf Berisha (63), resident of
Polluzha, who went missing from his work-place in the night of February
4th, has been found dead under the bridge of Ura e Terzis& in Bishtazhin
village of Gjakova. His body has been released today from the Gjakova town
morgue, and was to be buried later in the day in his native Polluzha
village of Rahovec ('Orahovac') municipality.
Meanwhile, family members identified today in the city morgue in Prishtina
the body of Muhamet Gani Reka (1966) from Ferizaj. He went missing on 7
February. He is to be buried tomorrow (Thursday) in Ferizaj.
Two other Albanians from Ferizaj, Xhavit Avdiu and Salih Salihu, who were
found killed after having gone missing, were buried today in the town
cemetery in Ferizaj.
[03] Re^ak Massacre Bodies Released after almost a Month
PRISHTINA, Feb 10 (KIC) - The bodies of 40 Albanians massacred almost a
month ago by Serbian forces in the village of Re^ak were to be released
from the Prishtina morgue today, after completion of identification by
family members.
Just before 14:00 CET, the corpses were being loaded in private lorries,
overseen by the OSCE KVM, to be driven to Re^ak village.
The date and venue of their burial has not been yet set.
Serbian regime authorities in Kosova said on Tuesday they would release all
40 bodies of ethnic Albanians killed in the Re^ak massacre on 15 January.
The Serb regime had earlier refused to release all the bodies at once,
proposing that they be released in batches over three days, which was
rejected by relatives who insisted they be brought back together or not at
all.
Serb investigating judge Marinkovic had warned earlier she would order the
bodies to be buried in a state cemetery in Prishtina if the families
refused to pick them up, Reuters reported.
Re^ak is a ghost village now. Most of the area less than 30 km south of
Prishtina is overlooked by Serb positions in the hills, posing a serious
security risk for a ceremony which is expected to draw a large crowd of
Albanians.
[04] If Serbs Refuse to Allow the Peace Implementation Force in Kosova,
They Will Be Subject to Air Strikes
Says State Department spokesman James Rubin
PRISHTINA, Feb 10 (KIC) - Ambassador Chris Hill said that they were making
progress [in the Rambouillet conference on Kosova], but he also "pointed
out that this is an extremely difficult enterprise", James P. Rubin, the
State Department spokesman said Tuesday in Washington.
Ambassador Hill, the chief U.S. negotiator in the talks between Prishtina
and Belgrade delegations on an interim settlement for Kosova, was quoted as
saying the parties have been working from a text that the Contact Group had
put down, "that the work is serious and constructive".
"We believe we've come up with a formula and a plan and a construct that
does not require either side to give up its dreams or its aspirations, but
allows for an agreement that will entail great degrees of self-government
for the people of Kosovo, including police, including civil institutions,
including judiciary institutions, health institutions, educational
institutions - their own institutions to run their own lives", James Rubin
told reporters during a daily briefing. "This is the construct which
would entail three years of having their own institutions, having self-
government and deferring the question of the ultimate status of Kosovo
until after those three years".
If a NATO force is deployed in Kosova, there will be no dual-key
arrangement, the State Department spokesman said. "NATO will have
undisputed military command in its sphere of operations. The duties and
responsibilities of a NATO-led force in Kosovo are currently under
discussion among NATO members". There will be no subordination of a NATO-
led force to the Contact Group, as suggested in some erroneous reports
Tuesday, he added.
Asked to say whether they foresee a vote or a referendum in Kosova or more
negotiations in three years' time, Rubin said "I think to get into that
beyond to say that their construct is a three-year period where the level
of self-government will operate and then discussion after that, I do not
want to be specific".
In reply to a questioner, the State Department spokesman said Secretary
Albright has indicated to Ambassador Hill that she is prepared at the
appropriate time to go to Rambouillet. Albright has made no final decision
as to whether she would participate in a meeting of the Contact Group at
the week-end, he added.
There is no consideration of a NATO force being deployed in the absence of
an agreement by the Serbs and the Kosovars towards presence, Rubin
emphasized. "NATO has also decided that if the Serbs fail to agree to the
Contact Group plan and the Kosovar Albanians do - and a prime example of
failing to agree would be to refuse to allow the peace implementation force
- the Serbs will be subject to air strikes. So they would be making a big
mistake to hold up this agreement over the question of allowing forces
in if the Kosovar Albanians are prepared to do so. That flows from the
logic of NATO's decisions of the last ten days," the State Department
spokesman said, spelling out the Western policy over Kosova.
[05] Clinton Presses Ahead with Nomination of Holbrooke as UN Ambassador
Cites Holbrooke's role in the crises in Kosova, Iraq and Cyprus
PRISHTINA, Feb 10 (KIC) - The White Press said in a press release Tuesday
it would soon send to the Senate the nomination of Richard C. Holbrooke to
be the next United States Ambassador to the United Nations.
"From building a lasting peace in Bosnia to searching for a political
settlement in Kosovo to finding a workable solution in Cyprus, Richard C.
Holbrooke's intellect, vigor, and diplomatic skills have significantly
advanced the values and interests of the American people", President
Clinton said.
"At a time when international crises, from Iraq to Kosovo, demand the
leadership of the United States and the United Nations, it is essential
that we have a strong and capable diplomat like Richard C. Holbrooke as our
U.N. Ambassador", the U.S. President said, concluding that he is
"extraordinarily well qualified" for this vital position.
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