Pristina  - The European Union's mission in Kosovo began deploying personnel Tuesday with the ultimate aim of helping the territory enforce the rule of law.

The mission, the Eulex, said it would comprise 1,900 foreign officials when fully deployed throughout Kosovo, building from the 1,400 there at the launch.

Some 1,100 local staff would also join the Eulex to help Kosovo establish the elusive rule of law by coaching, advising and in some cases ordering local authorities.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia in February, but remains plagued by ethnic hatred, segregation, crime and corruption, thriving amid widespread poverty and a staggering rate of unemployment.

Pristina - The mission sent by the European Union to Kosovo to replace a UN administration and help Pristina impose law and order becomes operational Tuesday - amid much uncertainty and some hostility.

Mostly ethnic Albanian Kosovo declared independence from Serbia last February 17, eight years after UN took over instead of the Belgrade authorities, which were ousted by NATO.

Now the EU mission, the Eulex, is to start taking over from the UN in policing, customs and justice, though it remains unclear how some 2,000 officials are to function within a complex and still unrefined mandate.

Pristina - A European Union mission designed to oversee law enforcement in volatile Kosovo will begin operations on December 9, a week later than planned, a spokesman said Tuesday.

"We are ready, but there is some fine tuning to be settled first," said Viktor Reuter, spokesman for the Eulex mission, referring to wrangling between Belgrade, Pristina, the EU and UN.

Pristina  - Three German intelligence agents accused of throwing an explosive device at a European Union office in Kosovo left the territory on Saturday, witnesses said.

The trio took off in a small plane from the military airport in the capital, Pristina, after spending the night in the German embassy, following their release on Friday evening.

The three men, members of the BND foreign intelligence service, were kept in detention for 10 days despite their protestations of innocence.

Germany, the second biggest donor to the new ethnic Albanian republic after the United States, was angered by the arrest, which it said was "a breach of the rule of law."

Pristina - Kosovo's Supreme Court decided on Thursday to hand over the case of three Germans suspected of bombing an international office in Pristina to an international judge.

The Germans, allegedly intelligence agents, were arrested in connection with the November 14 bombing of the European Union representative office in Pristina.

Kosovo officials said Wednesday night that they may be released due to a lack of evidence. A special panel of Kosovo's Supreme Court had been set on Thursday to decide whether or not they will be released.

Pristina - An unknown Albanian group on Thursday claimed responsibility for a bomb attack on a European Union office in Kosovo earlier this month and warned of attacks against the Serb minority.

Three Germans, allegedly Berlin's intelligence agents, were arrested in connection with the November 14 bombing of the EU office, but were expected to be released Thursday due to lack of evidence.