U.N. in western Kosovo transfers control of police responsibilities to local force

Associated Press, Jun 24, 2005 5:59 AM

PRISTINA, Serbia-Montenegro-United Nations authorities in Kosovo handed over the command of policing in the west of the province to a local force, a statement said.

The transition is part of the process of handing over security responsibilities as the time nears to try to resolve the disputed status of the U.N.-administered province.

So far two of five regional police headquarters have been transferred from the U.N. to the Kosovo Police Service.

Kosovo has been administered by the United Nations and patrolled by NATO-led peacekeepers since a 1999 NATO air war halted the Serb crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists.