Political Committee: “We heard them. Resolution on Wednesday” Everything remains to be decided tomorrow in the Assembly. The resolution to be drafted by the Political Committee will be put to a vote by the deputies. Today the politicians are “hunting” for supporters of their positions The CoE Assembly chamber By correspondent REZEAR XHAXHIU STRASBOURG - The Albanian parties submitted their facts and arguments yesterday. For two hours, at a closed-door session, members of the Political Committee, as well as many MEPs interested in the “Albanian Question,” listened. No statement after the meeting: “We will draft the resolution. The decision will be taken on Wednesday.” Along with the facts each party defended, the Albanian politicians could not avoid heated exchanges and accusations against one another, which at times ended in insults. The opposition insisted on “manipulations and violence used,” while PDK representatives maintained that the irregularities had been merely technical. At the end of the meeting, the political leaders seemed satisfied, each from his own point of view. Everything is expected to be decided tomorrow, when the Albanian case will be considered by the Assembly of the Council of Europe. On page 3

Conference of the Speakers of Parliament STRASBOURG - “Nothing can be said in advance. We are waiting for the Political Committee, and then the Assembly will decide on Wednesday.” Extremely laconic and reserved, the head of the Council of Europe limited herself to saying only that “for now, we must ask the parties, the Albanian political parties, to shoulder the responsibility they bear for the country’s fate.” No other direct comment. Nevertheless, she did not hesitate to say that “the precedent with Albania makes us consider the possibility of CoE observers at elections in member countries.” On page 3 Fisher

A mouse leaves Krujë without power KRUJË - An ordinary mouse can cost a fantastic sum in Krujë: on Sunday evening, its price was around 10,000 dollars. This tiny creature caused a power surge at an electrical station, and the fire that broke out put it completely out of service. The consequences were soon felt, and the city of Krujë was left without electricity for three hours, which also made it difficult to supply residents with bread. The culprit behind the burning of Krujë’s high-voltage distribution center now has a strange name: it was an ordinary field mouse that accidentally got into the electrical equipment on Sunday evening. Its body created a short circuit between two high-voltage lines. Normally, in such a case, explains an electrical specialist, the automatic power shutoff should have activated. Unfortunately, an electrical fault in the control box occurred at the same time, preventing it from working. The explosion lasted about 15 minutes, long enough to affect all the high-voltage lines. At the substation [?] for the area, the power was shut off manually, which prevented the short circuit from spreading. But the damage had been done. The fire that had broken out was not brought under control even by the firefighters’ prompt response, although they did manage to prevent an even greater disaster; the city’s ice plant is in the same building, and it contains a considerable quantity of ammonia. An explosion there could have had unpredictable consequences. The lack of electricity caused difficulties in supplying the city with bread the following day. Murat Aruçi

FROM THE WORLD Greece in mourning: Papandreu dies

“There was major unrest, but it was not a military coup” The trial of Mustaqi, Çoni and Strok[a?] began yesterday; witnesses give their accounts TIRANA - The trial of former Minister of Defense Kiço Mustaqi and former leaders of the United School, Arseni Strok[a?] and Ksenofon Çoni, began yesterday at the Tirana court. HEROINE IN A CAR The three former senior military officers are accused of abuse of office, a charge linked to the events of 20 February at this school, concerning an order issued to arm the students and military personnel at the school. None of the three accused is in Albania, and the trial is proceeding in their absence, with their lawyers seated in the dock. Yesterday, several former chiefs of the school testified. They denied that the events of 20, 21 and 22 February ’91 had been a military coup. They also denied that former minister Mustaqi had sent any telegram ordering the students to be armed. The judges showed a map depicting the plans for organizing the defense in case the school were attacked. The witnesses—including the school’s former deputy commander—called the prosecution’s account, which mentioned five dead and 37 wounded, unfounded. “That day,” they said, “people were killed as far as three kilometers from the school, and they are being presented as victims of this incident.” The next hearing will continue with the questioning of witnesses. Kiço Mustaqi, former Minister of Defense On page 5

Papandreu, former Greek Prime Minister ATHENS - Greece’s most powerful party, PASOK, has been left without its founder. After an illness he suffered [?]ly, Papandreu died yesterday. At the party congress to be held this week, a fierce battle for the chairmanship between Simitis and Cohaco[?]-pulos is expected, according to plan. On page 2

The drug hunt: 11 people detained VLORE - Police detained 11 people at midnight on Sunday because a considerable quantity of drugs was found in the cars they were travelling in: eight kilograms of Cannabis and 100 grams of heroin. The detainees had attempted to cross into Italy. On page 5

A child had been born after 15 years LIBRAZHD - An ancient custom, but one that has long been out of time today in emigration and [unclear]. The residents of Ll[?] gathered in five [unclear] over the gift, the byrek of incomprehensible size. And there was no shortage of producers. A huge byrek weighing 27 kilograms and 250 grams was the gift that the Vasku family gave to their cousin on the occasion of the birth of his son. But it was not an ordinary byrek; on the contrary, it had been seasoned for a celebration. Vasku had become the father of a boy after 15 years of marriage; this is one of the rare cases of this kind. The couple's joy, the residents said, was great. Besides the couple's family, the neighbors also took part in the celebration. This special gift became known throughout the area. Vasku made a 27.25-kilo byrek, he says, and in all [?] ... [The body continues with faint and partly illegible text.] The large byrek was prepared with great care and baked in an oven. This is a gift that was given long ago, but has not been given for 15 years. This is something special. Vasku Halim Vasku has[?]

GJIROKASTËR - The court sentenced to 20 years in prison the woman who had killed her husband after 40 years of marriage. Along with her son, she was found to have mental deficiencies—68-year-old S. Puci had struck her 72-year-old husband, leaving him dead at the scene. As such, she had incited her son against his father, and during the fight between the two, the woman had also committed the fatal act, leaving her husband with a blow to the head. On page 3

The Holy Ark: debates and legends A journey among the Orthodox believers of Elbasan. Two groups of clergy in conflict. Orthodox Church On page 7

A meeting behind closed doors. For two hours, the leaders of the Albanian parties presented their arguments: mutual accusations and insults. Satisfied after the meeting. Shehu: “Optimistic about Wednesday.” Pëllumbi: “Useful and favorable for us”

Germany's victory over the Croats, a Pyrrhic one It had said farewell to the European Championship. The team's captain in England. On page 6