LOCAL PRESS

 

Balkan chiefs of police agree on ways of controlling refugees (Tanjug/Beta)

Serbian, Croatian, Slovenian, Macedonian and Austrian police chiefs have reached an agreement on joint registration of refugees on the Greek-Macedonian border.The five countries agreed on Thursday to jointly organize the transport of refugees to Austria, allowing passage along the "Balkan route" only to refugees from war-torn countries. The agreement will be implemented as of Thursday, while the registration process starts in Gevgelija, Macedonia. These countries guarantee they will allow passage only to persons who have undergone initial controls. Identification will be carried through this process, including the migrants' biometric data, in order to determine whether they come from the countries where their life is at risk, such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. Macedonian police will transport refugees by train from Gevgelija to Presevo in Serbia, where they will be taken over by Serbian police, who will take them to Sid, near the border with Croatia. Croatian police will then transport refugees to Dopovo where they will be taken over by Slovenia, and then transported to Austria. Refugees will not be given the status of asylum seekers immediately on the Greek-Macedonian border, but later in Austria or another country to which they are headed, according to Reuters. A joint statement signed today by police directors of Macedonia, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and Austria has also been sent to Bulgaria and Albania, who have been invited to join in order to avoid a diverting of the refugee route. Croatian Police Director Vlado Dominic said afterwards that quotas have not yet been determined and would depend on how many people Austria and Germany will decide to receive.

 

Rebic: Zagreb agreement will make job easier for Serbian Interior (Tanjug)

Serbian acting police director Vladimir Rebic said Thursday that a protocol on cooperation had been signed in Zagreb by police chiefs from the region and it would make things easier for Serbia's police, as it provides for the introduction of joint registration of refugees at the Greece-Macedonia border. The heads of police of Croatia, Serbia, Slovenia, Macedonia and Austria agreed at a meeting in Zagreb today to introduce joint refugee registration at the border between Greece and Macedonia and organize their transport to Austria. The process includes identifying and taking the biometric data of migrants to determine if they come from countries where their lives are jeopardized, such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. “Starting from tomorrow, all signatory parties to today's agreement will be profiling migrants on the Greece-Macedonia border, which implies tighter control of the border to prevent illegal migration,” the Serbian Interior Ministry cited Rebic as saying.

 

Nikolic will sign law on agreement with NATO (Danas)

President Tomislav Nikolic will sign a Law on Agreement with NATO, daily Danasreads in its Friday issue, referring to sources “from the government top”. The daily also reads that the president did not see anything new or disputable in the law that would deviate from anything that had already happened with regard to Serbia’s collaboration with the North Atlantic Alliance, which caused this legal enactment. “The president sees nothing new or controversial in that law that would stand out compared to everything that came before related to cooperation between Serbia and NATO, which conditioned this legal act,” Danas cites top state leadership sources, adding that Nikolic shares his position on this issue with Prime Minister Vucic.

 

Davenport: EU will insist on formation of ZSO (RTV)

The Community of Serb Municipalities (ZSO) was an important part of obligations that were a part of Brussels Agreement and EU would insist on implementation of that part of the agreement, head of the EU Delegation to Serbia Michael Davenport said. “It is difficult for me to say when will this be possible, but I can tell you that EU will insist on implementation of this part of the agreement”, Davenport said for Radio and Television of Vojvodina (RTV). Davenport said that the delegations of Belgrade and Pristina would discuss implementation of some parts of the agreement this week, such as regulation on cadasters. When asked about Chapter 35 regarding Kosovo in negotiations of Serbia with the EU, Davenport said that it was Serbia’s turn to implement more detailed obligations and instructions from the chapter and continue dialogue with Pristina.

 

Teachers in Presevo protest again over Kosovo textbooks (Tanjug)

Elementary school teachers in the Albanian language protested again, requesting to be allowed to use textbooks that arrived from the Kosovo Education Ministry. They organized a peaceful protest in front of the customs terminal in Presevo and they were supported by students, heads of Presevo and Bujanovac municipalities, Ragmi Mustafa and Nagip Arifi respectively, and the President of the Albanian National Council Jonuz Musliu. Musliu said the textbooks were blocked at the customs instead of being in the hands of the Albanian students, while Arifi said Albanians from the Presevo Valley were not requesting more rights than what the Serbs in Kosovo had and that he expected respect of international norms.

 

SRS requests local elections in Kosovo (Tanjug)

The Serbian Radical Party (SRS) request Serbian parliament speaker Maja Gojkovic to slate local elections throughout Serbian territory, meaning in the region of Kosovo and Metohija as well, the SRS leader Vojislav Seselj stated. “It is her constitutional and legal obligation and she will violate the Serbian Constitution if she doesn’t slate elections on the territory of the autonomous province of Kosovo and Metohija,” Seselj told a press conference at the SRS headquarters.

 

Krkobabic sought one third of mandates from SPS (Politika)

Despite the fact that PUPS failed to release specific reasons why it left the coalition with SPS, the daily Politikawrites in its Friday issue that PUPS leader Krkobabic sought 30 percent of the mandates that will have be won at elections, while Dacic was ready to give “only” about 35 percent to JS and PUPS together. SPS gave 25 percent of mandates to PUPS at previous elections, which caused a great deal of dissatisfaction in the party, because they believed that PUPS was given too much, Politikareads.

 

REGIONAL PRESS

 

Dodik welcomes filing of B&H’s application for the EU membership (Srna)

The Republika Srpska (RS) President Milorad Dodik has welcomed the filing of B&H applications for the EU membership, but pointed out that, at this very moment, there is no agreement on the Coordination Mechanism, which has been recently adopted by the B&H Council of Ministers. At yesterday’s meeting in Banja Luka, Dodik informed the High Representative in B&H, Valentin Inzko, that RS is an advocate of the B&H’s candidate status for the EU membership and will contribute to B&H’s path towards the EU. President Dodik again presented well known position of RS that the OHR should end its mission in B&H, the Office of the President announced.The RS President and the High Representative have agreed that more should be done to the mutually agreed issues, such as infrastructure, economy, B&H’s path towards the EU. Dodik also denied that the RS cabinet prepared a decision to cut off the relations with the B&H Council of Ministers.

 

Inzko hails signals on leaving aside referendum in RS (Fena)

High Representative for B&H Valentin Inzko said he hailed signals that a referendum on the B&H Court and Prosecutor’s Office would be left aside. Inzko told reporters that he had discussed the matter with the RS President Milorad Dodik. Inzko said again that RS could organize a referendum on the matters under its jurisdiction, but not on the issues falling under the jurisdiction of the state of B&H, the state judiciary, or the High Representative. He described the submission of B&H's application for the status of an EU candidate country as a very important phase for the country, noting that a more difficult phase lay ahead. According to Inzko, the pace of B&H progress on the EU path depends on the country itself, saying he was convinced it would become an EU member sooner or later.

 

Izetbegovic: Nikolic expected to visit B&H next month (N1)

A member of the B&H Presidency Bakir Izetbegovic told the regional television N1 that Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic was expected to visit B&H next month. “When Nikolic arrives in Sarajevo, I want him to feel welcome. I want that visit to result in the recovery and improvement of B&H's relations in the Balkans,” Izetbegovic said. He added that he intended to invite Nikolic at the end of March or the beginning of April and that they had already discussed that over the phone.

 

The Hague rejected request for appeal of Naser Oric (Klix)

The Hague Tribunal rejected the request by the former General of the “Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina” Naser Oric, who appealed to the decision by which the request for termination of the procedure launched against him before the Court of B&H was rejected. The President Theodor Meron stated that Oric’s appeal was rejected because the defense “did not prove that there was a mistake in interpretation of laws in the decision”. The request by Oric’s attorneys to terminate the procedure against him before the Court of B&H for war crimes committed at the territories of Bratunac and Srebrenica because he has already been tried for those crimes in Hague, was rejected by the court of the Mechanism for International Tribunals in Haag Liu Daqun in December last year. Daqun stated that Oric was found not guilty on command responsibility in Srebrenica, while the charges pressed against him in B&H refer to the allegations that Oric personally killed one person in the village of Zalazje and, together with another member of the ARB&H, killed two more people in a village near Bratunac, which means that the cases are “completely different”. Oric’s defense requested the permission to appeal to that decision, highlighting that there were irregularities in the work of prosecutors, as well as that the Hague investigators had possessed all evidence regarding the case before the Court in B&H while the process in the Tribunal was on. However, Meron stated in the decision that the defense’s attitudes do not show that these acts are same or similar.

 

The Hague: Released date of the judgment of Radovan Karadzic (Radio Sarajevo)

The Hague Tribunal announced that it will pronounce a verdict to the former President of Republika Srpska (RS) Radovan Karadzic for genocide and other crimes in B&H on 24 March this year. Karadzic was supreme commander of its armed forces, accused for genocide in Srebrenica and several other municipalities in 1992, the persecution of non-Serb population, terrorizing the citizens of Sarajevo and taking members of UNPROFOR as hostage. He was arrested in 2008 after more than a decade spent on the run. His trial started in October 2009, and the Prosecution started presenting evidence 6 months later and completed the process in May of 2012. Karadzic, who is defending himself, was calling his witnesses from October of 2012 until May last year. In closing arguments, held in the autumn, the Prosecution requested life imprisonment for the former President of RS, who expressed the belief that he will be released in his closing address to the Trial Chamber. The verdict will be made by the Council chaired by South Korean judge O-Gon Kwon, whose members are Howard Morrison and Melville Baird.

 

Izetbegovic: There was no agreement regarding me or SDA supporting Radoncic (Faktor)

Bakir Izetbegovic, member of the B&H Presidency and the President of the Party of Democratic Action (SDA), spoke about the coalition with the Alliance for Better Future (SBB), Fahrudin Radoncic, Milorad Dodik, the unity within SDA and many other topics. Izetbegovic said that he expects B&H to obtain the candidate status for EU and that additional effort is required after the EU sends questions to B&H. At the hearing before the Court of B&H in the case of Radoncic, the President of SBB Fahrudin Radoncic called his case “revenge” because of the alleged compromise and agreement between him and Bakir Izetbegovic that the leader of SBB is nominated as the joint candidate of the SBB and SDA, because Izetbegovic cannot candidate for the Presidential elections for the third time. “There was no agreement regarding me or SDA supporting Radoncic as the joint candidate in 2018. SDA is the most powerful party in B&H that had its candidate for the Presidency of B&H regularly, and there will be one in 2018 as well,” Izetbegovic said. When asked about the situation in which the coalition SDA-SBB is after the latest events, Izetbegovic said: “I believe the coalition will survive. It is in the interest of B&H, the Bosniaks represented by these two parties, it goes far beyond petty personal interests, it is a blockade for eventual attacks on stability or territorial integrity of B&H”. Milorad Dodik recently said that Sarajevo is an unsecure town that should be bypassed. “Sarajevo has a stronger economy than the entire Republika Srpska (RS). Dodik should come to Sarajevo and learn some things from the people of Sarajevo who had strength to overcome everything they have survived. The pension fund in the RS is breaking down, as do the railways, the banking system, refinery, no need to mention more. A pensioner in the RS is the poorest in Europe, so Dodik has a lot to sweep in front of his own doors and he could, in fact, learn a lot precisely from the people of Sarajevo,” Izetbegovic said.​

 

Lawyer of Fahrudin Radoncic, at the hearing (Dnevni avaz)

“All incriminations and offences indicated in the indictments are based on the spoken words, while material evidence is not supporting them sufficiently. Many things are said in political speeches, while the one who speaks doesn’t mean all what is said. Here the Prosecution turned the words into actions. We all know that in different situations there are different speeches about same things, and that in a political speech the message is being conveyed to the political associate or opponent. The actions should not be judged by the words but the words by actions. And where are those actions” – asked Crnalic. He said it was even worse that the Prosecution “interpreted even the things which were not said”. “There is no communication, as it can be seen from the transcripts of intercepted conversations, with a single word about Radoncic ordering or asking anyone to influence the witness Azra Saric. That conclusion is drawn by the Prosecution from what they think was said by Radoncic, Dautbasic or Sahman. When it comes to prosecuting people who have public importance, it should be taken into account that no mistake is made in interpretation of their words – said Crnalic. Commenting the statement of Azra Saric, Crnalic underlined that Radoncic had no motive to change that statement of hers, since there is no a single sentence there connecting Radoncic with the story of Keljmendi and Delalic. “A reasonable question is why would Radoncic influence such a good statement at all? The Prosecution must explain whether it is justified for Radoncic to work against himself – said Crnalic. He pointed out that it is necessary to address the issue of why Radoncic follows the “Keljmendi” case before the Basic Court in Pristina. “Because the Prosecutor’s Office of B&H pushed him into that case even before anything started. The EULEX indictment mentioned the following persons as the accomplices Radoncic, Ekrem Lekic, Senad Sahinpasic and Naser Oric. The indictment says they are the accomplices, but are they accused? No! Who prepared that? The Prosecutor’s Office of B&H! They sent it to EULEX. Every normal person could draw a conclusion from that that he was being incriminated in something. If they are uncritically including me in the indictment, they can also accuse me the same way. So, that is why Radoncic had a rational reason to take care of the defense and to do some research, and not just to stand still with that information. These researches of his are strange to the prosecutor’s Office – said Crnalic. He indicated that the Prosecutor’s Office “hurried up to deprive of liberty a  man who ‘s been fighting for liberty whole his  life, and to silence such a politician you should put him in the dock and the  message is that you mustn’t speak because the Prosecutor’s Office doesn’t like that, so as some powerful people in this society”. From the legal point of view Crnalic pointed out that in court practice there are many examples that extension of custody is intended mainly for returning offenders. “Why our defendant looks like those to the Prosecutor’s Office? This man created more by his actions than the most of B&H citizens, and these are the actions that this country could be proud of. The Prosecutor’s Office crossed every line of plausibility.  He, also, underlined that he did not “expect from the Prosecutor’s Office to be impartial, but from the Court - yes!” “Prosecutor Mihajlovic will defend his indictment, but the prosecutor should take into account and present to the Court the evidence which is in favor of the accused as well. The first example is the testimony of Bakir Izetbegovic, who gave the statement but the Prosecutor’s Office didn’t present it as evidence” – said Crnalic. He reminded that Izetbegovic was mentioned on a number of pages in the transcripts of intercepted conversations. “There is an official note submitted to us by the Prosecutor’s Office, but they didn’t use it in the indictment, neither in the motion for extension of the custody. The official note reads that “Radoncic and Dautbasic” are arranging that Zijo’s wife visits Radoncic on Monday at 10 o’clock and that Dautbasic asks if she will come alone or with her husband. Radoncic replies: as she wants, not to look like we want something from that man.” It stems from this that Radoncic is concerned that the man could think they want something from him” – Crnalic pointed out.  Mirna Delalic, a lawyer of Bilsena Sahman, precisely explained that the witness Azra Saric had contacted Sahman and Dautbasic asking them for a favor. After Sahman told her they couldn’t help her Saric reported them for alleged intimidation. At one point Prosecutor Mihajlovic made all the present in the courtroom laugh, when he, while explaining the prohibiting measures imposed on Bakir Dautbasic, instead of his last name, said - Izetbegovic. However, the judge Kreho didn’t miss that slop of a tongue, so she immediately corrected him.

 

PACE urges full implementation of Przino Agreement for fair and democratic elections (MIA)

Full implementation of the Przino Agreement is key to hold fair, free and democratic elections. We urge the political parties to not miss the chance of reaching a compromise, i.e. to reach a point where such elections can be held. The position was voiced by the co-­rapporteurs of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) for post ­monitoring dialogue with Macedonia. Speaking at a news conference on Thursday, Lise Christoffersen and Valeriu Ghiletchi fell short of saying whether conditions had been met allowing early elections to be held on April 24. “As Council of Europe members we are neither mediators nor facilitators in the process of the Przino Agreement, therefore it is not up to us to express our views in terms of preparations ahead of the elections. We can only express our conviction that elections should be just and adequate, free and fair,” Ghiletchi told Thursday’s news conference. Co­rapporteur Christoffersen agreed with him, noting they would wait for the report being prepared by the EU, ‘which mediates the process stemming from the Przino Agreement’, and the evaluation of the State Election Commission, ‘whose members are experts regarding the voters’ list’. “We will follow their decisions and reports. Yet again we would like to call on, urge the elections to be free and fair for the people to be able to freely cast their vote and elect the ones who will be representing them,” stated Christoffersen. The PACE co-rapporteurs, during their fact­finding visit to Macedonia, met with representatives of the political parties, state institutions and SEC members. “Everyone remains committed to implementing the deal. All parties agree that early elections are the only way out of the political crisis. From the talks we have had, we found out there are different points of views involving developments and level of implementation of the agreement. A lot of reports are being prepared in order to make an assessment of the pre­election surrounding. On February 24, the deadline of this assessing process, the deputies elected by the citizens will weigh in all the arguments and reach a final decision on calling snap elections, as previously agreed. All parties hope and expect the elections to be fair and just,” noted Christoffersen. The PACE co­-rapporteurs said they believed the Przino Agreement contained important positive steps to improve the electoral framework and pursue reforms. This deal, Christoffersen added, envisages the structure of the State Election Commission to be changed and it members to be provided with greater jurisdiction, the Electoral Code to be updated and actions to be taken to revise the voter's registry, which remains an issue of key importance. “The resignation of the prime minister in January and the formation of a technical government, in which two key ministries – the interior and labor ministries – are being managed by opposition representatives, should pave the way toward organizing early elections,” she stated. The establishment of the Special Public Prosecution, she added, is a crucial step and I expect the special public prosecutor to conduct just and thorough investigations, free from political or any other influence, and the judiciary to fully complete this process. Given that the organization of early elections is something that has been agreed by all political parties, Ghiletchi said, they must not miss the chance of reaching a compromise, i.e. ‘to reach to a point where substantial elections can be held in the interest of the people who have the right to free and fair elections provided that there is a real choice of political options that can be represented in Parliament’. “We expect the new Parliament to create an environment where democratic discussions will be held and decisions will be made for the urgent long­-term reforms that can consolidate the functioning of democratic institutions, strengthen the independence of regulatory bodies and restore public trust in institutions of the state,” noted Ghiletchi. He reminded all political parties that they had agreed after the elections to review the systematic problems disclosed by the political crisis and to implement the urgent reforms identified by the European Commission, such as judiciary independence, fight against corruption and freedom of the media.

 

President Ivanov: Macedonia cannot be EU’s external border (MIA)

Tightening the influx of migrants but not closing of the Western Balkans migration route was what was agreed at the late working dinner on Wednesday in Brussels hosted by the European council president, Donald Tusk and European Commission President Jean­Claude Juncker. The meeting was also attended by Macedonian President Gjorge Ivanov, his Serbian counterpart Tomislav Nikolic, Prime Ministers of Slovenia and Croatia, Miro Cerar and Tihomir Oreskovic respectively as well as President of the Council of the European Union, Bert Koenders, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and EU Enlargement Commissioner Johannes Hahn. What we have so far presented, was implemented, whereat all our undertaken measures and activities are part of the European plan for dealing with the refugee crisis. I repeat all our positions also presented at the Visegrad group meeting, at last night’s meeting which was attended by the presidents of the European Council, the European Commission, the EU Presidency and the countries that are along the corridor, Ivanov told MIA. Croatian PM Oreskovic stated late Wednesday that they agreed “tightening and not closing of the border along Western Balkans migration route.” Apart from this Austrian chancellor Werner Faymann told Thursday that Austria intends to fully close its borders, which means putting European border from influx of migrants on the Macedonian territory from Greece. According to President Ivanov the Macedonian positions is clear-Macedonia cannot be external border of the European Union. We cannot replace all measures and activities that the Union is making on its external border. But in the country we are implementing measures which are part of the overall European solution. The reason for this is that this is not just a challenge for EU but for Europe as a continent and we as Macedonia are contributing to tackle this challenge. The consistence of our positions is recognized as well as our constructiveness so our presented suggestions were carefully considered, Ivanov said. Ivanov said that Dutch FM Bert Koenders had the opportunity to see the situation at the border crossing on Macedonian – Greek border, point which is illegal passage and from here illegal migrants enter. Macedonia's plan is that all measures and actions are taken to lead to "at one point illegal migration to become legal migration and came to legal crossing points where will pass all controls and measures," Ivanov said. It is primarily about security risks that Europe is facing lately, and that will be facing in the future with the security challenges of the crisis, because we have many refugees who have not passed security checks, he said. What was definitely clear up last night is the confusion that Macedonia intends to close a legal border crossing with Greece, which according to Ivanov, will never happen. Namely, it is illegal crossing of the border elevation 59. It is illegal crossing where illegal migration arrives. Macedonia has never considered nor planned to close its legal crossings. Therefore, we urged and demanded in October that illegal crossing to be fully equipped for necessary recording and regulating the flow of migrants. That is why we sought equipment for biometric data, access to Frontex databases and access to databases of Schengen, aimed at all EU member states to use the data, Ivanov explained. Ivanov also conveyed the message that has been discussed at the highest level in Brussels and that is whether and how the current political crisis has affected the capacity of Macedonia in dealing with migrant crisis and the desire to finish as soon as possible. Political leaders in Macedonia took the responsibility in dealing with the political crisis, put their signatures on the document they have to implement. Any postponement affects our tackling challenges. We need to respect the agreement and the dates, so we can have a government with a clear political mandate that has to deal with these security risks. We need institutions that will function, because in the meantime the necessary legislative changes will follow. We have to have constituted Parliament to make changes in the legislation aimed at adapting to the challenges ahead, Ivanov s​aid.

 

Media talks continued: Peter Vanhoutte urges parties to be constructive (MIA)

A long night was before the work groups of the parties that attempted to find resolution for the media issue of which the deadline is due today Friday the 19th. The facilitator Peter Vanhoutte is aware that all deadlines are due Friday, and he called on all parties to be constructive. He could not confirm whether Commissioner Johannes Hahn will arrive in Skopje today, as he previously announced. Ambassadors Orav and Bailey are set to inform whether there will be conditions to hold the election on April 24, and whether there is any progress regarding the media and the revision of the Electoral Roll. The leaders and the opposition have very different viewpoints on whether there should be a new Law on Media. VMRO-DPMNE believes the current Law, adopted two years ago is good and if a new legal resolution is insisted upon, it should be copied from some of the EU countries. SDSM, on the other hand, is on the same line with Vanhoutte, and the party proposes a Law which allows strict punishment for media and journalists. In the negotiations, the most disputed issues are electing the members of the Council of the Media Agency, as well as the Government advertising. According to the Przino Agreement, signed by all four party leaders, there should not be a new Law on Media, but to rather improve the condition of this field.

 

INTERNATIONAL PRESS

 

Serbia's central bank to keep relaxing policy with inflation low (Reuters, 19 February 2016)

Serbia's central bank plans to maintain its looser monetary policy because the country's inflation rate remains below its target range, the bank said on Friday. "As low inflationary pressures will be present, central bank's monetary policy should remain expansive," the bank said. The report also said that risks stemming from turbulence in international financial and commodity markets would influence the degree of future policy relaxation. Earlier this month, the bank cut its benchmark rate by 25 basis points to 4.25 percent, citing low inflationary pressures at home and abroad. It also said the slower pace of growth in China would weigh on economic activity in Europe and the United States. Inflation in December stood at 1.5 percent year-on-year, below the bank's target range of 2.5 to 5.5 percent. January's inflation figure will be released next week.

In the report, the bank reiterated its 2016 economic growth forecast of 1.8 percent and said it would be driven primarily by investments and to a lesser degree by net exports.

(Reporting by Aleksandar Vasovic; Editing by Larry King)

 

Abu Hamza May Sue Bosnia Over Years in Detention (BIRN, by Rodolfo Toe, 19 February 2016)

In an interview following his release from detention, Imad al-Husin said he may file a lawsuit against Bosnia for holding him for years without a trial or evidence that he represented a threat.

The Syrian citizen Imad Al-Husin better known as Abu Hamza on Thursday told the TV network Aljazeera Balkans that he may file a lawsuit against the Bosnian authorities for keeping him for more than seven years in detention, on suspicion that he represented a threat to national security.

"I challenge the Bosnian authorities to hold a fair trial," Al-Husin told Aljazeera. "I'm ready to give them my head if they can prove I am a menace to national security. If I'm guilty, they can condemn me. If not, I will sue them because they held me [in detention] for seven-and-a-half years," he said. Abu Hamza denied claims made by Bosnia's Ministry of Security on Thursday that he still represented a menace to national security. "Back in 2014 my legal team asked the Bosnian authorities to produce evidence that I represented a threat," Abu Hamza said. "All they could do was present two newspapers articles dating from 2006 and 2007. "Apart from that, they didn't provide any evidence to justify the idea that I represent a threat to Bosnian national security," he stated. Nedim Kulenovic, a lawyer from Vasa Prava [Your Rights], an NGO providing legal aid to Abu Hamza, told BIRN on Friday that his client "will surely file a complaint against Bosnia with the European Court for Human Rights". Imad Al-Husin came to Bosnia in the 1980s and fought in the 1992-war in Bosnia for the El Mujhaid brigade, later marrying a Bosnian and obtaining citizenship. He was arrested in 2008, accused of representing a threat to national security, deprived of his citizenship and imprisoned in the immigration centre in Lukavica, where he remained for more than seven years without trial. He was eventually released on Thursday, as a consequence of a new law on foreigners that parliament approved at the end of 2015. "I suffered because somebody exploited my case to become a minister or a head of some office in Bosnian institutions," Abu Hamza claimed, adding that his status as a Syrian citizen now looked "doubtful. "I only have a Syrian passport that is no longer, so my Syrian nationality is doubtful," Abu Hamza told Aljazeera, adding that he "gave all the other [Bosnian] documents to the Bosnian authorities".