UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, February 25, 2021

Albanian Language Media:

• COVID-19: 437 new cases, five deaths (media)
• EU downplays Lajcak’s interview backdrop map with Kosovo as part of Serbia (Express)
• Montgomery: US committed to working with EU on Kosovo-Serbia dialogue (VoA, media)
• Kosovo journalist Visar Duriqi physically assaulted (media)
• Daka leaves the CEC meeting following LVV's request for community votes (Koha)
• Hague Court extends detention for Kosovo war veteran leaders (Express)
• Emigrant votes are holding Kosovo’s electoral result ‘hostage’ (Euronews.al)
• LDK chairmanship to meet today at 16:30 (Express)
• Mustafa meets with Rhode, discuss latest developments in Kosovo (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• 95 new cases of Covid-19 registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo (KoSSev)
• One-month detention assigned to seven persons suspected of involvement in Laplje Selo fight (KoSSev)
• Gracanica: Students protest over decision to detain youngsters involved in Laplje Selo fight (Radio kontakt plus)
• Father Sava: It was not a lynch, but a fight of two politically opposed groups of young men (media, social media)
• Gracanica police station commander: Fight in Laplje Selo arranged in advance (KoSSev)
• Rasic: My son certainly didn’t know the fight was organized, school worked on Monday (KoSSev)
• Selakovic condemns EP call to five EU states to recognize Kosovo (B92)
• Vucic met SOC Patriarch, discussed Kosovo issue (B92)

International:

• Attack on Kosovo Investigative Journalist Condemned (Balkan Insight)
• Former intelligence chief indicted in ‘Gulenist’ case (Prishtina Insight)

UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, February 24, 2021

Albanian Language Media:

• COVID-19: 461 new cases, three deaths (media)
• Palmer: Kosovo-Serbia and Bosnia Herzegovina, two separate issues (VoA, media)
• European Parliament: Kosovo's independence is irreversible (REL, media)
• Bajrami resigns from the Acting Finance Minister position (media)
• Haradinaj sees LVV movements as "powerless to face northern integration" (Koha)
• Head of Kosovo's Agency for Agricultural Development arrested (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• Vucic: Meeting with Kosovo Serb representatives on Friday; Concentrated pressure of the EU and the USA (media)
• Vucic on the fight in Laplje Selo: We have all the information; two groups of young men organized the fight (KoSSev)
• Belgrade-ordered beating or an organized fight between high school students? (KoSSev)
• Jevtic: Why is there silence about attacks on Serbian returnees? (Radio Mitrovica sever)
• MEPs: Rule of law and normalisation with Kosovo crucial for Serbia (N1)
• EP on Kosovo: No reform results, call for formation of A/CSM (Radio Mitrovica sever)
• Andjelkovic: Albanians frontally attack Serbian List out of fear from Serbian unity in Kosovo (Kosovo-online)
• Serbia & UAE to intensify defense ministries’ cooperation (N1)

Opinion:

• Kosovo must use this moment to reframe the narrative of the past (Kosovo 2.0)

International:

• MEPs call on Serbia to commit unambiguously to European values (europarl.europa.eu)
• Biden's Early Move in Balkans Signals Interest in Europe (VoA)

UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, February 23, 2021

Albanian Language Media:

• COVID-19: 368 new cases, four deaths (media)
• EP criticizes Kosovo for not fighting corruption, expresses concern over closure of Task Force (Koha)
• Hoti on assault on Rasic’s son: Violence is unacceptable (media)
• Prosecutor’s office begins investigations about attack on Rasic’s son (media)
• Rasic: Attack on my son was an attempted murder (Prishtina Insight)
• Abbott: Some politicians have incited hatred and fear within communities (Koha)
• Kurti asks privatisation agency not to open new waves of privatisation (media)
• EP Foreign Affairs Committee to vote Kosovo report (Express)
• Suspicions of vote manipulation by Serbia, dozens of NGOs demand reaction of local and international institutions (Kallxo)

Serbian Language Media:

• 78 new cases of Covid-19 registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo (KoSSev)
• 14 newly infected in Gracanica (Kosovo Online)
• Serbian List and Office for KiM: Fight has nothing to do with politics (Radio KIM)
• Suspects for beating Nikola Rasic assigned detention (Radio KIM)
• Nenad Rasic believes that the attack on his son has a political background (N1)
• Rakic: Son of Nenad Rasic injured in “a private conflict” between young men (N1)
• Parents of detained young men: The fight was caused by Nikola Rasic (KiM radio)
• Sava Janjic: Dialogue with Serbs must go through Belgrade (Kosovo-online)

International:

• The world faces a pandemic of human rights abuses in the wake of Covid-19 (The Guardian)
• Small hydropower plant owner sues activist Shpresa Loshaj in Kosovo* for defamation (balkangreenenergynews.com)
• In Hostile Serbian Parliament, MP Fights for Rights of ‘Enemy’ Albanians (Balkan Insight)
• U.S. Development Bank Says It's Committed To Balkans Amid Talk Of Serbian Office Closure (RFE)
• North Macedonia Murder Retrial Convicts Ethnic Albanians of Terrorism (Balkan Insight)

Albanian Language Media:

• Germany and France call for swift formation of government and election of President (media)
• CDHRF: Assembly reserved seats are at risk from Belgrade (media)
• CEC meets, counting of 500 polling stations is expected (Express)
• CEC decides: 494 polling stations will be recounted (media)
• Zemaj announces increase of COVID-19 cases (RTK)

Serbian Language Media:

• 57 new cases of Covid-19 registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo on Saturday (Radio kontakt plus)
• The Comoros do not recognize Kosovo's independence, the position remains the same (RTS)
• OSCE: Media should be free to travel (KoSSev)
• Serbia receives 150,000 doses of AstraZeneca, 50.000 doses of Sputnik vaccines (N1, B92)
• Brnabic: Quality of life in Kosovo will depend on dialogue with Belgrade (Tanjug, Kosovo-online)
• Hodzic: Balje and Rexhepi did nothing for Bosniak community in Kosovo (Kosovo-online)
• Office for KiM: Video surveillance in all schools in Serbian communities (Kosovo Online)

Opinion:

• Electoral irregularities are no excuse for anti-gypsyism (Prishtina Insight)
• Palokaj: Kosovo to draft guidebook for international friends to hold them accountable
• New 'Cold War' Will Fuel Tensions in Southeast, Central Europe (Balkan Insight)

International:

• Albin Kurti told BTA: Bulgaria and Kosovo share common goals and interests (BTA)

UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, February 18, 2021

Albanian Language Media:

• COVID-19: 340 new cases, ten deaths (media)
• LDK to elect a two-year mandate leader (media)
• Srpska's game: Hodzic received thousands of votes in municipalities where no Bosniaks live (Express)
• Egyptian PLE also accuses Serbian List of stealing mandates (Koha)
• Roma Progressive Movement: Roma Civic Initiative is in fact the Serbian List (Telegrafi)
• German Ambassador: Voters have given a strong mandate for change (RTK)
• Kurti: I will create the health insurance fund (media)
• Mustafa: I would break the coalition with LVV even today (media)

Serbian Language Media:

• Porfirije - a new patriarch of the Serbian Orthodox Church (B92, Tanjug)
• New Patriarch Porfirije in his first sermon: Kosovo is a covenant for us (KoSSev)
• Vucic met Patriarch Porfirije (RTS)
• Serbian List to new Patriarch: We are convinced that in this holy and responsible duty, you will be on same path as your predecessors (Radio Mitrovica sever)
• State Department congratulates election of Serbian Orthodox Church Patriarch (media)
• Petkovic: Pristina has obligation to enable unobstructed work of media (Radio kontakt plus)
• Vukmirovic on ban to enter Kosovo: Pristina's explanation ridiculous and ill-intentioned (RTS)
• Kurti: "We will analyze the ambiguities of the Washington agreement with the Biden administration" (BBC)
• EU launches project to support Western Balkans vaccination effort (N1)

International:

• Kurti's comments spark pessimism in Belgrade over Kosovo-Serbia talks (euronews.com)
• Kosovo Warns of Census Delay, Blaming Pandemic and Elections (Balkan Insight)
• Filipovic: Improving cooperation with NATO in line with military neutrality is in Serbia’s national interest (EWB)