Pristina, 21 August 2000
by Major Scott A. Slaten, KFOR Spokesman
Local Man and KFOR Troops Assaulted
Last night around 8 p.m. in the town of Urosevac / Ferizaj, a KFOR patrol from the 755th Military Police company was approached by a Kosovar Albanian man who informed them he had been assaulted by two Kosovar Albanian men in a parking lot nearby.
The KFOR Military Police proceeded to the parking lot to investigate the incident. After the troops arrived at the scene, the Kosovar Albanian men started to flee the parking lot on foot. As they were running from the Military Police, one of the suspects took out a 9mm pistol and fired back at the KFOR soldiers. The shots failed to hit any of the soldiers who continued their pursuit of the suspects.
The Military Police caught the man who had fired the shots and subdued him. The other man was able to escape the scene. The suspect was processed and taken to the UNMIK Police Station in Urosevac / Ferizaj for arrest. He was then transported to the Camp Bondsteel Military Detention Facility after being charged with assault with a deadly weapon. The investigation is still ongoing.
Explosion; Building Fire
A large explosion was heard yesterday at 1:30 p.m. behind the OSCE headquarters building in Prishtina / Pristina. KFOR MNB Centre patrols from the 2nd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Fusiliers and UNMIK Police quickly responded to the scene.
After arriving, they discovered a building behind the OSCE headquarters was burning. KFOR soldiers immediately cordoned off the area and civilian fire fighting crews extinguished the blaze within twenty minutes. A preliminary investigation stated that an exploding gas cylinder possible started the fire.
Grenade Damages House
Yesterday evening, a hand grenade exploded and damaged a Kosovar Roma home in Shtime / Stimlje. KFOR MNB Centre headquarters dispatched two KFOR Finnish Battalion patrols to the scene to investigate.
At the time of the blast there were 16 people in the home. The explosion shattered windows of the home but no injuries were reported as a result. The investigation is ongoing.
Grenade Attack
Yesterday evening, a hand grenade was thrown into the backyard of a private home in the city of Prizren. Fortunately, the grenade failed to explode. A KFOR patrol and Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Team was dispatched to the home. EOD safely disposed of the grenade. UNMIK Police are still investigating the attack and searching for suspects.
Incidents During the Past 24 Hours
Multinational Brigade North
House Fire
Last night around 11:30 p.m., KFOR MNB North headquarters was notified of a house fire in the "Little Bosnia" Quarter of northern Mitrovice / Mitrovica. UNMIK Police and civilian fire department crews were notified and responded to the blaze. The fire was extinguished just before midnight. No injuries were reported as a result of the fire.
Multinational Brigade Centre
Serb Home Attacked
Last night in the town of Kopiliq / Obilic, a petrol bomb was reported thrown at an occupied Kosovo Serb home. The bomb exploded and started a house fire. No one is reported injured in the explosion or fire. Firefighters responded to the scene and extinguished the blaze. KFOR Norweigen battalion Military Police and UNMIK Police is investigating the attack.
Multinational Brigade West
House Search Operations
KFOR soldiers assigned to Task Force Sauro and UNMIK Police conducted a joint search operation on Saturday night in the village of Voksa. During the search of a Kosovar Albanian home one AK-47 assault rifle was confiscated and one man was arrested by UNMIK Police.
Last night, another search operation was conducted in the village of Boric, five kilometers northeast of Decane. During the search one hand grenade and one AK-47 assault rifle and assorted ammunition were discovered. KFOR is continuing to investigate.
Multinational Brigade South
Curfew Violations
During the night, a total of 19 persons were temporarily detained for curfew violations in the city of Prizren.
Multinational Brigade East
Protest Held
Last night KFOR Task Force 1-36 reported that a crowd of 60 local nationals gathered in Gnjilane / Gjilan to protest KFOR's use of the ring road near the KFOR US Camp Monteith. The crowd was concerned about the large amount of dust kicked up by KFOR vehicles and requested additional water trucks are used to minimize the dust.
After hearing their complaints the crowd peacefully dispersed. Understanding the concerns of the local population, KFOR MNB East headquarters has allocated additional water trucks to the area in order to minimize the dust.
KFOR US Humanitarian Assistance
The village of Kotline/Kotlina is a village in need. Many of the buildings in the tiny village lay in ruins from the devastation that has plagued this country.
But one soldier hasn't overlooked the depravity of this tiny village. Sgt. Verzaida Zeno, a military police officer with the 755th Military Police Co., has taken the time to collect clothes, food and school supplies from her hometown in Avecibo, Puerto Rico with the help of her local churches to give to the villagers.
Zeno contacted Pastor Victor Varie, the pastor of her church Seven Days of Adventists in Puerto Rico, and asked them to gather what they could to donate to the village. According to Zeno, with the help of a couple of other small churches in her hometown, they collected enough clothes, food and school supplies to fill 25 large boxes, and shipped them at their own expense.
"Our mission is to provide for the needy people and to show that God loves them and that there's still hope," Zeno said. She added that the members of her church are very motivated about the mission and are willing to do everything they can to help."
Adem Kuqi, the secretary of the local schoolhouse in the village, expressed his gratitude by saying, "You are welcome here. Just your presence and the aid you are bringing here makes us feel better. We thank you in the name of the village."
Media Opportunity
MNB East
At 02:00 p.m., August 23, 2000, media will have the opportunity to attend a Combined Arms live fire exercise featuring helicopter gunships, armored personnel carriers, indirect artillery fire and direct fire weaponry.
The Immediate Ready Force (IRF), currently augmenting the Multi-National Brigade (East), will utilize all elements of their force, including military police, scout reconnaissance and infantry teams to demonstrate their force projection capabilities.
The IRF arrived in Kosovo last Thursday with only 48 hours advance notice, illustrating the rapid force projection capabilities available to the Task Force Falcon commander. It will be used as an additional force asset.
Those wishing to attend need to contact Task Force Falcon PAO at Camp Bondsteel or Staff Sgt. McGuire at the KFOR Press Information Center. If your agency has any special requests, please make Staff Sgt. McGuire aware of them by Tuesday afternoon. Serbian and Albanian translators will be available. Members of the media are asked to report to Gate 1, Camp Bondsteel no later than 12:00 for bus transportation to the event.