UNMIK Headlines 30 January
Mustafa: Negotiations on Association are over (Koha)
Prime Minister Isa Mustafa is quoted as saying that the issue of the Association/Community of Serb-majority municipalities will no longer be negotiated in Brussels and that its establishment and activity will be in conformity to the agreements reached so far. According to the paper, Mustafa’s statement implies that the Kosovo side will not recall the agreement which the Constitutional Court concluded is not fully in line with the Constitution of Kosovo.
PDK’s plan for Kosovo president (Zeri)
According to the paper the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) is insisting its leader Hashim Thaci is elected president of Kosovo in the main Assembly chamber not the alternative one. The party is said to have proposed a counter candidate for Thaci in the hope that the opposition votes whereby securing the necessary quorum for Thaci’s election. The counter candidate, Rafet Rama from PDK, is said to enjoy good relations with the members of the opposition parties. However, the opposition claims they would not vote for any candidate from the ruling parties.
Jahjaga: UNMIK has only one duty in Kosovo (RTK)
President of Kosovo Atifete Jahjaga told the public broadcaster RTK that UNMIK has only one duty in Kosovo: to successfully conclude its mission. Asking to comment on the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly resolution on Kosovo which calls for an increased role of UNMIK in cooperating with international security mechanisms such as Interpol and Europol, Jahjaga said the document does in no way empower UNMIK. She said Kosovo aims to apply for Council of Europe membership this year and, according to her, this is the only way to strengthen protection and respect of human rights in Kosovo.
Kosovo Police discover explosive in Drenas mosque (dailies)
An anonymous call alerted the Kosovo Police and led to the discovery of 2.2kg of explosive outside the mosque in Drenas/Glogovac. The explosive did not have a detonator and according to a police source it was not intended to go off. Police said it made no arrests and that there are still no suspects. The Islamic Community in Kosovo issued a statement saying that the explosive at the mosque premises at the Friday’s call for prayer time is unacceptable and has elements that suggest it could have been part of a terrorist plot. It called on the relevant authorities to bring authors of this act before justice as soon as possible.