Posted on 06/28/2004 11:10:26 PM PDT by Jane_N
BELGRADE (Kyodo) U.N. police in Kosovo temporarily detained a Japanese tourist in Kosovska Mitrovica on Saturday for taking photos without authorization, a U.N. police official said Sunday. The tourist, a man apparently in his late 20s, was freed after being questioned for over one hour Saturday night, said a spokeswoman for the police force for the U.N. Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo.
Only accredited journalists are allowed to take photos in the Serb province of Kosovo, the spokeswoman said.
The Japanese man's identity could not be obtained from the Bisevac motel in the city where he was staying. The clerk said the guest left the motel Sunday morning but that no record of his stay was available.
A local journalist said the Japanese tourist was caught in Kosovska Mitrovica after being "tailed" by a U.N. police car and a military vehicle with U.S. soldiers aboard.
"I think they were afraid he might be connected with some Muslim terrorists and making photos for them," the journalist, Branislav Krstic, told Kyodo News by telephone.
Be careful when taking photos in Kosovo or you may get detained by UNMIK. :)
I don't think NATO wants the world to know how badly it's going there and the ethnic cleansing that happened by the Albanians.
Oh, isn't it just peachy to see our U.N. in action. What are they trying to do, get some integrity back? This certainly isn't going to do it.
"Only accredited journalists are allowed to take photos in the Serb province of Kosovo"
A statement like the above does make you wonder why only accredited journalists are allowed to take photos in Kosovo.
And how do they have the time to stop/chase people for taking photos? You'ld think they would have more important things to do than this...
Makes one think of the local policeman that's on the road with his radar instead of stopping the bank robbery going on down the road. Talk about having the wrong priorities.
B.S. Anyone can take photos in Kosovo.
The story reads flaky, both for that part and the remark about a vehicle with American troops patrolling in Mitrovica. Mitrovica is in the French zone. There are no U.S. soldiers that far north; the American zone is in the southeast of Kosovo.
Is it possible the French have pulled out, and the good 'ole USofA taxpayers are pulling up the slack?
When in hell are we getting out of there anyway???
I hadn't heard anything about only accredited journalists being allowed to photograph before this either. That is why I've sent an email to the International Federation of Journalists asking if there is any truth to this. I'll let you know what they say if or when I get a reply.
As to your statement that there are no US troops that far, I did a google search and found articles quoting US troops in Kosovska Mitrovica but most of these refer to prior 2003. If there still is are troops patrolling in and around Kosovska Mitrovica now is another question and I, unfortunately can not be bothered spending more time searching, sorry. The following are a couple of examples of what I did find though:
From CNN: "Earlier Wednesday, U.S. peacekeepers were out in force in Kosovska Mitrovica: About 300 U.S. paratroopers in full combat gear seized at least three Kalashnikov rifles, grenades and a shotgun in the three-hour house-to-house search."
From balkans info: "U.S., British, and French troops launched a
previously unannounced search for weapons in
mainly Serbian northern Mitrovica on 23 February.
KFOR spokesmen said that the purpose of the
exercise was not only to collect illegal weapons
but also to demonstrate that U.S. and other NATO
troops are free to move where and when they
please.
From The Bruns International: "UN still trying to defuse tensions after violence rocks Kosovska Mitrovica. Additional Greek peacekeepers backed up by US and Canadian soldiers have been sent in "
By the way Mark, nice to see you back again, hadn't seen anything from you in a while so thought you may have given up on us. :)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.