Washington: Belgrade onboard fight against terror

Washington: Belgrade onboard fight against terror

“Internally, the Serbian government consistently demonstrated a strong commitment to counter terror operations,” the report said.

Serbia and the United States signed an agreement on countering proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and the agreement was provisionally in force upon signature and awaited ratification by the parliament.

“While still largely complacent about the prospect of an attack in Serbia by international terrorists, Belgrade officials were significantly concerned about the potential for an increase of Middle Eastern terrorist transit through Serbia,” the document said.

Addressing the issue of terrorism in Kosovo, the State Department found that the province’s counterterrorism efforts were hampered by porous boundary lines easily crossed by individuals trafficking in people or goods.

“The Kosovo border police service is new and lacks basic equipment: underpaid border and customs officials were often easily corrupted. While NATO has roving teams patrolling the green border right up to the border and administrative boundary lines, terrorists could exploit numerous passable roads leading into Kosovo,” the report said.

“The Provisional Institutions and UNMIK monitored NGOs suspected of funding Islamic extremist and Albanian extremist movements. Officials believed only several of the more than 400 NGOs operating in Kosovo were involved in suspicious activities, and sought to prevent extremists from using NGOs to gain a foothold in Kosovo.”

“While there were no new terrorism cases, UNMIK's Department of Justice reported that intimidation of witnesses during investigation and trial phases hampered ongoing terror prosecutions,” the report said, adding that international officials still handled terrorism cases due to concerns that local officials could be susceptible to intimidation.

“While Kosovo officials struggled to bring the perpetrators of terrorist acts to justice, domestic extremists, acting individually and in groups, continued to commit violence, sometimes directed towards local government institutions and UN facilities.”

“Approximately 15 attacks by such groups or individuals occurred and included use of hand grenades, rocket propelled grenades, explosive devices, and shots fired. There were a few fatalities and injuries as a result of these attacks.”

“In early December, groups of armed, masked men reportedly presenting themselves as members of the Albanian National Army (AKSH), intermittently stopped pedestrians and vehicles in western Kosovo to check their identification documents,” the report concluded.