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Last Update: 9 May, 2008 11:27 AM GMT+1

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Kosovo: UN peacekeeping chief heads to region for fact-finding tour

2 May 2008 – The United Nations peacekeeping chief travels today to the Balkans for a fact-finding mission on Kosovo, which earlier this year declared its independence from Serbia.
Jean-Marie Guéhenno, the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, will be holding talks with all stakeholders in both Pristina and Belgrade about the future of the international civil presence in Kosovo, UN spokesperson Farhan Haq told reporters today.

The UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) has been in place since mid-1999 after NATO forces drove out Yugoslav troops amid inter-ethnic fighting, and Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said it will continue to exercise its authority until the Security Council decides otherwise.

Kosovo duo facing trial at UN tribunal over alleged intimidation of witness

28 April 2008 – Kosovo’s ex-minister for culture, youth and sport and a former newspaper editor will appear tomorrow before the United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) after being charged with contempt of court for allegedly trying to intimidate a witness in a war crimes trial.
Astrit Haraqija and Bajrush Morina are accused by prosecutors – in an indictment filed in January and made public by the ICTY on Friday – of attempting to persuade a protected witness with the codename PW not to testify against Ramush Haradinaj, the former prime minister of Kosovo.

Mr. Haradinaj, who was a prominent commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) during the conflict with Serb forces in 1998-99, was acquitted by the ICTY earlier this month of a series of charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including murder, rape, torture, abduction, cruel treatment, imprisonment and the forced deportation of Serbian and Kosovar Roma civilians.

When they announced the verdict, the judges said the tribunal had encountered many difficulties in securing testimony from witnesses during the trials of Mr. Haradinaj and his two co-accused.

The indictment released on Friday states that Mr. Haraqija, a former minister of culture, youth and sport in Kosovo, was one of the three co-founders of the “Defence Committee for Ramush Haradinaj.” Mr. Morina was his employee, working as a political adviser, and then also as a part-time editor at Bota Sot, a Kosovo newspaper.

PW was granted protective measures in 2005 and early last year his unredacted witness statements were disclosed by prosecutors to the defence teams of Mr. Haradinaj and his co-accused.

The indictment alleges that after learning of the identity of the witness last July, Mr. Haraqija instructed Mr. Morina to travel to PW’s country of residence to persuade him not to testify, and that Mr. Morina met with the witness on 10-11 July in a trip paid for by the ministry.

PW eventually did testify at the trial, according to the indictment.

Meanwhile, a former senior Bosnian Croat figure, Jadranko Prlic, facing trial on war crimes charges has been granted temporary provisional leave by the ICTY on humanitarian grounds. On Friday the tribunal agreed to release Mr. Prlic until the start of his defence case, scheduled for Monday.

Mr. Prlic and five other co-accused, all former high-level leaders in the Bosnian Croat wartime entity known as Herceg-Bosna, stand accused of war crimes committed in 1992 and 1993 against Bosnian Muslims and other non-Croats in south-western and central Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially the municipalities of Prozor, Gornji Vakuf, Jablanica, Mostar, Ljubuški, Stolac, Capljina and Vareš.

The many charges include murder, rape, unlawful deportation, imprisonment, cruel treatment, unlawful labour, the wanton destruction of cities, towns and villages, and persecutions on political, racial or religious grounds.

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Ban Ki-moon to discuss Kosovo issue during visit to Moscow
7 April 2008 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today he plans to discuss the situation in Kosovo, which declared its independence from Serbia on 17 February, with Russian officials during his visit to Moscow this week.
In an interview with UN Radio ahead of the visit, which begins on Wednesday, Mr. Ban noted that there have been incidents of violence in Kosovo – which came under UN administration after Western forces drove out Yugoslav forces amid inter-ethnic fighting in 1999.

“At this time, the situation on the ground is rather calm but it is absolutely necessary for the international community and parties concerned to make sure that we’ll be able to keep peace and stability on the ground,” he stated.

“Therefore, the parties concerned should refrain from taking any unilateral action which may exacerbate the current situation or which may incite violent measures,” he added.

Mr. Ban also stated that the UN Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) will continue to exercise its authority in the area unless the Security Council decides otherwise.

Other issues to be discussed during Mr. Ban’s three-day visit, his first to Russia since taking office, include a proposed conference on the Middle East peace process to be hosted by Russia and the situation in the strife-torn Sudanese region of Darfur.

While in Moscow, he is expected to meet with Russian Government leaders, including President Vladimir Putin, President-elect Dmitry Medvedev and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, as well as the Deputy Chairman of the State Duma and civil society leaders.

In addition, he is scheduled to speak at Moscow State University and address the launch of the UN Global Compact’s Russia network.

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Former top Yugoslav figure granted temporary leave by UN war crimes tribunal

4 April 2008 – The United Nations tribunal set up to deal with the worst crimes committed during the Balkan conflicts of the 1990s has granted temporary release to a former senior Yugoslav political figure facing trial over an alleged campaign of terror and violence against Kosovo Albanians and other non-Serbs in 1999.
Nikola Šainovic, a former deputy prime minister of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, has been allowed by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), which is based in The Hague, to return to Serbia for personal reasons from tomorrow until Monday.

Announcing the decision today, the ICTY trial chamber said Mr. Šainovic’s temporary release was subject to several strict conditions, including 24-hour surveillance of the accused by Serbian authorities.

Mr. Šainovic, 59, is on trial with five others – Milan Milutinovic, Nebojša Pavkovic, Dragoljub Ojdanic, Vladimir Lazarevic and Sreten Lukic – over an alleged campaign of terror and violence directed against Kosovo Albanians and other non-Serbs living in Kosovo in 1999. All six men face charges of murder, deportation, forcible transfer and the persecution of thousands of Kosovo Albanians and other non-Serbs.

The trial of the six men began in July 2006, with the prosecution completing its case in May last year and five of the six defence cases have now been completed, with Mr. Lukic’s defence still ongoing.

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Former leader of Kosovo acquitted of war crimes charges by UN tribunal

3 April 2008 – The United Nations tribunal set up to deal with the worst acts committed during the Balkan wars of the 1990s today acquitted a former prime minister of Kosovo of charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Ramush Haradinaj, 39, who was also a well-known commander in the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) during the conflict with Serb forces in 1998-99, had faced charges that included murder, rape, torture, abduction, cruel treatment, imprisonment and the forced deportation of Serbian and Kosovar Roma civilians.

But judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), based in The Hague, found that the evidence presented was sometimes inconclusive as to whether a crime had been committed or, if so, whether the KLA was involved as alleged.

The ICTY also acquitted one of Mr. Haradinaj’s co-accused, Idriz Balaj, 36, of all charges.

But a third co-accused, Lahi Brahimaj, 38, was convicted of the cruel treatment and torture of two people at the KLA headquarters in Jablanica/Jabllanicë and has been sentenced to six years in jail.

The three men had been accused by prosecutors of being part of a joint criminal enterprise between March and September 1998 that aimed to consolidate the KLA’s total control over the Dukagjin area in north-western Kosovo by unlawfully removing, mistreating and killing Serbian and Kosovar Roma civilians, as well as Kosovar Albanians perceived to have been collaborating with Serbian forces.

But the judges said the evidence indicated the victims may have been targeted mainly for individual reasons rather than because they were members of a targeted civilian group. The acts of ill-treatment, forcible transfer and killing were also not of a scale to conclude there was an attack against a civilian population.

Judge Alphonsus Orie (presiding) said the ICTY had encountered many difficulties in securing testimony from witnesses during the trials of Mr. Haradinaj, Mr. Balaj and Mr. Brahimaj.

“The Chamber gained a strong impression that the trial was being held in an atmosphere where witnesses felt unsafe,” he said.

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Security Council resolution still in force in Kosovo – Secretary-General

1 April 2008 – The United Nations mission in Kosovo continues to operate on the assumption that the 1999 Security Council resolution that gave it administrative authority following ethnic bloodshed is still in force, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says in his first report on the issue since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia on 17 February.
In his report on the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), covering the period from 12 December 2007 to 1 March, Mr. Ban affirms that resolution 1244 remains in effect “unless the Security Council decides otherwise” and that Kosovo’s leaders and the Serbian Government are still committed to its provisions.

The Secretary-General adds, however, that Kosovo’s declaration of independence and subsequent events have posed significant challenges to UNMIK’s ability to exercise its authority.

“Pending Security Council guidance, there might be a need for UNMIK to adjust its operational deployment to deal with developments and changes on the ground in a manner consistent with resolution 1244,” he says.

He reports that the minority Kosovo Serbs, who condemned the declaration of independence, have expanded their boycott of the institutions of Kosovo to include the Kosovo Police Service (KPS), the Kosovo Corrections Service, the judicial system, municipal administration, and UNMIK railways and customs.

In several Kosovo Serb areas in southern Kosovo, Kosovo Serb police officers stated that they would no longer recognize the KPS chain of command and demanded that they be placed under the direct command of international UNMIK police officers.

The overall security situation in Kosovo during the reporting period remained “calm though tense,” he states, and most Kosovo Serb demonstrations have been peaceful, though serious violent incidents occurring in the days immediately before and after the declaration of independence.

Hand grenade and arson attacks were directed against UNMIK and European Union premises and vehicles in northern Mitrovica and Zubin Potok, which caused limited material damage, he reports, and there two customs service points on the administrative boundary line were attacked and destroyed on 19 February.

The 14 March attack on the District Court building of UNMIK in North Mitrovica is not discussed because it occurred after the reporting period.

However, the Secretary-General stresses that any violence, whether directed at UNMIK personnel or facilities or against members of any of Kosovo’s communities, is “unacceptable and cannot be tolerated.”

He urges all sides to reaffirm their commitments to refrain from any actions or statements that could endanger peace or lead to violence.

Meanwhile, he says, the efforts of the UN in Kosovo are aimed at ensuring that the political and security situation in Kosovo and the wider region remains stable, and that the safety and security of the population are preserved.

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News stories compiled from UN News Centre
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