Blic, Belgrade, Yugoslavia
September 19, 2000

Three simultaneous attacks on Serbs in Gnjilane two nights ago

Gorazdevac under mortar attack

PRISTINA - Two nights ago at approximately 7:00 p.m. Albanian extremists
launched 10 mortars at Gorazdevac near Pec; however, no one was injured during
the attack nor was there material damage due to the fact that the mortars
exploded outside the village, reported radio amateurs. This is the second attack
this month on this village.

In Gorazdevac there are currently approximately 1,100 Serbs who over the past 15
months, since the arrival of the international missions in Kosovo, have been the
frequent target of attacks by the majority Albanian populations. Also living in
the village are some twenty families from the neighboring village of Belo Polje
which is some ten kilometers distant from Pec.

KFOR spokesperson, U.S. major Scott Slaten, advised yesterday that the Serb who
was killed by the explosion of a hand grenade in Gnjilane two nights ago was,
contrary to initial KFOR assessments, “nevertheless the victim of an attack”.

KFOR first advised that a Serb male was killed in the vicinity of Gnjilane by,
according to the statement, “the explosion of a hand grenade which he was
carrying”. According to the results of an investigation, he was killed while
repairing his automobile when an unknown attacker threw a hand grenade at him.

Serb sources reported two days ago that the man killed was a Serb, Stanko
Kovacevic (68), who was attacked and seriously beaten up by Albanians several
months ago.

At almost exactly the same time that Kovacevic was killed, a hand grenade was
also thrown at a Serb house in Gnjilane but no one was hurt during that
incident, said the KFOR spokesman, adding that the UN police suspects that
“there is a connection between these attacks”.

Two nights ago in Gnjilane, KFOR recordered yet another attack on Serbs when a
fourteen year-old Albanian threw a “Molotov cocktail” on the lawn in front of a
Serb house. The boy was arrested and during questioning said that he was given
money to set that house on fire.

N. Z.

* * *

One Roma killed, three wounded

PRISTINA (FoNet) - U.S. soldiers reporterd two nights ago that in the village of
Feraja gunfire broke out in which one Roma man was killed while three others
were wounded, reported KFOR yesterday.

Gunfire was exchanged between the Romas and an Albanian after an argument. The
Albanian began to shoot at the Romas from an automatic rifle, most probably a
“Kalashnikov”, after which he managed to escape, although wounded himself.
However, the U.S. military police quickly apprehended him.

The wounded Romas were taken to a local medical facility, and two of them were
later transferred to the hospital in Pristina for treatment. The wounded
Albanian received first aid in an American field hospital and yesterday morning
he was turned over to the UNMIK police.

Translated by S. Lazovic (September 18, 2000)


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