Kouchner calls reopening of Pristina airport a "symbol of the return to normality".
OCTOBER 15 -- The reopening today of the Pristina airport to commercial air trafic was hailed by Bernard Kouchner, head of the United Nations Mission to Kosovo (UNMIK), as a "very good sign, a symbol of the return to normality". The airport reopening should contribute to Kosovo's greater participation in worldwide communication and the expansion of its economic possibilities, he stressed.

The new commander of KFOR, General Klaus Reinhardt, as well as representatives of airlines and the airport attended the ceremony which was held in the newly refurbished airport building.

The first commercial flight to arrive was an Adria Airways flight from Ljubljana, Slovenia, carrying about 190 passengers.

In the next ten days, three more airlines will start serving Pristina airport: Albanian Airlines, CrossAir of Switzerland and Tyrolean Air of Austria. Negotiations are ongoing with other airlines interested in serving Pristina.

Secretary-General in Kosovo urges further efforts to build democracy and achieve reconciliation.
OCTOBER 14 -- Secretary-General Kofi Annan said today although great strides had been made towards improving the situation in Kosovo, much remained to be done to bring democracy and reconciliation to the territory.

During the second and final day of his visit to Kosovo, Mr. Annan told a press conference in the capital, Pristina, he had witnessed something like a "miracle of return and rebirth in Kosovo".

"I saw for myself life in the markets, in the streets, in the shops which have been opened and people rebuilding their lives," Mr. Annan said after touring Pec, 80 kilometres west of the capital, and viewing UN-sponsored programmes to rebuild the city that was half destroyed in the fighting in Kosovo.

"But this is not just a matter of bricks and mortar," he said. "I hope we can also take into consideration democracy, good governance, human rights and, eventually, reconciliation and justice."

Responding to a question from a correspondent on Kosovar Albanians' aspirations for independence from the Federation Republic of Yugoslavia, Mr. Annan said the UN mandate was to administer Kosovo as an "autonomous region" within the boundaries of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. "We are not here to prepare the people for independence," he said.

Asked how UNMIK hoped to maintain multi-ethnicity in Kosovo, the Secretary-General said measures to protect minorities would continue. To counter what he referred to as "reverse ethnic cleansing", Mr. Annan said he hoped an environment would be created which would encourage Serb and Roma who had fled Kosovo to return.

Mr. Annan confirmed that UNMIK was preparing for elections in Kosovo, but said that the timing of elections and the level at which they would be held was still to be determined.

During his visit to Pec, the Secretary-General also met with the five regional administrators of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK). While reporting progress on establishing multi-ethnic interim municipal councils in the regions, the UN administrators told the Secretary-General that their principle concern was a lack of money available to pay local civil servants. They said that doctors, teachers and fire fighters were already leaving public service for jobs in the private sector.

UNMIK, which has made two rounds of payments to civil servants in Kosovo, was anticipating a shortfall of $1.45 million DM for the third round of payments scheduled for December, a UN spokesman said today in New York. The shortfall in revenues was expected to jump to close to $11 million for the fourth payment round, the spokesman said. Monies collected in Kosovo as customs duties, along with funds from a UN trust to support the territory's civil administration are being used for the payments.

International war crimes investigators in Kosovo find more than 400 sites of atrocities.
OCTOBER 14 -- More than 400 mass graves or scenes of crime have been found in Kosovo by investigators of the international war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.

Five teams of international investigators now in the territory are expected to complete gathering evidence at 150 of those scenes by the end of the year, spokesman for the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia Paul Risley said yesterday in The Hague.

"The purpose of the work is to gather evidence necessary to indict particular individuals on charges of war crimes," Mr. Risley said. Efforts to review all 400 sites found to merit investigation by the Prosecutor would continue next summer, he said.

Secretary-General begins visit to Kosovo; urges political leaders to show tolerance.
OCTOBER 13 -- Secretary-General Kofi Annan today began a two-day visit to Kosovo by warning local political leaders against a desire for revenge and urging them to show tolerance.

In a meeting just hours after arriving in the capital city, Pristina, Mr. Annan told representatives from all groups, including Serbs and Albanians, that the UN would continue to support the building of a pluralistic, democratic and multi-ethnic Kosovo.

Just two days after a UN staff member was shot and killed on the streets of Pristina by an unknown assailant, in an address to UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) staff later in the day, the Secretary-General said the level and nature of violence in Kosovo continued to be unacceptable.

The goal of a multi-ethnic and peaceful Kosovo with substantial autonomy and meaningful self-administration could only be reached if all parties worked together and put the past behind them, he said. Calling for an end to the vicious circle of ethnically related violence, he said: "Without achieving this minimum level of civility, we cannot hope to achieve our larger aims."

Mr. Annan called on UNMIK staff to redouble their efforts to ensure cooperation between all political and ethnic groups in Kosovo.

Mr. Annan later visited Gracanica and met with the Serb spiritual leader, Bishop Artemije of Paska and Prizren. He also met with leaders of civil society in Kosovo.

Also during the day, Mr. Annan held meetings with his Special Representative, Dr. Bernard Kouchner, the Commander of the KFOR international security force, General Klaus Reinhardt, and other top international officials.

Secretary-General calls for killer of UN Kosovo staff member to be brought to justice.
OCTOBER 12 -- Secretary-General Kofi Annan today called for the killer of a UN international staff member shot last night in Kosovo to be brought to justice.

In a statement released in New York and Sarajevo, where the Secretary-General is visiting, Mr. Annan said "we mourn Valentin Krumov of Bulgaria, who was killed in Kosovo on the day he reported for duty."

Mr. Krumov was walking with two other newly arrived UNMIK staff members in the centre of Kosovo's capital, Pristina, when he was shot and killed, just after 9 p.m. Monday evening, by an unknown assailant, a UN spokesperson said.

On a day when two other UN international workers were also killed in an ambush in Burundi, Mr. Annan said "let us honour the lives of these three individuals with a prayer that their work for peace will not have been in vain."

Earlier today in Pristina, the head of the United Nations in Kosovo expressed his deep outrage and strong condemnation over the murder of Mr. Krumov, who had just arrived yesterday to serve with the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK).

"This innocent man who came here to help Kosovo achieve a democratic way of life was instead stopped by a crowd of thugs and an assassin's bullet," Dr. Kouchner said in a press statement released by UNMIK.

According to the UN, just prior to the incident, a group of young local people began following the UN employees. Mr. Krumov was asked the time by someone in the group and responded in the Serb language. Individuals from the group began to assault Mr. Krumov, kicking and hitting him, and a large crowd quickly gathered around the altercation. A shot was then fired which killed Mr. Krumov.

UNMIK international police, who are investigating the shooting, are seeking five to six individuals between 16 and 17 years of age suspected of being involved in the incident.

Secretary-General to visit Kosovo; will meet with local political leaders.
OCTOBER 11 -- Secretary-General Kofi Annan will make his first visit to Kosovo on Wednesday and Thursday to review the United Nations operation in the territory and meet with international officials, a UN spokeswoman said today.

The Secretary-General will also meet with leaders of the main political groups in the area, Daniela Rozgonova told the press in Kosovo's capital, Pristina.

Mr. Annan is scheduled to fly to Pristina's Slatina Airport from Sarajevo on Wednesday morning, where he will be met by the head of the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), Dr. Bernard Kouchner. After addressing Kosovo political representatives at UNMIK headquarters, he will meet with the Commander of the KFOR international security force, General Klaus Reinhardt. In the afternoon, the Secretary-General will visit the Kosovo Police School in Vucitrn, where local recruits are being trained to join an indigenous police force.

On Thursday morning, Mr. Annan is scheduled to meet with the leaders of Kosovo's three major political parties at UNMIK headquarters. He will then travel to Pec for the opening of a rehabilitated school for 5,000 students.

Mr. Annan will hold a press conference before departing from Pristina on Thursday afternoon.

Meanwhile in New York, Security Council members today were briefed on the situation in Kosovo by Hedi Annabi, Assistant Secretary-General for peacekeeping operations.

Afterwards in a press statement, Council President Ambassador Sergey Lavrov of the Russian Federation said the members reaffirmed the need to implement fully two of its resolutions on Kosovo, particularly one which called for relief assistance to be extended to all internally displaced persons and civilians affected by the crisis.

Ambassador Lavrov added that Council members were looking forward to the Secretary-General's return in order to get his first-hand impression of the situation.