Kosovo police arrest seven, seize explosives after attack

Kosovo police arrest seven, seize explosives after attack
Agence France Presse (English) - April 13, 2007 Friday 2:32 PM GMT

PRISTINA, Serbia, April 13 2007 - Kosovo police arrested seven men and seized a large quantity of weapons and explosives after an armed attack on Kosovo's telecommunication service chief, an official said.

The arrests were made Thursday, one day after Kosovo's telecommunications service chief Anton Berisha escaped a second attack unscathed. A policeman guarding him was critically injured.

The weapons and explosives were found during the search of the houses of several suspects, police spokesman Arber Beka told AFP.

"Along with the weapons and explosives, four Kosovo Albanians were arrested," said Beka, adding that seven suspects have been arrested so far.

Three other people were detained immediately after the attack on Berisha near Malisevo, southwest of the capital Pristina.

The attack took place near the scene of from the first attack on Berisha on February 28. He has been under police protection since.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but local media speculated it was linked to Berisha's role in awarding a second mobile phone licence for the disputed Kosovo province.

Kosovo has been managed by a UN mission since mid-1999, after NATO bombing ended a crackdown by Serbian forces on the province's independence-seeking ethnic Albanians.

In coming weeks, the UN Security Council is to decide on Kosovo's future status based on a recommendation by UN special envoy Martti Ahtisaari for it to be granted internationally supervised independence.