Albanian PM confident Kosovo will establish special court (Zeri)
Albania’s Prime Minister, Edi Rama, told reporters in Tirana on Thursday that he strongly believes the Kosovo Assembly will take the right decision and vote in favor of the establishment of the special court. In regards to some Albanians that have joined the extremist group ISIS, Rama said that people from every nation joined this barbaric cause, not only Albanians.
Haradinaj: Crime and corruption are the problem, not special court (Zeri)
The leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), Ramush Haradinaj, in an interview with the paper said that he considers as meaningless to send the constitutional amendments on special court once again to the Assembly. According to him, crime and corruption have diminished the friendship with international partners, not the vote against special court. “The Assembly has already decided on the matter. Kosovo institutions should work to set up a local court for war crimes, which would not be selective and would judge all crimes committed during the war,” Haradinaj said. He denied any possibility that his party might oppose the special court even in more radical forms. Haradinaj called on all the people of Kosovo not to join foreign wars. “It is nonsense that Albanian boys and girls go and die in meaningless wars,” he said.
Drecun: Thaci is hindering formation of special court (Bota Sot)
The chairman of the Serbian Government Parliamentary Committee for Kosovo, Milovan Drecun, claimed yesterday that Kosovo’s Foreign Minister, Hashim Thaci, was hindering the establishment of the special court that is expected to address war crimes allegations in Kosovo. According to Drecun, Thaci fears that he himself could be accused by the special court. “There is no doubt that many members of Thaci’s party, and Thaci himself, could be charged by this court,” Drecun said.
Kosovo doesn’t have specialized prosecutors on terrorism (Kosova Sot)
The paper reports that among the 300 judges and 150 prosecutors in Kosovo, none is specialized in the field of terrorism. “The Special Prosecution Office (SPRK) has no specialized prosecutors in the field of terrorism, and we also don’t have a special department for this field. We see that now there is need for the department and prosecutor, so we will work on this direction,” the SPRK head Sevdije Morina said on Thursday.
No more additional criteria for visa liberalization (Telegrafi)
The Spokesperson for the European Commission, Natasha Bertaud, told Tribuna Channel that the European Commission has never set additional criteria other than those set out in the roadmap for visa liberalization. “The criteria need to be met before the Commission can recommend visa-free travel for Kosovo citizens,” Bertaud said when asked if Brussels had presented additional requirements regarding visa liberalization for Kosovo.
“Bosnia will not change position on Kosovo’s independence” (dailies)
Albania’s Foreign Minister Ditmir Bushati, met on Thursday in Tirana with the Foreign Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Igor Crnadak. They signed an agreement for movement of the citizens of the two countries only with IDs. Bushati said Bosnia should recognize Kosovo as an independent state and its membership at regional initiatives of A5 and Regional Arms Control Verification and Implementation Assistance Center (RACVIAC). He stressed that Albania pursues the policy of open doors for the countries that request NATO membership. Crnadak however said that Bosnia and Herzegovina would not change its position with regards to the recognition of Kosovo.
Attorney: Gavric wanted to sell the explosive (Koha)
The paper covers the hearing session held yesterday in Pristina against Serbian national, Slobodan Gavric, who was arrested by Kosovo Police in December last year and is suspected of planning a terrorist attack in Pristina. Gavric was then caught with 13 kilograms of explosive. His defense attorney told the Basic Court in Pristina that his client was not planning to carry out a terror attack and that his intention was to sell the explosive. “The economic status pushed him into this business. He was promised that he would be paid €5,000 for the job and that nothing was going to happen to him,” the attorney said. He also added that his client had entered Kosovo through Serbia carrying the explosive on three separate occasions. “The first time he came to Pristina, the person he was supposed to meet never showed up. He went back to Serbia and again came to Kosovo but without any success. The third time he came here, someone notified the police”. The next court session was scheduled for 21 September.
