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Serbia: Accord Signed With Albanians To End School Boycott


Belgrade, 2 September 1996 (RFE/RL) - Serbia says it has signed a deal with leaders of the ethnic Albanian population in the troubled province of Kosovo to reintegrate Albanian students into mainstream education.

The Albanian Democratic League of Kosovo (LDK), led by Ibrahim Rugova, pulled its students out of state-run education six years ago in protest after the Serbian administration revoked the province's autonomous status.

No details were announced beyond news that a joint commission would be set up to implement the accord reached between Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic and LDK leader Rugova.

Today marks the first day of school in Serbia, but it is unclear when Albanian students in Kosovo could return.

Diplomats have long regarded tensions between Kosovo's Albanian majority, which outnumbers Serbs by nine to one, and the Belgrade administration as potentially the most explosive unresolved ethnic conflict in the Balkans.
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