Albanian Language Media:

• COVID-19: 730 new cases, six deaths (media)
• Kosovo government ditches responsibility for absence of vaccine rollout (media)
• S.: New government of Kosovo to be formed without obstructionism (media)
• PDK confirms participation in meeting with Kurti, Osmani (media)
• Mustafa: LDK has always been open for dialogue (Kosovapress)
• AAK confirms participation in Monday's meeting (media)
• Supreme Court rejects seven complaints from community parties (media)
• Kllokot mayor arrested on vote manipulation charges (Kallxo)
• Stefanovic: Recognition of Kosovo would undermine Serbia's sovregnity (Klan)

Serbian Language Media:

• 28 new cases of Covid-19, one death registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo (KoSSev)
• Denial from Ranilug to RFE text – ''Dismissed because he did not vote for Adriana Hodzic'' (KoSSev)
• Hodzic: All votes for Duda Balje in Klokot accepted, our votes annulled (Kosovo-online)
• Mayor of Klokot arrested (Kosovo Online, Gazeta Express)
• Petkovic: Unfounded arrests in Klokot, continuation of oppression of Serbian representatives (Kosovo Online)
• Vucic: Serbia to build Sinopharm vaccine factory (N1)
• Serbian List representatives talked with Palmer and Kosnett on elections results and dialogue (Kosovo-online)
• Brussels' patience running out (Danas)
• Varhelyi: Dialogue will continue after institutions in Pristina are formed (Kosovo-online)
• Brnabic: EU accession process frustrating sometimes, but only option (N1)
• Partial lockdown in Serbia over this weekend again (N1)

Opinion:

• Blood is Blood (Kosovo 2.0)

International:

• Despite Govt Promises, Kosovo Still to Administer First COVID-19 Jab (Balkan Insight)
• Kosovo Detains Mayor and Two Others Suspected of Vote Manipulation (Balkan Insight)
• Following Prague, Kosovo to open embassy in Jerusalem (isralelhayom.com)
• Bring Western Balkans back on the agenda, urge nine EU member states (euractive.com)
• Powerful Serb Returns to Kosovo After Arrest Warrant Revoked (Balkan Insight)

Humanitarian/Development:

• Medical equipment from UAE arrives in Serbia (N1)
• Kosovo's abused 'restaurant bears' move to greener pastures (AFP/France 24)

 

 

Albanian Language Media  

 

COVID-19: 730 new cases, six deaths (media)

Kosovo has reported a record high number of new cases of COVID-19 with 730 being confirmed over the last 24 hour-period. Six deaths and 512 recoveries were meanwhile recorded during this time.

Media report quoting health officials saying that 80% of 112 patients hospitalised for COVID-19 at the Infectious Diseases Clinic at the University Clinical Center of Kosovo are on oxygen therapy. 

Yesterday, the clinic launched a central oxygen supply system.

Kosovo government ditches responsibility for absence of vaccine rollout (media)

Outgoing Minister of Health Armend Zemaj has refused to assume responsibility for the fact that Kosovo has remained the only one in the region that has not yet secured any doses of the Covid vaccine.

Speaking at the meeting of the Covid-19 coordination committee, Zemaj said:  "We are not to blame for the vaccine not having reached us yet. We are engaged with our partners, manufacturers to secure vaccines. The Government of Kosovo has allocated 40 million euros for Covid-19."

Zemaj said Kosovo was and remains an example of successful management of the pandemic. 

Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti meanwhile said that the first vaccine doses are expected to arrive in the coming weeks. "We have been criticised for the vaccine but we have made all preparations to get in line with EU standards and not enter games. Those who needlessly criticise do not tell the truth that vaccines that have arrived in the regional countries are of dubious origin," he said.

U.S.: New government of Kosovo to be formed without obstructionism (media)

The U.S. Embassy in Kosovo issued a statement on social media following virtual meetings that the Deputy Assistant Secretary Matthew Palmer had with acting President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani, the outgoing Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti, Vetevendosje Movement leader Albin Kurti, and Serbian List leader Goran Rakic.

"In yesterday's virtual meetings, Deputy Assistant Secretary Palmer stressed the urgent need for government formation devoid of political obstructionism, benefits of the EU-facilitated dialogue, strengthening institutions fighting corruption, and continued support for a diverse and independent Kosovo," the statement reads. 

PDK confirms participation in meeting with Kurti, Osmani (media)

Avni Bytyci, spokesperson of the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) told several media outlets that the party will attend a meeting called by the Vetevendosje leader Albin Kurti and acting President of Kosovo Vjosa Osmani focusing on steps towards formation of new Kosovo institutions. 

"PDK will attend the meeting on Monday. As the main opposition party, our positions on the formation of institutions will be presented at the meeting," Bytyqi said.

Mustafa: LDK has always been open for dialogue (Kosovapress)

The resigned leader of the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) Isa Mustafa commented on the invitation by the election winners, Albin Kurti and Vjosa Osmani, to discuss future steps towards the formation of new Kosovo institutions saying that LDK has always been open for discussions and dialogue.

However, he said he could not say when the LDK officials would be ready to meet Kurti and Osmani as the party is currently undergoing the process of electing a new leader. 

"LDK has always been open to talks and dialogue. We did not barricade ourselves like others and did not throw teargas and molotov instead of sitting down for talks. The Assembly is of all, not only of those that came in first," he said. 

AAK confirms participation in Monday's meeting (media)

The Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) has confirmed participation at Monday's meeting called by Albin Kurti and Vjosa Osmani. 

"Following consultations at the chairmanship, the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo confirms participation of leader Mr. Ramush Haradinaj to the meeting called by the Vetevendosje leader Mr. Albin Kurti on Monday at 13.00 hrs at the Assembly of Kosovo," said AAK spokesperson Lulezim Blaka.

Supreme Court rejects seven complaints from community parties (media)

The Supreme Court of Kosovo announced it has rejected appeals from non-majority community political parties and candidates against an earlier decision of the Election Complaints and Appeals Panel (ECAP).

The appeals that have been rejected involve those submitted by the Romani Initiative, the Egyptian Liberal Party, the Ashkali Integration Party, and the Kosovo Roma Progressive Movement.

The Supreme Court has also rejected the complaint presented by the Ujedinjena Zajednica-Adrijana Hodzic and that of the Social Demokratska-UNIJA SDU against the ECAP decision dated 7 March 2021. 

The complaint of the Vetevendosje Movement against ECAP concerning the request for recount of 20,550 mailed ballots has also been declared ungrounded.

Kllokot mayor arrested on vote manipulation charges (Kallxo)

Kosovo's Special Prosecution announced that the mayor of the Kllokot municipality, Bozidar Dejanovic, has been arrested on vote manipulation charges.

Dejanovic has been remanded in detention for 48 hours and is being suspected of involvement in the criminal act of "undermining the free will of the voters".

Stefanovic: Recognition of Kosovo would undermine Serbia's sovregnity (Klan)

Serbia's former chief negotiator in dialogue with Kosovo, Borislav Stefanovic, said recognition of Kosovo would not only be unconstitutional, a great tragedy and would also undermine the sovereignty of  Serbia. 

Looking back on the dialogue process which this week marked ten years since being launched under the EU facilitation, Stefanovic said: "Our negotiations in those days paved the way for normalisation for everyone living in Kosovo and we managed through difficulties and imperfections to achieve important technical agreements. It is unfortunate that some of these agreements are still not being implemented."

Asked whether he sees the final agreement including mutual recognition, Stefanovic said that he doesn't think the EU is asking Serbia to recognise Kosovo as an independent country. "It is dangerous if someone believes that recognition of Kosovo by Belgrade would solve anything of what is happening in Kosovo today or put someone in a better economic, social, or security position."

 

 

Serbian Language Media

 

28 new cases of Covid-19, one death registered in Serbian areas in Kosovo (KoSSev)

KoSSev portal writes today it has been a year since the first patient was tested on Covid-19 in Mitrovica North. 

Meanwhile, according to the latest figures, out of 80 tested samples 28 were positive on Covid-19, Crisis Committee of Mitrovica North announced. One person passed away. 

Out of 28 new cases, 25 were registered in northern Kosovo and three in central Kosovo.

The breakdown of the cases is as follows: 13 in Mitrovica North, four in Zvecan, five in Leposavic, three in Zubin Potok, two in Priluzje and one in Kamenica.

Deceased person was from Zvecan. A total of 116 persons have died in the Serb-populated areas in Kosovo since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Currently there are 717 active cases. 

Gracanica: New 14 coronavirus cases

Based on the latest published results, another 14 Covid-19 cases were registered on the territory of the municipality of Gracanica, the Crisis Staff announced today.

Family members of the patients were given a measure of self-isolation. There are currently 47 covid patients in hospital.

The total number of coronavirus positives in Gracanica municipality since the beginning of the pandemic is 630, reported KiM radio.

Denial from Ranilug to RFE text – ''Dismissed because he did not vote for Adriana Hodzic'' (KoSSev)

Radio Free Europe recently published the news that Bojan Markovic from the municipality of Ranilug, according to his own testimony, lost his job because he refused to vote for Adriana Hodzic in the Kosovo parliamentary elections on February 14th. The KoSSev portal also picked up and published the news. Last night, however, Markovic denied his previous statement for KoSSev.

As RFE reported, referring to Markovic’s statement, the mayor of Ranilug, Vladica Aritonovic, allegedly asked him to vote for the leader of the newly formed Bosniak initiative from North Mitrovica, rather than SL. Moreover, Aritonovic reportedly gave him a ballot on which the number of this initiative was circled. Markovic, however, refused to do what was asked of him.

He worked for the security company ''Scorpion'' based in Urosevac, which is owned by an Albanian. Markovic’s workplace was located within the building of the municipality of Ranilug. The municipality is 60 kilometers from Pristina.

''He called me (cf. the mayor of Ranilug, Vladica Aritonovic) and gave me a ballot, he circled an option and the number on the right side, and said ‘You will do this, vote for Adriana Hodzic, I expect four votes from you’. For me, my parents and my wife to support this option,“ Markovic said in a statement for Radio Free Europe (RFE).

''They called me on February 16th to talk to the mayor. I went and he said, ‘where are the votes?’ I said I couldn’t do that, nor did my parents want to vote (cf. for the CI GI United Community),'' he added.

On February 21st, seven days after the elections, Markovic was fired from Scorpion. The document that he received on that occasion, into which RFE had an insight, states that his employment was terminated due to a „cut in the number of workers based on the order of the municipality of Ranilug.''.

Markovic denied the seriousness of his allegations in a statement for KoSSev last night, insisting that he gave this statement to the journalist using a ''joking tone'', while his words were ''taken out of context'' and ''abused'' and that he ''did not bear witness'' to the allegations presented in the article. He further accused the journalist of ''sensationalism''. On the other hand, he had only words of praise for Hodzic.

At the same time, the decision of the Supreme Court of Kosovo is pending on the appeal of Adriana Hodzic against the decision of the Electoral Panel for Appeals and Petitions of Kosovo. This panel, acting on the appeal of other Bosniak parties, annulled 4,205 ballots out of a total of 6,422 votes Hodzic received, winning one MP seat.

During the pre-election campaign, as well as after the elections, Bosniak parties, as well as other analysts and public figures, presented numerous accusations against Hodzic and her newly formed initiative of allegedly being a ''satellite party'' of SL – which Hodzic denied.

Below KoSSev published the denial of Bojan Markovic in its entirety:

''I, Bojan Markovic, strongly deny the allegations presented in the RFE interview entitled ‘Dismissed because he did not vote for Adriana Hodzic’ because my words were taken out of context and abused for political purposes.

On March 10th, 2021, after a celebration, I accidentally spoke, in a humorous tone, to a person who introduced herself as a journalist – on the street, and on that occasion, I talked about the problem that befell me and my family.

The things mentioned in the interview are not familiar to me, nor have I witnessed such things, and I claim that they were taken out of context.

I talked to the journalist in a joking tone, because I noticed that she was looking for sensationalism.

As an employee of the Scorpion security company, I had no formal or informal meetings with the mayor because that was not in my job description. I will freely express what I think about the work of the mayor in the elections.

I found the ballot that I showed to the journalist on the street and I used it to joke with friends and comrades who are sympathizers of Adriana Hodzic. As a security worker, I was at work when Ms. Hodzic, as a minister, visited the municipality of Ranilug and realized projects in our municipality. Due to that and dissatisfaction with the work of the mayor, I can understand why she gained sympathy and voters in our municipality.

I want to emphasize that I am an ordinary person, a man with a family whose words were brutally abused and whose problem was used for the sake of other people’s interests.

I responsibly claim that I have always used my right to vote at my own will and discretion.

Please publish the denial in its entirety.''

See at: https://bit.ly/30BlGYZ

Hodzic: All votes for Duda Balje in Klokot accepted, our votes annulled (Kosovo-online)

President of Civic Initiative United Community Adrijana Hodzic told Kosovo-online portal she received an addition to the decision of the Election Complaints and Appeals Panel according to which all votes for the President of Social-Democratic Union Duda Balje in Klokot municipality have been recognized, while those for the Initiative she leads have been annulled.

Hodzic added that her initiative won 290 votes in this municipality, while Social-Democratic Union of Duda Balje won 147 votes.

Hodzic also said she doesn’t know “based on what formula and on what rules now in the same municipality all votes for one political option of the Bosniac community have been accepted, while all votes for the other political option of that very community have been annulled”.    

Mayor of Klokot arrested (Kosovo Online, Gazeta Express)

The Special Prosecutor's Office of Kosovo announced that the mayor of Klokot, Bozidar Dejanovic, was arrested on suspicion of rigging the votes in the elections on February 14, portal Kosovo Online reported quoting Gazeta Express.  

In a press release, the prosecution announced that Dejanovic had been detained for 48 hours.

"By the decision of the prosecutor, it was decided that the accused Bozidar Dejanovic be arrested and detained for 48 hours, and that he will appear before the pre-trial judge within the legal deadline," the statement said.

Petkovic: Unfounded arrests in Klokot, continuation of oppression of Serbian representatives (Kosovo Online)

Portal Kosovo Online reports that according to the statement of the director of the Office for Kosovo and Metohija, Petar Petkovic, members of the special Kosovo police broke into the premises of the Serbian municipality of Klokot today and on that occasion arrested Mayor Bozidar Dejanovic, adding that he was arrested without any legal basis or valid evidence.

The same statement adds that, immediately after Klokot Mayor was arrested, director of the Department for Urbanism of the municipality of Klokot, Dejan Vlajkovic was arrested as well, quoted portal Kosovo Online. 

The Office for KiM provided a legal representative for Dejanovic and Vlajkovic, and all relevant international institutions have been informed of treatment against them. 

"During the raid on the municipal premises, the special forces of the Kosovo Police carried out a search, and in the continuation of the action they raided several Serb houses inhabited by political representatives of Serbs from Kosovo and Metohija. We strongly condemn the repression and arrest of the Serb mayor of Klokot and intimidation and retaliation against employees in the municipal building. Such brutal behavior of the Kosovo police is a continuation of the pressure and oppression to which Serb representatives are continuously exposed on the territory of Kosovo and Metohija, as a form of intimidation of the people and sending a message that there is no peace and normal life for them," the statement said.

The director of the Office for KiM warns that it is obvious that it is about the intention to put pressure on the electoral will of the citizens in the Serb communities in Kosovo.

"The Serbian people were exposed to that kind of pressure not only during the election campaign, but obviously even more strongly in the post-election period. It is inadmissible for anyone to cast a shadow over the convincing and historic victory of the indisputable Serbian List, which won 96.14 percent of the Serb population," the statement said.

Petkovic states that every day we witness numerous news and videos about brutal election manipulations by Albanian political representatives who would now obviously want to disguise their election machinations by attacking Serbs and representatives of the Serbian List.

"We will not allow such scenarios of attacks and brutal confrontations with the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, and for that reason we are asking for an urgent and decisive reaction from the relevant international organizations, as well as Brussels," the statement reads.

Vucic: Serbia to build Sinopharm vaccine factory (N1)

President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday that Serbia will build a factory with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and China to make the Sinopharm vaccine, N1 reports.

Speaking during a visit to the UAE, he said that the plant would start making the vaccine as of October 15. “I have already told our people to start looking for land, outside Belgrade would be best, to build the factory which will make two to three million doses of vaccine a month to cover a good part of the region and all of our needs”, he said.

According to Vucic, there is mention of a third dose. “We will have to get vaccinated every year and the vaccines we chose, Russian and Chinese, are absolutely safe”, he said. 

“We will have to give vaccines to the region even at production cost because everything we do to cure our people or prevent infection will be no good if there is a problem in the region”, he added.  

See at: https://bit.ly/3vkKrXt

Serbian List representatives talked with Palmer and Kosnett on elections results and dialogue (Kosovo-online)

Serbian List representatives, Goran Rakic, Dalibor Jevtic and Igor Simic had an online meeting with the US official for the Western Balkans Mathew Palmer and US Ambassador in Pristina Philip Kosnett, Kosovo-online portal reports.

As Serbian List said in a statement, Goran Rakic said he expects that parties in Pristina would respect the results of the Serbian List.

He also noted it is of vital interest for the Serbian people that Belgrade-Pristina dialogue continues, and reached agreements be implemented. 

Brussels' patience running out (Danas)

Interlocutors of Belgrade based daily Danas talk about the message of the EU head of diplomacy that the time has come for the Belgrade- Pristina dialogue to end with the agreement. 

Vice president of the Center for Foreign Policy, Suzana Grubjesic told Danas that ten years have passed and as things stand now, it seems to her that some more anniversaries of that process of normalization will be marked, until a final political agreement is reached, wrote Danas.  

''Ten years ago, the first meeting within the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina was held in Brussels. We have come a long way and it is time for the process to end. The European Union is working on both sides on a comprehensive agreement on normalization, which will open the way for the European future of Serbia and Kosovo,'' wrote Borell, Danas quotes. 

Despite Borell's optimistic tone, Grubjesic points out that the general impression is that the "status quo" is becoming a realistic option because Belgrade and Pristina cannot agree, and the EU does not have an offer that the two sides could not reject. She explains that the goals are in question, that is, what the goal of the dialogue is and how Belgrade and Pristina interpret the goals.

- For Pristina, the goal of the dialogue is only the recognition of independence, and for Belgrade, a compromise solution. When the goals are not close, then it is difficult to expect that an agreement can be reached soon. On the other hand, the EU is not trying too hard to encourage both sides to reach a solution, that is, I do not know what it can offer to Belgrade and Pristina at this moment, and these years, in order to reach an agreement faster - Grubjesic points out.

She adds that normalization is a process, not an event, but that the constructive ambiguity reflected in the comprehensive agreement on the normalization of relations has left room for everyone to interpret for themselves what that process means.

Executive editor of the European Western Balkans portal, Nikola Burazer reminds that the EU has been insisting for years on the soon completion of the normalization process, which is stated in the European Commission's Strategy for the Western Balkans from February 2018, where the two sides call for an "urgent" agreement.

- At that time, there were various announcements that the process could be completed before the elections for the European Parliament, and then until the new administration takes office, after and until the US presidential elections, but it turned out that all those expectations were unrealistic. It will probably be similar with the latest calls for an agreement on normalization this year, as it seems that there are no favorable circumstances for this and that the very continuation of the dialogue would be a success. Brussels' patience certainly runs out, but its influence on both sides in the process of dialogue also weakens in relation to some earlier phases in which major steps were made - Burazer concludes.

It should be reminded that on March 8, it was ten years since the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina began under the auspices of the EU, with a meeting between the then political director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Borko Stefanovic and the Deputy Prime Minister of Kosovo Edita Tahiri.

Brnabic with Palmer today

Serbian PM, Ana Brnabic will hold an online meeting today with the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State and Special Representative of the State Department for the Western Balkans, Matthew Palmer, and then address the Tirana Economic Forum through a video call. Danas recalls that this is the first time, as far as is known, that official contact was made between Serbian officials and US diplomats since the administration of the Joseph Biden administration came to power.   

At the Tirana Economic Forum, European Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varheji, Prime Ministers of Northern Macedonia and Montenegro Zoran Zaev and Zdravko Krivokapic and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Zoran Tegeltija will take part.

Varhelyi: Dialogue will continue after institutions in Pristina are formed (Kosovo-online)

European Union Commissioner for Enlargement and Neighborhood Policy Oliver Varhelyi speaking about Belgrade-Pristina dialogue said today it was important that both sides use current window of opportunities for making the progress in the dialogue, adding the dialogue will continue after institutions in Pristina are formed, Kosovo-online portal reports.

Speaking online at Tirana Economic Forum, he also said it was particularly important for Serbia that it opted for a new enlargement methodology, as it would bring more dynamic in the enlargement process which was very slow last year.

He also said the EU works hard to fulfill its obligations, adding the candidate states should also fulfill their own obligations. He noted that the membership of the Western Balkans in the EU remains the Union’s main priority.

Speaking about the coronavirus pandemic, Varhelyi said it has demonstrated how interconnected we all are, adding the EU stood by the region since the very beginning and treated it as its future member.   

“Currently our focus is on providing the vaccines for the region as soon as possible. I understand disappointment, since this turned out to be much harder than we hoped for. Still, we are exploring all possibilities in order to help the region, by using the EUR 70 million package we adopted in December 2020 for this purpose”, he underlined. 

As he said the Western Balkans region would receive a large number of vaccines through the COVAX system in which the EU is one of the largest donors.

“At the same time, we are offering help for the social and economic recovery of an entire region. Not only with our initial package of EUR 3.3 billions adopted last summer, but also through our Economic and Investment Plan adopted last autumn”, he said.

Brnabic: EU accession process frustrating sometimes, but only option (N1)

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said Friday that the accession process with the European Union was sometimes frustrating, but that it remained the only road Belgrade should take because Europe was the family of all its nations, N1 reports.

“We go on with the reforms to, as soon as possible, make Serbia a European country with universal values, economy and the rule of law“, she told online Tirana Economic Forum.

Brnabic also said it was understandable that during the coronavirus pandemic, some EU countries were reluctant about the enlargement.

“That’s why the regional links should increase. That would be good for strengthening the Western Balkans and its faster approach to the EU“, she noted.

Earlier, addressing the same forum, Olivér Várhelyi, EU Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement, said the new EU methodology would help speed up Serbia’s accession negotiations.

Partial lockdown in Serbia over this weekend again (N1)

Serbian Crisis Team for curbing the coronavirus epidemic decided on Friday that all but food stores, pharmacies and petrol stations would be closed over the weekend, N1 reports. The same measure was in force the previous weekend as well. 

Also, all concerts planned for the weekend are cancelled, while secondary schools’ students would continue with online lessons and the higher grades of primary schools would switch to it as well.

The Crisis Team warned the epidemic situation in the country was extremely difficult.

 

 

Opinion

 

Blood is Blood (Kosovo 2.0)

By Luca Tesei Li Bassi, Dardan Hoti 

LIFETIME EXCLUSION FROM BLOOD DONATION IS FURTHER MARGINALIZATION OF QUEER COMMUNITY.

Lend Mustafa began to donate blood when he came of age. To the 23-year-old, who works as a project coordinator at CEL Kosovo, it represents a form of civic engagement that he says is very important to him. 

He continued to do so regularly until, one day in 2018, he reached the mobile donation unit of the National Blood Transfusion Center of Kosovo (QKKTGJ) on Mother Teresa Boulevard in central Prishtina.

Lend recalls that when he approached them to donate as usual, he was handed a form for the first time that he was asked to read carefully. At the end of the form, he was shocked to find a sentence that read: “You cannot donate blood if you are a person who has had sexual intercourse with someone of the same sex.” 

When he questioned the rationale behind that sentence, he says one of the nurses present responded shortly: “Because of HIV.” He was doubly surprised, as another sentence in the same form had already clarified that one could not donate blood if they have HIV or any other STI.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3qH3rfa

 

 

International

 

Despite Govt Promises, Kosovo Still to Administer First COVID-19 Jab (Balkan Insight)

Kosovo faces potentially waiting until May to start vaccinating people against COVID-19, after government claims the first doses would arrive in February proved over-optimistic.

The World Health Organisation’s global vaccine-sharing scheme, COVAX, announced on March 2 a list of the first round of allocations of the AstraZeneca vaccine, according to which Kosovo will receive 100,800 doses at some point between February and May.

Kosovo’s health ministry has said it will acquire a total of some 700,000 vaccine doses via COVAX, 600,000 doses from Austria and more under a direct deal with Pfizer/BioNTech but which has yet to be finalised.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3cpOKbt

Kosovo Detains Mayor and Two Others Suspected of Vote Manipulation (Balkan Insight)

The Pristina Basic Court ordered 30 days’ detention of two suspects arrested on March 9 on vote-rigging and bribery suspicions, Mirlinda Gashi, the court’s spokesperson, confirmed on Friday.

Prosecutors requested the detention of the two suspects, A.K. and S.M., in a closed court session on Thursday, accusing them of “abuse of official duties during elections”, and of “giving or taking bribes in connection with voting”.

They were arrested days after the Pristina-based news portal Insajderi published a video which said Dardan Stublla, the husband of Foreign Minister Meliza Haradinaj Stublla, had bribed election commissioners to help her win a seat in the elections held last month.

See more at: https://bit.ly/2PO8E8i

Following Prague, Kosovo to open embassy in Jerusalem (isralelhayom.com)

Netanyahu meets with Hungarian, Czech leaders in Jerusalem. President Rivlin, IDF Chief of Staff Kochavi to talk Hezbollah, Iran's nuclear program, and the ICC in Paris, Berlin, Vienna at Europeans' request.

Kosovo is set to become the third country to open an embassy in Jerusalem. Israel Hayom has learned senior diplomats from both countries will attend the ceremony marking the embassy's opening to be held in central Jerusalem, Monday.

See more at: https://bit.ly/2OMYrZv

Bring Western Balkans back on the agenda, urge nine EU member states (euractive.com)

Nine EU member states have called on the EU’s chief diplomat, Joseph Borrell, to have a strategic discussion on the Western Balkan countries and their prospects when EU foreign ministers meet in April, according to a letter made available to EURACTIV.

“We believe it is high time we take a strategic look at the Western Balkans,” foreign ministers of Austria, Croatia, Czechia, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia wrote.

In the letter, dated 5 March, they argue that “a lot has changed” since the last enlargement discussion in August 2019, particularly that “there have been dynamic internal political developments in the countries of the region”.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3bDipP6

Powerful Serb Returns to Kosovo After Arrest Warrant Revoked (Balkan Insight)

Milan Radoicic, a powerful Kosovo Serb businessman and politician, returned to Kosovo after a court revoked a warrant for his arrest for alleged involvement in the assassination of rival politician Oliver Ivanovic.

Milan Radoicic, who was wanted for arrest as the alleged leader of an organised criminal group responsible for the murder of political party leader Oliver Ivanovic in January 2018, has returned home to Serb-majority northern Kosovo after being on the run for more than two years, police told BIRN.

Police said Radoicic re-entered the country on Tuesday, after Pristina Basic Court revoked a warrant for his arrest on March 1. His jeep with Belgrade plates has since been spotted in the street in the north of the ethnically-divided Kosovo town of Mitrovica.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3qB5fGR

 

 

Humanitarian/Development

 

Medical equipment from UAE arrives in Serbia (N1)

The medical equipment from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) arrived in Serbia on Friday and was welcomed by Darija Kisic Tepavcevic, Employment Minister and Mubarak Saeed AlDhaheri, the UAE Ambassador in Belgrade, N1 reports.

Kisic Tepavcevic said Serbia received the second part of the medical equipment from the UAE, including ultrasound appliances, scans, mobile X-rays, MRs, all needed in treating coronavirus patients.

Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic is on an official visit to UAE and Bahrain.

See at: https://bit.ly/3bFz5pd

Kosovo's abused 'restaurant bears' move to greener pastures (AFP/France 24)

Having only just woken up from hibernation, a brown bear named Ero lazily strolls between the trees under a snow-capped mountain in central Kosovo, enjoying life alongside his chubby partner Mira.

Yet just eight years ago, he was a so-called "restaurant bear" -- chained up in front of an eatery, forced to drink alcohol and serve as entertainment for customers in a bizarre and cruel practice that was popular in Kosovo after its late 1990s war with Serbia.

Ero is one of nearly 20 bears rescued from that abuse who now live in a rolling 16-hectare (40-acre) refuge near the capital Pristina, replete with trees, berry bushes, ponds and artificial dens.

See more at: https://bit.ly/3ewBFzV