Albanian Language Media:

• Haradinaj: First meeting in govt, I would send Association draft to court (media)
• “Bedri Hamza would bring a new approach in government” (media)
• Trump’s son shares Grenell’s post slamming Kurti (media)
• Jablanovic’s party says it was attacked by a Serbian List member (Express)
• Mandl: Serbia can’t be trusted, Kosovo recognition only final agreement (Telegrafi)

Serbian Language Media: 

• Vucevic's resignation arrives in Serbian Parliament (Tanjug)
• Brnabic: Elections in Kosovo of key importance for Serbs (Beta, NMagazin)
• Appeal of Metropolitan Teodosije of Raska and Prizren regarding upcoming elections in Kosovo (eparhija-prizren.com, media)
• “It seems Kurti will have to join opposition after elections”: Andric Rakic on changes after parliamentary elections (Danas
• “KLA” sign written on wall of Serb house in Kamenica, Serbian List posters defaced (Kosovo Online)
• Belgrade University Senate forms working groups to assess fulfilment of students’ demands (N1)
• Consumer organization calls for new boycott of retailers (Danas, N1)

Opinion:

• A new European role for Britain in the Balkans (EU Today)

International Media:

• Kosovo feels the pain of EU sanctions as election looms (Reuters)
• Central European media, NGOs face uncertain future after US funding freeze (BIRN)
• Former USAID leaders speak out against Trump’s attempt to dismantle agency (The Hill)
• Are Serbian protests starting to loosen Vucic’s grip on power? (RFE)
• ‘More hope than fear: Serbian astrophysicist puts faith in new generations (BIRN)
• Pollution threatens the Drin and its tributaries in three Balkan states (BIRN)
• USAID employees place on leave, CIA workers offered buyouts in government shakeup (yahoo.com/news, NBC)   

Albanian Language Media 

Haradinaj: First meeting in govt, I would send Association draft to court (media)

Leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) and candidate for Prime Minister, Ramush Haradinaj, said that if he is elected, in the first of his government he would decide to send the draft statute of the Association of Serb-majority municipalities for interpretation to the Constitutional Court. 

Haradinaj also said that “I think that if we manage to convince President Trump, Serbia will recognize us. If he tells them, do it in 24 hours, Serbia will do it in 23 hours. My goal and my strategy are to get to President Trump’s table as soon as possible, knowing that the situation now is completely different, there are tectonic changes happening in the world”.

According to Haradinaj, the EU-facilitated dialogue between Kosovo and Serbia should not continue because “there has been inflation in the contracts”. 

Haradinaj also said that previous administrations in Washington have tolerated and protected Kosovo, and that this will not happen under the Trump administration. “This administration does not care if you are grateful or not. They no longer have that problem. Your choice is: you cost us money, you are not aligned with us, you are not a trusted partner, move on. I am planning to change this. We need to requalify, and this is going to be really difficult because this administration is different from what the world has seen so far,” he argued.

“Bedri Hamza would bring a new approach in government” (media)

Several media outlets cover an opinion piece that Dennis MacShane, former UK Minister for the Balkans in 2001-2005, wrote for EU Today, highlighting his remarks that Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) candidate for Prime Minister, Bedri Hamza, would bring a new approach in government, if he gets elected. “Hamza’s calm demeanour and focus on economy, healthcare and education is what the entire region needs to move forward. If he emerges as Kosovo’s new leader it will be welcomed in Washington,  EU capitals and investment by the Labour government’s Foreign Office could win dividends. The outgoing Prime minister Kurti may win 35 percent of votes but Hamza is aiming to build a big tent coalition of opposition parties for a new government. If he manages with UK help to increase Kosovo’s presence in the European Union and wider international community, Kosovo under Hamza will be better placed in the quest for full international  recognition which Vladimir*  Putin bitterly opposes modern forms on inward vestment to spur economic growth,” MacShane writes.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/U6Ry9

Trump’s son shares Grenell’s post slamming Kurti (media)

Most news websites reported on Wednesday that Donald Trump Jr. the son of U.S. President Donald Trump, has shared a post by presidential envoy for special missions, Richard Grenell, in which he slammed Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti claiming that “the Kurti Government was not trustworthy during Trump’s first term, nor during Biden’s term. Both Republicans and Democrats have criticized Kurti consistently for taking unilateral actions that destabilize the region. So has the EU and NATO. The international community is united against Kurti”.

Jablanovic’s party says it was attacked by a Serbian List member (Express)

A member of the Serbian List is believed to have attacked candidates and members of the Party of Kosovo Serbs (PKS) led by Aleksandar Jablanovic. According to this party, the incident happened on Wednesday during an election rally in Gracanica. The PKS said in a Facebook post that the attack came from Marko Aksic, current director in the municipality of Gracanica and member of the Serbian List’s election list. “Today in Gracanica, at the stand of the Party of Kosovo Serbs, our candidates and activists came under attack. While they were staying peacefully in the tribune and talking with the citizens, a candidate of the Serbian List with the number 29, Marko Aksic, attacked the tribune, tearing apart leaflets and breaking pens without any provocation, and insulted our party and members. We received guarantees [from the police] that the criminals will be treated in accordance with the law. The bandit of the Serbian List fled as usual, but we are certain that the law and justice will act swiftly,” the party said. 

Mandl: Serbia can’t be trusted, Kosovo recognition only final agreement (Telegrafi)

Austrian member of the European Parliament, Lukas Mandl, in an interview with the news website, argued that the Brussels agreement and the Ohrid implementation annex are faced with obstacles because of Serbia’s approach. He said that Serbia has not been reliable even on smaller topics. “If Serbia does not show reliability on smaller topics, how can one expect the other party to make big steps?” he said.

Mandl said that the European Union should not rely only on the United States but needs to engage more by itself for stability in the Western Balkans.

Commenting on tensions in the north of Kosovo, including the Banjska attack and the explosion at Iber Lepenci water canal, Mandl said that the status quo does not serve regional stability. “Every reasonable and responsible person must work to change the status quo for the better,” he said.

According to Mandl, Kosovo and Serbia should not wait for the EU to come up with a solution but need to show self-initiative and present reasonable proposals for the dialogue. He said that the future of the region depends on mutual recognition between Kosovo and Serbia, trustworthiness on the international arena and continuous work on strengthening the rule of law and education. 

Serbian Language Media 

Vucevic's resignation arrives in Serbian Parliament (Tanjug)

Milos Vucevic's formal resignation as PM of Serbia has arrived in the Serbian Parliament, sources in the parliament confirmed to Tanjug on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, Vucevic said it was a "matter of days" when the parliament would take note of the resignation and that it was an "unstoppable process".

He noted that, legally and politically, things were clear and that him being named PM-designate again was not an option. Vucevic tendered his irrevocable resignation on January 28 following an attack on student protesters in Novi Sad. He said at the time that politicians needed to demonstrate that they were prepared to lead to a calming of tensions in society.

Brnabic: Elections in Kosovo of key importance for Serbs (Beta, NMagazin)

Serbian Assembly Speaker Ana Brnabic said today parliamentary elections in Kosovo, which will be held on Sunday, February 9, are of crucial importance for the Serbian people there, NMagazin reported. 

She told TV Pink that Albin Kurti has also recognized this, which is why he sent support to the student blockades in Serbia and also ''from Zagreb''. 

"I am sorry that the student plenums did not distance themselves from this support. Especially when it is known that the University of Pristina, which has been relocated to Kosovska Mitrovica, sent them a plea or a request to do so, and in that plea, they explained that Kurti was killing Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija", Brnabic said.

She added Kurti is threatening every day and the other day he said that "the gun is loaded" referencing Kurti’s statement made at a pre-election rally in Podujevo that “high morale and  loaded guns” are needed if one “has a bad neighbour”.

"He is threatening war. He is threatening Serbs in Kosovo and Metohija. That is why Sunday is a very important day for us, and especially for Serbs in the southern province", she concluded. 

Appeal of Metropolitan Teodosije of Raska and Prizren regarding the upcoming elections in Kosovo (eparhija-prizren.com, media)

Before the upcoming elections in Kosovo, Metropolitan Teodosije of Raska-Prizren appealed to Serbs to go to the polls in as large numbers as possible and expressed belief that they will be able to recognize those who enjoy the most trust and reputation, KiM Radio reported.

“As the parliamentary elections in Kosovo and Metohija are set to take place in three days, we find it necessary to issue a pastoral appeal to all citizens, emphasizing that the elections should proceed in an orderly, peaceful, and democratic manner. For our people, who are enduring extremely difficult times in this region, it is of utmost importance that, despite existing differences, they demonstrate unity around our key interests.

These interests primarily include the survival of our people, their security, economic progress, and the preservation of our holy sites and our entire spiritual and cultural heritage. In this regard, ensuring adequate and reliable healthcare services in our communities, as well as an education system rooted in the preservation of our language, culture, and values that have sustained us for centuries, is of particular significance”, reads the statement. 

Read full statement at: https://tinyurl.com/3kzy6kbw

“It seems Kurti will have to join opposition after elections”: Andric Rakic on changes after parliamentary elections (Danas)

Although Self-determination is currently the strongest party on Kosovo political scene, upcoming elections are very unpredictable, and one can not rule out that incumbent Prime Minister Albin Kurti will not be able to form the government, New Social Initiative Program Manager Milica Andric Rakic opined, adding Serbian List will most likely not be immune to losing a few seats in the parliament.

Commenting on the pre-election campaign she told Danas daily that the Self-determination campaign so far has been very harsh. “Both towards the political opponents and towards the Serbian community in Kosovo, the representatives of the ruling party continued to criminalize the Serbs and their political opponents, as well as with the securitization of the issue of integration of the Serbian community” she said. She also said this party’s messages were “rough, uncompromising, nationalist, and in complete continuity with the policies they have implemented thus far”.

She recalled that Serb community and political opponents of Self-determination were attacked, along with the media and certain institutions, such as the prosecutor’s office, whom Kurti told not to come to work from February 10.

Kurti: For bad neighbors ‘high morale and a loaded gun’

“On the other hand, certain media were boycotted by Self-determination or denounced as agents of Serbian influence”, she said. Andric Rakic pointed out that the main feature of the “harsh campaign” of Self-determination is “engagement in ethno-nationalism and aggression”.

“The other parties, on the other hand, avoided issues related to the dialogue and the Serbian community and focused on what they perceive as the government’s failures, which is primarily a failure in economic development and foreign policy. Thus, the leading parties mostly made unrealistic promises about salary increases, investments, membership in NATO, the abolition of punitive measures and, most recently, good relations with the American administration”, Andric Rakic said.

Speaking about parties representing the Serbian community in upcoming elections, but also about the impression that influence of Serbian List (SL), as a leading Serbian party, has declined, Andric Rakic said it is not impossible for SL to lose one or two mandates, but it will not lose more than that.

“What was striking now is that due to the emergence of pluralism, all political subjects, including SL, had to work a little harder in the campaign because, for example, in 2020, SL did not even have a campaign for the elections”, she explained. She recalled that the Serbian community in Kosovo is very weakened and the voting body of Kosovo Serbs is very clientelist noting that because of this it is difficult to convince people to experiment and support the option that does not have the green light from Belgrade.

“Nevertheless, SL has suffered great reputational damage in the last four years, so it is not impossible that they will be punished in these elections, but I repeat, if that happens, it will be limited to 1 to 2 mandates”, she claims.

For the past year, the Kosovo Government has been actively working to close Serbian institutions, and it did so a couple of times during the election campaign.

“The physical closure of Serbian institutions did have an impact on mood of voters, however, it should be borne in mind the fact that they were closed does not mean that citizens’ need for those institutions has ceased, and the services are now only reorganized and moved to central Serbia, while the importance, but unfortunately also the political influence of those institutions on the electorate in Kosovo, still remains an indisputable reality”, she said.

She emphasized these were populist moves, and they probably contributed to Self-determination, especially when consolidating the core of their voters.

“On the other hand, in the previous elections, the LVV also attracted LDK voters who are moderate and rational and probably do not think that closure of Serbian institutions is worth to damage the relations with the USA, and this is now becoming a very important topic at the end of the campaign, especially after two statements by Richard Grenell”, she said.

“These elections are very unpredictable, as they draw closer to the end, it seems more and more like LVV, although the undisputed winner, will have to go into opposition, that is, it will not be able to form a government, and in that sense, it will be a change”, she opined. According to her, a coalition government with a strong LVV in the opposition will be able to do almost nothing to change the essential course in Kosovo.

“KLA” sign written on wall of Serb house in Kamenica, Serbian List posters defaced (Kosovo Online)

Serbian List posters placed on a wall of Nikola Jankovic’s family house in the village of Busince, in Kamenica, have been defaced this morning and “KLA” signs written, Kosovo Online portal reported. Jankovic lives in this house with his wife and two small children.

As Serbian List said in a statement one of the reasons why this house was targeted is the fact that Nikola Jankovic, is a father of Lazar, 1000^th baby born in a maternity ward in the Serb-majority Pasjane, whose godfather was Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic.

Serbian List also said this act aims to discourage Serbs in this region from supporting Serbian List, but in vain as the Serbs are resolute to stay in their places and will not change their minds.

"It is clear that this sort of message comes from those who wish no good to the Serbs in these areas and shows nervousness of (Albin) Kurti and his mercenaries, fake Serbs, because in the election campaign he unequivocally indicated that the only policy he is leading is the policy of hatred towards the Serbs and the only political goal is to expel the Serbs from these areas", reads the statement of Serbian List.

Belgrade University Senate forms working groups to assess fulfilment of students’ demands (N1)

Two expert working groups tasked with conducting a professional assessment of the fulfilment of student demands to institutions were formed at an e-meeting of the University of Belgrade Senate, said Rector Vladan Djokic, N1 reported. The working groups comprise University of Belgrade professors, experts in different fields.

“The expert working groups are tasked with producing a report, on the basis of available documentation and expert analyses, which will be presented to the extended rector’s board and student assemblies. Their role is to provide an expert opinion so the student assemblies can make informed decisions about their next steps, on the basis of verified facts”, the statement said.

The four protesting students’ demands are:

– Publication of all documentation related to the Novi Sad railway station reconstruction.

– Dropping of charges against students and young people arrested or detained during protests over the Novi Sad train station disaster

– Bringing of criminal charges against individuals responsible for attacks on students and professors, initiation of criminal proceedings against them

– A 20 percent increase in the budget share allocated to material costs for public-owned higher education institutions.

Consumer organization calls for new boycott of retailers (Danas, N1)

Following a day-long boycott of major retail chains in Serbia on January 31, the Efektiva consumer protection association has called for a new boycott.

Targeting five supermarket chains – Delhaize (Maxi and Shop&Go), Mercator (Idea and Roda), DIS, Lidl and Univerexport, the new, five-day boycott over excessive pricing is to take place from February 10 to 14.

“Since the previous boycott on Friday, January 31, and the public call to retailers to take steps aimed at lowering prices, some of the boycotted retailers have even raised their prices. This calls for a new consumer revolt, a five-day boycott,” Efektiva said in a statement.

If this boycott fails to produce results, the association warned that, together with consumers, they will decide on a longer-term boycott of individual retail chains in order to force them to lower prices.

Opinion

A new European role for Britain in the Balkans (EU Today)

Opinion piece by Denis MacShane, former UK Minister for the Balkans in 2001-2005.

The post-war American statesman, Dean Acheson, famously said in 1962 “Britain has lost an empire and not yet found a role.”

Britain did later find a role as it was one of the leading nations in shaping EU foreign policy until Rupert Murdoch, Boris Johnson, and Nigel Farage reduced the UK to being a marginalised player in continental foreign policy strategy despite being a leading Nato member, the UK’s status as permanent member of the UN Security Council, and the UK military and nuclear weapons.

In the 1990s Europe seemed helpless in the face of Serbian atrocities in the former Yugoslavia. Tony Blair changed that. He forged an alliance with Germany, France and Italy and brought in the US to intervene in the Balkans to stop the death squads, ethnic cleansing, and flows of refugees seeking safety from the Serb army and militias.

Milosevic went to the Hague but as the fighting stopped it was impossible to shape an effective peace.

Today the nations emerging from Yugoslavia – Serbia, North Macedonia, Bosnia,  Montenegro – have been unable to shape a new politics based on mutual recognition of neighbours and settled internal politics.

A new nationalist government in North Macedonia recently tore up the hard-won agreement with Greece on the country’s name plunging Skopje-Athens relation to a new low.

Britain has huge respect in the region from leading the intervention  that led to the end of Serb atrocities. London sent soldiers, diplomats, and economic aid.

Cathy Ashton, the Labour peer, who was the EU’s first foreign minister (called High Representative in EU jargon) worked tirelessly 2009-2014 in the Balkans.

But following the hard Brexit that ruptured good relations with EU member states as well as the Brussels’ institutions, Britain stopped being a serious player on European foreign policy.

Yet the continuing instability in the region from Albania to the Aegean has increased flows of economic migrants and asylum seekers which impact on the UK. China is increasingly present and Russia has the Belgrade government dancing to Putin’s tunes.

David Lammy made an early visit to Kosovo as shadow foreign secretary. Can he convert this interest into a serious new British commitment to try and solve the region’s problems or at least reduce tensions?

It would show Britain was back as a major European player without waiting on some future return to full membership.

The UK is still respected. In the southern Kosovo town of Ferizaj last year a statue of Tony Blair was erected in the main square. While other former Yugoslavia states are torn by nationalist and personalised politics Kosovo is a real democracy, which is quite remarkable considering it was a war zone only 25 years ago.

The country is the only republic in the entire former Yugoslavia which has progressed steadily in the international democracy indexes for the last 10 consecutive years. It has free media and active civil society. It also has a regular rotation of parties leading the government, and it seems that after 4 years of governance by the current Prime minister Albin Kurti, the forthcoming elections on 9th of February may produce a new government, most probably led by the current mayor of the northern town of Mitrovica and the former finance minister Bedri Hamza.

Kurti’s relationship with both the USA and EU has soured in recent years and a new approach is overdue. Britain could offer support to a new government. Hamza’s calm demeanour and focus on economy, healthcare and education is what the entire region needs to move forward. If he emerges as Kosovo’s new leader it will be welcomed in Washington,  EU capitals and investment by the Labour government’s Foreign Office could win dividends.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/U6Ry9

International

Kosovo feels the pain of EU sanctions as election looms (Reuters)

For decades, the Lumbardhi cinema in Kosovo - Europe's newest country - has given locals in the city of Prizren a window on the outside world. It has screened movies from Japan, China and the United States and hosted international artists for its annual documentary film festival.

But the venue has been dogged by financial problems and it was relying on a 1.5 million euro grant from the neighbouring European Union for renovations to its heating and drainage systems, according to its executive director, Ares Shporta.

Then on Oct. 7, Shporta received an email from EU officials saying the grant had been cancelled due to "ongoing measures imposed by the European Union on the government of Kosovo" - a reference to cuts to EU funding enacted in 2023 for what the bloc said was Prime Minister Albin Kurti's role in stoking ethnic tensions in northern Kosovo, which has a Serb majority.

"It shook the trust of the community in us, but also in the EU, which claims to be in support of cultural diversity," said Shporta in the lobby of the Lumbardhi, where a noisy space heater kept a smattering of patrons warm.

While the EU has not released a list of affected programs, two sources, including a senior diplomat, told Reuters more than a dozen projects totalling at least 150 million euros have stalled following the EU curbs. These include a 70-million-euro sewage treatment plant and a concert hall renovation. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity in order to speak candidly.

Pristina has downplayed the measures, but the fate of Lumbardhi and other projects identified by Reuters shows the impact on one of Europe's poorest countries.

The issue has resurfaced as Kosovo - which is majority ethnic Albanian but home to some 100,000 ethnic Serbs - prepares for elections on Feb. 9. And it could weigh on Kurti's chances of re-election, three analysts said.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/tXUR2

Central European media, NGOs face uncertain future after US funding freeze (BIRN)

Few of Central Europe’s NGOs, especially those involved in promoting minority rights and helping vulnerable groups, hold out much hope that the flow of frozen US aid will resume.

Call it unfortunate timing, but the US embassy in Budapest announced the winners of a 500,000-dollar media grant on the day of Donald Trump’s inauguration on January 20, only to revoke the awards a few days later as it became apparent that the new US president intended to freeze almost all foreign aid for 90 days by executive order.

Subsequent events have shown it’s not just the independent media in Central Europe that has reason to worry. On Monday, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced he had become acting administrator of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), confirming the State Department’s de-facto takeover of the agency, which was set up in the 1960s and had a budget constituting more than half the 68 billion dollars that the US spent on international aid in 2023.

Rubio said USAID must return to its original goal where its functions align with US foreign policy. “Foreign Aid is not charity. We must make sure it is well spent…” Rubio wrote on X.

“There are things that USAID, that we do through USAID, that we should continue to do, and we will continue to do,” he said. “This is not about ending the programs that USAID does, per se.”

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/2DdH3

Former USAID leaders speak out against Trump’s attempt to dismantle agency (The Hill)

A group of former administrators of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) joined on Wednesday to issue a sharp rebuke of the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the agency.

In a joint statement, five former administrators who “served different presidents and voted for different political parties” stressed the global importance of the agency and said destroying it would only harm Americans.

“While we don’t agree on all issues, we wholeheartedly agree that USAID and America’s foreign assistance programs are vital to our interests, that the career men and women of USAID have served each of us well, and that it is the duty of the Administration and Congress to swiftly protect the Agency’s statutory role,” they wrote in the statement.

“Failure to maintain the global engagement that foreign aid enables, to honor the men and women of our civilian service as we do those in the military, or weaken and even destroy the Agency is to the benefit of neither political party and the detriment of all Americans,” they continued.

The statement was signed by former USAID administrators J. Brian Atwood, Peter McPherson, Andrew Natsios, Gayle Smith and Samantha Power.

The show of support for the agency comes after President Trump has taken numerous steps to undercut it and throw its fate into question.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/J7ya9

Are Serbian protests starting to loosen Vucic’s grip on power? (RFE)

With mass protests sweeping the nation, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic is facing what could be the biggest challenge yet to his political power.

What began as student demands for accountability after 15 people were killed in the collapse of a concrete canopy in Novi Sad has evolved into a broader movement opposing what protesters say is the deteriorating rule of law and systemic corruption under Vucic. Over the last three months, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets to protest in over 200 cities and towns.

The bloody hand has become the symbol of the Serbian student movement.

"This is not only the most serious political crisis of the government but also a deep social crisis. The students are not looking for a change of government but a correction of the system," political analyst Bosko Jaksic told RFE/RL's Balkan Service.

One-Month Strike

The protests are multiplying and have become a focal point for a variety of social groups, each with their own complaints.

University teachers have voiced support for the students, but they are also raising concerns about the decline in academic freedom. Farmers have protected the students from angry motorists by bringing their tractors to blockades, but they are also demanding improved agricultural conditions and increased subsidies.

Separate protests have also been held by public transportation workers, pensioners, and education staff, among others.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/zhkiV

‘More hope than fear: Serbian astrophysicist puts faith in new generations (BIRN)

Free of the burden of the 1990s, Serbia’s protesting students are focused on specific problems rather than final aims, and that’s why they might succeed where others failed, astrophysicist Tijana Prodanovic tells BIRN.

For astrophysicist Tijana Prodanovic, figuring out the success of Serbia’s protesting students is not exactly rocket science.

“These are the generations that did not see the bombing and the wars,” she said. “They grew up in a different world.”

For months, students have been at the vanguard of the biggest demonstrations Serbia has seen since the fall of strongman Slobodan Milosevic 25 years ago, spurred into action by what they say was the mismanagement, corruption and nepotism behind the collapse of an outdoor canopy at a recently-renovated railway station on November 1 in the northern city of Novi Sad that killed 15 people.

Facing the greatest challenge so far to their 13-year hold on power, President Aleksandar Vucic and the ruling Serbian Progressive Party, SNS, have struggled to find a response to the student uprising, which has kept opposition politicians at arm’s length and developed a system of direct democracy that many in Serbia marvel at.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/BInm1

Pollution threatens the Drin and its tributaries in three Balkan states (BIRN)

Without concerted action, pollution threatens to leave the Drin River and its main tributaries “lifeless”, environmentalists in Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia warn.

Radivoje Krasic grew up on the banks of the White Drin, Kosovo’s longest river.

His recollections, however, are tinged with a sense of loss.

“We learned to swim here as children and spent hours by the river, watching over the herds,” said Krasic, a fisherman from the western Kosovo town of Gorazdevac. “The water was clean and safe to drink; there was no trash.”

Today, it’s a different story. Sewage flows untreated into the White Drin and its banks are littered with rubbish. “I was on the shore recently and it was terrible,” said Krasic.

Plunging 580 metres, the White Drin and its waterfalls have long been a draw for visitors entranced by its display of nature’s raw power.

From the southern slope of the Zljeb mountain, the river flows 175 kilometres, enters Albania and joins the Black Drin from North Macedonia, becoming the Drin, which travels west to the Adriatic Sea.

The Drin and its two main tributaries are becoming increasingly polluted: plastic bags, textiles and other waste choke the banks; building debris forms vast illegal landfills visible even on Google Satellite images; and dredging has irrevocably altered the riverbed.

Environmentalists say the situation has become critical, with consequences for both the environment and public health.

In a questionnaire conducted by Radio Gorazdevac, half of the respondents said higher fines should be imposed on polluters; a quarter called for better waste management and the rest said local authorities should be more involved.

“If we don’t act now, these rivers will soon become lifeless, depriving future generations of their environmental and life-sustaining benefits,” said Dijesa Morina, manager of the European Union-funded project Promoting Universal Access to Clean Water.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/xQlVa

USAID employees place on leave, CIA workers offered buyouts in government shakeup (yahoo.com/news, NBC)

Employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development had been place on administrative leave, and CIA employees have been offered buyouts as part of the Trump administration's government shakeup. There were new protests by Democrats, while some Republicans defended the moves. President Trump signed an executive order prohibiting biological men from participating in women's sports. 

See at: https://tinyurl.com/42v8vsem