B o s N e t - Sept. 15, 1995
DUTCH SOLDIERS DESTROYED EVIDENCE
London, September 14,1995 (Press TWRA) - The DUTCHBATT officers destroyed the film which showed dutch soldiers who just stand aside and passively watched Karadjic's Serbs preparing for the massacre over Bosniak civilians in Srebrenica in July, 1995, claimes the documentary film about the fall of Srebrenica enclave showed last night on BBC. The author of this documentary film, John Sweeny columnist for the weekly "The Observer", claims that the commander of DUTCHBATT in Srebrenica Hans Kuzee allowed the UNPROFOR film to be destroyed in order to prevent the identification of the Dutch soldiers who appear in the film. (end) S.K.
6OOO PEOPLE KILLED Sarajevo, September 14,1995 (Press TWRA) - The International Comity of Red Cross based on the eye-witness statements established that about 8OOO people who lived on that territory are proclaimed "disappeared" since Serbs took control over that area. The ICRC representative in Sarajevo informed that eye-witnesses confirmed that at least 3OOO men were divided from their families in front of many witnesses, and about 5OOO persons simply disappeared during Serbian conquest of Srebrenica. London - "Amnesty International" considers that 6OOO people which are "disappeared" after the fall of Srebrenica, on July 15, 1995 Karadjic's Serbs killed. (end) S.K.
``You have to prepare something to start moving toward Trnovo in order for the cameras to record it and send it to the world even if it means returning it during the night... You see this ultimatum expires at 2300 hours,'' Karadzic, also indicted for war crimes, tells Sladoje.
``You have to form a small column made of five or six pieces which you will start moving when the journalists arrive -- start moving it toward Trnovo... It is a crucial matter that they take pictures of it and send it. So you start preparing and forming it now even if our people have to return it in the night .. you form the column and don't move before the journalists arrive,'' Karadzic is also recorded as saying.
A group of journalists was sent from the nationalist Bosnian Serb ``capital'' of Pale to Lukavica that night and reported the movement of a small column of vehicles and heavy weapons away from Sarajevo toward Trnovo south of Sarajevo. However NATO and the United Nations used aerial reconnaissance and determined that nationalist Serb military was not withdrawing weapons, and NATO resumed air strikes resumed Sept. 5.
Radovan Karadzic, indicted for war crimes, said his heavy weaponry would be redeployed on the edge of the zone "because if we have a cessation of hostilities agreement, it means there is not going to be war in Sarajevo any longer."
Gen. Mladic has six days to complete the withdrawal of his 300 tanks and artillery pieces.
Nationalist Bosnian Serb leader Alexa Buha, person in charge of "foreign affairs" commented just hours before: "The international community can continue to bomb us until they kill us all, we have no choice."
Paul Beaver, an analyst with Jane's Defense Information Group, said there were good reasons the air strikes were having little effect on Mladic. "They have prepared for something of this kind to happen for about two years. They have expected NATO air strikes for at least two years and have prepared for the total defense of Bosnia almost since 1992. Ammunition and equipment has been stored in bunkers and caves as part of Marshal Tito's master plan in the 1960s."
"Milosevic twists Mladic's arm to get what he wants," said a senior U.N. official, who knows both men, "but Mladic rebels against him. I have seen Mladic argue vehemently against Milosevic, to his face. Mladic commands considerable respect."
``It's getting very crowded [in Banja Luka],'' said one relief official. Pale "officials" were concerned that electricity to Banja Luka would be knocked out after town of Jajce was liberated by HVO forces. The International Committee of the Red Cross planned to run a 16-truck aid convoy with 400 tons of food to the Banja Luka area.
Nationalist Bosnian Serb leaders have appeared on television to try to minimize suspicions among "ordinary" Bosnian Serbs that their politicians were handing over territory without a fight as part of land swaps.
``It's beyond bitterness. After bitterness, you have resignation... The only thing left is to swallow the pill,'' said a Pale Serb.
"A pure NATO decision in my view is not desireable, but it seems to me -- and this is my personal view -- that Russia can play a significant role because we played a big role in the political process... We have to work on this with our military and other colleagues."
One of the members of nationalist Bosnian Serb leadership, Momcilo Krajisnik admitted losses: "The fact is that we have big problems in the western part of our republic... I think peace can come soon. Within the next two or there weeks all the terror of the war will pass."
"Restraint and moderation are the watchwords of the day... They [Bosnian Army HVO troops] must refrain from any step that could jepoardise the current peace process. This applies to decision-makers in Zagreb and Sarajevo as well."
In a separate event, when asked on German radio if the U.N. should lift economic sanctions on Belgrade, Hans Koschnik, EU Administrator of city of Mostar said: "Yes. Once it is really clear that Milosevic and Belgrade want to take steps for peace, I think it makes no sense to just keep pressing... One must of course offer something as well so that peace can be useful for all sides concerned."
"We're almost out of Schlitz as far as what we can do here ... We have done what the politicians have told us to do. It has not achieved the result we hoped it would with Mladic. Now it's about time for the politicians to tell us what to do next," said a senior NATO commander, after 3,400 missions, including about 850 bombing raids.
US Defense Secretary Perry said on Wednesday: "I think the message we are sending is very strong indeed... I'm quite satisfied with both the pace and the intensity of the bombing, and I'm not contemplating a request to Phase Three anytime in the immediate future."
"We could take out some of [guns around Sarajevo] them," Perry said on Tuesday. "But you have to see them to take them out. The Bosnian Serbs have been doing their best to hide them not only successfully, but sometimes they've been positioning them close to churches and hospitals."
A senior NATO commander said Allied warplanes, armed with laser-guided bombs, could probably attack at least 100 artillery guns.
"If we start taking out weapons systemically, he could start shelling Sarajevo with those we didn't know about and that could lead to more wanton killing," the officer said, referring to nationalist Serb commander Gen. Mladic, indicted for war crimes.
NEWS: EVENING BULLETIN ISLAMIC COUNTRIES DECIDED TO DELIVER ARMS TO B-H GOVERNMENT Kuala Lumpur, September 14,1995 (Press TWRA) - The Defence and Foreign Ministers of OIC Contact Group for B-H decided to deliver the arms to B-H Government. This decision was adopted on the meeting in Kuala Lumpur after B-H Government repeated its demands. The representatives of 53 countries members of OIC accepted the plan of action which the specially formed "Group for help and mobilization for B-H" has to implement. (end) S.K.
B-H ARMY ADVANCES TOWARD BANJA LUKA AND KLJUC Sarajevo, September 14,1995 (Press TWRA) - Commenting for the B-H television the latest successes of B-H Army's 7th Corps and HVO the commander of the 7th Corps, General Mehmed Alagic, said that B-H Army continues the offensive in the direction of Mrkonjic Grad and that the final aim of these operations is "to make inspection of B-H Army in Banja Luka". The B-H Radio also announced that the members of B-H Army's 5th Corps liberated all important elevation peaks and military objects near Bosanski Petrovac and are about to enter the town. The representative of B-H Army headquarters Ferid Buljubasic announced that B-H Army, after liberation of Donji Vakuf, will continue with military operations and that its next objective is town Kljuc. "The liberation of Kljuc can be expected very soon, maybe even today", said Buljubasic. (end) S.K.
B-H ARMY ADVANCES ON OZREN Tuzla, September 14,1995 (Press TWRA) - The B-H Army's 2nd Corps together with 3rd Corps continue to liberate the occupied territories on Mt. Ozren, reported our correspondent. This morning at least ten villages (Semici, Tubici, Brijestnica, Memici, Vukadinovo Brdo) and several important objects were liberated. Serbian forces have been withdrawing toward Doboj. Because of great losses in territory, manpower and military equipment Karadjic's Serbs today fired on all settlements in Tuzla's canton and on villages around Gracanica from cannons and mortars. Serbs fired also on Vranovaca and Rajska, settlements on Posavina battlefield in order to divert attention from the big convoy with arms which was moving along the corridor.(end) S.K.
NATO INTERRUPTED AIR-STRIKES Washington, September 14,1995 (Press TWRA) - According to US military sources Serbs in principle agreed to withdraw the heavy weapons around Sarajevo if their demands would be met. Serbs demand that B-H Government informs UN about the deployment of her heavy weapons around Sarajevo. The US State Secretary Assistant Holbrook had to discuss this with B-H Government representatives. In the meantime CNN reported that Serbs would withdraw their heavy weapons around Sarajevo for 12,5 km in exchange for three days cessation of NATO air-strikes. Brussels - The NATO spokesman in Brussels confirmed today that NATO interrupted the air-strikes on Serbian military aims in B-H in order to give chance to peace negotiations. He refused to say when this pause started and how long it will last. According to unofficial sources NATO's General Secretary Willy Claes ordered a twelve hours cessation which started today at 7:3O a.m. (end) S.K.
HV, HVO AND B-H ARMY LIBERATED A LARGE AREA
Zagreb, Sarajevo, Zenica, Sep 13, 1995 (Press TWRA) - B-H army 7th Corps has liberated Donji Vakuf, its outskirts and part of the Skender Vakuf county. Croatian media released the command of Serb paramilitary calling on its units in Donji Vakuf (named Srbobran by occupiers) and Skender Vakuf (named Knezevo) to flee westwards and surrender arms to Croatian forces, avoiding so it to be captured by B-H army. The same order bids the terrorists to demand from Croats to get free passage towards Mrkonjic Grad.=20 Croatian army (HV) & Croatian Defense Council (HVO) entered yesterday the towns of Sipovo & Drvar, Mts. Demirovac & Vitorog, saddle Mliniste and the routes leading to Banjaluka and Sanski Most. The success of HV and HVO was crowned today by liberation of Jajce. The town of Jajce, placed between central Bosnia and the Banjaluka region, was seized after severe fighting in 1992. The fall of Jajce is a hard defeat for Karadzic's Serbs as the electric-power supply for Banjaluka is threaten, and compactness of the occupied area is ruined. In various parts of Bosnia, Serb occupiers have these days lost at least 5 % of the B-H territory. B-H Army went on advancing on Mt. Ozren, the largest part of which has been liberated, about 2OO square km, including crucial peak of Kraljica. Serb paramilitary is withdrawing fast from Mt. Ozren towards the town of Doboj to which B-H army is advancing. In that area NATO air strikes go on targeting military depots and positions of 2nd armoured brigade in Savarlija, the outskirts of Doboj. Serb positions east to the town were also under attack. The liberated settlements are Sevici, Brdo, Potoci, Djukanovic, Modra Rijeka, Kremen, Plavetno Brdo, Janja, Kosanja, Bornatica, Gradina, Ravna Rudna and Kamen. B-H army 2nd and 3rd Corps take joint actions in the area. B-H Army 5th Corps advances from Bihac towards south-east (Kulen Vakuf & Bosanski Petrovac). /end/ A.S.=20
GRANIC ON CROATIA AND BOSNIA IN WASHINGTON
Washington, Sep 13, 1995 (Press TWRA) - Croatian foreign minister M. Granic repeated in his talks with the Clinton administration's high officials that the Zagreb Government will be forced to take military steps for re-integration of eastern Slavonia, if this is not achieved by diplomatic means. About the NATO strikes, Granic said: "Since the beginning of the aggression and genocide, this is the first clear sign to the culprits that there is a price to be paid for it". In 6O to 9O days, the US Congress will lift the arms embargo against Croatia and Bosnia, if aggression goes on, the Senate majority leader Bob Dole promised Granic. Granic said the continuation of Bosnia's sovereignty was confirmed, and Serbs accepted the Contact group peace plan. Readiness of the Sarajevo Government for compromise is therefore - wisdom and pragmatism.=20 Granic explained the B-H Army offensive in central Bosnia by the need to find some area for refugees from Srebrenica and Zepa, before the coming winter. (end) A.S.