Week of 13 August through 19 August

Bomb explosion damages UN building in Kosovo
18 AUGUST -- An explosion rocked a United Nations building in Pristina, Kosovo, this morning, slightly injuring one woman and causing damage to several political party offices.  FULL STORY >>

UN mission in Kosovo sets stage for municipal self-government
18 AUGUST -- The head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), Dr. Bernard Kouchner, has signed into law a regulation on the self-government of municipalities in Kosovo, laying the foundation for local democracy.  FULL STORY >>

Kosovo's Transition Council discusses Kosovo Protection Corps
18 AUGUST -- The Kosovo Transitional Council today was given a detailed briefing on the Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) by officials of the UN mission and the commander of the KPC, General Agim Ceku, according to a statement issued by the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK).   FULL STORY >>

UN launches panel to regularize property rights in Kosovo
AUGUST 17 -- The acting Executive Director of the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat), Klaus Toepfer, today launched a dispute-resolution body in Kosovo to regularize property rights in the province.  FULL STORY >>

UN envoy says lead smelter in Mitrovica needs "major repairs"
AUGUST 16 -- The head of the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), Dr. Bernard Kouchner, today said the Zvecan lead smelter in northern Mitrovica will need "major repairs" before it can resume production.  FULL STORY >>

Kosovo Transitional Council "outraged" at deaths of Kosovo Albanians in Serbia jails
AUGUST 16 -- The Kosovo Transitional Council (KTC) today voiced its outrage over reports of two recent deaths of Kosovo Albanians in Serbian prisons and reiterated its demand that all persons from Kosovo jailed in Serbia be immediately handed over to the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK).  FULL STORY >>

Kosovo's Interim Administrative Council endorses budget changes
AUGUST 15 -- Kosovo's Interim Administrative Council (IAC) today endorsed a regulation amending Kosovo's current budget, so as to re-allocate resources to accommodate "emerging pressures" on the budget, the United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) said in a statement.  FULL STORY >>

UNMIK signs agreement with consortium to revive Trepca industrial complex
AUGUST 14 -- Officials of the UN Interim Administration in Kosovo (UNMIK) have signed an agreement with a group of major mining companies, ITT Kosovo Consortium Ltd., to begin rehabilitation of the Trepca mining and metallurgical complex in northern Kosovo.  FULL STORY >>

New social assistance payment starts
AUGUST 14 -- Some of Kosovo's poorest people are starting to receive regular financial assistance from the Department of Social Welfare, which is paying as much as 120 DM a month to families in which no one is able to earn a living.  FULL STORY >>

To safeguard health of Kosovars, UN mission takes control of polluting smelter
AUGUST 14 -- In a move to reverse rising levels of atmospheric lead in Northern Mitrovica, the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) today assumed responsibility for the smelter in Zvecan until air pollution control mechanisms are installed and the affected population tested.   FULL STORY >>