Planned construction in the big cities is being halted: What about the North The doctors’ “army” at the border Ministry: Suspend operations, conserve blood A circular from Tirana mobilizes all surgeons in the Northeast in case of war CONFIDENTIAL REPORT How the hot borders are being monitored On page 3 Blood banks have been ordered to cancel distribution and urgently begin collecting large quantities of blood Hospitals in five districts along the border with Yugoslavia suspended their regular activities yesterday, awaiting what might happen TIRANË - A state of emergency at the Albanian Ministry of Health over what may happen at the Yugoslav border. At an unusual meeting of the Emergency Commission, it was decided to halt planned construction at several health centers in the five northern districts bordering the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as at the central hospitals in Tirana. All scheduled operations have been suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as suspended and the Republic of Yugoslavia, as well as the central hospitals in Tirana. ...to remain on alert and in their homes. In all hospitals, staffing and duty and on-call services have been reinforced, with additional equipment and nurses. Ministry teams have urgently set out for Kukës and other districts to inspect the implementation of the measures. ...the Ministry urged people of the measures. Albanians massacred in Drenica (Photo: REUTERS)

WASHINGTON - “The conditions set by Belgrade for entering into dialogue with the Kosovo Albanians are sadly inadequate.” This is Washington’s reaction to the conditional offer made by Millosheviçi to hold talks with the Kosovars. According to the State Department spokesperson, Xhejms Rubin said that signs from Belgrade indicate that Millosheviçi is opposing the demands made by the great powers that he take steps to reach a compromise with the Kosovars, or otherwise face severe sanctions. Referring to the Serbs’ refusal to allow the Kosovo Albanians to postpone the burial of their dead in order to conduct examinations, he said: “This is another demonstration of President Millosheviç’s intransigence and defiance of the will of the international community. ‘This is non-cooperative behavior that undermines the prospects for meaningful dialogue in Kosovo and raises serious doubts about whether he will take the steps required by the Contact Group,’ Rubin said.

A LEGEND IN AGONY Dritan Lundra Perlat Musta is battling death. A bullet fired from very close range after midnight caused a wound that left his life in the balance. Until last night, everything remained uncertain. The wound severely damaged a lung and several ribs. “I was at the hospital until now (7:30 p.m.). It seems to me that he is better, but I left him with a high temperature. That is precisely what the doctors are worried about,” said Sheptim Duro. “The wound is very serious. I cannot say that he is out of danger. We fear a possible lung infection. We operated immediately and removed one rib; we wired four others together. We removed part of the lung (the lower part) completely, since it had been damaged by the bullet. Nevertheless, with our help and his own athletic physique, I think he will overcome the danger. But at the moment his condition is guarded.” A visit with the doctor who operated on him, Edmond Çeliku, clarified everything. In the morning, there was hope that later he would see his friend in better condition and at least able to say a few words. Only in these hours, exhausted and worn out, did the doctor confirm that Musta could at least survive, but his prognosis was guarded. “We fear a pulmonary infection; I cannot say anything more for now,” the doctor also stated. The perpetrator, G.M, has turned himself in to the competent authorities. Perhaps regretful about what he had done, his feet took him straight to the police station. “I heard a noise near the outer gate. I thought those who were coming...” ...the flesh, as help and his own f... not his as an athlete, he will overcome the danger immediately. But for now his condition is serious. In a conversation with the doctor who operated on him, Edmond Çeliku explained everything. In a state of complete coma, at around 1:30 last night, Perlat Musta was taken to the hospital with internal injuries. He had been returning home, and that was where the fatal shooting took place. According to police sources, he was leaning against the gate of a single-storey house, from where he was also hit by the bullet that put his life at risk. People who heard Musta say he was able to utter only a single word: “What are you doing? It’s Perlat, you shot me.” But by then the bullet had already taken its course and entered the body of the former goalkeeper of the Albanian national team. Having been given the last rites, he was laid on the ground and taken to hospital in that condition. Hours of anxiety and horror. His friends and companions who had been at the scene arrived immediately. A serious operation, which has still not provided a final answer. Starova left the hospital only in the early hours of ... The alleged perpetrator of the crime, G.M, has been sentenced? by the competent authorities. Perhaps remorseful about what he had done, he went straight to the police station after the first noise. “I heard noises around the gate of the house. I thought those coming to steal the deer were thieves. So, without seeing the person, I fired.” This is what the perpetrator said in his statement to the police authorities. No one knows the exact truth, as the case is still under investigation. Nevertheless, this is an extremely serious act. One of the finest goalkeepers in Albania has been shot and left for dead. The captain of Partizani and the Albanian national team in the 1980s, the hero of our goal for the famous Krel team, is today fighting for his life. No one has remained unmoved by this fact. Only Albanian Television has remained almost silent. A brief announcement at the end of the news reported his tragic shooting. We cannot imagine how the other television stations around the world would have reacted if such a case had happened in Italy, with Zoff, for example, or in Germany with Maier. It is truly regrettable that such an event is being ignored by the state media.

POLITICS Spain as mediator 11. Selane in Tirana

POLITICS On page 3

TIRANË - Measles is once again a cause for concern in Albania. The Director of Epidemiology at the Ministry of Health, Jorgo Kosta, told Gazeta yesterday that the spread in Albania of the contagious measles disease among children over five years of age is once again worrying. Several outbreaks of the disease have been confirmed; the Ministry is not disclosing them for now, but according to Kosta there is a strong possibility that measles, despite successive vaccinations, has increased, also on the basis of data from recent years. According to these figures, 5 cases were confirmed in 1993, 29 cases the following year, and, surprisingly, no cases in 1995. In 1996 there was a “boom” in the disease, with around 1,200 cases recorded in patients’ medical files during that year. On page 12

FUSHE-KRUJE / After the explosion FUSHE KRUJE - The city woke [up] yesterday after a night of utter fear and panic, but also of numerous rumors about the explosion that had shaken the city. FUSHE KRUJE - The city woke yesterday after a night of utter fear and panic, but also of numerous rumors about the explosion that had shaken the city. The building in its center was overcrowded yesterday with many visitors, who had come to learn the extent of the terrible explosion. It happened at 18:50, at a time when few people were moving about in the streets of Fushë Kruja; they felt as if they had died. The 6,000 residents of the small cement town wanted to find out immediately what had happened during the terrible night. “We thought it would be a tragedy, but thankfully it ended with only two injured,” said one of the women who had gone to visit her sister, who lives in the building that was hit. The explosive placed on the third floor of the building, next to the door of Xhevdet Xhafa’s apartment, let out a terrible roar, which was heard far away all the same. In an instant everything was covered in smoke and dust. Great tremors engulfed the entire building, and people, momentarily stunned, then hurried to check on one another. On page 7

But Tirana responds: No problem TIRANA - The Serbs are appealing from Belgrade. “They will attack our embassy in Tirana.” But the official authorities in Tirana have clarified that the Yugoslav embassy is being given maximum protection by the Albanian authorities. At the Albanian embassy in Belgrade, Chargé d’Affaires Florian Nova was urgently summoned yesterday to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the FRY. He was received at the Ministry by the Director of Neighboring Countries, Vladimir Krsajan, who informed him “about reports of attacks against the FRY embassy in Tirana” and asked the Albanian authorities “to take all appropriate measures to protect the building and the embassy staff, in accordance with the standards set out by the Vienna Convention.” Regarding this notification, the spokesperson for the Albanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that “the FRY Embassy in Tirana and its staff are under the full protection of the specialized agencies, as stipulated by the Vienna Convention. These agencies have no information whatsoever about any possible ‘attack’ against the FRY Embassy in Tirana. If the Yugoslav authorities had any such information, it would be good for them to make it available to the Albanian authorities, as Mr. Krsajan was also asked to do by Mr. Nova, who, in his response, was instructed only to convey the ‘information’ and said that he ‘was not aware’ of its sources.”

Police: A settling of scores ELBASAN - Assassination on the outskirts of the city. A hail of gunfire leaves three dead. The incident, which took place on Tuesday evening, caused panic in the city’s most densely populated neighborhood. The likely motive for the crime has to do with settling scores. Police sources investigating the incident say that, for the moment, the mystery of the people who carried out the criminal act has still not been solved. Panic spread throughout the neighborhood, and after the hail of bullets people came out to their windows, but until late they did not understand what had happened. On page 5

Albanians massacred in Drenica (Photo: REUTERS)

Predictions from the doctors that will make you rich Here’s how to fill out the betting slip On page 10