26 07 2007 (AT) Pristina_ Dozens of fires driven by high heat and wind burned across Kosovo Wednesday as the disputed territory’s leaders struggled to respond to the blazes.
“The state in the whole territory of Kosovo caused by fires is alarming,” the Internal Affairs Ministry said in a statement Wednesday. While 70 fires burned across Kosovo on Tuesday, the situation had improved Wednesday, the statement said.
High temperatures have resulted in fires in municipalities like Peja, Gjilan, Ferizaj, Suhareka, Kamenica, Prizren and Mitrovica. Fire-fighters backed up by NATO-led international peacekeepers, the Kosovo Protection Corps and voluntary groups of citizens are trying to beat back the flames.
The most affected areas are the mountains of Mokna in northwest Kosovo, where 70 hectares have been burned.
The Kosovo government has asked the head of the UN mission administering the territory to declare a state of emergency.
The declaration would allow Kosovo to spend 700,000 euros it set aside for increased firefighting from its 850 million euros budget. But that declaration can come only from the United Nations mission, which is headed by Joachim Ruecker. Since 1999, the UN has administered the Albanian-majority territory that is officially still a part of Serbia.
“According to the current constitutional framework, only (Ruecker) has the right to announce the state of emergency,” said the government spokeswoman Ulpiana Lama. (BIRN)
No comments:
Post a Comment