European Union rule of law mission, EULEX, was not able today to say anything regarding allegations of corruption. The new chief of mission, Gabriele Meucci, reiterated the mission’s line that “they do not comment on ongoing criminal investigations”.

“Bamieh’s allegations are being investigated. These are criminal investigations and I cannot say how far they have come”, Meucci told reporters. All he said was that there is one person within the mission whose immunity has been stripped off and is under investigations and added that this was done before Bamieh made her allegations public.

Meucci said this is nothing new for them as there have been 500 internal investigations since the mission was established but did not say whether EULEX is investigating judges and prosecutors for corruption. He stressed that EULEX treats all allegations seriously.

“I don’t feel the trust should be lost because the mission is working well. There are incidents in life and you have to know that everything that happens, we are aware and I believe we deserve the citizen’s faith and I don’t want that to be lost,” said Meucci. He denied reports that EULEX police are following suspended prosecutor Bamieh and that there was a threat against Koha Ditore’s journalist who authored the series of articles about corruption in EULEX.

However, Koha Ditore’s journalist, Vehbi Kajtazi, refuted EULEX chief, saying that the advisor to the head of the mission, in the present of two other persons, had threatened him with criminal prosecution if he publishes Bamieh’s allegations.