• COVID-19: Four new cases, no deaths (media)
• NIPHK detects presence of bacteria in water that could indicate contamination (media)
• Mayor: Regional water supply company will no longer manage Decan (media)
• Government pledges to take measures towards “Hidrodrini” water company (Koha)
• Prosecution: Police to provide report on water contamination suspicions (media)
• Decan health crisis: U.S. Embassy calls on media to ignore rumours (media)
• Ministry of Health delivers medical aid to Decan clinic (media)
• Government of Kosovo reveals topics of upcoming Kurti-Vucic meeting (Kallxo)
• Kosovo to set up commission for assessing damage to cultural heritage during 1998-99 (media)
• Helsinki Committee condemns passivation of addresses as form of ethnic cleansing (media)
• Osmani reacts to Helsinki Committee report (media)
• Kosovo offers assistance to Germany following deadly floods (media)
• Op-ed: Kosovo’s Klecka War Crimes Trial was No Joke (BIRN)

COVID-19: Four new cases, no deaths (media)

Four new cases with COVID-19 and zero deaths from the virus were recorded in the last 24 hours in Kosovo. Five persons recovered from the virus during this time.

There are 105 active cases with COVID-19.

11,513 vaccine doses have been administered in the last 24 hours. To date, 293,693 vaccines have been administered in Kosovo.

NIPHK detects presence of bacteria in water that could indicate contamination (media)

The National Institute for Public Health of Kosovo (NIPHK) issued a press release on the results of water samples tested in Decan villages where more than a thousand citizens sought out medical assistance with poisoning symptoms.

The Institute said that the tests on water samples taken on 12 July in the Decan region identified certain bacteria that may indicate contamination of drinking water. “Microbiological examinations in samples received from patients with signs of gastrointestinal tract infection are ongoing for the detection of various viral, bacterial and parasitic pathogens.”

NIPHK said further that teams are working intensively to determine the cause of the epidemic. “The epidemiological situation and sanitation are under constant control on the part of teams of the National Institute and any change in the epidemiological situation will result in new recommendations.”

At the same time, the “Hidrodrini” called on the National Institute for Public Health to provide additional clarification as to what water samples were used for tests and also advised the experts to take water samples from individual wells used by the residents of the area.

Mayor: Regional water supply company will no longer manage Decan (media)

Mayor of Decan, Bashkim Ramosaj, said that the regional water supply company “Hidrodrini” will not be managing the Decan region any longer after tests indicated that water contamination could be behind the recent health emergency in the municipality.

Speaking at a press conference shortly after the National Institute for Public Health of Kosovo (NIPHK) announced results of water samples’ tests, Ramosaj said: “Legal steps have been determined because they are recommendations of a credible institution in Kosovo. I will only speak of political and administrative steps being pursued. The regional water supply company “Hidrodrini” will no longer manage Decan.”

He also said that the total number of citizens that have been treated with poisoning symptoms to date is 1,392.

Government pledges to take measures towards “Hidrodrini” water company (Koha)

Kosovo’s Minister of Economy, Artane Rizvanolli, said that if relevant institutions confirm that the “Hidrodrini” regional water supply company is responsible for the health crisis created in Decan, measures would be taken against the company.

“We have been in continuous contact with the ‘Hidrodrini’ company since July 11 regarding the eventual role of this company in the situation. This issue should be addressed by experts first, it should not be politicized to the extent that it has. We need to know what happened and we need to make sure it does not happen again. We need to look carefully if the company has played a role in the situation created. If yes, we will take action under our mandate as Ministry of Economy,” she said.

Prosecution: Police to provide report on water contamination suspicions (media)

Peja chief prosecutor, Agim Kurmehaj, said  yesterday that there can be no clear conclusions yet about the poisoning of around 1,500 persons in Decan and that he has asked the police in Decan to prepare an urgent report on suspicions that the human factor was behind water contamination.

“Upon receiving the information about the situation in Decan, I appointed two prosecutors who worked intensively on the case, and they were in direct contact with all other institutions that were working to resolve the case. We are working intensively. We are mainly dealing with suspicions about the human factor that could have caused this. At this point we cannot come out with clear conclusions, but I believe we will announce a statement very soon,” he said.

Regarding media reports suggesting that two Serb youths could have had a role in the healthcare emergency in Decan, Kurmehaj said they have asked the police to prepare an urgent report which will then determine future course of action. “We will timely inform you on this,” he said.

Ministry of Health delivers medical aid to Decan clinic (media)

Kosovo’s Ministry of Health has delivered the second batch of medicaments to the main family healthcare clinic in Decan following the declaration of a health emergency.

“There has been a lower influx of citizens seeking medical treatment today and thanks to joint efforts of relevant local and central institutions, the situation in Decan is now under control,” the Ministry of Health said in a statement yesterday.

The Health Ministry also said that the Government has allocated 150,000 euros for the project aimed at treating the water supply system in the municipality of Decan.

Decan health crisis: U.S. Embassy calls on media to ignore rumours (media)

The U.S. Embassy expressed solidarity with the citizens of Decan who have experienced poison-like symptoms over the last days and called on the media to respect facts.

“Our thoughts are with those suffering from the health emergency in Decan/i. Although more tests will be conducted, the Ministry of Health believes bacteria is the likely cause of symptoms. Journalists, citizens – ignore rumors. Wait for facts,” the Embassy said on social media.

Government of Kosovo reveals topics of upcoming Kurti-Vucic meeting (Kallxo)

The Government of Kosovo said that the issue that will be discussed in next week’s meeting between Prime Minister Albin Kurti and President of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic will include missing persons.

“The topic of this meeting will be the forcibly disappeared during the last war. That for us remains an priority and urgent issue. We expect in this meeting to also discuss the four proposals of Prime Minister Kurti from the previous meeting. The future agenda of the new chapter of dialogue will also be discussed on which we will see whether there is agreement,” said Government spokesperson, Perparim Kryeziu.

Asked to comment on what will be the Kosovo side’s response if the issue of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities is raised in the meeting, Kryeziu said Kosovo’s constitutional order makes it impossible for an association to be formed along ethnic lines.

Kosovo to set up commission for assessing damage to cultural heritage during 1998-99 (media)

The Government of Kosovo has decided in its 19th meeting to appoint a State Commission for research, inventory, assessment and documentation of cultural and historical heritage sites destroyed during 1998 and 1999 war, a press release issued by the Government notes.

Earlier, Hajrulla Ceku, Kosovo’s Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports, hailed the voting of the Government in favour of establishment of the commission saying it represents an important moment.

Helsinki Committee condemns passivation of addresses as form of ethnic cleansing (media)

Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia issued a report about the situation of the Albanian community in Southern Serbia and said that the members of the community, despite the presence of international organizations in the region, live in limbo in and in expectation of their status finally being resolved as part of the resolution of the Kosovo question.

“In order to reduce the number of Albanians living in the south as much as possible, the state is conducting the process of so-called “Passivation of residence of Albanians” working abroad, either in Western Europe or in Kosovo. This “passivation” also targets citizens who permanently reside at their addresses. This measure is, in essence, a form of ethnic cleansing through administrative means. “Passivation” (mass and selective passivation of residence) leads to individuals losing their status of being a citizen of Serbia and, accordingly, all civil rights – the rights to vote, property, health insurance, pension, employment, etc. Since citizens are not informed about “passivation”, they usually lose their right to appeal, the deadline for which is eight days,” the report notes.

The Helsinki Committee called on Serbia authorities to put an end to this process and to restore the civil rights of Albanians. “What is indicative is that this measure applies exclusively to Albanians, and not to Serbs who are temporarily working abroad,” is stressed.

Osmani reacts to Helsinki Committee report (media)

President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani reacted to the report published by the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights in Serbia which concluded that the ‘passivation’ of addresses of Albanians in Serbia is a form of ethnic cleansing through use of administrative means.

“All citizens must have their basic human rights respected. The int. community’s response thus far has been insufficient. More must be done! I have raised this issue on several occassions, both here in Kosovo and abroad. These citizens have the full support of the institutions of the Republic of Kosovo. We will do everything in our power to ensure their voice is heard,” Osmani wrote on Twitter.

Kosovo offers assistance to Germany following deadly floods (media)

Kosovo has reached out to Germany offering support in relief efforts following floods that left more than 70 people dead.

Kosovo’s Minister of Defence Armend Mehaj had a telephone conversation with the German ambassador Jorn Rohde and expressed condolences for the victims of the floods. In a letter, Mehaj said the Ministry of Defence and the Kosovo Force stand ready to help the residents left stranded. “We are ready to help Germany at this difficult time, especially with our search and recovery units,” Mehaj said.

Op-ed: Kosovo’s Klecka War Crimes Trial was No Joke (BIRN)

A former EU rule-of-law mission chief judge was wrong to claim that the case against Kosovo guerrillas accused of abusing prisoners at the wartime Klecka jail was weak, writes judge Dean B. Pineles, who served on the trial panel.

On July 12, judge Malcolm Simmons, who was the president of the Assembly of Judges for the EU’s rule of law mission in Kosovo, EULEX, from 2014 to 2017, presented testimony by video link before a committee of the Kosovo Assembly in which he made a series of serious allegations against EULEX, including politicisation of criminal trials under the mission’s jurisdiction.

I served as an American international criminal judge with EULEX for 28 months, from February 2011 through May 2013. I was also a member of the trial panel on the first Klecka war crimes case from 2011-12 (and the first Medicus case from 2011-13), and I wish to respond to judge Simmons’s highly incorrect comments about Klecka for the sake of historical accuracy.

First, let me say that before judge Simmons was elevated to the presidency of the Assembly of Judges, he was also serving in the same capacity as an international criminal judge from the United Kingdom. I sat with him on the trial panel in a murder case in Prizren in 2011, and found his participation to be highly professional.

I never worked with him again on another case, but we were both members of the relatively small cadre of international judges, and I would consider him a friend.

I have no personal knowledge about his allegations against EULEX, and will leave him to his proof. But I do wish to challenge his characterisation of the Klecka case, which was one of the most high-profile cases prosecuted by EULEX. In the YouTube video of his presentation, he makes several sweeping statements which are completely contrary to my experience with the case.

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