SWITZERLAND BARS ETHNIC ALBANIAN LEADER

BERN, Switzerland - Swiss authorities on Friday banned the head of an ethnic Albanian rebel group from living in Switzerland, saying he had used the country as a propaganda and fund-raising base in his battle against Macedonia.

Gafurr Adili previously was granted asylum in Switzerland, but was arrested in the Albanian capital, Tirana, on July 1 and is still detained there. The Swiss Federal Office for Refugees revoked his refugee status at the end of July, but such decisions do not lead to an automatic ban on living in Switzerland.

The Justice Ministry on Friday said Adili's presence in the country "could damage Switzerland's relations with Macedonia and other countries that, like Switzerland, are committed to a peaceful solution in the Balkans and condemn the terrorist activities of Albanian nationalists."

Adili is the political head of the Albanian National Army, which seeks to unite Albania with ethnic Albanian-populated Kosovo, as well as portions of Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro where ethnic Albanians live. The United Nations (news - web sites) has declared the group a terrorist organization and its leaders also have been blacklisted by the U.S. government.

Adili previously was granted asylum in Switzerland, but was arrested in the Albanian capital, Tirana, on July 1 and is still detained there. The Swiss Federal Office for Refugees revoked his refugee status at the end of July, but such decisions do not in practice lead to an automatic ban on living here.

The Justice Ministry said Adili will now be barred from returning to Switzerland.

The Albanian National Army took part with other groups in a six-month war in northwest Macedonia in 2001, saying it was fighting for broader rights for the ethnic Albanian community, which represents nearly one-third of Macedonia's 2 million people. The conflict ended with a Western-brokered peace deal that gave the minority broader constitutional rights, and some rebels later joined a multiethnic coalition government.

Earlier this year, the Albanian National Army renewed calls for an uprising in Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro.

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