Albanian Language Media:

• Kosovo without a new Assembly even after 36 attempts (media)
• Haxhiu: Vetevendosje contribution alone not enough to emerge from crisis (RTK)
• Haradinaj: Kosovo is being punished; opposition needs to be proactive (Express)
• PDK will ask court to suspend decision on free energy market (Koha)
• Svecla says Arsenijevic will be stopped as soon as he enters Kosovo (media)
• Musliu: “‘Neighborhood Watch’, a dangerous masking of terrorist cells” (media)
• Court: Radoicic, chief organizer of Ivanovic’s assassination (Betimi per Drejtesi)

Serbian Language Media: 

• Vucic: We have to increase our defense capabilities; no justice in world today (Tanjug, N1, media)
• Kosovo acting Interior Minister: Arsenijevic will be arrested upon entry (KoSSev)
• Arsenijevic on possibility of returning in Kosovo: When right to fair trial is enabled to me (Radio KIM)
• Marsenic: New DSS leadership will be in Gazimestan on Vidovdan, and members will be in Belgrade at protest (Danas)
• Serbian List met OSCE Head in Kosovo: Dialogue only way to solve all issues; without security there is no true normalization (Radio Mitrovica sever)
• Peric: An Albanian with a KLA ID prevented us from returning memorial plaque (Kosovo Online, Blic, KiM radio, KoSSev, RTS)
• Eviction orders delivered in Leposavic, three families told to vacate apartments (KoSSev)

International:

• My jazz story (Kosovo 2.0)
• Serbia appoints ex-paramilitary chief to head national theatre board (BIRN)

Albanian Language Media 

Kosovo without a new Assembly even after 36 attempts (media)

MPs are again failing to constitute the new Assembly of Kosovo even four months after the February 9 parliamentary elections leaving Kosovo without new institutions. MPs gathered for the 36th time today and did not find a solution to break the political deadlock. The disputed issue is the election of the speaker and deputy speakers of the assembly. For the 27th time, MPs from the PDK, LDK, AAK and the Serbian List have refused to propose representatives for a committee that would oversee a secret vote for the election of the Assembly Speaker. MPs will meet again on Wednesday.

Haxhiu: Vetevendosje contribution alone not enough to emerge from crisis (RTK)

MP from the Vetevendosje Movement, Albulena Haxhiu, the candidate for the new Speaker of the Assembly, said today that it is important for the Constitutional Court to announce its decision in relation to the deadlock. She said that Vetevendosje leader and caretaker Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, has called on the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) and the Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK) to address the situation, but that according to her they lacked readiness and that Vetevendosje’s contribution alone is not enough to emerge from the deadlock. 

Haradinaj: Kosovo is being punished; opposition needs to be proactive (Express)

Leader of the Alliance for the Future of Kosovo (AAK) Ramush Haradinaj has reacted to the political deadlock and called for immediate reflection and action to overcome the situation. He said that Kosovo cannot be kept hostage as a result of consequent failures to elect Albulena Haxhiu as the new Speaker of the Assembly. “It is her right to run for the post, but if she doesn’t get the votes, the court must reflect. The candidate has failed in several voting procedures. Kosovo is being punished,” he said.

“We need to look into every possibility to emerge from this situation. It is not good to pretend as if nothing is happening. The opposition needs to be proactive and confront the deceiver and his team. We cannot allow the country to be kept hostage like this,” Haradinaj argued.

PDK will ask court to suspend decision on free energy market (Koha)

MP from the Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) Abelard Tahiri said today that the PDK will submit a request to the Basic Court in Pristina on Tuesday to suspend the decision of the Energy Regulatory Office (ERO) for businesses with over 50 workers or an annual turnover of over €10 million to move to the free energy market. “Tomorrow we will ask the Basic Court in Pristina for this decision to be suspended and for these companies to be supplied with energy the same way as it was before moving to the free market,” he said.

Svecla says Arsenijevic will be stopped as soon as he enters Kosovo (media)

Kosovo’s caretaker Minister of Interior Affairs, Xhelal Svecla, said today that law enforcement authorities are searching for Kosovo Serb politician Aleksandar Arsenijevic, after weapons were found in one of his properties in the north on Sunday. He said that Arsenijevic “will be stopped the moment he enters Kosovo’s territory”. “Three properties belonging to him and his family were raided yesterday. Among other things there were found mining equipment for cryptocurrencies, which is a customs violation, a bulletproof vest and other things, which show that he was involved in crime for a long period of time,” Svecla said.

Musliu: “Neighborhood Watch”, a dangerous masking of terrorist cells (media)

Several news websites report that chairman of the Pristina-based Institute for Hybrid Warfare Studies “Octopus” and security expert, Agim Musliu, said today that Aleksandar Arsenijevic’s initiative to create the so-called “Neighborhood Watch” in Mitrovica North was presented as a civic and non-violent resistance but that facts speak differently. “The finding and confiscation of weapons by the security institutions shows a concerning reality: the goal was not self-defense but the organization of structured cells with terrorist potential,” Musliu argued. “This is not activism – this is a dangerous scenario for destabilization and undermining the constitutional order in the north of Kosovo”.

Court: Radoicic, chief organizer of Ivanovic’s assassination (Betimi per Drejtesi)

The Basic Court in Pristina has ruled that Milan Radoicic was the chief organizer of the assassination of Kosovo Serb politician Oliver Ivanovic in January 2018 and sentenced the other four defendants to over 22 years in prison. The court ruled that Radoicic, the former deputy leader of the Serbian List, led an organized criminal group that organized the execution of Ivanovic in Mitrovica North and then took action to eliminate the evidence in order to obstruct the investigations. The court said that the group had a clear structure, criminal and political influence, that it operated with support from the state of Serbia and blackmailed its political rivals, including Ivanovic, who refused to accept their demands. 

Serbian Language Media

Vucic: We have to increase our defense capabilities; no justice in world today (Tanjug, N1, media)

The President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, said today, after the session of the extended collegium of the Chief of the General Staff, Serbia must raise the level of its defense capabilities, because law and justice do not exist in the world today, and the same applies to the rules.

Following the session at the "Banjica 2" barracks, Vucic said it is very difficult to understand, difficult to accept, but one has to understand the fact that you are a member country of the United Nations (UN) and your territorial integrity is guaranteed by the UN Charter, means nothing when it comes to the behavior of great powers, which trample over them brutally and invent new principles when they feel like it. 

He announced that almost 10,000 soldiers will participate in the military parade in September, when the equipment and weapons of the Serbian Army will be displayed.

Kosovo acting Interior Minister: Arsenijevic will be arrested upon entry (KoSSev)

Kosovo acting Interior Minister, Xhelal Svecla has said that Serbian Democracy leader Aleksandar Arsenijevic will be arrested the moment he enters Kosovo. His statement follows police raids carried out on three locations in North Mitrovica and Zvecan on Sunday, including property owned by Arsenijević. In the village of Valac, police say they discovered a cache of heavy weaponry buried in plastic pipes beneath a horse stable. Smaller quantities of ammunition were reportedly found at the other two locations.

The land in Valac where the weapons were found belongs to Arsenijevic, as he himself confirmed. However, the Serbian Democracy leader has denied any connection to the weapons, calling the incident a political setup.

Svecla: “He will be arrested”

Following another failed attempt to constitute the Kosovo Assembly today, Svecla spoke briefly to Klan Kosova, confirming that Arsenijevic is currently not on Kosovo territory. “The responsible authorities are looking for him”, said Svecla. “Of course, he will be stopped and arrested as soon as he returns to our territory”, he added.

Arsenijevic: “A set-up!”

Speaking to KoSSev on Sunday, Arsenijevic said he was “shocked” by reports that weapons had been discovered on his property. At the time of the raid, he says he was away on a family trip.

“I was shocked by the photos we saw in the media. That stable is always open—anyone could have planted something there. This is a set-up intended to expel me”, he claimed.

He also pointed out the timing of the raid, saying it was suspicious that it took place while he was away and that police were aware he had left Kosovo.

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

Arsenijevic on possibility of returning in Kosovo: When right to fair trial is enabled to me (Radio KIM)

Reacting to the statement of Kosovo acting Interior Minister, Xhellal Svecla that leader of Serbian Democracy Aleksandar Arsenijevec will be arrested upon returning to Kosovo, Arsenijevic said Svecla has condemned him in advance, adding he will return when the right to fair trial is enabled to him, Radio KIM reported.

Arsenijevic told Radio KIM that a hunt is being pursued against him, while Svecla condemned him in advance already, therefore he expects neither fair nor just trial.

"When I will be enabled a fair and correct trial, I can't wait to dismantle all those lies and the whole subterfuge", Arsenijevic said when asked if he intends to return to Kosovo, given that Kosovo acting interior minister announced his arrest. He also accused Svecla “of leaving his signature everywhere”, adding the bulletproof vest Svecla talks about he reported to the Kosovo police regional directorate commander and his deputy several months ago. 

Marsenic: New DSS leadership will be in Gazimestan on Vidovdan, and members will be in Belgrade at protest (Danas)

Predrag Marsenic, vice president of opposition New Democratic Party of Serbia (DSS), said in an interview with Danas daily that dissatisfaction which exists, not only among students, but in the entire nation, is primarily a consequence of the disastrous policy of betrayal of Serbian national interests, crime and corruption that has been carried out by the ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) for 13 years, and have culminated on November 1, 2024, with the murder of 16 people in the fall of a canopy at Novi Sad railway station.

He added his party believes the announced protest on Saint Vitus Day (June 28) in Belgrade is justified, expected, and as he said desirable, as an act of struggle against such policies of the Vucic’s regime. "The leadership of the New DSS will be in Kosovo and Metohija that day, in Gazimestan, but every member is welcome to the gathering in Belgrade”, he said. 

Marsenic also told Danas extraordinary elections should not be the only demand, but also free media and election conditions. Despite the division in POKS (Movement for the Kingdom of Serbia), he claimed that the NADA coalition is still on stable footing, and that the New DSS has good relations with both currents of POKS.

Serbian List met OSCE Head in Kosovo: Dialogue only way to solve all issues; without security there is no true normalization (Radio Mitrovica sever)

Serbian List delegation led by the president Prof. Dr. Zlatan Elek, met today with the Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, Ambassador Gerard McGurk, the party said in a statement. 

They said that they discussed "the serious challenges faced by the Serbian people in Kosovo and Metohija, especially the increasingly frequent cases of institutional violence and expulsion of Serbs, the ban on the work of Serbian institutions, politically motivated and unfounded criminal trials against dozens of our compatriots, known and legitimate representatives of Serbs, as well as the seizure of Serbian properties and cancellation of rights guaranteed by the Constitution and international documents".

Elek, as the statement added, pointed out systemic discrimination and attempts to eliminate Serbs from institutional, social and economic life, which directly threatens their survival and security.

The SL delegation particularly emphasized the importance of restoring trust in institutions and the need for the international community to stop the policy of silence and denial of obvious injustice.

"Ambassador McGurk was told about the expectation that the OSCE Mission, in accordance with its mandate, acts more actively and impartially, in order to stop the pressures and protect the basic human rights of the Serbian people. The Serbian List remains consistent with its position that dialogue is the only way to resolve all open issues, but also that without elementary security and respect for rights, there is no true normalization of relations”, the statement concluded. 

Peric: An Albanian with a KLA ID prevented us from returning the memorial plaque (Kosovo Online, Blic, KiM radio, KoSSev, RTS)

The Peric family from Gracanica was prevented yesterday by an unidentified person claiming to be a former member of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) from returning the memorial plaque dedicated to Biljana Peric, 11-year-old girl who tragically died in a traffic accident thirty years ago. The plaque had been removed a few days earlier by an Albanian man who owns nearby property.

Aleksandar Peric explained that they had intended yesterday to reinstall the memorial plaque for his sister, which had been in that location for decades. 

"Today we came to reinstall the memorial plaque for my late sister, which was torn down last week. An Albanian man, unknown to us, showed up. He began threatening us, saying it couldn't be placed there, that this isn't a cemetery, that this is Kosovo, not Serbia, and that this is no longer Milosevic's time. He then showed me a KLA ID badge and said, 'Look, I'm KLA, watch what you're doing.' After that, he contacted the property owner, who came over, and now they won’t let us return the plaque to its place. We're now on our way to the police station to give a statement and figure out what we can do next," said Peric, reported Kosovo Online yesterday. 

He emphasized that the memorial plaque had been in that location for 30 years and that someone had granted permission for it to be installed there at the time.

They were hoping for Kosovo police support and from Gracanica municipality.

Eviction orders delivered in Leposavic, three families told to vacate apartments (KoSSev)

Following last Monday’s attempts to change the locks on several apartments in a residential building intended for displaced families, officials from Leposavic municipality have now issued formal eviction notices to three families accused of unlawfully occupying the units, KoSSev portal reported on Friday.

Previously, four families received verbal warnings by the municipality to vacate apartments, with the explanation that they already owned property and therefore did not qualify for the new housing. Affected families denied having in possession other properties, arguing they submitted cadastral papers proving no ownership under their name while applying for the apartment. On Monday, last week, municipal officials changed the locks on Slobodan Spasić’s apartment and attempted to do the same at Aleksandra Subotić’s, but were unsuccessful.

According to the new documents signed by mayor Lulzim Hetemi and bearing the municipal stamp, the families are required to vacate the premises by June 27. The justification: the apartments had allegedly already been allocated to other individuals.

One of the recipients, Aleksandra Subotić, told KoSSev that no one from the municipality rang the doorbell or made contact - papers were simply left at the door.

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

International

My jazz story (Kosovo 2.0)

Reflections on jazz, my musical career and desire to elevate Kosovo’s jazz scene.

I first stumbled upon musicians playing jazz in Mitrovica, my hometown, at the Mitrovica Jazz Festival in the late ‘80s. Surrounded by the familiar sounds of traditional folk, classical and rock music, my 9-year-old self was enchanted to discover jazz — an entirely new world that pulled me in with its energy.

Mitrovica’s relationship with jazz begins a lot earlier than that. It dates back to the 1920s, when the Trepça mining industry was taken over by a British company. While the company transformed the mine into a major producer of metals, they also brought something unexpected to the region — cultural influence from abroad, including the infectious rhythms of jazz. 

This first exposure left a mark on the generations of musicians preceding mine, shaping Mitrovica’s musical identity in ways that often go unrecognized today. The Mitrovica Jazz Festival had only one edition, in 1989. Even after the 1998-99 war in Kosovo the city ceased to see a festival of the same impact. 

But after the 1989 festival, my interest in jazz did not seem destined to intensify. This changed when Miles Davis, the legendary jazz trumpeter, died in 1991. The news of Davis’ passing reached me through the TV screen, accompanied by his inimitable sound. That moment did not just reignite my passion for jazz — it ensured that it would never be extinguished again.

Jazz has always been more than just music — it is a conversation, a culture, a movement. From the streets of New Orleans to the underground clubs of New York City, from Parisian cafes to Tokyo’s smoky basements, jazz thrives when musicians, curators and audiences engage in a dynamic exchange of ideas.

Read more at: https://shorturl.at/gBL7R

Serbia appoints ex-paramilitary chief to head national theatre board (BIRN)

The Serbian government has drawn criticism for making Dragoslav Bokan, a film director and former paramilitary unit leader during the Yugoslav wars in the 1990s, president of the National Theatre’s Board of Directors. The decision was published in the Official Gazette on Thursday.

Bokan is known for his nationalist views and support for the ruling Serbian Progressive Party. He is a regular guest on pro-government television shows.

The Board of Directors plays a key role in the management of the theatre. Its seven members conduct the competition to appoint the theatre’s director, decide on the theatre’s business and development policies, adopt the annual work plan and financial plan and make decisions on changes to the theatre’s legal status.

Bokan commanded a notorious paramilitary unit called the White Eagles during the Yugoslavia wars in the 1990s. The White Eagles existed in a previous form before and during World War II, and Bokan said in an interview for the weekly Vreme in 1992 that  he sought to revive the unit because “I wanted the young to be involved in the national issue”

In the interview, he recalled sending young men to fight in Croatia in the war, and said he had “led his men in the cleansing campaign of Papuk, Western Slavonia, but never commanded the action”.

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