Merovci tells how 28 years ago a Serb tried to kill Rugova

Adnan Merovci has shown how 28 years ago President Ibrahim Rugova has survived an assassination that was carried out by a Serb.

Rugova's close associate shows that, on the way, following the first parliamentary and presidential elections with May 24th 1992, shortly before entering a building in “Greed”, a Serb has thrown a large jar of pickles from the height in order to hit the LDK chairman, Kosovo reports.

After the mayor voted, and with the follow-up group we returned him to his apartment in Mokrikash, shortly before he arrived at the bloc's entrance, suddenly, half a meter before the mayor fell a tool that we later realized had been a huge pickle jar (about 10 kg)”.

I later did the right research and found out who had thrown that jar. There had been a Serb family, which in spite of bitterness and inadequacy and pathological hatred against Albanians had wanted to kill the mayor, just the day he was elected head of Kosovo. Only the great God saved us from this great danger”

The following can be read the full story of Merovci:

institutional memory!

Today, 28 years ago!

The first parliamentary and presidential elections (May 24th 1992). Thank God we got rid of an assassination the same day!

Following the Declaration of Independence, the Cachanic Constitution and Referendum for Kosovo's independence, on 24 May 1992, throughout Kosovo, multiparty parliamentary and presidential elections were organised. It was a hard work this day. They worked many people involved in the process. The communication centre was right at the small building of the Kosovo Writers' Association. I mainly dealt with logistics, with special emphasis on election day, especially the vote that the mayor would make at the polling station in “Greed”, where the Mayor lived, in the building of the former”Ramiz Sadik”. On May 24, 1992, we had taken all measures to make sure that the president's vote was done smoothly. We were mobilized and many people engaged to the Mayor in several cars.

At the poll we arrived around 10:00, where there were many people, journalists, voters and sympathies.

The installed Serbian regime in Kosovo openly did not prevent the election, but the countries made obstacles and the consequences felt by questioning Albanians in the so-called “informational talks”, which were very unpleasant and often ended up with violence, injuries, imprisonment and even murder. The situation was tense, and except by Serb regime exhibitors installed in Kosovo, the danger came from Serb citizens who were aggressive, institutionally armed and in every situation were protected by the regime. They did everything and the epilogue was known, the fault is Albanians. “Samo mtav shiptar you are dobar shiptar”, (Only Albanian dead, is good Albanian), wrote at the second entry of “Greed” where RUGOVA lived.

After the mayor voted, and with the escort group we returned him to the apartment in “Greed”, just before you arrived at the entrance of the block, suddenly half a meter before the mayor fell a tool that we later realized had been a huge pickle jar (about 10kg). Whoever this jar thrown into the head would have fatal consequences. God loved and threw it, a Serb, from the high floors I discovered later, as well as from which apartment he was thrown, had not made the exact calculation when the jar had to be thrown, so that he could fall on the head, who else but Chairman RUGOVA.

Great God saved us all from certain fatality. Found in such a situation, when at speed the perception of shooting at what this device was, from the beginning it seemed like explosives, I reacted instinctively, wanting to evacuate the mayor, covered it with body, wanting to put it into the entrance to get it out of this dangerous place. Returning was the risk of another drop, the entry into the building was another danger. I didn't know what would be waiting for us in the dark entrance corridor of the building. The chairman has later explained the occasion as a danger more than what happened. ” Adnan quickly and powerfully caught me forward by summing me up in the introduction. He almost told me the letters”, he told his associates. This was indeed a great disaster, so we were saved. Later I did the right research and found out who had thrown that jar. There had been a Serb family, which in spite of bitterness and inadequacy and pathological hatred against Albanians had wanted to kill the mayor, just the day he was elected head of Kosovo. Only God saved us from this great danger.

The Mayor's mother, Sofa, unable to go to the polls herself, organized the mobile team at the helm with Jakup SHALA, who, like in many other specific cases, went to her apartment and enabled the vote from the apartment. It was a very important day, because the first democratic elections in Kosovo history were being organised. On this day I had engaged radio-connected communication to the monitoring group with”voki-toki”, which we used publicly for the first time. It was a big risk because we were filmed by different journalists and radio connections were strictly forbidden tools, like having guns. After the vote we returned to the mayor's apartment. The security group settled in a nearby residence with the mayor, where I had booked the night before to stay all night.