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Kosovo to Open Monday Embassy in Jerusalem

Part of the preparations in Pristina in February during the establishment of diplomatic ties between Kosovo and Israel (AFP)
Part of the preparations in Pristina in February during the establishment of diplomatic ties between Kosovo and Israel (AFP)
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Kosovo to Open Monday Embassy in Jerusalem

Part of the preparations in Pristina in February during the establishment of diplomatic ties between Kosovo and Israel (AFP)
Part of the preparations in Pristina in February during the establishment of diplomatic ties between Kosovo and Israel (AFP)

A ceremony marking Kosovo’s embassy opening will be held in central Jerusalem on Monday, reported Israel Hayom.

Kosovo, with the Muslim-majority territory, is set to become the third country to open an embassy in Jerusalem. Senior diplomats from both countries will attend the event.

Israel and Kosovo established diplomatic ties in early February, and officials signed joint declarations separately in Jerusalem and Pristina.

Kosovo’s Foreign Minister Meliza Haradinaj-Stublla and its Israeli counterpart Gabi Ashkenazi took part in the virtual event, which was the first diplomatic relationship to be established over Zoom.

Kosovo’s formal request to open an embassy in Jerusalem was also approved then.

In September, former US President Donald Trump announced at a summit originally organized to strike a deal between Kosovo and Serbia that Kosovo and Israel would establish diplomatic ties.

But the most standout part of the summit was an announcement by Kosovo that it would mutually recognize Israel, and Serbia saying it would follow Washington’s lead in moving its embassy to Jerusalem.

In exchange for setting up its mission in Jerusalem, Kosovo gets recognition from Israel, as it seeks to further legitimize its 2008 declaration of independence from its former war foe Serbia.

The new tie between Israel and Kosovo has outraged Serbia, which has refused to recognize Kosovo’s declaration of independence.

The European Union had earlier voiced regret at Kosovo’s decision to open an embassy in Jerusalem, noting that it diverged from the EU position on Jerusalem.

All embassies of the EU countries in Israel, as well as the EU delegation, are located in Tel Aviv, based on the corresponding UN Security Council resolutions and European Council decisions, it explained.

On Thursday, the Czech Republic opened a diplomatic office in Jerusalem. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis and Ashkenazi attended the inauguration ceremony.

The Palestinian Foreign Ministry called Prague’s move “a blatant attack on the Palestinian people and their rights, a flagrant violation of international law,” and said it would harm peace prospects.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed during a trilateral summit meeting with Babis and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban the steps taken by both countries to open up official missions in Jerusalem.

“We appreciate the fact that they’ve opened up missions in Jerusalem and also that they assist us on the international level as true friends do,” he said.

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Red Cross Concerned by Drone Attacks on Critical Infrastructure in Sudan

People collect food at a location set up by a local humanitarian organization to donate meals and medication to people displaced by the war in Sudan, in Meroe in the country's Northern State, on January 9, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
People collect food at a location set up by a local humanitarian organization to donate meals and medication to people displaced by the war in Sudan, in Meroe in the country's Northern State, on January 9, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
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Red Cross Concerned by Drone Attacks on Critical Infrastructure in Sudan

People collect food at a location set up by a local humanitarian organization to donate meals and medication to people displaced by the war in Sudan, in Meroe in the country's Northern State, on January 9, 2025. (Photo by AFP)
People collect food at a location set up by a local humanitarian organization to donate meals and medication to people displaced by the war in Sudan, in Meroe in the country's Northern State, on January 9, 2025. (Photo by AFP)

The Red Cross raised alarm on Thursday at the growing use of drone attacks by warring parties on hospitals, electricity and water infrastructure in Sudan, which it said was contributing to widespread human rights violations.

Some 70-80% of hospitals in Sudan were not running and there were concerns cholera could surge due to damage caused by the war to water infrastructure, the International Committee of the Red Cross told reporters in Geneva.

"A recent drone attack stopped all the electricity provision in an area close to Khartoum, which means critical infrastructure is being damaged," said Patrick Youssef, the Red Cross's Regional Director for Africa, in a new report.

"There is a clear increased use of these technologies, drones - to be in the hands of everyone - which increases the impact on the local population and the intensity of attacks," Youssef said.

After two years of fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, some people are returning to Khartoum after they were forced to flee when war broke out on April 15, 2023 amidst a ongoing power struggle between the army and the RSF ahead of a transition to civilian rule.

Some 12 million people have been displaced by the conflict since 2023.

"We have seen violations of the law left, right and center,” Youssef said, urging the warring parties to allow the Red Cross access so it can offer humanitarian support and document atrocities.

In March, aid groups told Reuters that the RSF had placed new constraints on aid deliveries to territories where it was seeking to cement its control. Aid groups have also accused the army of denying or hindering access to RSF-controlled areas.

Both sides in the conflict deny impeding aid.