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This week marks the fifth anniversary of the NATO led bombing campaign- which targeted the former Yugoslav Army and Serbian Police Forces. Last week, in Kosovo there was a similar atmosphere … the smell of fire and sounds of shooting and explosions reminded the average Kosovan of the 1999 conflict.

Ymer Ahmeti is a 15-year-old Kosovo-Albanian. Ahmeti lives in Prishtina, in front of YU project, a building mainly inhabited by Kosovo-Serbs. Ahmeti described to UNMIK on Air what he saw on the 18th of March, when inter-ethnic unrest gained momentum and people took to the streets of Kosovo.

Ymer Ahmeti: We saw when the cars were burning; protesters were burning them using Molotov cocktails. I was watching all of that them from my window, then some UN cars were attacked and they started to burn.

The charred remains of at least a dozen cars remain in front of the YU building, nearly one week after the events. According to Kosovo-Albanian inhabitants of the YU building, no security forces protected the neighborhood. In front of the YU building hundreds of Kosovo-Albanians were seen attacking the Kosovo- Serb minority who lived inside the building. Besim, a 13-year-old boy, also witnessed the events of that evening:

Besim: I was watching from my balcony, Albanian protesters came and they were attacking the building, after a while KFOR came to the spot with some armored vehicle, K-Albanians fired a bomb at them and they escaped. After a black policeman fired from his gun and it hit my window.

Besim adds that he became afraid to watch from his window as the events nearby unfolded. Even so, Besim says at approximately 2 AM he saw KFOR peacekeepers arrive and evacuate the Kosovo-Serb residents from inside the YU building.

The KFOR chief of Media Operations captain Athanasios Zormbas confirms that the residents were moved to and former army camp of the Ex- Yugoslav army just outside of Prishtina.

This destruction in the center of Kosovo’s capitol Prishtina, prompted SRSG Harry Holkeri and the Prime Minister of Kosovo, Bajram Rexhepi, to visit the site this week. SRSG Holkeri spoke in front of the burned and overturned vehicles meters from the scorched YU building.

Bajram Rexepi: With the prime minister we condemn in strongest term this kind of the things we have just seen. We are shocked and depressed, that human mind carries this kind of things, and allows this kind of things to happen.

While visiting the YU building, Kosovo’s Prime Minister, Bajram Rexhepi, announced that the Kosovo Government has established a fund to help rebuild and repair the damages:

Bajram Rexepi: It is really true that these acts of vandalism have no justification at all. And certainly we have demonstrated during the last few days to lower the tensions, to calm the situation, and we have to also have the support of all the citizens of all communities, because we have all lost-- the lives of people have been lost, there has been material destruction, there are also churches that have been damaged. You know that we have taken a Government decision to form a special fund that must repair all the damages, whether to private property or to religious or cultural property. Those which cannot be repaired are the lost human lives.

Last week some 24 Kosovans were killed and more than 500 others were injured in the unrest between Kosovo-Serbs and Kosovo-Albanians. Some 16 Serbian Orthodox Churches have been set ablaze while more than 280 homes have been destroyed homes which predominantly belonged to Kosovo-Serbs.

This Serb who wished to remain anonymous—was evacuated from the YU building and lost her home. She spoke in front of the remains of her apartment.

Anonymous Serb: My message and message of the residents YU building is that we want to come back. I thank the government of Kosovo that they would invest in the reparations of houses churches including YU building in Pristina. Kosovo Serbs want to live in Kosovo. They want to remain in Kosovo. I’m talking on behalf of people who couldn’t come here today. I’m emotional at this very moment. I’m also sad and sorry at all the evil that has happened these last few days. Please good people of Kosovo, this is also a message for you. Stop the violence and prevent it whenever it occurs. Together with the international community, we want to build a future for Kosovo.

In the aftermath of the violence, the Serbian Government proposed to send troops to Kosovo. UNMIK rejected the proposal. Even so, Milivoje is one Kosovo-Serb who welcomes the proposal coming from the Serbian Government saying Serbian troops could work in cooperation with the international forces:

Milivoje: We have belief in the Serbian Army and Police, because they know field work, action and they know the mentality of these people, Albanian and Serb. In that way they are capable to protect all the citizens, and KFOR in this situation would be in control for our Military and Police.

KFOR also rejected outright the offer to send in Serbian troops- saying QUOTE “It will not happen”. Meanwhile NATO has sent some 2000 troops to Kosovo. UNMIK Police and KFOR have begun to arrest individuals suspected of provoking or participating in the violence—including Shukri Buja, the former KLA commander and later commander of KPC Zone Four.

After surveying the damage at the YU building in Prishtina with Kosovo’s Prime Minister Bajram Rexhepi, SRSG Harry Holkeri said UNMIK will continue to work for a peaceful future in Kosovo:

Harri Holkeri: I would like to make it absolutely clear to everyone that every lost life is a lost life too much. Every destroyed home is one destroyed home too much. Every burned church or religious site is one too much. I will put my whole activity and UNMIK as well to stop the recent procedure and to give the opportunity to everyone to live at home and to be with his neighbors active in building a peaceful Kosovo with prosperity.

Analysts in Kosovo think that in light of recent events, Kosovo has one loser-- the people. Analysts also say that the road to achieve the Standards for Kosovo is considered to be greatly damaged-- especially the return process, which lately started to show promising results. Fisnik Halimi is a researcher with Kosovo Action for Civic Initiatives.

Fisnik Halimi: No doubt, that the main loser at the end is Kosovo and Kosovans, which has degraded their image below level zero. And like this Kosovo has more space for disfavored options on the solution of final status; one of them is the separating of Kosovo and creation of mono-ethnic states, that is against the thoughts of European Union and the main objective of Kosovan people.

That was all for this edition of UNMIK on Air, Thanks for listening, and stay tuned for more.