December 4, 2004

Kosovo Albanians Choose Ex-Guerrilla as Prime Minister

By NICHOLAS WOOD

PRISTINA, Kosovo, Dec. 3 - Kosovo Albanian politicians appointed a former
guerrilla leader and war crimes suspect as prime minister on Friday in a
parliamentary vote.

The appointee, Ramush Haradinaj, was elected by an overwhelming 73 to 3, in
a power-sharing agreement between his own party and the largest Albanian
political group in the 120-member Parliament.

The United Nations has been responsible for running Kosovo ever since
Serbian security forces accused of committing widespread atrocities were
forced by a NATO- led bombing campaign to leave the province in June 1999.

Since 2000, a regional government with limited powers made up of Albanian
politicians has been in place.

Mr. Haradinaj's appointment was widely perceived as a setback among Western
diplomats and international officials here, who warned that it could
aggravate tensions with the Serbian minority and undermine the province's
aspirations to become a separate state.

Mr. Haradinaj has said he is under investigation by the International
Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia for crimes committed during the
1997 to 1999 conflict, and was questioned for two days by court
investigators late last month. The chief war crimes prosecutor, Carla Del
Ponte, has implied that an indictment could be issued for him by the end of
the year.

In a statement issued Friday on his behalf by Luther Pendragon, a public
relations consultant in London, Mr. Haradinaj said he was "proud of the
part that I played in protecting my people" from Slobodan Milosevic, the
former Serbian strongman. The former rebel leader, who has denied
responsibility for any crimes, added, "I am ready to defend my record
against criticism and innuendo."

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