Crossfire War – Pristina – Tehran – Tirana Watch – Southeast Europe Theatre: Pristina – Tehran – Sarajevo – Ankara – Skopje – Tirana/(Brussels – Vienna – Warsaw)/Kosovska Mitrovica – Belgrade – Athens – Sofia – Moscow; 100 Kosovo Activists in Pristina Make Pre-Emptive Declaration of Independence Waving American Flag in Front of National Theatre
Night Watch: PRISTINA – BIRN (Balkan Investigative Reporting Network) reports, on Monday 100 Kosovo Albanian activists gathered in front of the National Theatre in Pristina and declared Kosovo independence while waving the American flag, “We declare independence.”
The rally was organized by seven non-governmental organizations. One of the speakers for the organizers, Behlul Zeka stated, “Any further delay (of status) and negotiations can damage the process.” The protest over the continued delay of recognition was timed to coincide with Monday’s meeting in Washington between U.S. Secretary of State Dr. Condoleezza Rice and the two Kosovo Albanian leaders President Fatmir Sejdiu and Prime Minister Agim Ceku.
No doubt, the reason an American flag was waved was due to the loud, immature support for Kosovo independence by the Bush administration, especially when President George W. Bush visited Tirana last month and stated openly his support for Kosovo independence. [BIRN]
The demonstrators obviously represent more than 100 people; they are speaking for the vast majority of the Albanian population in the province. So far, there has been no news on how Serbs in the province or Serbian militias in northern Kosovo have reacted to this.
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