UNMIK Media Observer, Afternoon Edition, February 21, 2025

Albanian Language Media:

•    Pentagon official: No changes to presence of U.S. troops in Kosovo (media)
•    KFOR Commander: We support the EU-facilitated dialogue (media)
•    Kosovo police intelligence unit member “threatened by Serbian BIA” (media)
•    Police shut down three centers in the north (Koha)
•    Maqedonci at Halifax Security Forum: Kosovo achieved thanks to partners (RTK)
•    Haradinaj with a harsh status on Facebook (media)
•    Specialist Chambers release Sabit Januzi and Ismet Bahtijari on bail (media)

Serbian Language Media:

•    Vucevic: The possible withdrawal of the US from KFOR may complicate the Kosovo security conditions (Tanjug)
•    Petkovic: By raiding social welfare centers, Kurti directly hit most sensitive and vulnerable categories of Serbs (Radio Mitrovica sever)
•    Serbian List: Disappointed by election results, Kurti again attacking everything that is Serbian (Kosovo Online, media)
•    Leposavic Social Welfare Centre Director: This is blow to most vulnerable categories of population (Kosovo Online)
•    Kosovo police raids centers for social welfare in Leposavic and Mitrovica North (Tanjug, Kosovo Online)
•    Trial of Sladjan Trajkovic continues (Kosovo Online)
•    Investigations launched due to seven cases of election abuses, in two suspicions of "Bulgarian train" scheme (KoSSev)
•    Vucic blames construction industry for Novi Sad railway station tragedy (N1)
•    Nis municipality declares March 1 Students’ Day (N1, Juzne Vesti)

Albanian Language Media:

Pentagon official: No changes to presence of U.S. troops in Kosovo (media)

An official of the U.S. Department of Defense said in an interview with TV Dukagjini that there are no changes to the presence of U.S. troops in Kosovo. Asked to comment on the possible withdrawal of U.S. troops, he said: “we have no change in the presence of the force to announce at this moment”. The TV station noted that currently Italy has the biggest contingent in NATO’s peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, with 1,258 troops, followed by the U.S. with 602 troops.

KFOR Commander: We support the EU-facilitated dialogue (media)

The Commander of the NATO-led KFOR mission, Major General Enrico Barduani, received the Chief of the Swiss Joint Operational Command, Lieutenant General Laurent Michaud, at KFOR headquarters, Camp Film City in Prishtina. “The visit was an opportunity to present the activities of KFOR under its UN mandate and the ongoing security efforts in support of the EU-faciliated dialogue between Belgarde and Prishtina,” KFOR announced. Major General Barduani also congratulated General Michaud for Switzerland’s long-standing contributions to KFOR and regional stability.

Kosovo police intelligence unit member “threatened by Serbian BIA” (media)

A member of the Kosovo Police, working for the Intelligence and Analysis Unit in Zvecan, was threatened by people affiliated to the Serbian Intelligence Agency. Kosovo Police Deputy Director for the north, Veton Elshani, confirmed the case to TeVe1 on Thursday. The TV station claims to have seen the threatening messages made against the police officer. It also learns that “certain individuals with links to the Serbian Intelligence Agency are photographing every Serb that talks with police officers in the north and then they get stopped and interviewed by Serbian Police upon entering into Serbia”.

Police shut down three centers in the north (Koha)

Kosovo Police have shut down three social work centers in the north. The raid began after the arrest of four officials of the Center from the Social Work in Zubin Potok in connection with the offense of “violation of voter identifiers.” The Police requested permission from the Basic Prosecutor’s Office in Mitrovica to conduct the search of the centers. Veton Elshani, Deputy Director of Police for the northern region, stated that the inspections were carried out in order to gather evidence that would prove the illegal activities, which are considered as document forgery.

"On February 8, 2025, one day before the Parliamentary elections in Kosovo, we arrested four individuals (officials from the Social Work Center in Zubin-Potok) in relation to the offense of interfering with voter identifiers. In fact, these officials from the social work center, which was part of a parallel/illegal structure, were suspected of calling various citizens and, under the form of threats, forcing or instructing them on how to vote by conditioning social assistance on their votes in favor of a specific political party competing in the parliamentary elections in Kosovo," said Elshani.

Maqedonci at Halifax Security Forum: Kosovo achieved thanks to partners (RTK)

Acting Minister of Defense, Ejup Maqedonci, participated in the Halifax Security Forum, held in Taipei, Taiwan. He discussed in the panel "Partnership = Democracy", together with Dr. Tamara Wittes, President of the "National Democratic Institute", and Jack McCain from the "McCain Institute" on the global security environment, threats to democratic values, and ways to strengthen partnerships between democratic countries of the world. "We have achieved a lot in building a functional and sustainable democracy in Kosovo. This is thanks to the support of our international partners, who have helped us every step of the way. This support is crucial for preserving democratic values and confronting threats to them", said Maqedonci.

Haradinaj with a harsh status on Facebook (media)

The leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK), Ramush Haradinaj, has written a status on the social network Facebook, about Prime Minister Albin Kurti. “Evil has a name - Albin Kurti”, wrote Haradinaj.

Haradinaj’s party, which in the February 9 elections had a joint list with Fatmir Limaj’s Social Democratic Initiative, received 8 percent of the votes. Based on the results so far, they will have 8 MPs in the Assembly, of which 3 are from the Social Democratic Initiative. According to media, Haradinaj’s status is related to Fatmir Limaj’s announcement that he would cooperate with Prime Minister Albin Kurti and any other future government if this is in Kosovo’s interest, arguing that the service for Kosovo is above any political division and that he would contribute in any way for the good of Kosovo.

Specialist Chambers release Sabit Januzi and Ismet Bahtijari on bail (media)

Sabit Januzi and Ismet Bahtijari, convicted of obstruction of justice and witness intimidation, have been released on bail by order of the President of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers (KSCC) in The Hague, Ekaterina Trendafilova. The decision was made on February 19 and the release was made possible on February 21 with specific conditions that will remain in force until the end of the sentences imposed by the trial panel, the Specialist Chambers said in a statement. “The President found that, although the criminal offenses for which Mr. Januzi and Mr. Bahtijari were found guilty are undoubtedly serious, given the consequences that witness intimidation has for the administration of justice, there were several factors that weighed in favor of modifying their sentences,” the statement said.

Serbian Language Media

Vucevic: The possible withdrawal of the US from KFOR may complicate the Kosovo security conditions (Tanjug)

The Prime Minister of Serbia, Milos Vucevic, said today that the possible withdrawal of the US from KFOR in Kosovo could complicate the security conditions in the province, reported Tanjug.

In Sarajevo, Vucevic, responding to a journalist's question about German media's allegations that the US will withdraw from the Bondsteel base in Kosovo and what that will mean for Pristina, said that whether America will leave KFOR depends on the decision of President Donald Trump and his administration and stressed that Serbia will monitor the situation.

"It can complicate the security conditions in Kosovo. And all this that is happening geopolitically in the matter of Ukraine and the relations of NATO partners, all of that is refracting,'' Vucevic said after the meeting with the Metropolitan Hrizostom.

Petkovic: By raiding social welfare centers, Kurti directly hit most sensitive and vulnerable categories of Serbs (Radio Mitrovica sever)

''With today's violent incursion into social welfare centers in all four municipalities in the north of Kosovo and Metohija, Albin Kurti directly hit the most sensitive and vulnerable categories of Serbs in KiM, beneficiaries of various social benefits," reads the statement of the Office for KiM, reported Radio Mitrovica sever.

"With this escalating move, Kurti continued his policy of violence against Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija. We are talking about almost 9,000 beneficiaries of social assistance, child allowance, one-time benefits, assistance, and care of another person, for whom these benefits mean their lives," Petkovic pointed out in the statement. He assessed that Kosovo PM Albin Kurti is nervous because of, as he said, ‘’the debacle in the elections, but also the increasing criticism of the international community, especially the USA’’.

"And this attack is aimed at thwarting the victory of the Serbian List, with the clear aim of depriving it of one mandate. Apparently, it was not enough for Kurti that he counted votes for 11 days and most openly manipulated the results, but now he is also using Serbian institutions to create additional confusion," Petkovic said.

According to the director of the Office for KiM, by attacking the most socially sensitive institutions, Kurti is directly attacking the USA, as well as the EU, which have clearly stated several times that the issue of Serbian institutions can only be resolved in the context of the formation of the A/CSM, and not by violent and unilateral closure.

Petkovic states that no beneficiary of social benefits will be left without affiliation, nor will employees in social welfare centers be left without income.

Serbian List: Disappointed by election results, Kurti again attacking everything that is Serbian (Kosovo Online, media)

“Disappointed by the election results, the defeated, anti-Serbian regime of Albin Kurti is using the last days of its tyrannical rule to once again attack everything that is Serbian. Thus, today, without any basis, his parapolice groups occupied the premises of the Social Welfare Centers of four municipalities in northern Kosovo and Metohija in an attempt to make life difficult for the Serbian people in the area, both for the employees of these institutions and for those who receive social benefits”, Serbian List said in a statement.

It strongly condemned “this illegal and anti-Serbian activity of Kurti’s phalanges and announced that none of the employees or beneficiaries of social benefits will be left without what belongs to them, and that today the leadership of our party will meet with the employees and provide all possible support”.

The Serbian List also called on citizens “not to fall for provocations of the defeated Kurti’s subjects, and that in the time ahead we will do everything to return the situation to normal and, together with our citizens, return normal life to our municipalities, villages and cities”.

Serbian List called on embassies of Quint states, UNMIK, OSCE and KFOR to clearly condemn these escalating moves that drastically endanger the lives of thousands of recipients of social welfare, who are the most vulnerable category of our society. “There is no more room for anemic statements or mild reactions. We demand a clear condemnation of these actions and a call for a return to the previous state of affairs. Anything else will be indirect support for the violation of the rights of the Serbian people”, the statement added.

Leposavic Social Welfare Centre Director: This is blow to most vulnerable categories of population (Kosovo Online)

Leposavic Centre for Social Welfare Director Natasa Nastic said their fears had come true, adding that documentations and computers were confiscated, as well as that 1,500 beneficiaries were left without opportunity to exercise their rights as of today, Kosovo Online portal reported.

Nastic said Kosovo police raided premises of Centre for Social Welfare with an eviction order.

“Our fears that they will close the Centre for Social Work have come true. An hour ago, the police of Kosovo provisional institutions raided the Centre for Social Welfare with an eviction order, they confiscated our documents, they confiscated our computers, 1,500 beneficiaries were unfortunately left without the opportunity to exercise any of their rights as of today”, she said.

Nastic also said that they will, nevertheless, find a way to be in service to people. “We will not give up, we will look for a way to be of service to our people, but it will be much more difficult now. Here there are different categories of vulnerable. This is not a blow to the workers, to the employees of the Centre for Social Welfare, this is a blow to the most vulnerable categories of the population living in the municipality of Leposavic”, she emphasised.

Kosovo police raids centers for social welfare in Leposavic and Mitrovica North (Tanjug, Kosovo Online)

Kosovo police this morning raided centers for social welfare in Leposavic and Mitrovica North and carried out searches there, Tanjug news agency reported.

Kosovo Online reported that police also raided the center for social welfare in Zvecan.

Thousands of beneficiaries directly depend upon the work of these centers, receiving various social assistance and allowances through which they exercise their rights.

As Tanjug news agency further said Pristina continued this year as well, illegal closure of Serbian institutions, making the lives of Serbs in Kosovo more difficult. On January 15, it closed more than 35 institutions south of the Ibar River, including provisional authorities, municipalities, centers for social welfare and Post of Serbia offices.

As Kosovo police deputy commander for the region North Veton Elshani told Kosovo Online, the actions were carried out based on the prosecution's request.

“The actions are taken in relation to the case which took place day before elections when four persons were apprehended in Zubin Potok, over illegal acts related to elections. As per order of prosecution, searches are carried out today in centers in Mitrovica North, Zvecan and Leposavic under suspicion that illegal acts were committed there”, Elshani said.

Trial of Sladjan Trajkovic continues (Kosovo Online)

The trial of Sladjan Trajkovic, accused of allegedly committing war crimes against civilian population in Vucitrn municipality continued today at the Basic Court in Pristina, Kosovo Online portal reported.

Three witnesses of prosecution and defense will be interviewed today.

Sladjan Trajkovic was arrested on December 15, 2022, in Mitrovica South and remains in detention ever since. His trial started for the third time from the beginning in October last year.

He was a member of Kosovo police and left the service in November 2022, as part of collective resignations of Serbs from all Kosovo institutions in the north. Before joining Kosovo police he passed all security verifications, both by Kosovo institutions and international organizations.

Investigations launched due to seven cases of election abuses, in two suspicions of "Bulgarian train" scheme (KoSSev)

The Basic Prosecutor's Office in Gnjilane, Urosevac, Mitrovica and the Prosecutor's Office in Djakovica initiated measures to solve seven criminal cases related to the February 9 elections. In two of these municipalities, suspicions have also been raised about vote control, through a scheme known as the "Bulgarian train," reported KoSSev yesterday, citing Koha.

The four primary prosecutor's offices in Kosovo identified seven cases of abuse during the election process on February 9.

According to the data of the prosecutor's offices in Gnjilane, Urosevac, Mitrovica and Djakovica, investigations into several criminal offenses have begun in these municipalities.

According to the Prosecutor's Office, there are two cases in Gnjilane.

"At the Basic Prosecutor's Office in Gnjilane, during the election process, two (2) cases were identified for which the police is authorized to undertake investigative actions. The cases were initiated as a 'violation of the secrecy of the vote', from Article 215 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kosovo," announced the prosecutor's office in Gnjilane.

The Prosecutor's Office in Urosevac said that the police was authorized to undertake investigative actions due to the suspicion of the phenomenon known as the "Bulgarian train".

"The primary prosecutor's office in Urosevac has a case in the municipality of Stimlje, due to the claims of several political parties regarding unstamped ballots after their counting and suspicion of the 'Bulgarian train' method. In connection with the case in question, the Prosecutor's Office authorized the police to undertake all investigative actions and gather information in connection with this," the Prosecutor's Office in Urosevac told Koha.

Three cases of abuse are also being investigated by the Mitrovica prosecutor's office, one of which is from Zubin Potok.

"There is one case in South Mitrovica, one case in Zubin Potok and one case in Vucitrn. These three cases are being investigated in cooperation with the KP. It is suspected that the cases in South Mitrovica and Zubin Potok happened the day before the elections. Five persons are suspected of the criminal offense of "Violation of the free will of voters", while it is suspected that the case in Vucitrn happened on election day. He is suspected of the criminal offense of 'violation of the secret ballot','' stated the Basic Prosecutor's Office in Mitrovica.

The Basic Prosecutor's Office in Djakovica was managing the case, but this institution did not provide details about the nature of the case.

However, based on the data, it was about test ballots, which were found in the ballot box, and which are suspected to be the starting point of the "Bulgarian train" scheme, by which a large number of votes was controlled.

"The Prosecutor has authorized the KP to take all actions, collect information related to this case, and if there are elements of a criminal offense, further proceedings will be continued," stated the response of the Prosecutor's Office in Djakovica.

And as for the potential cases that are being investigated, the Basic Prosecutor's Office in Pristina and the one in Prizren did not provide any information.

Vucic blames construction industry for Novi Sad railway station tragedy (N1)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on Thursday that the construction industry, not corruption, was to blame for the collapse of the concrete awning at Novi Sad railway station which killed 15 people and injured two more, N1 reported.

Speaking live for Insajder TV, Vucic said there might have been corruption but had nothing to do with the awning collapse. “The awning collapsed because of mistakes by experts, not because some subcontractor paid more or less to some other subcontractor”, he said.

“In construction terms, the awning was not reconstructed, if it had been the tragedy would not have happened”, he said.

According to Vucic, the state could only make sure the prosecution did its job and express condolences to the families. He added that the prosecution is independent. “Tragedies like this happen and it’s very important to review our mistakes not only so the people responsible are punished but also to prevent something like this from happening in future or at least having as few as possible”, he said.

“Whoever is responsible will answer, whoever it is, because people have to get justice”, Vucic said, adding families have to be helped and lessons have to be learned.