The largest military investment in the north of the country is destroyed Raids on refugee camps continue in Vlorë The largest military investment in the north of the country is destroyed NATO airport in Kukës attacked Raids on refugee camps continue in Vlorë

The war in Kosovo, judging by the fine words about the “great soul of the Albanians,” made us optimistic about the future of our country, even as we shook the mud off our shoes on the road passing in front of the Prime Minister’s office. But every day we draw attention to ourselves and drive the world’s concern for us away. Specifically, within a few days, the now-empty refugee camps and the airport in Kukës were attacked and destroyed by mobs. And it all happened under the indifferent gaze of the police and military forces. Once, we were all offended when they labelled us barbarians. We were even ready to take Amelio, the director of “L’Amerika,” to court. But afterwards, we systematically showed that Amelio had been right. We looted and destroyed during the turbulent years of communism’s collapse, justifying it on the pretext that its economic symbols, too, had to be brought down. But then we did it again in 1997, when we left nothing unlooted, right down to the weapons depots—a series of events that gives us a unique history as a people. We did the same thing a year ago in Tirana, when the state collapsed and every shop in the capital was ransacked within an hour. Regardless of the reasons and the economic damage we have caused whenever we have embarked on such actions, one thing has been catastrophic for us. After every such act, Europe would write in its “impressions” book: “Albanians cannot build a state.” But if until now everything had been done under the pretext of overthrowing the communist dictatorship and Berisha’s “neo-dictatorship,” now we stand completely naked before the world, which for the first time had turned its eyes towards us. The West and the USA are demanding that several conditions be met so that our dream of building [a state] can become reality. Corruption must be fought and order established. Yet every day we are showing

Lawyers, engineers and economists close to the former leader — page 3 Nanos’s staff revealed 30 technicians are working on the “factionalist” platform

page 9 — POLITICS US Secretary Cohen: Albania is NATO’s temporary base in the Balkans page 2 Jozefina Topalli: We will enter Parliament only to call for new elections page 7 WAR CRIMES Arbour in Tirana: Albanian investigators too in Kosovo to investigate Serbian massacres page 8 LAW AND ORDER An Albanian-Macedonian hostage in a bunker in Librazhd. Police free him page 11 ECONOMY Trade with Kosovo halted. The embargo law against Yugoslavia is still in force page 19 SOCIAL AFFAIRS AIDS, another victim. A 19-year-old woman who had worked as a prostitute dies in Korçë page 22