Kosovo’s acting Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, reiterated his call for the archives of the 37th Motorised Brigade of the former Yugoslav Army to be opened while presenting a report on excavations in Zubin Potok. According to him, this unit committed massacres particularly in Drenica, but also in other parts of Kosovo, KosovaPress reports.

Kurti said the brigade’s documentation was classified 12 years ago for a 30-year period, meaning it will remain closed for another 18 years. He stressed that families who have waited 27 and 28 years to learn the fate of their relatives should not have to face waiting, anxiety and pain for another 18 years.

According to him, international pressure is crucial on this issue. Kurti called on Serbia to immediately open the archived and classified files of the 37th Motorised Brigade of the Yugoslav Army, namely in 2024 rather than in 2044.

He also addressed the excavations carried out in northern Kosovo, saying that, according to the Commission’s detailed presentation, they had been limited and conducted under difficult conditions. Often, Kurti said, the process was hindered by insecurity, demonstrating that the fight against criminal gangs and the establishment of law and order in this part of the country had been prerequisites for successful and unhindered investigations, searches and excavations.

The acting prime minister also stated that the international community should increase pressure on Serbia to implement the declaration on forcibly disappeared persons.

He said that hundreds of families are not only seeking clarification about the fate of their closest relatives, but also justice. According to Kurti, Serbia has denied them both and continues to do so by concealing and refusing to acknowledge crimes, refusing to open the archives and classifying them, with the aim of distorting the truth and evading responsibility.

Kurti added that Serbia also arrests and persecutes the few Serbs who have dared to testify before international institutions. For this reason, he said international actors should exert more pressure on the northern neighbour to implement the declaration agreed in Brussels on 2 May 2023 on forcibly disappeared persons, by opening and making available state archives that could help clarify the fate of the missing.

According to Kosovo authorities, around 1,600 people remain missing in Kosovo.

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During activities marking August 12 – International Youth Day, Kosovo’s acting Prime Minister, Albin Kurti, highlighted the importance of mental health and psychosocial support for children and young people.

In a Facebook post, Kurti said the activities began outside the Ministry of Sports and Youth with the program “Your Voice, Our Future.” They then moved to the Office of the Prime Minister, where the report “Mapping Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Services for Children and Young People in Kosovo” was presented.

According to him, mental health care cannot remain the responsibility of only one ministry or a specific sector, as this responsibility belongs to society as a whole, without distinction.

Kurti stated that building strong human capital is impossible without investing in children’s emotional well-being.

He also emphasized that young people cannot be asked to learn, create, work, and contribute to building the future if society does not guarantee them the necessary support and conditions.

The acting prime minister said that young women and men represent not only the future of the Republic but also an important part of its present.

Kurti wrote that his administration, which places young people at its center, is guided by support, equal access, and quality education, as well as by the provision of cultural and sports spaces and activities.

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