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United Nations

UN Announces New Regulations to Curb Violence in Kosovo

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

As ethnic violence and attacks on international peacekeepers continue to plague Kosovo, UN officials have announced new regulations allowing peacekeepers to detain or remove individuals deemed disruptive to the peace. The move comes as ethnic Albanian leader Ibrahim Rugova and rebel leaders pledge to cooperate with UN officials, while US Army Gen. Wesley Clark condemns the violence and calls for it to stop.

Key Takeaways:

  • The new regulations authorize UN peacekeepers and police to detain or remove individuals at any time if deemed necessary for maintaining order.
  • The regulations also allow for the expulsion of people from the province in southern Serbia, the dominant Yugoslav republic.
  • Over 35,000 NATO troops are providing security in Kosovo, and a 3,100-member UN police force is being set up, along with a training school to establish a local police force.
  • US Army Gen. Wesley Clark has condemned the violence, particularly attacks on Serbs, and called for it to stop.
  • Ethnic Albanian leader Ibrahim Rugova has pledged to cooperate with UN officials, while rebel leaders have also expressed willingness to work together.
  • The KLA has been blamed for many of the attacks, but its leader, Hasim Thaci, has repeatedly denied involvement.
  • Rugova's Democratic League of Kosovo party has agreed to work with Thaci and participate in international administrative bodies until new elections.
  • In the western Kosovo city of Istok, Spanish forensic experts are excavating a mass burial site of 97 graves marked by wooden planks with the initials "KPD," Serbian initials for "correctional facility."

Statistics:

  • Over 35,000 NATO troops are providing security in Kosovo.
  • A 3,100-member UN police force is being set up, along with a training school to establish a local police force.
  • More than 200,000 Serbs have fled the province since June 12, when NATO entered Kosovo.
  • At least 97 people have been buried in a mass grave in the western Kosovo city of Istok.

Sources:

  • Associated Press, "UN Announces New Regulations to Curb Violence in Kosovo" (published on or around September 29, 1999)

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