Tritan Shehu under accusation: “There are serious violations” Former chairman replies from Italy: “It is not true, Berisha made this up” Old presidents without passports He was accused by the former head of the High State Control, Zef Preçi, of hiding a large part of income in foreign currency and lek, obtained through gifts and aid received for the party in the period from February 1997 until today. After the scandal was made public in the PD, yesterday the former chairman of the Republican Party, Sabri Godo, reacted, saying from Italy that “the accusations are slander by Berisha.” Meanwhile, another scandal has erupted in the PD, where, according to a public denunciation, part of its leadership has not been issued proper passports. TIRANA - The major financial scandal in the PD continues to spark debate. The accusations by the former head of the High State Control, Zef Preçi, against its former chairman Tritan Shehu, for hiding a large part of income in foreign currency and lek, obtained through gifts and aid received for the party in the period from February 1997 until today, brought numerous reactions yesterday. Contacted from Italy, the former chairman of the Republican Party Sabri Godo, mentioned as one of the people aware of these matters, told “Gazeta Shqiptare” that the accusations are slander. According to him, they were concocted by Berisha. Meanwhile, at the PD headquarters another debate also erupted yesterday regarding the issuance of proper passports to some of its leaders. (continued on page 2)

Shehu: “I don’t know where my speedboats came from. They are habits and mania, don’t ask me anything!” TIRANA - The Kërrabë tragedy with the death of Oltan Karamani and the Otranto massacre have forced the Vlorë police to organize and carry out a major operation to block speedboats used for transporting clandestine migrants. The Vlorë police seized seven vessels, in the Port area and near Karaburun, suspected of being used to take people to Italy. “During this operation there are nine vessels worth from 2 million to four five,” said one of the employees. In this police action, several people were taken in for verification. (continued on page 6)

(photo: REUTERS) 2:2 draw in the Malta tournament In his debut as coach of the red-and-blacks, Astrit Hafizi obtained an acceptable result by drawing 2-2 in the friendly match with Latvia. The Albanian team performed better than in previous matches and earned an important point in the Malta tournament. On page 11

TIRANA - The illness of the former head of SHIK, Bashkim Gazidede, about which the Turkish press wrote, yesterday further increased the opposition’s suspicions that he may have returned to Albania. The news was commented on after statements by the Iranian ambassador in Tirana, who said he had no information about Gazidede’s whereabouts. This was taken by the opposition as a sign that he may be in the country. On page 3

A girl reported to the police an attempted kidnapping by several armed men in Berat. After preliminary investigations, the police detained several officers who had come from Vlorë, suspected of involvement in the incident. The case has caused strong reactions in the city. On page 7

PD Opposition deputies have threatened to boycott Parliament if the issue of a missing girl is not resolved, a case they say is linked to the arbitrariness of power. The debate was accompanied by harsh political statements and mutual accusations. On page 3

Against whom are the people of the state trying to hide the truth?! The journalists of “Gazeta Shqiptare” and “Koha Jonë”, as well as the TV Klan correspondent in Librazhd, B. Dida, once again denounced yesterday the violence used against them. According to them, people linked to the local authorities tried to prevent them from carrying out their duty and openly threatened them. Media organizations reacted by demanding a full investigation. On page 5

Yesterday’s gathering TIRANA - On the anniversary of the tragedy, family members and citizens of Vlorë remembered yesterday the victims of 10 February, among them Rushtemi and others. At the commemorative event, calls were made for justice and for the full clarification of the incident. On page 2

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