Problematic return of the
displaced persons in Aracinovo.
The displaced persons from Aracinovo, ethnic Macedonians, do not wish
to return to their homes after the incident in this village, when a
villager was killed from a set bomb. They request location for temporary
housing from the Government of Macedonia. The Mayor of the Aracinovo
Municipality, Mr. Reshat Ferati, stated that the village was safe for
living, but that he could not predict what might happen.
Five ethnic Albanians detained,
two of them released later.
On February 20, the police arrested five ethnic Albanians in Skopje.
According to the Ministry of Interior, the detainees had been preparing
bomb attacks in Skopje for a longer time. During the arrest the police
found and seized weapons and munitions. One 16-year-old boy is among the
detained. According to the statements of the two detainees released later,
reported by the Albanian language newspaper "Fakti", no weapons were found
in their homes, as stated by the police.
Mandates of "Amber Fox" mission
and EU Special Envoy Alain Le Roy prolonged.
On February 18, at the meeting in the NATO headquarters in Brussels, a
decision was reached for prolongation of the mandate of NATO's mission in
Macedonia "Amber Fox". The mission was prolonged for a period of three
months, i.e. until June 26, with a possibility to extend the mission for
additional three months after June. Germany accepted to further manage the
mission in the period. Also, the mandate of Alain Le Roy, EU Special Envoy
to Macedonia, was prolonged for additional four months.
