Albanian nationalism in Kosovo

Outgoing Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj has rejected criticism for awarding the retiring head of the Kosovo intelligence agency, KIA, Shpend Maxhuni, with the prestigious Skanderbeg medal for "professionalism and loyalty shown in the service to the nation".

Kosovo's Central Election Commission, CEC, on Thursday announced the final results of the October 6 snap legislative elections, after a month of turmoil connected to problems with the count.

Snags included ballots sent from Serbia being poisoned, resulting in CEC officials being sent to hospital, to multiple arrests made in various municipalities for falsifying the vote count.

The family of the late Vetevendosje activist Astrit Dehari claim the results of an autopsy conducted by Swiss experts show he was murdered in detention in Prizren in 2016.

Dehari died in the correctional facility in the western Kosovo city after being arrested on suspicion of terrorism for allegedly throwing an explosive device in the parliament.

The Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) additionally states that the appointment of a new U.S. Envoy to restart talks between Kosovo and Serbia provides fresh impetus for a final resolution to one of the most intractable regional problems, the author Janusz Bugajski wrote.

The two former opposition parties that won most votes in Kosovo's recent parliamentary elections have expressed willingness to reach a coalition agreement, four days after the voters elected a new parliament.

The leader of Vetvendosje, Albin Kurti, still holds only the (Albanian) national flag in his office, as he rejects the flag of the Republic of Kosovo.

Talks on forming a new government in Kosovo are due to start soon after the opposition Vetevendosje party came first in Sunday's snap parliamentary elections.

The party has made clear it wishes to seek to form a coalition government with another former opposition party, the Democratic League of Kosovo, LDK.

The New York Times states that, ever since Kosovo ended its war with Serbia two decades ago, its dominant political figures have all been men who rose to prominence as fighters and held onto power despite failing to secure the lasting peace and preceding over a floundering economy, as Radio Free Europe reports.

Kurti stated that from today he is starting to work on creating a new Government with him as Prime Minister.
"We have worked hard, we have been engaged for a long time, but it all pays off because every sacrifice is worth for our beloved citizens. We considered it our obligation and we will get the country back on the right track", Kurti said.

According to the Central Election Commission, a total of 1,972,466 voters were registered with voting rights, out of which 117,808 are in ten Serb-majority municipalities. There are 58,187 voters registered in four municipalities in northern Kosovo and Metohija.