Gunmen fire at ethnic Albanian leader of Macedonia political party

SKOPJE, Macedonia-Gunmen shot at the car of an ethnic Albanian party leader while he was campaigning for the June 1 general election, police said Monday.

Ali Ahmeti, leader of the Democratic Union for Integration, or DUI, was not hurt in the shooting near northwest city of Tetovo.

Police also reported that four DUI regional offices were damaged in separate attacks Monday, three involving gunfire and the fourth by a hand grenade. No one was hurt, authorities said.

Ahmeti described the attack against him as an assassination attempt. "God wanted me to survive today," he told reporters shortly after the attack.

Police said Ahmeti's car was found sprayed with automatic gunfire, but gave no other details of the incident and reported no injuries or arrests.

Ahmeti said he had heard shots while visiting a village near Tetovo, and had just entered his parked car when it came under attack.

He hinted he believed supporters of a rival ethnic Albanian party, the Democratic Party of Albanians, or DPA, were behind the shooting.

"I never had any bullets for Albanians, nor will I ever have any," he said, suggesting he would never attack other ethnic Albanians, as he suspected his rivals had.

Ethnic Albanians account for about a quarter of Macedonia's population of 2.1 million. Fierce rivalry exists between the two main minority parties.

Macedonian President Branko Crvenkovski appealed for calm at the weekend, arguing that violence would derail the country's efforts to join NATO and eventually become an EU member.

"Anything other than free and fair elections in a peaceful atmosphere would be a disaster for our aspirations and the country's future. Irregular elections would not only represent a standstill, but take us several steps backward," Crvenkovski said.

The U.S. Embassy in Skopje made a similar plea. "Successful elections are vitally important for Macedonia's future," the embassy said in a statement issued before the attack against Ahmeti.

Thousands protest alleged assassination attempt against ethnic Albanian opposition leader

KONSTANTIN TESTORIDES Associated Press Writer

Released : Tuesday, May 13, 2008 8:43 AM

SKOPJE, Macedonia-Thousands of supporters of a major ethnic Albanian opposition party demonstrated in the northwestern city of Tetovo Tuesday to protest an apparent assassination attempt against party leader and former rebel commander Ali Ahmeti.

Gunmen sprayed Ahmeti's car with automatic gunfire in Tetovo Monday evening while he was campaigning ahead of June 1 general elections. He was not hurt, but a bystander was injured.

At least eight of his party's regional offices were also attacked, seven with gunfire and one with a hand grenade. No injuries were reported from those incidents.

Ahmeti, who heads the Democratic Union for Integration party, said the attack against his car was an attempt on his life, and implied that a rival ethnic Albanian political party, the Democratic Party of Albanians, was to blame. Both the European Union and the OSCE condemned the violence.

About 10,000 DUI supporters thronged the main square of Tetovo, an ethnic Albanian majority city. No violence was reported.

"DUI is protesting today because of the DPA's attempt to assassinate our leader," said Izet Mexhiti, a senior party official and the head of the DUI's election campaign.

He accused DPA leader Menduh Thaci and Macedonian special police forces of attempting "to intimidate the electorate not to vote. "We want to say today we are not afraid and we will continue our mission."

The DPA denied any involvement and issued a statement condemning the violence.

It also criticized the planned demonstration, saying it would serve only to stir tension among ethnic Albanians.

"We appeal people not to participate in a protests today because it is a call for Albanians to start killing each other," Macedonian radio quoted DPA's election campaign official Ferxhi Selami as saying.

The European Union condemned the violence. A statement issued by the Slovenian Embassy in Skopje on behalf of the EU called for calm. Slovenia currently holds the EU rotating presidency.

"Violence has no place in an election campaign," it said.

The head of the OSCE monitoring mission in Skopje, Giorgio Radicati, said his organization was "concerned by the worsening of the security situation in the northwestern part of the country." He said the OSCE would continue to monitor events and how authorities address the situation.

"We hope to see thorough investigations of the incidents that have occurred and measures taken to ensure the safety of all those participating in the election campaign," Radicati said.

Krisztina Nagy, EU spokeswoman on enlargement, said Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn "underlines the need for such violent actions to be immediately investigated and prosecuted."

She added that "the organization of free and fair elections is an essential criteria for EU membership."

Police said Ahmeti's car was found sprayed with automatic gunfire, and two nearby cars were also damaged. Authorities could not provide any more details of the attack, or comment on the status of the injured bystander.

A 31-year-old man was arrested in connection with the shooting late Monday in Tetovo, police spokesman Ivo Kotevski told The Associated Press.

Ethnic Albanians account for about a quarter of Macedonia's population of 2.1 million. Fierce rivalry exists between the two main Albanian parties.

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