March 26, 2000
Paris - A French colonel suspected of leaking sensitive classified documents from the Kosovo peacekeeping force to the news media has been arrested, relatives said today. Col. Jean-Michel Mechain, 46, was arrested on Friday by the French domestic intelligence service, his relatives said. He was the senior legal adviser to the French forces in Kosovo until five weeks ago. According to press reports, he was recalled to France from Kosovo under suspicion of leaking sensitive documents that implied there was a concern among French officers that the chief of Kosovo's United Nations civilian administration, Bernard Kouchner, was biased against Serbs.
The NATO bombing of Yugoslavia last year was carried out after Serbian forces moved into Kosovo to put down a separatist rebellion by Albanians, who make up most of the province's population.
According to newspaper reports on Friday, Colonel Mechain and a Kosovo Albanian identified as his girlfriend were suspected of having leaked confidential military documents to the French press. The woman was reportedly a translator for the French commanding officer in Kosovo. The newspapers said that Mr. Kouchner, who is French, had asked Colonel Mechain to take a job in his office, but the Ministry of Defense had refused "on security grounds." Documents recently leaked to the satirical weekly Le Canard Enchaí®né and the news magazine Le Point suggested that many French Army officers in Kosovo were exasperated at what they saw as Mr. Kouchner's bias against Serbs.
Colonel Mechain was slightly injured on Thursday in a fight in Paris with members of the French military security service. The colonel, not in uniform, was walking alone through Paris when he spotted eight people, including a woman, following him. He approached one of them, and there was a scuffle. He was treated at a military hospital. He lodged an accusation of assault with civilian police officers.
Civilian detectives later arrested two men who were identified as officers of the military security service. The other members of the group were identified as military security operatives. Under French law, military security is responsible "for the security and the protection of sensitive personnel, information, equipment and bases."
On Thursday, Defense Minister Alain Richard confirmed that the service had been following Colonel Mechain and that there had "been some kind of a fight, but it was difficult to say who attacked whom" and that "justice would take its course." Mr. Richard said that Colonel Mechain had been recalled from Kosovo because "there were reasons for him not to remain there."
