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Europe
Kosovo president survives assassination attempt
2005-03-15
Kosovo President Ibrahim Rugova survived an apparent assassination attempt Tuesday after an explosive device detonated as his convoy passed through central Pristina. The blast occurred near a government building just after 7:20 a.m. GMT. Rugova's car was damaged, and the president was seen being transferred to another car and being driven away after the explosion. He appeared to be unharmed. At least one person was injured by flying glass, police spokeswoman Sabrije Kamberi said. Rugova had been heading to a nearby government building for a meeting with European Union's foreign policy chief Javier Solana when the explosion occurred.

"Thank God I survived again," Rugova said, appearing calm. "Unfortunately there are still elements which want to destabilize Kosovo." Last year, a hand grenade was hurled at Rugova's residence from a passing vehicle. The grenade exploded in the garden and did not cause any injuries, but no one was ever arrested in connection with the attack. A police officer at the scene of Tuesday's explosion told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity that the blast appeared to have been caused by a remote controlled explosive device. The ethnic Albanian Rugova, a pacifist leader, was elected Kosovo's president in 2002. He was re-elected last December, when his party formed a coalition with the much smaller Alliance for the Future of Kosovo of former Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj.
Posted by:gromgorru

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