Uskoks
The Uskoks (Croatian: Uskoci, pronounced [ǔsko̞t͡si]; singular: Uskok; names in other languages) were irregular soldiers in Habsburg Croatia that inhabited areas on the eastern Adriatic coast and surrounding territories during the Ottoman wars in Europe. Etymologically, the word uskoci itself means "the ones who jumped in" ("the ones who ambushed") in Croatian. Bands of Uskoks fought a guerrilla war against the Ottomans, and they formed small units and rowed swift boats. Since the uskoks were checked on land and were rarely paid their annual subsidy, they resorted to acts of piracy.
The exploits of the Uskoks contributed to a renewal of war between Venice and the Ottoman Empire (1571–1573). An extremely curious picture of contemporary manners is presented by the Venetian agents, whose reports on this war resemble a knightly chronicle of the Middle Ages. These chronicles contain information pertaining to single combats, tournaments and other chivalrous adventures.
Many of these troops served abroad. At the Battle of Lepanto in 1571, for example, a Dalmatian squadron assisted the allied fleets of Spain, Venice, Austria and the Papal States to crush the Ottoman navy. After a series of incidents that escalated into the Uskok War (1615–1618), the Uskok activity in their stronghold of Senj mostly ceased.
USKOK
USKOK (Croatian: Ured za suzbijanje korupcije i organiziranog kriminaliteta, English: Croatian State Prosecutor's Office for the Suppression of Organized Crime and Corruption) is a body of the Croatian criminal justice system. USKOK is attached to the State Attorney office and specializes in investigations related to corruption and organized crime.
USKOK was formed in December 2001 and its headquarters are located in Zagreb. The bureau's name is a bacronym from "uskok", a term used for a type of Croatian militia men, who had fought against the Ottoman Empire between the early 16th and 17th century.
Since 2009, USKOK has a counterpart in the Criminal Police Directorate which has an (intentionally) very similar name - the Police National USKOK (Croatian: Policijski nacionalni USKOK), as well as in the judiciary - the Court Departments for Criminal Cases in the Jurisdiction of USKOK (Croatian: Sudski odjeli za postupanje u predmetima kaznenih djela iz nadležnosti USKOK-a). Described as "one of the world's most formidable anti-corruption outfits", the agency has prosecuted 2,000 individuals and achieved a 95% conviction rate (2012), including former Prime Minister Ivo Sanader.
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Jesse Cook
by: Jesse CookWell I don't know why you come here
But you can't stay
Let's make that clear
Your eyes are closed but you don't speak
Is it comfort that you seek
Maybe we can just pretend
Leaves are falling down like rain
And I look to you again
Would you come away with me
Leaves are falling down like rain
You can see right through my pain
Like a window to the sea
Now your standing in the rain
That old feelings back again
But I don't know you anymore
The love I have is from before
And it's falling
Falling
Falling
Leaves are falling down like rain
And I look to you again
But it's only just a sea
Leaves are falling down like rain
You can see right through my pain
Like a window to the sea