Last night at approximately 1940 hours in Northern Mitrovica a blast damaged three vehicles and blew out surrounding windows. The device is reported to have been a hand-grenade. The Serbian government offices for Kosovo as well as a Serbian cafe near the site of the explosion are also located in the neighborhood but it is not yet know what the specific target of the attack was. This is the same area of North Mitrovica where a hand grenade exploded on Friday.
In the legal form Jurist, a professor of law argues about why it may be legally and morally correct to partition northern Kosovo to the Serbian population. The article focuses on both legal and human rights concerns with the settlement of Kosovo's status.
Meanwhile, a long time member of Senate who worked mostly in foreign policy has drawn conclusions that frozen conflicts in the former Soviet republics have more cause for independence than Kosovo. With all the recent talk about determining the status, discussions about how independence here sets a precedent (or doesn't as some argue) increases exponentially. There are plenty of people who believe that allowing Kosovo to become independent through a vote in the Security Council or by the Albanians declaring unilaterally means that other areas where there are conflicts should be able to break away and declare independence.
Thanks to a friend in the mission, I have two new "Only in Kosovo" photos of a vehicle that plowed into a two-horse drawn cart. Little explanation is needed, the pictures say it all. Then, for International AIDS Day, a crew went out in Pristina and interviewed people on the street about what they thought was better being "HIV positive or HIV negative". I was quite surprised by the answers and the lack of proper education about HIV/AIDS in the Kosovo population. It is an eye-opening piece for those of us who are here in mission about the differences in culture/education...and how when you ask a person a question on the street, they will try to give you an answer even if they have no clue what you are talking about!
I've decided to update my Kosovo Restaurant Guide. I have a ton of business cards from different restaurants and I know that it's hard to find the telephone numbers and sometimes you are asking me...so I hope the information helps! :)
