Headlines - 29.07.2013 Ban appeals for solving of war crimes and fate of missing persons (Tribuna) UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in his regular quarterly report on the situation in Kosovo urged international authorities in Kosovo and Serbia to make efforts in determining the fate of missing persons and addressing all allegations of war crimes. The report covers the period from 23 April to 15 July and commends efforts in normalization of relations but notes that full normalization requires tackling of painful issues inherited from the conflict. “International support for the parties and international engagement in Kosovo remains essential. But beyond operational support in the practical implementation of EU-facilitated agreements, it is very important for the international community to remain determined in addressing demands of all communities in Kosovo by furthering reconciliation and healing of wounds from the past conflict,” said SG Ban in his report which the paper claims to be in possession of. Ban also called on all international missions in Kosovo to cooperate with UNMIK and reaffirmed that implementation of Brussels agreement in the north will be the main challenge. Halbauer: We will not forcibly dismantle barricade on River Ibër (dailies) COMKFOR Volker Halbauer said the mission he commands is status neutral and impartial and added that he will not order a forceful dismantling of the barricade on River Ibër. “My predecessor at the post of KFOR commander faced difficult moments by going to remove Serb barricades. I think the barricade on the bridge is in fact a political symbol representing the fear and wishes of the people there. I understand this and I will not order the removal of that barricade,” said Halbauer in an interview for Belgrade’s daily Politika. Hoxhaj opposes the idea of a Serb joint list (dailies) Kosovo’s Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj said the idea of Kosovo Serbs running with a single list in upcoming local elections is undemocratic and goes against the interests of the Serb community. Hoxhaj made the comments in the social network Twitter and his reaction comes after Deputy Prime Minister Slobodan Petrovic rejected the idea of a joint Serb list saying he sees no reason to hide behind national unity. Kosovo with more diplomats in Brussels and Washington (Koha Ditore) Koha Ditore reports that more diplomats from Kosovo will be in Washington and Brussels while diplomatic missions are expected to be opened in Egypt, Montenegro and few other countries. This is planned to happen after the Foreign Ministry carries out a review of diplomatic missions all over the world. Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Artan Behrami, said that the role of present diplomatic missions in the world will be reviewed which could lead to the closure of any diplomatic mission, changing their role, increase or reduction of the staff. He said that at this stage there are no plans to close any diplomatic mission while Foreign Minister, Enver Hoxhaj, expressed skepticism about the need for Kosovo to have diplomatic missions at the level of embassy in the Netherlands. “The Netherlands is an important European country and I don’t know which is the reason behind the stance of minister Hoxhaj to reconsider if Kosovo should have an embassy in the Netherlands or not,” said former Kosovo Foreign minister, Skender Hyseni. Peci: Hoxhaj is a manipulator and a liar (Tribuna) In an interview for the paper, former Kosovo’s liaison officer to Serbia, Lulzim Peci, accused Foreign Minister Enver Hoxhaj of manipulating information and reports he made upon resigning his Belgrade post. “Anything that comes from Minister Hoxhaj is of no surprise and I am not the first public figure to be target of such denigrating campaigns because of political disagreements,” said Peci after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs accused him of secret meetings with Serb authorities. “After return from Serbia, the first meeting was with him [Hoxhaj] and I reported on meetings I had in Belgrade,” said Peci. War veterans want their party (Tribuna) Tribuna newspaper reports that KLA war veterans are putting pressure on the heads of war associations to participate in local election of 3 November as a political entity. This request came after the refusal of the Kosovo Assembly to remove executive mandate of the EU Rule of Law mission. EULEX has arrested several former KLA commanders which raised dissatisfaction of the KLA war organizations. The head of KLA war veterans organizations, Muharrem Xhemajli, admitted that there have been requests for participation in elections as a specific list but he said that there is nothing concrete in this direction. One Serb arrested in Jarinje on war crimes charges (Tribuna) Kosovo Police arrested a Serb man in the border crossing point in Jarinje on charges of war crimes against Albanian population. The suspect is thought to have used the uniform of a reservist policeman to commit crimes towards his Albanian neighbors. The arrest was made as the suspect tried to leave Kosovo and the paper claims it was done under an arrest warrant issued by EULEX.