SERBIA REPATRIATES FINAL SETS OF HUMAN REMAINS TO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PRISTINA 000584

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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KCRM PGOV PINR KDEM UNMIK YI KJUS EAID
SUBJECT: SERBIA REPATRIATES FINAL SETS OF HUMAN REMAINS TO
KOSOVO

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SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED, PROTECT ACCORDINGLY


1. (SBU) SUMMARY. In an emotional handover on June 30,
Serbia repatriated to Kosovo the final sets of human remains
found in known mass grave sites in Serbia. UNMIK's Office of
Missing Persons and Forensics (OMPF) is now working to
perform autopsies on the remains and return the few that were
identified in Belgrade to their families. The rest of the
remains will stay at the OMPF morgue awaiting DNA
identification matches from the International Commission for
Missing Persons (ICMP). The pace of work at OMPF is frenetic
and operating funds are quickly evaporating. END SUMMARY.


2. (SBU) On June 30 PolOff attended the final repatriation
of human remains found in mass graves in Serbia at the
Merdare Gate 3 administrative boundary line crossing,
coordinated by UNMIK's Office of Missing Persons and
Forensics (OMPF). Several hundred family members of missing
persons attended, along with representatives of the
International Commission for Missing Persons (ICMP),the
International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC),the
Pristina government's commission and working group for
missing persons, and Natasa Kandic of the Humanitarian Law
Center of Serbia.


3. (SBU) Despite soaring temperatures, the Serbian
government sent the remains back to Kosovo in a small,
un-refrigerated, soft-topped cargo truck. The Chief of the
Belgrade Forensics Institute accompanied the remains, along
with other Serbian government officials, Serbian police, and
Ministry of Interior (MUP) officers and Krassimer Nikolov,
OMPF's Belgrade representative. On arrival, the truck was
driven into one of the two large tents OMPF maintains at
Merdare for these purposes. Family members waited in the
other tent, carrying flowers and pictures of their loved
ones. Kosovo Protection Corps (KPC) and members of UNMIK
civil police (CIVPOL) stood by.


4. (SBU) Some family members whistled derisively when
government officials from Pristina,s Provisional
Institution's of Self Government (PISG) arrived. Some said
they will cease cooperation with the PISG commission on
missing persons now that the final known remains have been
returned.


5. (SBU) While hidden from view inside the tent, OMPF
officials unloaded and inventoried the body bags and their
contents. The bags contained mixed bones, clothing and soil.
Some bags were simply labeled "body parts." OMPF replaced
some of the ripped and damaged bags with new ones, and
cleaned them up the best they could. Then OMPF invited the
family members and media to come in while the KPC stood
ceremonial guard. Afterwards the KPC took custody of the
remains and delivered them to the OMPF mortuary in
Rahovec/Orahovac. (NOTE. Although OMPF has a new facility
in Pristina, there are technical problems with the mortuary
equipment. Most of the staff has already transferred to
Pristina, but they are still using the old morgue in Rahovec.
END NOTE.).


6. (SBU) Brasey told PolOff that Serbia sent more sets of
remains than expected, 131 body bags versus 110. 110 of the
bags were from the mass graves at Batajnica, and the extra 21
bags were marked Perucac (Bajina Basta). She said the
Serbian government has already extracted DNA and sent it to
the ICMP for identification, and a few of them have so far
returned positive matches with ICMP's blood database.
Nikolov told PolOff that in the past Serbia has only sent
identified remains, and is technically violating its own laws
by returning unidentified remains. Brasey added that the GOS
is still waiting for a court order to enable it to return
personal documents found with the bodies in the mass graves.


7. (SBU) COMMENT. OMPF has its hands full trying to sort,

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identify, perform autopsies and issue death certificates for
the remains returned from Serbia, in addition to carrying out
ongoing exhumations. On one occasion in late June, OMPF was
unable to comply with a CIVPOL request to secure a scene in
Podujevo where someone found a skull in the woods, because
OMPF was carrying out an exhumation that day and did not have
the manpower to do both simultaneously. OMPF officials say
they desperately need the services of an additional forensic
pathologist, but have only 90,000 euros left in the bank.
END COMMENT.


8. (U) Post clears this message in its entirety for release
to Special Envoy Martti Ahtisaari.
GOLDBERG