“Search for missing persons in Kosovo stalled”

The search for the missing persons in Kosovo has stalled, International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) Director Kathryne Bomberger said. She explained that this was due to problems with identification of over 400 bodies which had been in the Pristina morgue for eight years. “Search for missing persons in Kosovo stalled” “There are two possible reasons hindering identification - either some identifications were wrong as DNA analyses were not used from the outset, or the bodies were not those of victims of the Kosovo conflict,” she told Tanjug. “There are 1,800 blood samples from relatives of the missing persons but no matches,” she said, adding that all bodies were exhumed according to legal procedure. Bomberger stressed that technical issues regarding the Kosovo conflict needed be resolved, otherwise they would hinder the progress of the Belgrade-Pristina dialogue on the search for the missing persons in Kosovo. She noted that 14,000 people were still considered missing.

“Search for missing persons in Kosovo stalled”

“There are two possible reasons hindering identification - either some identifications were wrong as DNA analyses were not used from the outset, or the bodies were not those of victims of the Kosovo conflict,” she told Tanjug.

“There are 1,800 blood samples from relatives of the missing persons but no matches,” she said, adding that all bodies were exhumed according to legal procedure.

Bomberger stressed that technical issues regarding the Kosovo conflict needed be resolved, otherwise they would hinder the progress of the Belgrade-Priština dialogue on the search for the missing persons in Kosovo.

She noted that 14,000 people were still considered missing.