Tagesnachrichten 27. September 1998
     von dpa, from ALBANEWS and others
     News of the day - September 27, 1998
     Kosova Information Center : Daily Report No 1565

         Die Bibel sagt  -  The Bible says
 

If available you find on this page  -  Soweit verfügbar finden Sie auf dieser Seite     1. Meldungen von dpa    2. Remarks - Hints - Special informations    3. Reports about deportation and persons repatriated to Kosova  in deutsch und englisch     4. Daily Report from KIC  (Kosova Information Center)    5. news from ARTA  (Koha ditore)    6. news from RFE/RL NEWSLINE    7. news from Fr. Sava  (Decani Monastery)    8. Reports from Human Rights Organisations        especially CDHRF  (Council for the Defence of Human Rights and Freedoms, Prishtina)    9. news from ATA /ENTER  and so on  10. eventual additional press news  Link to Background-information  Link to earlier news - so far as room is given by my provider on the server  The Bible says  -  Die Bibel sagt

 

1. Meldungen von dpa

Meldung vom 27.09.1998 19:04  http://seite1.web.de/show/360E701C.NL1/

Cohen: Kosovo-Konflikt könnte Demokratisierung in Bosnien gefährden
Sarajevo (dpa) - Die US-Regierung ist bereit, mit allen bei den Wahlen in Bosnien vor zwei Wochen gewählten Politikern zusammenzuarbeiten. Voraussetzung sei allerdings, daß diese das Friedensabkommen von Dayton anerkennen, sagte US-Verteidigungsminister William Cohen am Sonntag in der bosnischen Hauptstadt Sarajevo.
     Die Wahlen seien frei und gerecht gewesen. In den vergangenen zweieinhalb Jahren habe Bosnien große Fortschritte in Richtung Demokratie gemacht. Der Prozeß könnte aber durch die Kosovo-Krise gefährdet werden.
     «Die NATO bereitet zur Zeit Pläne über verschiedene Arten von Lufteinsätzen vor, um die Resolution des UNO-Sicherheitsrates zum Kosovo durchzusetzen. (...) Sollte Milosevic den Forderungen nicht folgen, würde ein militärischer Schlag gegen ihn notwendig», sagte Cohen.
     Die UNO-Resolution sei noch kein Ultimatum, lasse dem jugoslawischen Präsidenten Slobodan Milosevic jedoch nicht viel Zeit zu handeln. Noch vor Einbruch des Winters müßten zahlreiche obdachlose Kosovo-Albaner in ihre Häuser zurückkehren können.
     Am (morgigen) Montag wird Cohen in Rom mit der italienischen Regierung über die neueste Entwicklung in der Kosovo-Krise beraten. Dabei geht es vor allem darum, welche Staaten sich an einem Luftschlag der NATO gegen die serbischen Stellungen beteiligen würden.
     Italien wäre von einem militärischen Vorgehen besonders betroffen, da die NATO-Flugzeuge vor allem von Flugplätzen in Italien aus starten würden. Die NATO hatte vergangene Woche nach Verabschiedung einer Kosovo-Resolution durch den UNO-Sicherheitsrat mit dem Aufbau einer Luftstreitmacht für ein militärisches Eingreifen begonnen.
© dpa

SFOR-Truppe in Bosnien nimmt gesuchten Kriegsverbrecher fest
Sarajevo/Brüssel/Den Haag (dpa) - Soldaten der internationalen SFOR-Friedenstruppen haben am Sonntag in Bosnien einen seit Jahren als Kriegsverbrecher gesuchten Serben festgenommen. Die Aktion verlief ohne Zwischenfälle, teilte das SFOR-Hauptquartier in Sarajevo mit. Der 41 Jahre alte ehemalige Polizeichef Stevan Todorovic wurde an das UNO-Kriegsverbrecher-Tribunal in Den Haag überstellt. Er soll dort Anfang dieser Woche erstmals den Richtern vorgeführt werden.
     Todorovic ist wegen Verbrechen gegen die Menschlichkeit und schweren Verstößen gegen das Kriegs- und Völkerrecht angeklagt. Er soll 1992 die Vertreibung und Ermordung Tausender Moslems und Kroaten aus seinem Heimatort Bosanski Samac mitgeplant und ausgeführt haben. Konkret werden ihm Mord, Folter und Vergewaltigung zur Last gelegt.
     Drei andere mutmaßliche Kriegsverbrecher aus Bosanski Samac hatten sich dem Tribunal bereits freiwillig gestellt. Insgesamt sind nun 30 Verdächtige in Den Haag inhaftiert.
     NATO-Generalsekretär Javier Solana wies in Brüssel darauf hin, die Festnahme Todorovics sei eine weitere Warnung an alle noch flüchtigen Kriegsverbrecher in Bosnien. Sie sollten sich umgehend stellen. Die Chef-Anklägerin des UNO-Tribunals für das ehemalige Jugoslawien, Louise Arbour, sagte im deutschen Nachrichten-Magazin «Der Spiegel»: «Wir kriegen sie alle über kurz oder lang. Mann für Mann müssen sich vor diesem Gericht verantworten.»
© dpa

Südost-Europäische Friedenstruppe beschlossen
Skopje (dpa) - Die Verteidigungsminister von sieben südost-europäischen Staaten haben die Gründung einer eigenen Friedenstruppe für die Region beschlossen.
     Wie die mazedonische Presse am Sonntag berichtete, wurde das entsprechende Abkommen dazu am Vortag von den Ministern in Skopje unterzeichnet. Nach den Vorstellungen der Minister soll diese multinationale Truppe künftig «zu Sicherheit und Stabilität in der Region» beitragen.
     Die Unterzeichnerstaaten sind Mazedonien, Griechenland, Bulgarien, Albanien, Rumänien, Türkei und Italien. Nähere Angaben, wie etwa die geplante Personalstärke der neuen Truppe, wurden zunächst nicht genannt.
     Die Ministerrunde, an deren Gesprächen sich auch US-Verteidigungsminister William Cohen beteiligte, begrüßte die in der Vorwoche verabschiedete UNO-Resolution zum Kosovo sowie die darauf eingeleiteten Planungen der NATO für einen eventuellen Einsatz in der südjugoslawischen Krisenregion.
     In der Abschlußerklärung äußerten die Minister ihre «tiefe Besorgnis» mit der Lage im Kosovo und sagten gleichzeitig ihre Unterstützung bei den internationalen Bemühungen zu, eine humanitäre Katastrophe in der Region zu verhindern.
© dpa

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Kosova Information Center
KOSOVA DAILY REPORT # 1565-B
Prishtina, 27 September 1998

Second Edition: 18:00 CET

Identity of 26 Other Albanians, Killed by Serbs in Gllogovc Villages, Established
-The casualty-toll in Serb offensive against Albanian communities north-west of Prishtina since Wednesday reaches over 100;
-More casualties feared in hamlets being still sealed off by Serb troops;
-Many victims were massacred, eye-witnesses claim;
-Serb offensive on some parts of Drenica continued Sunday afternoon;

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - Local human rights groups in Gllogovc confirmed today (Sunday) afternoon they had learned identity of 24 Albanians, killed by the Serb troops in the villages of Western Drenica in the past four days. An eye-witnesses from Dobroshec of Gllogovc village told KIC two neighbors of his were killed on Saturday in the village.
The chapter of the Council for the Defense of Human Rights and Freedoms (CDHRF) in Gllogovc said it has identified the following killed Albanians by Sunday afternoon:
Bajram Krasniqi and Behram Morina residents of Gllobar village; Behxhet Karagja, Skënder Karagja and Rrustem Karagja (mutilated, found in a well) residents of Çikatova e Vjetër; Shyqri Krasniqi, Muhamet Krasniqi, Bashkim Krasniqi, Myftar Kurrumeli, Xhevat Berisha, Ms Hafize Llugani (mentally sick woman), Hamit Lladrofci, Fehmi Lladrovci and his wife Xhevahire Krasniqi, from Gllanasellë village; Brahim Avdulli (his face and body mutilated), Hajdar Ismaili, Selim Myftari and Hamit Zymberi, from Likoshan village; Ms Bahtie Gashi and Sefer Tafaleci (stabbed) from Vërbovc; Mehmet Saliuku and dr. Lec Uka (mutilated) from Gradica; Hajzer Hajdari from Abria e Epërme and his son-in-law from Komoran, his identity still unknown.
An eye-witness, resident of Dobrashevc village, told the KIC today aftrenoon two neighbors of his, Hazir Abdyli and Rifat Fejza, were killed on Saturday. He said the villagers of the Dobroshevc have been hiding in the forests near village, sealed off by heavy Serb troops.
Xhemë Binaku, head of the human rights Council in Gllogovc said bodies of the most killed Albanians were found in the hamlets at the Çiçavica mountain foot, east of Gllogovc. Mr Binaku said he feared that there are other killed Albanians scattered in mountainous area that were attacked by the Serb over the past five days. He said no one yet has had access to village in Çiçavica mountain, including Poklek i Vjetër, Polluzhë, Abri, Baincë, Tërdefc, Vuçak, Negroc. These villages were under heavy Serb fire on Sunday afternoon. The sound of selling could be heard in Prishtina at around 1700 hrs, which is about 35 km far.
***
According to still incomplete accounts, over 100 Albanians have been killed during the unfolding Serb offensive against Albanian communities in western Drenica and Çiçavica mountain foot, straddling the municipalities of Vushtrri, Mitrovica, Skenderaj and Gllogovc.
The Serb attacks were launched lats Wednesday and, by Sunday afternoon, continued with impunity in the western Drenica region, municipality of Gllogovc.
The LDK chapter in Vushtrri and Mitrovica said on Saturday morning that 68 Albanians were confirmed killed by then. 10 Albanians were killed in Galica, 4 in Oshlan, 13 in Zhilivodë (13), 20 in Beqiq, 3 in Lubovec, 5 in Prekaz, 1 in Klinë e Epërme, 4 in Dashefc and 8 in Shtuticë, they said.
The LDK chapter in Mitrovica reported Saturday afternoon of 5 other Albanians killed in the area. Four were killed in Lubovec village, whereas the fifth at Kline e Eperme village.
Bodies of four killed Albanians - three of them residents of Korrotica e Epërme village of Gllogovc and on still unidentified man in his early twenties - were found today in the vicinity of Korrotica village, municipality of Gllogovc.
According to accounts of witnesses many Albanians were killed while attempting to flee their homes and villages targeted by the forces. Scores were mutilated and, at least one, was reported stabbed to death.

Kosova Information Center
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Kosova Information Center
KOSOVA DAILY REPORT # 1565-A
Prishtina, 27 September 1998

First Edition: 16:00 CET

President Rugova Receives British Liberal Democrats Leader

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - The President of the Republic of Kosova Dr. Ibrahim Rugova received yesterday (Saturday) in Prishtina Mr. Pady Ashdown, the British Liberal Democrats leader. Participating in the meeting was also the British Ambassador to Belgrade, Mr. Brian Donnelly.
President Rugova and Mr. Ashdown had a lengthy discussion on the situation in Kosova and prospects for a political settlement to the Kosova question.

President Rugova Receives Japanese Delegation

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - The President of the Republic of Kosova Dr Ibrahim Rugova received yesterday in Prishtina a delegation of Foreign Ministry of Japan, headed by Mr Yutaka Iimura, Deupty Director-General of European and Oceanian Affairs Bureau. The delegation is on a fact-finding mission to Kosova.
The situation in Kosova and the prospects for a political resolution were discussed in the meeting.
The continued Serb offensive operations adds further to the extremely dramatic situation in Kosova, President Ibrahim Rugova said. He called for an urgent international intervention to stop the Serbian offensive and the creation of the preconditions for a political resolution to the Kosova issue.
Mr Iimura said his country was following the developments in Kosova with serious concern. The Japanese government is supportive of a negotiated settlement to the Kosova issue. The delegation conveyed the readiness of their government to engage in aid projects in Kosova.

Serb Troops Mount Massive Attack Against Albanian Communities at the Shtime-Ferizaj-Suhareka Triangle

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - Serb troops launched today (Sunday) a massive attacks against Albanian communities straddling  a triangle between Shtime, Ferizaj and Suhareka, south of Prishtina.
Sources in these three towns named the following communities targeted by the today's Serb offensive: Topillë, Devetak and Llanishtë, Jezerc, Nerodime e Epërme, Vraniq, Budakovë, Krushicë, Papaz, Savrovë, Buzhalë, Bukosh, Dubravë, Maqitevë, Stravoqinë and Reçan in the areas  straddling the three municipalities.
By early afternoon KIC learned that scores of farmhouses were bombarded in these villages and that there were casualties there, but it was still impossible to identify them yet.
Sources in Shtime and Ferizaj reported of stepped up movement of Serb troops since Saturday afternoon. Several motorized convoys of Serb forces headed toward the area and deployed in several locations. At least 42 tanks and 57 trucks with Serb troops on board drove along the main square of Shtime last evening. They were garrisoned at a location called Podi i Gështenjave where from the villages of Jerzerc, Topillë, Devetak and Llanishtë were shelled.
At Dremjak village of Ferizaj, heavy Serb forces were dug in since last night. The so-called 'catchusha' multiple rocket launcher were also deployed there.
The villages of Jezerc, Nerodimje e Epërme are all in flames, sources in the area told KIC around lunch time today.
The Serb police has during the course of today raided on homes of several Albanian in Shtime and Ferizaj. At least half a dozen were reported detained subsequently.
Sources in Suhareka said that around midday the Serbs began shelling the village of Vraniq, too.
The village of Budakovë, Krushicë, Papaz, Savrovë, Buzhalë, Bukosh, Dubravë, Maqitevë, Stravoqinë and Reçan in this municipality were shelled for a couple of hours today morning.

Half a Dozen Villages in Suhareka Come Under Serb Artillery Fire Sunday Morning

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - At around 7 a.m. today (Sunday), the Serb troops launched a fierce artillery attack against the villages of Budakovë, Krushicë, Papaz, Savrovë, Buzhalë, Bukosh, and Dubravë in the municipality of Suhareka, south-west of Kosova's capital, Prishtina.
The LDK chapter in Suhareka said the population of the villages targeted today began fleeing in panic. At least 15.000 were on the move during morning hours.
Heavy Serb army and police forces backed of by tanks and artillery pieces have sealed off most of the area around the villages Budakovë, Krushicë, Papaz, Savrovë, Buzhalë, Bukosh, and Dubravë, witnesses who could escape told the KIC.
The population in one of the villages, in Budakova, could not make it out, said the witnesses. They feared the Serbs could launch campaigns of massacres in the village.
Sources in Suhareka reported last evening that at around 17:00 Serb troops entered into the Sopia village and ordered the local population to leave immediately unless they wanted to see themselves crushed. Serb troops dug in near the village subsequently.
No report has been available yet about possible casualties in the villages of Suhareka which came under Serb fire today. By midday, local activists in the town said access to the area was still impossible.

Serb Police Forces Compel Uprooted Albanians Leave Camping Site

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - The Serb police has forcefully dispersed Saturday evening and night thousands of refugees camping at the Resnik village, municipality of Vushtrri ('Vucitrn').
Around 15 thousand Albanians had swelled the area around Resnik village, north-west of Prishtina, in the wake of a huge Serb offensive last week against communities along the Çiçavica mountain foot straddling the municipalities of Vushtrri, Mitrovica, Gllogovc, Skenderaj and Obiliq.
Sources in Vushtrri said the Serb police went to Resnik village last evening ar around 20:00 hrs, ordering all the displaced persons sheltering or/and camping out there to leave the place immediately or else face a brutal crackdown.
The uprooted people have been on the move, mainly in tractors, during the whole course of last night and today morning in search of safe heavens. Part of them have found shelter in Vushtrri and the surrounding villages, as well as in Prishtina and other Kosovar towns.

Uprooted Albanians inside Serb Ring of Steel Fearful of Crackdown and Slaughter

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - For almost five days now, 10 thousand uprooted Albanians have found themselves inside the Serb forces ring at a location called "Gryka e Ramadanëve", near Baica village in Gllogovc.
Local activist told the KIC that the Albanians camping out there are residents of the villages Domanek, Baicë, Tërstenik, Tërdec, Shtrubullovë, Krojkovë and other communities in the area which were targeted of the Serb offensive since last Wednesday.
Hysen Hoxha, an LDK activist in Domanek village claimed that the area where the uprooted people have been staying has been tightly sealed off by Serb troops. The IDPs fear that the Serb could soon launch any brutal onslaught against them. He said that people have heard from some source that the Serbs are intent on clamping down on the site and they will separate all the menfolks from the clusters of families.
Beside the fear of imminent Serb attacks, the uprooted population has been running short of food. There are many sick who desperately need medication, the witness said.

Mutilated Bodies of Albanians Found in Suhareka and Kaçanik

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - The LDK chapter in Suhareka said the dead body of a 70-year-old Albanian, Sylejman Kafexholli (70), resident of Bellanica, was found yesterday in the fields of his village.
The late Sylejman Kafexholli, a mute and deaf person, was missing for several days. His body was mutilated, his family members said.
Meanwhile, the Serb police manning a checkpoint at Doganaj village near Kaçanik tool Saturday evening the dead body of an Albanian to the local medical center in the town.
Kujtim Kerlani (44), resident of Gjakova, was found dead near the checkpoint, the police said.
The LDK chapter in Kaçanik said it could not yet learn further details surrounding the death of Kujtim Kerlani.

Bodies of Four Albanians Laying Near Their Village of Residence
Serb troops near the spot prevent families from collecting the Bodies

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) - Local resident of Korrotica e Epërme village of Gllogovc said they spotted today morning the dead bodies of Albanians in the vicinity of their village.
Rexhep Muleta, a local man from Korrotica told the KIC that the dead bodies of Ramadan Muleta (1954), Besim Muleta (1975), Bashkim Muleta (1971), and a third man in his early twneties are laying at a location near his village called "Gurthyesi". The Serb forces garrisoned at the location have prevented their family members from collecting the bodies, he said.
Mr. Muleta appealed on the international agencies bases in Kosova to intervene with the Serb regime so to allow the families of the victims to collect their bodied and have them buried.

Families Find Bodies of Their Killed Members in Kaqanoll Village, Podujeva

PRISHTINA, Sept 27 (KIC) -  Bodies of two killed Albanians were found on Saturday at Kaqanoll village of Podujeva, local sources reported.
The LDK chapter in Podujeva named the two Albanians as Ramadan Behrami and Musa Begu, both local residents of Kaqanoll.
They were killed during a huge Serb offensive against Albanian communities in the Shala e Bajgorës region, straddling the municipalities of Podujeva, Vushtrri and Mitrovica, which left scores of Albanians killed, wounded and homeless.
At a village near Kaqanoll, in Dobratin, charred bodies of 6 local residents were found ion the wake of the Serb offensive.

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KOSOVA (Serb offensive - victims)
Circa 70 Albanians killed in the villages of four municipalities

Prishtina, 26 September (ARTA) 1745CET --
About 70 Albanian civilians were killed in the villages of the following municipalities: Skënderaj, Mitrovicë, Vushtrri, and Gllogoc, Albanian sources of information inform.
10 were killed in Galicë, 4 in Oshlan, 13 in Zhilivodë, 20 in Becic, 3 in Lubavec, 5 in Prekaz, and 1 in Klinë e Epërme, 4 in Dashec and 8 in Shtuticë.
Sources from the ground notify that the attacks against the villages of Lubavec and Prekaz, municipality of Skënderaj, continued throughout the day and they are constantly being shelled.
Witnesses claim that 5 Albanians were killed in Prekaz alone, while in the village of Klinë e Epërme one Albanian civilian was killed inside his house.
Sources from the village of Dashec state that three Albanian civilians were killed in this village and there is a large number of wounded.
From Mitrovicë there are reports of a large number of killed in the villages along the Sitnicë River, in Kçiç, up to the village of Dobërllukë.

KOSOVA (Serb offensive – Vushtrri)
56 killed in the municipality of Vushtrri - 37 ghost-villages

Vushtrri, 26 September (ARTA) 1700CET --
LDK sources in Vushtrri and other Albanian sources state that the number of the killed, in the municipality of Vushtrri, reaches 56 adding that a number of them were shot while they were trying to flee their homes and villages.
Sources from the ground inform that a large number of civilians were wounded and the women and children are seeking for rescue by fleeing from one forest to another, without any help from anybody.
There are still unburied corpses lying in the forest and fields. Reaching them proves to be impossible.
Witnesses from the village of Zhilivodë, confirm that there are 15 killed in this village.
LDK's report of the recent Serb force offensive in the municipality of Vushtrri, states that there are 15 villages completely burned down, 3 are partially burned, 37 villages are completely cleansed of the population, whereas 5 are partially abandoned.

KOSOVA (victims – Mitrovicë)
Seven Albanians killed in Shalë e Bajgorës - tens of arrested

Prishtina, 26 September (ARTA) 2030CET --
Italian journalists, who visited today the war striken areas, claimed that they were told by confirmed Albanian sources that, seven Albanians are killed in Shalë e Bajgorës, while Sedullah (Selman) Dibrani from Vaganicë is massacred.
The same sources claim that two trucks with civilians (presumably 60-70) were brought in to the prison of Mitrovicë. They were brought from Shalë e Bajgorës region (especially from Brusnik village).
The news about these arrested civilians was confirmed also by the residents of Mitrovicë who further added that, those people were handcuffed and "exposed" through the streets of the town being carried in military trucks.

KOSOVA (victims – Gllogoc)
8 civilians killed in Shtuticë - 5.000 remain besieged

Gllogoc, 26 September (ARTA) 1715CET --
From the beginning of the Serb force operation in the region of the municipality of Vushtrri, to this time, Albanian sources report of at least eight Albanians killed in the village of Shtuticë, municipality of Gllogoc, alone.
All the houses of this village were shelled and burned down.
About 5,000 Albanian civilians remain besieged at the place called "Lugu i Madh", near the village of Dobroshec, witnesses claim adding that the same village was shelled with heavy artillery a day before.
Serb forces, with the support of some 100 tanks, shelled the villages of Likovc, Obri e Epërme, Obri e Poshtme, Tërdevc, and Baincë, on Saturday, sources from the ground state.
CDHRF in Likovc notified that the Serb police held hostage on Friday a large number of civilians, pressuring them to hand in the weapons.

KOSOVA (Serb offensive – Çiçavicë Mountains)
Fierce clashes around Çiçavicë – KLA soldiers including commander, supposed killed,

Fushë Kosovë, 26 September (ARTA) 1845CET --
"We escaped through the shelling, we don't know for sure what happened but there must be many killed" an escapee from the Drenica region told CDHRF branch in Fushë Kosovë.
Presently, Sllatinë is overloaded with escapees from Drenica region, from the villages around Çiçavicë and from several villages of Fushë Kosovë.
Fierce clashes took place today particularly in the villages of Vasilevë, Gllanasellë, Graboc i Ulët, as well as around Çiçavicë. It is supposed that a number of KLA soldiers were killed during these clashes. Among them, one of the commanders of the Drenica region and his wife.
Several thousand civilians remain helpless in the Çiçavicë forest. There is fear that there are many killed and wounded among them, as a result of the continuous shelling that lasted for three days.

KOSOVA (press conference – Ogata)
Ogata: "I have to make sure that humanitarian efforts are not going to solve the problem"

Prishtina, 26 September (ARTA) 1930CET --
"I saw about 2000 terrified people who were gathered in the village of Resnik, the mosque and around it. The tiny hamlet of Resnik now houses thousands of people, who fled from other villages", stated Sadako Ogata, a UN senior official.
"The people were traumatized, I saw several children totally traumatized, some of them were almost in coma". I think it is very important for the international organizations to help, but not only materially or financially, but give them a sense of care and security", stated Senior Commissioner, Ogata.
Concerning the so far assistance for the dislocated of Resnik, she claimed: "We were given a chance to go there since yesterday. We sent two truckloads of food, and I think they’ll be sending some more things today. ICRC was there to deal with the wounded, twenty of them, and they took them to a nearby hospital. I think it is very important to address the issue of the need to built a sense of security and this is the only way people will be back where they would like to be back and try to lead a more normal life. I regret to say that we noted some shelling. We heard them however in a distant hill, so it does mean that the situation is not quite normal yet".
Answering the question as to whether there is a deadline, beyond which she fells there will be an extremely serious humanitarian situation, Ogata said: "I came here now because I was worried that the winter was coming in, and we know that in the Balkans winter comes very, very early. At the same time, as for our humanitarian work, there is no deadline. So as long as there is a need, we will try to do our very best, but time is against us, and this what I think, we should do as quickly as possible.
First of all, don't leave people out in the open, don't allow new displacements. This is very important. We cannot just be bringing in humanitarian assistance wherever there is a new displacement; this cannot go on, especially during the winter".
Evaluating the meeting with Milosevic, she said: "We agreed on one thing, which he repeated at the end, the first priority is to help those who are displaced outside in the open, and we will do everything together to help them".
Ogata said that the dislocated have no place to go back to but they will do everything to go back.
"At the same time, one thing is very clear. They are afraid", she said and added that "as long as they are afraid they will not go back and start rebuilding, so there has to be clear assurance, including frequent international visits or even stay there, to make sure that the way they go back to normal life will not be disrupted all the time", stated Ogata.
The senior official said that she was not surprised with the situation of the dislocated cause this was nothing exceptional. "We have had enough information. This is the first time I directly saw this kind of displacement. I've seen many displacements in the former Yugoslav countries. At the same time I am surprised that this is continuing, it started before I had a meeting with Milosevic and we will have to have a serious discussion".
Answering the question concerning the military intervention which would help the humanitarian situation, Ogata stated: "At the same time I have to make sure that humanitarian efforts are not going to solve the problem you are facing here. We can help the situation... but the humanitarian problems are results or effects of a much deeper political problem you are facing here and that has to be solved", said Sadako Ogata in a press conference held in Prishtina.

KOSOVA (IDPs – Shtime)
About 15 thousand displaced from the villages of Shtime

Shtime, 26 September (ARTA) 1545CET --
Following the Serb force operation in the region of the municipality of Shtime, many villages were cleansed off the population.
Albanian sources inform about a large number of burned, destroyed and demolished houses. Houses are completely destroyed in the majority of the villages. In Zborc alone, out of 150 houses, 100 of them are destroyed. The houses in the villages of Pjetërshticë, Carralevë, Petrovë, Karaqicë, Dugë, Belincë, Reçak, Mollopolc etc. are also burned.
According to the same sources, over 14,800 residents of the municipality of Shtime fled as a result of the Serb force attacks. A number of them found temporary shelter at their relatives, living in less threatened areas, while the majority of them are living outdoors and their situation is very bad.
CDHFR reports about a critical health situation of those living in tents and under plastic covers. There is great shortage of medicine, food, clothing, and with the approach of winter, timber.

KOSOVA (Serb offensive – Klinë)
Dozens of destroyed houses in Klinë municipality

Klinë, 26 September (ARTA) 2000CET --
Albanian sources inform that Xhemajl Halil Agushi (17) from the Drenoc village was killed in the border belt between Kosova and Albania today. Xhemajl is the 86th Albanian victim from this region since the beginning of the war in Kosova.
Albanian sources suspect that this number is far bigger, because there are claims of numerous unburied corpses, which have remained though the mountains of Çeskovë and Këpuz.
After burning and destroying hundreds of Albanian houses in Përçevë, Sverkë, Dush, Gremnik and Çupevë a large number of Serb military and police forces withdrew on Saturday from the Boxite mine in Volljakë, claim the field sources.
There are claims that the people of these villages do not dare return into the destroyed villages, because of the Serb snipers, which are positioned at the highest points of these villages.

KOSOVA (Serb offensive – Prizren)
Five arrested following Serb offensive in Rogovë

Prizren, 26 September (ARTA) 1600CET --
According to CDHRF reports in Prizren, during the Serb military\police offensive against the village of Rogovë, in the Prizren Has region, 7 houses were raided, and badly demolished and 5 local residents were arrested.
Due to the offensive, a large number of residents of the village of Rogovë and of the surrounding localities sought shelter in Prizren proper and in other less threatened areas.
Albanian sources, on the other hand, confirm that military forces, mostly consisting of anti-air weaponry, settled again in the village of Landovicë, at the military base called "Kodra e Landovicës".
The residents of the villages of the Prizren Has region: Gjonaj, Mazrekë, Krajkë, and Zym were once more given an ultimatum to "hand over the weapons".
Nothing is still known on the whereabouts of Fatmir Dina, although two months have already passed since the Serb force offensive against Rahovec.

KOSOVA (victims – Deçan)
A corpse of another Albanian found – IDPs return to their destroyed houses

Deçan, 26 September (ARTA) 1900CET --
The corpse of Sylejman Zekaj (62) was found in the village of Carrabreg i Epërm, municipality of Deçan, on Friday, local sources from Deçan inform. He is supposed to have been killed days before by the Serb military\police forces. He was buried in the cemetery of the village of Carrabreg i Epërm.
On the other hand, the number of those returning to the destroyed houses of this municipality is increasing every day.

SWITZERLAND (Kosova refugees – Switzerland)
Refugees from Kosova sheltered in Swiss military barracks - numbers rising rapidly

Zurich, 26 September (ARTA) 1750CET --
In a press release of the Swiss Federal Bureau for Refugees (BFF), it is stated on Friday that due to the large number of the asylum seekers, this institution, starting from mid October, will open new shelters with an overall number of 250 beds.
They were referring to a military shelter in Bronschofen (Thurgau canton) and to a civil defense hall in Chiasso, a bordering point with Italy.
These sheltering places are expected to give shelter to the asylum seekers that are constantly coming to Switzerland, and for whom the regular shelters of the Confederation, have no free spaces.
The press release that was distributed to the media states that during the last two months, the number of the asylum seekers increased constantly. In fact, it is so high, that in certain days up to 200 refugees apply in the immigration offices in Geneva, Basel, Kreuzlingen, and Chiasso.
Presently, 300 people are waiting to be accepted by one of the centers.
Presently, 150 Albanians live in Switzerland, with a sojourn status (B) and settled status (C), as well as 30 thousand asylum seekers and refugees with an accepted status, it is stated in the BFF report.
According to these data, it is evident that about 180 thousand Albanians live in Switzerland, as the number of those staying illegally, is unknown.
The officials of BFF assess that the number of the dislocated in Kosova reaches 300 thousand, the majority of which are living in the forest.

ALBANIA (visas)
Albanian Embassy asserts that Albania to be entered-only with visas

Zurich, 26 September (ARTA) 1900CET --
The Albanian Ambassador in Switzerland, Vlladimir Thanati, explained for "Koha Ditore" that, "officially no decision in applying visas for Kosova Albanians is made, but during the last days many Kosovar citizens came in the premises of our embassy to get visas".
He claims that "measures for an enforced control, in order to confirm the identity of the persons who enter into Albania are undertaken, because through these last years Albania became a territory without any control concerning the movement of people entering Albanian territory".
In addition, Thanati claimed that only those Albanians who possess passports in which their Albanian nationality is confirmed besides the citizenship (i.e. USA, Swiss, "Yugoslav", etc) could enter into Albania without visa.
For example: If in the passport of an Albanian-American stands that he is an American citizen of Albanian citizen, then that person can enter into Albania without a visa.
Nevertheless, the problem emerged with Kosova citizens, who have "Yugoslav" passports and citizenship, but there it is not written that they are of Albanian nationality. So in order to have a more thorough control this technical measure is undertaken", said Ambassador Thanati.
He claimed further that the Albanian Embassy in Bern has issued visas without any problem to all the compatriots who wanted to go in Tirana. "Since the citizens of Kosova asked the Albanian visa not to be printed in their passports because of the eventual problems, they may have when going back to Kosova or elsewhere, we printed them in an additional form", claimed Vlladimir Thanati.

Taken without permission, for fair use only.

KOSOVA  September 27, 1998
NYT:Arbitrary Arrests and Torture Chronicled in Kosovo
NYT:U.S. Envoy Issues a Stern Warning on Kosovo
Serbs Said To Launch Kosovo Attack

KOSOVA  September 26, 1998
Both Sides Report New Casualties in Kosovo
Bosnia Minister Accuses Serbia of Kosovo Cleansing
German Minister Calls for NATO Ultimatum to Yugoslavia.
U.S. Mediation in Kosovo ''at Crucial Phase''
Balkan States Say They Approve NATO Plan
U.N. Refugee Chief Meets Terrified Kosovars
Seven Serbian Policemen Killed in Kosovo
FM Calls for Holding Forum on Aid to Kosovar Refugees

FYROM  September 26, 1998
US and Eight European Countries Discuss Measures for Peace
Southeast Europe to Establish Peace-Keeping Force
NYT: 7 Nations to Create Peacekeeping Force in Balkans

TIRANA  September 26, 1998
Former President Calls for More Anti-Government Demonstrations
Albanian PM Rules out Early General Election
__________________________________________________

September 27, 1998

Arbitrary Arrests and Torture Chronicled in Kosovo
NYTIMES
By JANE PERLEZ

UROSEVAC, Yugoslavia -- The last time Hava Bislimi saw her eldest son, Rexhap, his face was battered with bruises. He was being pushed by security police officers into the family's front garden, where he was handed a shovel and ordered to dig for weapons.
     Reeling from beatings at the police station, Bislimi, a 33-year-old accountant, was too weak to follow the orders. So neighbors were called in to help. After they failed to find the alleged cache, Bislimi was told to look at the house where he had been born, a sprawling structure with an ancient apple tree in the courtyard.
     "This is the last time you will see it," Serbian officers were overheard saying as they marched him out of the gate.
     They were right. The six weeks that began with Bislimi's arrest on his way to a family gathering July 6 and ended Aug. 21 with his reportedly brutal death in Serbian police custody have been pieced together by his 63-year-old mother, a sister and a cousin.
     His death is one example, human rights officials say, of the arbitrary arrests and torture that the Serbian authorities are using to warn ethnic Albanian civilians to stop supporting a separatist guerrilla force fighting for the independence of Serbia's Kosovo province.
     Rights experts say these extrajudicial methods used by officials under the control of Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic run parallel to the military intimidation by special police forces and the Yugoslav army, which continued this week to fire artillery at villages in central Kosovo.
     Serbian judicial officials have announced the start of trials next month of 900 Albanians being held in Kosovo on charges of terrorism.
     Human Rights Watch, a New York-based group that is documenting Bislimi's death and those of four other Albanians in police custody in the last two months, has expressed concern about the fairness of these trials. A senior official working with the U.N. human rights commissioner in Geneva -- former Czechoslovak Foreign Minister Jiri Dienstbier -- has asked Milosevic to grant the 900 amnesty as part of a possible political settlement.
     The International Committee of the Red Cross has requested permission to interview those being held, but its officials have been granted access only in a very limited number of cases. Under Serbian law, judges must grant pretrial access, but for the most part it has been denied, said Nic Sommer, a Red Cross spokesman.
     Explaining their concern about the trials, Human Rights Watch officials cite the case of a lawyer, Destan Rukiqi, an ethnic Albanian who in July was tried, sent to prison and severely beaten.
     Two Rights Watch researchers now compiling data in Kosovo, Fred Abrahams and Peter Bouckaert, said the Rukiqi case set a disturbing precedent.
     It began while Rukiqi was reviewing the police papers of a fellow Albanian, Cen Dugolli, who was being held in custody without charges. An argument erupted between Rukiqi and the senior judge in the Pristina district court, Danica Marinkovic.
     Ms. Marinkovic objected to the way Rukiqi addressed her and ordered his arrest. Rukiqi was sentenced to jail for 60 days in Pristina, the Kosovo capital, Bouckaert said. There, he was so severely beaten that his kidneys failed, and he almost lapsed into a coma.
     Apparently afraid that Rukiqi, who is well known in his field, might die in custody, the Serbian authorities transferred him to a hospital in Belgrade, the rights researchers said. During his treatment, his sentence was reduced by half.
     When he was released from the hospital, he learned that his client, Dugolli, had died in police custody after severe beatings, the researchers said.
     Rexhap Bislimi, according to his family, was never charged. When the police brought him home for those two hours on July 7, they said he had hidden weapons for the guerrilla forces. Despite repeated visits to the prison where he was being held near his hometown, and then in Pristina, his relatives said, the family was never allowed to see him.
     Now, Mrs. Bislimi said, she knows why. He was too badly beaten, she said.
     When she went to the prison on the official visiting day, she said, she was told he was being interrogated and was unavailable. But she noticed an ambulance pull up at the prison while she was waiting to see him. Later, a sympathetic doctor at a hospital in Pristina got word to the family that her son was in very bad condition.
     The family rushed to the hospital, but Mrs. Bislimi said another friendly medic warned them that he was in such bad shape, you don't want to look." But they did learn that there was a chance to save her son's life if they got some medicine to stop internal bleeding. So, she said, they spent 1,000 German marks on a list of drugs and gathered blood from relatives and friends.
     The next day, when they arrived to deliver the drugs, they were told the patient was dead, Mrs. Bislimi said. On the death certificate, issued the following day, he was said to have died from blows to the head and body.
     At the local jail, Mrs. Bislimi continued, the police returned her son's belongings: a watch; his identity card in a leather folder, its photo showing a handsome man with a shock of light-brown hair; his wallet, with a dollar bill tucked inside.
     Thousands of Albanians attended his funeral. He had been an active member of the Human Rights Council of Kosovo, founded in 1990 by ethnic Albanian leaders peacefully seeking Kosovo's independence from Serbia. And apparently he had always been a bit of rebel. When he was 16, he was jailed for three days, and in 1988, after joining the Yugoslav army, he served a two-year sentence on charges of organizing against the army, Mrs. Bislimi said.
     To console her son's eldest daughter, Ardita, 6, Mrs. Bislimi said she had told her he had gone to Germany. But the child had seen enough not to believe it.
     "No," Ardita replied, according to her grandmother. "My father has gone to the graveyard."
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September 27, 1998
U.S. Envoy Issues a Stern Warning on Kosovo
By THE NEW YORK TIMES

SKOPJE, Macedonia -- The U.S. envoy leading efforts to resolve the conflict in Kosovo said Saturday that Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic had "no justification" for pressing his campaign against insurgents and warned that he faced a devastating blow if he refused to stop.
     The envoy, Christopher R. Hill, who is ambassador to Macedonia, said that the U.N. Security Council's resolution calling for an end to the fight and NATO's threats of using military force could help forge a diplomatic resolution.
     Despite the crescendo of threats, the Serb-dominated Yugoslav army and police forces have continued in recent days to shell cities in Kosovo, driving still more civilians from their homes. The crackdown has continued even though insurgents seeking independence for the ethnic Albanian majority in the Serbian province have ceased to be a fighting force, officials say.
     As Hill put it, "We are at a phase where there is absolutely no justification from anyone's point of view, including even the Serb internal logic, of continuing security operations in Kosovo."
     "To continue those must be seen as a direct effort to attack the civilian population," he added, "and it's intolerable. I think they understand that if they continue that, there will be a reaction. And I think the reaction could be devastating for Serbia's future."
     Hill has been pressing the Yugoslav government and representatives from Kosovo on a peace plan that would begin to create democratic processes in the province but hold off three years on resolving the issue of greater autonomy, if not independence.
     Hill, who last met with Milosevic on Monday, expects to receive a reply on the proposal from Belgrade this weekend, according to a Western official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
     Planners for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization have already drafted a series of strikes against Milosevic's forces, from a limited cruise-missile attack to an air campaign that could increase in intensity. Several NATO allies, including Germany and the Netherlands, have publicly announced their intent to contribute warplanes to any campaign.
__________________________________________________

September 27, 1998

Serbs Said To Launch Kosovo Attack
Filed at 7:35 a.m. EDT
By The Associated Press

PRISTINA, Yugoslavia (AP) -- Serbian forces have launched a new offensive in southern Kosovo against armed ethnic Albanian rebels who apparently regrouped in the area, Serb and Albanian sources said Sunday.
     A police source speaking on condition of anonymity said a number of police units, including specially trained elite troops, have begun a mop-up operation aimed at purging the secessionist Kosovo Liberation Army from the area some 30 miles southwest of the province's capital Pristina.
     The latest action followed a strong Serb offensive against KLA rebels in another area -- Drenica -- located northwest of here. That offensive came as the U.N. Security Council demanded an end to the Serb crackdown and NATO finalized plans for airstrikes if unless the fighting stops.
     The separatists had suffered defeats in southern Kosovo earlier this year, but apparently regrouped. According to the police sources, the rebels recently kidnapped two local Serbs, a 25-year-old and a teenager, which prompted the new action.
     In Kosovo, a province of Serbia, ethnic Albanians outnumber Serbs 9 to 1 and nearly all demand independence. Hundreds have died and about quarter of a million have become displaced since the fighting erupted earlier this year.
     The Kosovo Information Center, close to ethnic Albanian pro-independence leaders, said seven Albanian-populated villages in southern Kosovo were showered with grenade fire early Sunday, with Serbian infantry gradually advancing toward them.
     An estimated 15,000 civilians have begun evacuating there.
     The Serbian troops are by far stronger militarily than the rebels but are stretched thin in Kosovo's rugged countryside. The Serbs have had trouble maintaining control over the areas from which they drive out the rebels, mostly local farmers recruited by the KLA.
     The Serb Media Center said three policemen were killed Saturday and seven on Friday. Five of the seven died when their car hit a land mine.
     The continued violence in Kosovo has led Western powers to threat Milosevic with a NATO intervention in Kosovo unless violence ends. The alliance has finalized plans to hit strategic targets throughout Serbia, the dominant republic of present-day Yugoslavia.
     U.S. Defense Secretary, William Cohen, at a Saturday meeting with several European counterparts in neighboring Macedonia, reiterated the warning, saying ``We should take action sooner rather than later in the event that Mr. Milosevic doesn't respond.''
     While Milosevic has agreed in principle to grant a degree of autonomy to Kosovo, his forces continue to battle the ``terrorists'' and deem NATO threats unjustified.
__________________________________________________

Both Sides Report New Casualties in Kosovo
Reuters   26-SEP-98

PRISTINA, Serbia, Sept 26 (Reuters) - The ethnic Albanian Kosovo Information Centre (KIC) said eight people died on Saturday in fighting in the Drenica region of central Kosovo.
     Serb sources reported that on Friday, five policemen died when their vehicle hit a mine and two others were killed in a separatist rebel attack in the same region.
     The sources also said that low intensity clashes in the Drenica region ended by early afternoon on Saturday, after Serb police repelled the rebel attacks. Police did not suffer any casualties.
     In a separate report, the KIC said a total of 68 people were killed in the three-day Serb offensive on villages around Mount Cicavica, northwest of Kosovo's capital Pristina. Serb sources said they lost three policemen and one soldier in the fighting.
     The Serb-run Media Centre said on Friday Serb police killed Fehmi Ladrovici, 41, a commander of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), in the Cicavica region. The report said the offensive ended on Friday.
     On Saturday, the KIC reported that 56 people died in fighting around the northern town of Vucitrn in recent days, raising the death toll in seven months of conflict to around 800.
     The KLA have been fighting for the independence of the province, which has a large ethnic Albanian majority, since February when they started a rebellion against the Serb security forces.
     Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited.All rights reserved.
__________________________________________________

Bosnia Minister Accuses Serbia of Kosovo Cleansing
Reuters   26-SEP-98

SARAJEVO, Sept 26 (Reuters) - A senior Bosnian politician accused neighbouring Yugoslavia on Saturday of repeating in Kosovo the "ethnic cleansing" that took place in his country in 1992-1995.
     Haris Silajdzic, a former foreign minister and a Moslem member of Bosnia's Council of Ministers, said the former JNA (Yugoslav People's Army) had taken part in "the genocide" in Bosnia and Croatia.
     He said it was now doing the same in Serbia's restive Kosovo province, where an offensive against separatist guerrillas has driven about 300,000 ethnic Albanians from their homes. Most of them are Moslems.
     Silajdzic also launched a blistering attack against the international community for failing to act in time to prevent this new bout of violence against Moslems.
     "Everything is being repeated in Kosovo," said Silajdzic, who was Bosnian foreign minister during the 43-month war between Serbs, Moslems and Croats.
     He said the aim of Serbia, the dominant republic in Yugoslavia, was to change the demographic picture in the Balkans.
     "The project of ethnic cleansing will be completed in the Balkans in two or three years' time," he told reporters. "This is a project drawn up by intellectuals and carried out by the JNA in Serbia."
     "The situation in Kosovo and the situation in Bosnia cannot be separated...this is a consequence of fascism in this area," Silajdzic said.
     "Is fascism being tolerated in this region only for one purpose: to reduce the number of Moslems in Europe as much as possible?"

Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited.All rights reserved.
__________________________________________________

German Minister Calls for NATO Ultimatum to Yugoslavia.
Itar-Tass  26-SEP-98

BONN September 27 (Itar-Tass) - German Defence Minister Volker Ruhe deems it necessary to address a NATO ultimatum to Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic already within the next few days. He expressed this view to the newspaper Welt am Sonntag on Suturday, noting that the Yugoslavian leader should realise that "the Serbian aggression will be cut short by military means if he refused to make concessions".
     This means that Ruhe has come out against the view of the NATO Secretary-General. Solana is known to be against "fixing any definite deadline for Belgrade", the newspaper writes, nevertheless he noted, addressing the Friday conference of the North Atlantic Alliance in Portugal that NATO could consioder the expediency of lodging an ultimatum already "within the next few weeks".
     Actually arguing with the NATO Secretary-General, Ruhe stated: "It is clear that some people have still not realise that we have very little time left. Winter begins in Kosovo in October." Noting that tens of thousands of Albanians, including old folk, women and children are now hiding in forests without any roof overhead or means of subsistence, the German minister warned that they had minimum chances to survive in these conditions.
     To save the Albanian refugees, Ruhe added, it is necessary to launch already now "a largescale assistance operation involving thousands of men". The minister is sure that the Serbs will not agree to any international humanitarian action if no military pressure is exerted on Belgrade.
     kli/
__________________________________________________

U.S. Mediation in Kosovo ''at Crucial Phase''
Reuters   26-SEP-98

SKOPJE, Sept 26 (Reuters) - The U.S. mediator in the Kosovo conflict said on Saturday that his mission was at a crucial stage as the Serbians come to grips with new threats of foreign intervention to stop the fighting there.
     Christopher Hill, who is U.S. ambassador to neighbouring Macedonia, also told reporters in Skopje it was intolerable for Serbian forces to keep attacking in Kosovo when so few separatist guerrillas are still in the field.
     "We're getting to a rather crucial phase in this process...a phase where there is absolutely no justification from anyone's point of view, including even the Serb internal logic, of continuing security operations in Kosovo," he said.
     Hill has been shuttling between the Yugoslav government in Belgrade and the leaders of the ethnic Albanians who make 90 percent of the population of the Serbian province.
     He has presented the two sides with a draft agreement for an interim solution for the next three years, setting aside the contentious question of Kosovo's future.
     The Kosovar Albanians side have already came back with their comments on the draft and the Serbians are expected to answer Hill this weekend, a Western diplomat said.
     Hill's mediation began months ago but is now taking place against the background of NATO's decision this week to take the next step in planning for military intervention.
     The U.N. Security Council on Wednesday passed a resolution calling on Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to stop attacking civilians, withdraw some of his forces from Kosovo and resume a political dialogue with Kosovo leaders.
     Hill said these steps worked in his favour. "I feel that the use of force, a real threat of the use of force, will assist in finding a political solution," he said.
     "(For the Serbians) to continue operations must be seen as a direct effort to attack the civilian population and it's intolerable. They understand that if they are continue that, there will be a reaction and I think the reaction could be devastating for Serbia's future," he added.
     U.S. Defence Secretary William Cohen, in Skopje for a meeting of defence ministers from southeastern Europe, told reporters that NATO was still watching to see how Milosevic reacts to the threat of NATO air strikes on his forces.
     "We'll have to wait and see whether or not the NATO countries ... will find enough to give them a foundation that warrants them going and taking action," he said.
     But he also repeated that time was running out. "It's up to NATO to take action, sooner rather than later. The strong signal has been sent. NATO's credibility is on the line, it has to stand behind its words," he said.
     A Western diplomat tracking the mediation said the coming days should show if Milosevic was likely to comply.
     "The initial reaction may be a certain amount of chest- thumping and bravado but I think one has to play out the scenario for a few days," he said. At least the Yugoslav army and police have not escalated their campaign, he added.
     The separatists of the Kosovo Liberation Army, which this summer claimed to hold about 50 percent of the province, now had no territory they can say they control, he said.

Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited.All rights reserved.
__________________________________________________

Balkan States Say They Approve NATO Plan
Reuters    26-SEP-98

SKOPJE, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Five Balkan countries endorsed on Saturday NATO's decision to prepare a task force for possible air strikes against Yugoslav forces in Kosovo.
     A joint statement issued after a meeting of defence ministers in the Macedonian capital Skopje said the ministers were seriously concerned about the violence in Kosovo, where an offensive against separatist guerrillas has driven about 250,000 ethnic Albanians from their homes.
     "In this regard, the ministers strongly supported and urged full implementation of U.N. Security Council resolution 1199, and welcomed the decision of the NATO council to initiate the force generation process within the alliance," it said.
     At a meeting in Portugal on Thursday, the NATO ministers approved an "activation warning" on Kosovo - NATO jargon for a formal request that members say what forces they can contribute if NATO goes ahead with a contingency plan.
     The joint statement from Skopje was approved by non-NATO members Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Romania and Slovenia. Four NATO members-- Greece, Italy, Turkey and the United States-- also put their name to the statement but they had already agreed to the plan in Portugal.
     The Macedonian minister, Lazar Kitanovski, told reporters that Macedonia and the United States had the same view of the humanitarian crisis in Kosovo, where an estimated 50,000 ethnic Albanians have been living in the open air.
     Speaking after talks with U.S. Defence Secretary William Cohen, he said Macedonia favoured "a sensible compromise" giving Kosovo authonomy within the framework of Yugoslavia.

Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited.All rights reserved.
__________________________________________________

U.N. Refugee Chief Meets Terrified Kosovars
Reuters   26-SEP-98

PRISTINA, Sept 26 (Reuters) - The U.N.'s refugee chief visited terrified ethnic Albanians sheltering in a village mosque in Kosovo on Saturday and promised to try to protect them from Serbian forces who drove them from their homes.
     "We saw people who were totally traumatised, almost in a coma" from fear, Sadako Ogata told a news conference after travelling to Resnik, northern Kosovo, where around 2,000 Kosovo Albanians have taken refuge in and around the mosque.
     The civilians have fled bombardment of their villages in the Cicavica mountains where Serbian forces say they have been mopping up the last remnants of the separatist Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) after a successful offensive across the southern Serbian province.
     Journalists invited by the U.N. High Commissioner of Refugees (UNHCR) to accompany Ogata to Resnik on Saturday were turned back to Pristina after police separated their cars from Ogata's convoy at checkpoints.
     Police said "Albanian terrorists" on the road ahead made the journey too dangerous, failing to explain why Ogata herself was not endangered.
     Ogata said refugees in Resnik had told her of "their fear, their despair and their hopeless situation" after fleeing on foot, tractors or carts as troops systematically destroyed their homes behind them.
     "They told me in tears about what they had gone through," she said.
     "It is very important that the international organisations... not only help materially and physically, but give them a sense of security," she added.
     Some refugees in Resnik had injuries from gunfire or explosions, UNHCR officials said. Ogata said explosions could be heard in the distance during her brief visit.
     Weeping Albanians pleaded with her not to leave them, believing Serbian troops might yet attack them in Resnik itself.
     As Ogata's convoy of vehicles began to pull out of the village, a middle-aged refugee stood in the road barring its way for several minutes, a UNHCR official told Reuters.
     "He said to Ogata: 'You can run me over but if you leave they will kill us'," the official related.
     International aid organisations had to visit and possibly maintain a presence in places like Resnik to calm the refugees' fears, Ogata said.
     She said she had told Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic in Belgrade on Thursday that "violence, harassment and repressive measures" by Serbian forces lay behind the mass flight of refugees, which has led to threats of Western military intervention.
     The UNHCR has said some 50,000 Kosovo Albanians are living in the open as chill rains signal the approach of the harsh Balkan winter. "But the president talked of only about 700. That, I think, was too low," Ogata said drily.
     Serbian authorities say Kosovo is returning to normal after months of fighting and that they want refugees to return home.
     But Ogata said she had told Milosevic fear would prevent that unless Serbian authorities began confidence-building measures.
     "Especially, if people leave their homes, these should not be burned and looted," she said she told the Yugoslav leader.
     "The president did not deny it," she added.
     "Humanitarian efforts are not going to solve the situation. The humanitarian problems are the result of a much deeper political situation and that has to be faced," Ogata said.

Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited.All rights reserved.
__________________________________________________

US and Eight European Countries Discuss Measures for Peace
AP  26-SEP-98

SKOPJE, Macedonia (AP) -- Defense Secretary William Cohen signed an agreement Saturday establishing a southeast European peace force and again threatened NATO intervention unless violence stops in Kosovo.
     The force would engage in humanitarian activities, such as aid relief and keeping truces -- similar to U.N. multinational peacekeeping forces.
     "This new, multinational peace force holds out hope that we can build a new era," Cohen said, calling the signing "historic."
     Also signing the agreement were defense ministers from NATO members Italy, Turkey and Greece and from five prospective alliance members in the Balkans: Macedonia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Romania and Albania.
     The occasion also was an opportunity for NATO members to discuss options for handling the crisis in Serbia's Kosovo province, where more than 700 people have been killed and nearly 300,000 made refugees since a crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists began in February.
     After the U.N. Security Council authorized unspecified further action if Serb and Yugoslav forces continue their offensive in Kosovo, NATO late last week firmed up preparations for air and missile attacks.
     Cohen, reiterating earlier warnings to Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, said it is time to "face this crisis directly."
     "We should take action sooner rather than later in the event that Mr. Milosevic doesn't respond," to demands to halt offensives, Cohen said.
     Macedonia, the host of Saturday's meeting, borders Serbia and fears a spillover of violence into its territory. Macedonia has its own independence-minded and increasingly restive ethnic Albanian community.

Copyright 1998& The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
__________________________________________________

Southeast Europe to Establish Peace-Keeping Force
Xinhua  26-SEP-98

TIRANA (Sept. 26) XINHUA - Seven southeast European countries agreed Saturday to establish a peace-keeping force for southeast Europe, the Macedonia News Agency reported Saturday.
     Defense Ministers of Macedonia, Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Romania and Turkey signed an agreement Saturday in Skoplje, capital of Macedonia, to establish the peace-keeping force at their third annual meeting.
     U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen attended the meeting. According to the agreement, the peace-keeping force will have 11 mechanized companies and three infantry companies with 3,000 to 4,000 troops from the seven countries.
     But the location of the headquarters has not been decided due to differences of opinions.
     The main task of the force is to take part in peace-keeping actions of North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the West European Union and the United Nations.
     Macedonia will send about 150 troops to join the force, the news agency said.
__________________________________________________

Seven Serbian Policemen Killed in Kosovo
Xinhua  26-SEP-98

BELGRADE (Sept. 26) XINHUA - Seven Serbian Policemen were killed in clashes with armed ethnic Albanians Friday in Kosovo, the Pristina Information Center (PIC) said Saturday.
     Two of them were shot by a large group of ethnic Albanians in Donje Oberin Je, a village of the Glogovac district in Kosovo, when the Albanians fired automatic rifles and mortar to a Serbian police unit at about 2 p.m. Friday, the PIC said.
     The other five were killed three hours later when their truck was destroyed by a land mine laid by the armed ethnic Albanians in Likovac village, not far from Donje Oberin Je.
__________________________________________________

FM Calls for Holding Forum on Aid to Kosovar Refugees.
Itar-Tass  26-SEP-98

BONN, September 26 (Itar-Tass) - German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel urged the United Nations on Saturday to convene an international conference on assistance to Kosovar refugees.
     In letters sent to the U.N. Kinkel expressed deep concern about the development of events in Kosovo and the aggravation of the situation of the local population.
     He noted that the conflict in Kosovo makes over 300,000 residents to leave the province (fifty thousand are now hiding in woods) and predicted a humanitarian catastrophe in Kosovo.
     The minister stressed that the conference to be held in Geneva next week should work out a package of extraordinary measures to render assistance to refugees in conditions of the upcoming winter.
     Kinkel said that apart from Contact Group members, the conference will include the Yugoslav delegation, Kosovar Albanian leaders and representatives from the International Committee of the Red Cross and humanitarian missions operating in Kosovo.
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Former President Calls for More Anti-Government Demonstrations
AP  26-SEP-98

TIRANA, Albania (AP) -- Former Albanian President Sali Berisha promised thousands of supporters Saturday that street protests would continue until the government steps down.
     Berisha's latest call for Prime Minister Fatos Nano to resign came despite international efforts to encourage dialogue between the rival political parties.
     Speaking in the capital before a crowd of about 3,000 people, Berisha called Nano a "killer," and blamed him for the current political turmoil.
     The unrest in Europe's poorest country erupted after a popular opposition leader was killed outside Berisha's Democratic Party headquarters on September 12. Berisha has blamed his political rival Nano for the killing and demanded his resignation.
     A funeral ceremony last week turned into an anti-government rally, with thousands of Berisha supporters storming government offices, the parliament and the state television building.
     International organizations are trying to organize talks between the Democrats and the Socialists, but both sides refuse, keeping tensions high in the country.
     Meanwhile, protesters in the south blocked and mined a section of the national highway near the Greek border on Saturday morning, Interior Ministry spokesman Artan Bizhga said.
     Bizhga said that five hours after the road was blocked, police regained control and deactivated eight mines, but traffic remained blocked as police continued to search for other mines.
     The same section of the national road was blocked earlier this month and eight policemen were wounded during an exchange of fire with the villagers of Lazarat, an opposition stronghold about 90 miles south of Tirana.
     Last year, nationwide rioting forced Berisha to resign after pyramid investment schemes collapsed, wiping out the life savings of many Albanians. Nano won the ensuing election with Berisha leading the opposition.

Copyright 1998& The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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Albanian PM Rules out Early General Election
Reuters  26-SEP-98

TIRANA, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Albania's Socialist Prime Minister Fatos Nano on Saturday ruled out the possibility of early elections or his resignation in the wake of politically-inspired violence in the capital Tirana last week.
     "This crisis should not be solved either through early elections or the government's resignation," Nano told leaders of his five-party coalition.
     Instead, Nano said he wanted to reshuffle and expand his 14-month-old cabinet and indicated his desire to bring in some independent technocrats.
     Nano's government was shaken earlier this month by street violence sparked by the murder of a senior aide to opposition leader Sali Berisha.
     Nano's offices were set on fire and state-run television was briefly seized by gunmen.
     Nano's intention to widen the coalition was in line with proposals by President Rexhep Meidani, who has been backed by world leaders to mediate in Albania's worst political crisis since it plunged into anarchy least year.
     The premier said Changes to the government were necessary to "improve the executive's decision-making and its discipline" in restoring law and order, Nano said.
     Albania is awash with 600,000 guns which were looted from army depots during last year's civil chaos.
     Nano again accused Berisha of using the riots to try to topple his government and said he would only start talks with the opposition once it returned to parliament and stopped street protests against "the legitimate institutions."
     But at a rally on Saturday, Berisha vowed to keep protesting against Nano's government and called another rally for Wednesday.

Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited.All rights reserved.
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September 27, 1998
7 Nations to Create Peacekeeping Force in Balkans
By STEVEN LEE MYERS

SKOPJE, Macedonia -- Seven southeastern European countries agreed Saturday to create a multinational military force that could be used for peacekeeping or aid operations in the Balkans and elsewhere.
     Three NATO allies -- Italy, Greece and Turkey -- joined Albania, Bulgaria, Macedonia and Romania in creating the force, which will be a brigade with 3,000 to 4,000 troops divided into 14 companies by the time it is ready, probably sometime next year.
     The countries' defense ministers signed a pact creating the force after meeting here in the Macedonian capital. The United States has welcomed the force, not so much for its military significance as for the cooperation between countries that have a history of rivalries and tensions.
     U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen, who attended the meeting Saturday, said the agreement underscored "new cooperation and confidence in southeastern Europe."
     "There are still people in the region who would rather dig new graves than bury old hatreds," he said.
     The seven countries, along with the United States and Slovenia, are part of what is called the Southeastern European Defense Ministerial. Cohen's predecessor, William Perry, launched the cooperative forum as a way to forge closer ties between the militaries of each of the countries and promote stability in the Balkans.
     Macedonia's minister of defense, Lazar Kitanovski, called the force "our contribution to the strengthening of European order." He warned that despite efforts to improve military contacts between nations, the region remained riven by "ethnic intolerance" and "religious fundamentalism."
     "Even though there is progress in the cooperation in the region," he said, "there are still risks that pose a threat not only to certain countries -- they pose a threat to security in broader proportions."
     The meeting Saturday -- the third between the defense ministers since 1996 -- comes at a time of rising tension caused by a Yugoslav crackdown in Kosovo, whose population is predominately ethnic Albanian. Albania and Macedonia fear the fighting could spill into their countries; some refugees already have.
     As part of its efforts to press the Yugoslav president, Slobodan Milosevic, to ease the crackdown, NATO dispatched more than 80 airplanes to Albania in June. It has also staged training exercises in NATO's "Partnership for Peace" countries -- central and eastern European countries waiting to join the Alliance which include the four Balkan states that signed the agreement.
     The United Nations maintains a small peacekeeping force in Macedonia, a former Yugoslav republic that declared its independence in 1991. The force, which now has about 700 troops, monitors Macedonia's border with Serbia, the dominant Yugoslav republic, and Albania.
     In July, the U.N. Security Council renewed the mission and, in a sign of the growing fears of the spread of fighting or refugees from Kosovo, increased the number of troops to 1,050. The United States has contributed about 350 troops since the mission began; American officials said that would not increase.
     The new Southeastern European Defense Ministerial, first proposed a year and a half ago, is not intended to be a subset of NATO. The force formed Saturday can train together and, if called, deploy together. The countries still must work out some operational details, including where to put the force's headquarters.
     The United States will not contribute troops, but Cohen pledged to provide expertise and equipment. The Pentagon has long supported the creation of peacekeeping forces that, like this one, forge closer relations between militaries. Officials often point to the Baltic Bridge, a peacekeeping force with troops from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.
     Despite the agreement Saturday, there were indications of tensions that still must be overcome. The document the ministers signed left off the names of the seven countries because of a dispute over Macedonia's name. Greece has refused to recognize the name Republic of Macedonia, insisting that the country be referred to as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

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