UNMIK Media Observer, Morning Edition, January 11, 2024

Albanian Language Media:

Kurti welcomes Irish PM at Pristina Airport (media)
Foreign Ministry: Dakaj confirmed Serbia accusing him of war crimes (media)
Candles to be lit for “victims of Serbian genocide in Kosovo” on Jan 15 (media)
Begaj: Non-recognizing countries should recognize Kosovo (media)
Haxhiu forecasts early elections if Kurti doesn’t form Association (Express)
Gjinovci: Armed conflict in Kosovo is inevitable (KTV)
BIA denies that Sandulovic was tortured (Koha)
NATO: Reintroducing compulsory military service, Serbia’s matter (RFE)

Serbian Language Media:

Court in Pristina annulled government’s decision on land expropriation in northern Kosovo (RTS, Kosovo Online)
Radovic: Krasniqi’s statement inaccurate, we have not received necessary documentation to initiate petition (Kosovo Online)

BIA refutes Sandulovic: No unlawful physical force was used (KoSSev)
NATO Office in Belgrade on obligatory military service in Serbia (N1, RFE)
Is there a connection between seizure of Serbian properties in Kosovo and competencies CSM should have? (Kosovo Online)

International Media:

A Chronicle of Investigations: Stories of Journalists that Documented Injustices (Balkan Insight)

Albanian Language Media

Kurti welcomes Irish PM at Pristina Airport (media)

Most news websites reported on Wednesday evening that Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti welcomed his Irish counterpart, Leo Varadkar, at Pristina Airport. Kurti wrote in a post on X: “Welcoming the Irish PM Leo Varadkar to Kosova. Looking forward to our meeting tomorrow, where we'll discuss shared goals and ways to strengthen the ties between our countries. Fáilte, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar!” Several media outlets note that this is the first visit by an Irish Prime Minister to Kosovo.

Foreign Ministry: Dakaj confirmed Serbia accusing him of war crimes (media)

Kosovo’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday a Kosovo ambassador visited Hasan Dakaj, a former KLA member, who was arrested by Serbian authorities and is being held at the detention centre of the Special Court for War Crimes in Belgrade. Dakaj confirmed that the office of the High Prosecutor for War Crimes in Belgrade is accusing him of committing war crimes against non-Albanians during the 1999 war in Kosovo. He also said that he has not experienced any physical violence or other form of mistreatment.

Candles will be lit for “victims of Serbian genocide in Kosovo” on Jan 15 (media)

The Centre “Genocide in Kosovo – an Open Wound” said on Wednesday that on the 25th anniversary of the Serbian genocide in Kosovo will organize the lighting of candles in all squares of cities in Kosovo. The moto of the event will be titled “We don’t forget – light a candle for the victims of the genocide in Kosovo”.

Begaj: Non-recognizing countries should recognize Kosovo (media)

Albanian President Bajram Begaj said on Wednesday that the attack in the north of Kosovo in September last year and other incidents in Kosovo are signs of a situation that could have consequences for the whole region and Europe. He argued that the support of the European Union and the international community for a thorough investigation into the Banjska attack is very necessary.

“The resolution of disagreements between Kosovo and Serbia is not only a political matter, but also a matter of security for the region and Europe,” he said.

Begaj also said that all non-recognizing countries should recognize Kosovo. “They should recognize the Republic of Kosovo as an irreversible reality. I reaffirm our support for the dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia to be open and to advance further in order to normalize relations between the parties and to lead toward mutual recognition,” he said.

Haxhiu forecasts early elections if Kurti doesn’t form the Association (Express)

Political commentator and director of Albanian Post, Baton Haxhiu, said in a debate on T7 on Wednesday that if Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti does not form the Association of Serb-majority municipalities, early elections could be held in Kosovo this year. “If in March he does not accept the Association, he has no other way but to take the country to elections, because Kosovo will be isolated with sanctions,” he argued. “In spring elections cannot be held, but I believe that June or July could be the time for elections. There are two possibilities. One, for Kurti to conclude his mandate with an Association approved by the government and the Constitutional Court, or to live with sanctions until the next elections.”

Gjinovci: Armed conflict in Kosovo is inevitable (KTV)

Political commentator, Rron Gjinovci, argued in a debate on KTV on Wednesday evening that armed conflict in Kosovo is inevitable and that countries in the region are buying weapons. According to him, the war between Kosovo and Serbia will be similar to the annexation of Krimea in Ukraine by Russia in 2014. “I think that an armed conflict is inevitable. War, in my opinion, will be at the level that we have seen in Banjska and in Ukraine in 2014. I think that it can happen, not only in Kosovo, but in Bosnia too. All intelligence services of countries that surround us have information that more weapons need to be bought,” he said.

BIA denies that Sandulovic was tortured (Koha)

The Serbian Agency for Security and Information (BIA) denied accusations according to which Serbian opposition politician Nikola Sandulovic was tortured and said that Sandulovic’s human rights were not violated and that no physical force was used against him.

The office of the prosecutor in Nis had earlier confirmed that Sandulovic is in detention last week and that he is charged with inciting national, racial, and religious hatred and intolerance.

In a statement published on Wednesday, the BIA said they undertook activities with the aim of clarifying Sandulovic’s illegal activities, which the competent prosecutor qualified as the criminal offence of inciting national, racial, and religious hatred and intolerance”. “By telling lies about the alleged illegitimate actions of BIA members, Sandulovic and other promoters of the so-called Kosovo, want to spread disinformation and cause concern among the local and international public, to damage the reputation of BIA and to destabilize the security situation in the Republic of Serbia,” the statement notes.

NATO: Reintroducing compulsory military service, Serbia’s matter (RFE)

NATO’s Military Mission Liaison Office in Belgrade, Serbia, said on Wednesday that the decision to reintroduce compulsory military service in Serbia is a matter of Serbian state authorities. “NATO will continue to support Serbia’s efforts to modernize its armed forces within the framework of bilateral development and partnership,” the NATO office told the news website on Wednesday.

NATO also said that it fully respects the military neutrality of Serbia. “Everything that Serbia and NATO do together is tailored to meet Serbia’s needs and help improve its armed forces under the framework of the Partnership for Peace,” the response notes.

Serbian Language Media

Court in Pristina annulled government’s decision on land expropriation in northern Kosovo (RTS, Kosovo Online)

The Basic Court in Pristina, Department for Administration Affairs, made a verdict by which it annulled the preliminary decision of Kosovo Government on land expropriation in Zubin Potok and Leposavic municipalities from May 2023 and send it to re-consideration and deliberation, RTS reports citing Kosovo Online portal which said it had insight into the verdict.

According to RTS by this decision, the court made on December 18 last year, it had been confirmed that those expropriations were illegal and contrary to the law, and police bases built on those land without legal grounds, something that affected landowners and public in the north of Kosovo had been warning about for months. The court acted as per lawsuits of M.J. and J.J. filed on June 21, 2023 calling for annulment of the decision of expropriations made on May 10, 2023 saying part of their properties in the Gazivode settlement (cadastral zone Velji Breg) in Zubin Potok was included in the decision of illegal expropriation.

Lawyer Nebojsa Vlajic, legal representative of several affected landowners from northern Kosovo, said the decision should have been made earlier, given that this was about major violations of the law, because the government made the decision to confiscate the land without explanation and publishing what the public interest was in this regard.

“The government started and completed reconstruction of the (Kosovo) special police bases and it did not even inform owners of the land plots about it or offered them the possibility to protect their rights. Then it did not organize any public discussions, but only upon completion of the reconstruction (of police bases), under pressure from the public, it held a mirage of some public discussion during which nothing could be heard from government’s officials”, Vlajic told RTS. He also expressed hope that reason will prevail and the Pristina government will realize that expropriation is not only formally wrong but also essentially as it takes away from people, without consequences, something that they had in their possession for generations and hundreds of years.

On May 10, 2023 the Kosovo Government made retroactive decision on expropriation of land owned by Serbs in northern Kosovo, by which it in fact wanted to justify already reconstructed special police bases on the affected land parcels in northern Kosovo, the RTS recalled.

Read Kosovo Online article on court’s decision and its elaboration at: https://shorturl.at/hpEJ0

Radovic: Krasniqi’s statement inaccurate, we have not received necessary documentation to initiate petition (Kosovo Online)

Jurist Veselin Radovic from Leposavic said the statement of Kosovo Minister of Local Self Government Administration Elbert Krasniqi that groups of citizens in the north have two-week deadline to submit signatures to recall the mayors was inaccurate, because they have not received full documentation from this ministry which is necessary for the process, Kosovo Online portal reports. Krasniqi said yesterday that Mitrovica North, Leposavic and Zubin Potok have a two-week deadline to collect the signatures, while the deadline for Zvecan is five days longer.

Radovic told the media they were not informed that they have been registered as groups responsible to collect the signatures. “I met with the assembly chair today and told him that based on article and instruction, he has to inform us that we are registered as a group, and by registration we are authorized to make any other further steps. However, we have not received that from him, nor do we have any authorization or information that we were registered as a group of citizens”, Radovic said on Wednesday.

He added they did not receive official information, adding those responsible violated instructions they made themselves. He also said they did not receive the full documentation, only a list, without any handover proving that he took it and that list contains only three names, but does not say this is an initiating group and offers no explanation.

BIA refutes Sandulovic: No unlawful physical force was used (KoSSev)

Security Information Agency (BIA) refuted yesterday allegations of a politician Nikola Sandulovic that physical force was used against him, KoSSev portal reports. “While undertaking activities from the law stipulated scope of work of the Agency, there was no violation of freedom and rights, as well as unlawful use of physical force”, they said in a statement.

BIA’s statement came five days after the president of the Republican Party was brought in, and claims on social media about an alleged physical attack against him because he visited the gravesite of Adem Jashari.

"Members of the BIA undertook activities aimed at clarifying the background of Sandulović's illegal activity, which the competent prosecutor qualified as the criminal offense of inciting national, racial and religious hatred and intolerance under Article 317 of the Republic of Serbia Criminal Code", BIA added in a statement.

NATO Office in Belgrade on obligatory military service in Serbia (N1, RFE)

NATO Military Liaison Office in Belgrade said the issue of introducing obligatory military service in Serbia is up to the Serbian state authorities, N1 reports.

"NATO will continue to support Serbia's efforts to modernize its armed forces within the framework of a developed and mutually beneficial partner cooperation", NATO Office said in a written response to Radio Free Europe. In a response, it was emphasized that NATO fully respects Serbia's military neutrality.

"Everything Serbia and NATO do together is tailored to meet Serbia's needs and help it advance its armed forces within the framework of the Partnership for Peace", NATO Military Liaison Office in Belgrade said.

Is there a connection between seizure of Serbian properties in Kosovo and competencies CSM should have? (Kosovo Online)

The Community of Serb-majority Municipalities (CSM), according to the 2015 agreement between Belgrade and Pristina and the version of its draft statute prepared by European officials, will have the right to own movable and immovable property. The time frame for the formation of the CSM is unknown, but what is evident is that the Kosovo authorities systematically transfer Serbian property, whether private or communal, including businesses or private land, to the central level, Kosovo Online portal reports.

International Media

A Chronicle of Investigations: Stories of Journalists that Documented Injustices (Balkan Insight)

Dozens of people in positions of power and figures of organized crime ended up in prison in 2023 as a result of investigations by Kallxo.com. In a special edition, journalists, cameramen, and editors of Kallxo.com narrate the behind-the-scenes of the investigations of the most significant cases broadcasted during 2023.

2023 was a long year for investigative journalists at the desk of Kallxo.com. The TV shows and publications on Kallxo.com have resulted in dozens being arrested and hundreds of new criminal cases, in an attempt to strengthen rule of law in the country. Investigative journalists have revealed their most notable experiences throughout the year in this long read.