More than 25 years have passed since the armed conflict in Kosovo, and the families of over 1,600 missing persons are still waiting for answers about the fate and whereabouts of their loved ones.
Marking the occasion of this day, the Regional Protection Coordinator for the Balkans and Chair of the Working Group on Missing Persons for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Ms. Aurelie Gautier, said, “We want the families of missing persons to know that they are not alone, that their loved ones are not forgotten, and that we will continue to do our utmost to help them obtain the answers and support they deserve. ”
The ICRC has continued its research into international and national archives that may contain documentation and information that may assist in the search, exhumation and identification process of missing persons. A thorough analysis of these documents is continuously conducted, and analytical reports with recommendations are regularly shared with both sides, in an effort to clarify the fate and whereabouts of as many missing persons as possible.
“This year, in addition to the resumption of the meetings at the technical level, the ICRC has chaired two working sessions of the Working Group and the parties have taken on commitments to address several alleged gravesite locations. I take the opportunity to call upon the authorities on both sides to urgently fulfill their commitments, uphold international humanitarian law, and to increase their efforts in solving this humanitarian problem which continues to affect families and societies at large more than two decades after the end of the armed conflict,” Ms. Gautier said.
The issue of missing persons remains one of the most damaging and long-lasting humanitarian consequences of armed conflicts, other situations of violence, disasters, or migration.
In line with international humanitarian law, families of missing people have the right to know what has happened to their loved ones, and the States are obliged to provide them with answers and support.
For further information, please contact: Albiona Salihu, ICRC Pristina, M: +383 44 195 664
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