Former Kosovo Separatist Commander Appears In Court

2020-10-28T20:32:31Z

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THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) - A former commander of [http://www.wordreference.com/definition/separatist%20fighters separatist fighters] in Kosovo´s 1998-1999 war appeared at a special court in the Netherlands on Monday to face charges that he was involved in the torture of detainees and the murder of one prisoner held at a compound in Kosovo during the conflict. Salih Mustafa was arrested Thursday and transferred to the Netherlands to stand trial. He is the first suspect to appear in court at the Kosovo Specialist Chambers. He sat in the courtroom wearing a suit and tie and a face mask, which he removed as he stood and confirmed his name and other personal details, identifying himself as an economist and adviser to the Kosovo defense ministry. He listened in silence as a court officer read out the four charges against him, and Presiding Judge Nicolas Guillou read him his rights. Mustafa didn't enter pleas to the charges during the 35-minute hearing. He has 30 days to enter pleas. The Kosovo Liberation Army was made up of ethnic Albanian rebels who fought for Kosovo´s independence from Serbia. Mustafa oversaw fighters in the Llapi area, 35 kilometers (20 miles) north of the capital, Pristina. Mustafa is charged with the war crimes of arbitrary detention, cruel treatment, the torture of at least six people and the murder of one person at a detention compound in Zllash, Kosovo, in April 1999. The victims were accused by KLA fighters of collaborating with Serbs or not supporting the KLA, according to the indictment. In one incident alleged in the indictment, [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/tours/tour-trung-quoc-nam-ninh-truong-gia-gioi-phuong-hoang-co-tran-6-ngay.html kynghidongduong.vn] Mustafa interrogated a detainee "about his knowledge of the identities of thieves and spies, and beat him with a baseball bat all over his body, causing him severe mental harm and severe physical injuries." He is charged in the indictment under different modes of criminal liability, including command responsibility and as a member of a joint criminal [http://www.deer-digest.com/?s=enterprise enterprise]. The court and an associated Special Prosecutor´s Office were established five years ago following a 2011 report by the Council of Europe, a human rights body, that included allegations that KLA fighters trafficked human organs taken from prisoners and killed Serbs and fellow ethnic Albanians. The court is mandated to investigate and prosecute allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Kosovo, or linked to the Kosovo conflict, from 1998-2000. Two leaders of the Kosovar war veterans´ association, [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/tours/tour-trung-quoc-nam-ninh-truong-gia-gioi-phuong-hoang-co-tran-6-ngay.html tour phượng hoàng cổ trấn] Hysni Gucati and [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/tours/tour-trung-quoc-nam-ninh-truong-gia-gioi-phuong-hoang-co-tran-6-ngay.html tour trương gia giới] Nasim Haradinaj, were arrested last week and transferred to The Hague accused of "offences against the administration of justice, namely intimidation of witnesses, retaliation and violation of secrecy of proceedings," the court said. They are likely to make their first appearances before the court in coming days. Prosecutors in The Hague also have isssued an indictment against Kosovar President Hashim Thaci, former parliamentary speaker Kadri Veseli, and others for crimes that include murder, enforced disappearances, persecution and torture. A pre-trial judge has yet to confirm those indictments. Both men have denied committing any war crimes. The 1998-1999 war for Kosovo´s independence from Serbia left more than 10,000 people dead - most of them ethnic Albanians from Kosovo. More than 1,600 people remain unaccounted for. The fighting ended after a 78-day NATO air campaign against Serbian troops. Kosovo, which is dominated by ethnic Albanians, declared independence from Serbia in 2008, a move recognized by many Western nations but not Serbia or its allies Russia and China.

NBA Boss Adam Silver Eyes January Start To Next Season

2020-10-20T14:28:02Z

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NBA Commissioner Adam Silver thinks the league is likely headed for a January start in 2021, but that pandemic-delayed season could drag into the following summer and prevent league players from competing in the Tokyo Olympics. Similarly, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said on Saturday that he envisioned his league starting the next campaign in late December or January, but that will not have any impact on the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing. Silver, a g[# 'I continue to believe that we're going to be better off getting into January,' Silver said in a discussion with Bob Costas during part of the 'Citizen by CNN' event. 'The goal for us next season is to play a standard season ... an 82-game season and playoffs. And further, the goal would be to play games in home arenas in front of fans, but there's still a lot that we need to learn.' The NBA hasn't played in arenas filled with fans since March 11, when the league suspended its season because of the coronavirus pandemic. A very small number of fans - maybe 30 or 40 per game - have been allowed to watch inside the NBA's restart bubble at Walt Disney World in recent weeks, all of them family members or close friends of players. Those guests all are tested daily for coronavirus, like everyone else in the bubble. RELATED ARTICLES Previous][# Previous] [# 1] [# Next] [/news/article-8758255/Hamlin-Michael-Jordan-partner-NASCAR-team-Wallace.html Michael Jordan launches his own NASCAR team and signs Bubba...] [/news/article-8744957/Nikes-new-150-Colin-Kaepernick-replica-jersey-sells-MINUTES.html Nike's new $150 Colin Kaepernick replica jersey...] Share this article Share A typical NBA season has a regular season that lasts for nearly six months, followed by about a two-month postseason. If next season is typical - and there's no way of knowing that it will be, or even could be - a January start could mean a June or July regular-season finish, with playoffs concluding in August or September. That could greatly affect Olympic plans. The rescheduled Tokyo Olympics are set to begin July 23 and run through August 8 - if those games are held. Final qualifying rounds for the 24 teams still bidding for the four remaining spots in the 12-team men's basketball field would begin in June. LeBron James celebrates with Anthony Davis after the latter hit a game-winning three-pointer in Game 2 of the Lakers' Western Conference Finals series against the Nuggets The United States Men's Basketball team celebrates with their gold medals following the Men's Gold medal game on Day 16 of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Carioca Arena 1 in 2016 'There are a lot of great US players, and we may be up against a scenario where the top 15 NBA players aren't competing in the Olympics, but other great American players are competing,' Silver said. 'And, obviously, there are many NBA players who participate in the Olympics for other countries. That's something we're going to have to work through.' Team USA Coach Gregg Popovich (right) and assistant Steve Kerr (left) could be forced to skip the Olympics if their respective NBA teams, the Spurs and Warriors, are still playing deep into the 2021 postseason USA Basketball has been planning for various possible scenarios in recent months but can't make any concrete plans until it sees what the next NBA schedule officially looks like. The U.S. roster for the Tokyo Olympics will be 12 players; there were another 34 players competing for other countries at the Rio Olympics as well. Several NBA coaches are also planning to coach in the Tokyo Olympics or in qualifying: San Antonio's Gregg Popovich will coach USA Basketball and be assisted by Golden State's Steve Kerr and [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/tours/tour-trung-quoc-nam-ninh-truong-gia-gioi-phuong-hoang-co-tran-6-ngay.html kynghidongduong.vn] Atlanta's Lloyd Pierce; Golden State associate head coach Mike Brown is set to coach Nigeria; Toronto assistant Sergio Scariolo will coach Spain and Raptors head coach Nick Nurse will lead Canada in qualifying and then the Olympics should it qualify. 'These are highly unique and unusual circumstances,' Silver said. 'And I think just as it is for the Olympic movement, it is for us as well. And we're just going to have to sort of find a way to meld and mesh those two competing considerations.' The US, Nigeria, Australia, Spain, Argentina, [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/tours/tour-trung-quoc-nam-ninh-truong-gia-gioi-phuong-hoang-co-tran-6-ngay.html tour phượng hoàng cổ trấn] Iran, France and host Japan have qualified for the Olympic men's basketball field already. Among the top international teams still hoping to qualify: Greece (which could have two-time reigning NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo), Serbia (led by Denver's All-NBA center Nikola Jokic), Lithuania, Russia and the Czech Republic. On Saturday, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman (pictured) raised the possibility of a start sometime later in December or even January, though the plan remains for each team to play 82 games and the league hold a full playoffs The NHL is facing similar issues moving from one pandemic-delayed season to the next, but isn't constrained by any Olympic consideration. On Saturday, Bettman raised the possibility of a start sometime later in December or even January, though the plan remains for each team to play 82 games and the league hold a full playoffs. A general overview is seen of Jamie Benn of the Dallas Stars and Brayden Point of the Tampa Bay Lightning taking a face-off in the Stars zone during the second period of Game Two of the NHL Stanley Cup Final between the Dallas Stars and the Tampa Bay Lightning at Rogers Place on Monday Much like its plan to resume this season, the league hopes to adapt to the pandemic circumstances in the US, Canada and worldwide and is open to adjusting on the fly as the situation evolves. Acknowledging there are factors like the US-Canada border and local jurisdictions out of his control that could affect travel and attendance, Bettman indicated Saturday he wouldn't be surprised if the season begins later than scheduled but would like to avoid playing deep into next summer. 'If there's an option to consider, believe me, we're considering it,' Bettman said during his annual pre-Stanley Cup Final news conference. 'It's conceivable that we start without fans, that we move to socially distant fans at some point and by some point in time maybe our buildings are open.' There's no way to know yet what a 2020-21 NHL season will look like, and the league is watching what's going on in European hockey and the other North American professional sports leagues and college athletics to see what's possible. 'Our goal is to get back to as great a sense of normalcy as possible under whatever circumstances are presented,' Bettman said. One of the circumstances at play is the closure of the U.S.-Canada border to [http://www.squidoo.com/search/results?q=nonessential nonessential] travel, which has more of an effect on the NHL than other pro sports leagues because it has seven teams in Canada and 24 in the U.S. until Seattle becomes the 32nd franchise in 2021. A general view is seen of the ice surface before the start of the third period of Game Two of the NHL Stanley Cup Final between the Stars and the Lightning at Rogers Place on Monday Canada did not allow [http://www.google.de/search?q=Major%20League Major League] Baseball's Blue Jays to play in Toronto this season because of cross-border travel by them and other teams. The Canadian government approved the NHL holding its playoffs in quarantined bubbles in Toronto and Edmonton but has not allowed family members who aren't Canadian citizens join, as had been planned by the league and players. Stars Goaltender Anton Khudobin stops Lighting forward Patrick Maroon on Monday 'That application remains pending,' deputy commissioner Bill Daly said. 'I think at this point, I don't have a high level of expectation that it will be approved. But it has not formally been denied at this point, either.' The league is less than two weeks away from pulling off a successful return, after the season was halted March 12. More than 30,000 tests inside the bubbles turned up zero positive coronavirus test results. Before the Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning opened the final, Bettman acknowledged he's not taking a victory lap yet. He's still focused on getting through this series even as preparations begin for next season. Bettman said the league has 'started informally thinking' about it and conceded there will be a financial hit because attendance makes up at least 50% of revenue. He's not worried about any franchises not making it through this and said Seattle joining the league won't be pushed back. 'While we know it'll be less (money), we know there's a substantial revenue impact, I'm comfortable that our franchises will be strong enough to weather this,' Bettman said. 'Our franchises will get through this and [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/tours/tour-trung-quoc-nam-ninh-truong-gia-gioi-phuong-hoang-co-tran-6-ngay.html tour phượng hoàng cổ trấn] will come out stronger on the other side.' The NHL is facing similar issues moving from one pandemic-delayed season to the next, but isn't constrained by Olympic considerations. The next Winter Games will be in Beijing in 2022 data-track-module="am-external-links^external-links"> Read more: [ NBA commissioner Adam Silver: 'Best guess' is next season won't start until 2021 - CNN Video] DM.later('bundle', function() DM.has('external-source-links', 'externalLinkTracker'); );

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Former Kosovo Separatist Commander Appears In Court

NBA Boss Adam Silver Eyes January Start To Next Season