Albania sends more peacekeepers to Iraq

05/09/2008

TIRANA, Albania -- A new contingent of 120 soldiers left for Iraq on Thursday (September 4th), bringing the total number of Albanian troops there to 240. The new contingent will help maintain peace and security in Mosul and Baghdad. "Albania feels proud of its peacekeepers and its co-operation with the US," Prime Minister Sali Berisha said at the departure ceremony, adding that peacekeeping troops are important to Albania's NATO aspirations.

In other news Thursday, farmers across the country filed lawsuits against a company that sold them failed corn seeds, seeking compensation for financial damage. Some farmers complained they lost hectares of crops after planting the seeds. The Albanian trading company Agro says it imported the seeds from a French company that is one the biggest suppliers in Europe. (Gazeta shqiptare, Tvsh, BalkanWeb, Xinhua - 05/09/08; Top Channel, BalkanWeb, Klan, Alsat - 04/09/08)