Pristina - Kosovo on Wednesday began creating its own secret service, appointing former police officer Bashkim Smakaj as director of the Kosovo Intelligence Agency (KIA).

President Fatmir Sejdiu and Prime Minister Hashim Thaci made the appointment at a ceremony in Pristina, two months later than expected since Kosovo had to wait for international approval.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia last February and was recognized by more than 50 countries, including the United States and most of the European Union. Serbia, backed by Russia, however, bitterly opposes Kosovo independence.

Pristina  - A grenade slammed into the barracks of the Kosovo Security Force (KSF) Thursday night, a day after the fledgling army of the volatile new country was formed.

Police in Pristina said nobody was injured in the explosion in the attack in Pec, a town in western Kosovo. A grenade, apparently fired from a launcher, hit the roof of one of the KSF buildings.

Police did not speculate on the motives for the attack and were still investigating Friday morning.

Pristina - Kosovo's former premier, now opposition leader Ramush Haradinaj Thursday promised to take the authorities to court and force parliamentary elections in
2009, in accordance with a UN- brokered plan.

He said he would file a motion with the upcoming constitutional court to force the polls, in line with a plan hammered out for Kosovo by the United Nations envoy Martti Ahtisaari.

Ahtisaari's plan was endorsed by Western nations and used as a blueprint for Kosovo's secession from Serbia last year, although the negotiations he mediated collapsed.

Pristina/Belgrade - Less than a year after declaring independence from Serbia, Kosovo Wednesday created its own security force, drawing a sharp protest from Belgrade and deepening unease among Kosovo's minority Serbs.

The Kosovo Security Force (KSF) is to replace the Kosovo Protection Corps, which was set up in September 1999 as an unarmed, disaster-relief organization by a UN administration.

The KSF is to comprise 2,500 lightly armed permanent and 800 reserve troops and should reflect the ethnic composition of the population. A Kosovo police force was set up earlier and it operates along an international police presence.

Pristina, Kosovo - Kosovo's new multi-ethnic security force will be launched next week, almost a year after Kosovo declared independence from Serbia, the government in Pristina announced Friday.

The Kosovo Security Force (KSF) will replace the civilian Kosovo Protection Crops (KPC) and begin its operations on January 21.

"I can confirm that the KSF will officially start its mission on January 21, after the process of deactivation of the KPC ends on January
20," Kosovo Security Minister Fehmi Mujota told reporters in Pristina.

Pristina  - General Sylejman Selimi is to become the first chief of staff of the Kosovo army, according to a decree signed on Saturday by President Fatmir Sejdiuin.

NATO forces will help train the fledging army, which is expected to have a strength of 2,500.

Serbian Defence Minister Dragan Sutanovac called the formation of the army "unacceptable." Kosovo was a Serbian province under UN administration when it unilaterally declared independence in February.