Kosovo Govt Allocates €250,000 to Fight against ISIS

The outgoing government of Kosovo under Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj on Friday allocated 250,000 euros to the Global Coalition against ISIS. The payment was described as an obligation for Kosovo in its role as part of the world organisation.

"Being part of this coalition, we have our obligations," Haradinaj said. "Kosovo is ready to fulfill its obligations through its military, police, intelligence and other aspects. Today we have met only the financial obligation."

Kosovo joined the coalition, made up of 81 members, in 2014. Previous financial contributions included 100,000 dollars in 2017, while, according to Haradinaj, Kosovo contributed 100,000 euros in 2019.

Haradinaj added that Kosovo had been affected by the war in the Middle East as some of its citizens had traveled there to engage in the conflict. "As a small state we just support the end of this war and will continue to engage in anti-terrorist missions," he stated.

Since 2012, around 400 Kosovars have joined ISIS, of whom 110 were flown back to Kosovo following the fall of the group's last stronghold in 2019. One woman returnee, Qendresa Sfishta, was given a two-year suspended sentence for participating in a terrorist group by the Basic Court of Prishtina on Thursday.

Haradinaj stated that financial assistance from the coalition with repatriations means that Kosovo has received more money than it has put in to the coalition, adding that today's contribution was still smaller than the cost of paying to return Kosovo's citizens from the Middle East. "If we talk financially, we are winning," Haradinaj said.

Despite ISIS no longer holding any territory, Haradinaj insisted that "the consequences of ISIS have not finished".

But Skender Perteshi, a researcher at...