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Deaths of peacekeepers caused by NATO cluster bomb
June 22, 1999
PRISTINA, Yugoslavia (CNN) -- A KFOR briefing Tuesday acknowledges that the ordnance that exploded on Monday killing two British soldiers and two civilians was a NATO cluster bomb. The soldiers were trying to clear land mines and booby traps from a school building Monday -- the first casualities since peacekeepers began streaming into Kosovo on June 12. A third civilian was injured in the blast. "This tragic incident underlines the dangers that face KFOR troops as we work to get a safe and secure environment for the return of the displaced peoples of Kosovo," said NATO spokesman Lt. Col. Nick Clissitt. Despite the explosion, NATO commanders were upbeat about restoring peace to Kosovo. NATO officially ended its air campaign against Yugoslavia following confirmation that Yugoslav forces had pulled out of Kosovo ahead of Sunday's midnight deadline. Yugoslavia's state-run Tanjug news agency reported that the Yugoslav government also took a step toward peace Monday, asking parliament to end the state of war imposed on March 24, the day NATO's Operation Allied Force began. The state of war banned men of military age from leaving the country, let the army take over key institutions and subjected the news media to censorship. Shortly after NATO confirmed that Yugoslav troops had pulled out of Kosovo ahead of Sunday's midnight deadline, the Kosovo Liberation Army pledged early Monday to lay down its weapons, essentially ending its armed struggle for independence. "KLA has been fighting to achieve what we have achieved today. KLA hasn't won the war only. Democratic world has won this war," said the KLA's political chief, Hashim Thaci, after signing the demilitarization agreement outside Pristina. NATO's KFOR commander, Lt. Gen. Mike Jackson, said the KLA agreed to a cease-fire. The KLA also promised not to plant mines or set up checkpoints or barriers. Jackson said the rebels also agreed to take off their uniforms and to respect the authority of peacekeeping forces in Kosovo. Under the agreement, effective immediately, rebels must give up heavy weapons and stop carrying guns in much of Kosovo. Within the next 30 days, they must place in storage anything larger than a pistol or hunting rifle. Total demilitarization must be completed within 90 days. "Today marks a turning point in KFOR's mission," said Jackson. "I emphasize once again we are here to establish a climate of peace and security for all the people of Kosovo. I hope that all -- and I stress that word all -- who have left in fear will return." Thousands of Serbs, fearing reprisals from the KLA and returning Albanian refugees, fled Kosovo as Yugoslav troops pulled out. Under the terms of the agreement, Thaci pledged the KLA would not seek revenge for atrocities blamed on Yugoslav forces. But U.S. officials said privately they could not rule out some dissension among more militant KLA factions.
In Belgrade, several hundred Serb refugees from Kosovo marched through the capital, demanding better protection before they return to the province. Angry with both the government they feel has abandoned them and with peacekeepers who they say cannot ensure safety for them in Kosovo, the Serbs demanded the U.N. Security Council address the problem. "It's a madhouse down there right now," said one Serb man from the Kosovo town of Prizren. "We would be killed or slaughtered if we go there. There's no security without the army, without police. You can't face (ethnic Albanians) with your bare hands." Nervous police told protesters they were under orders to arrest them if they didn't disperse. "Please, arrest me," a young man who gave his name as Nenad said sarcastically. "I was wounded twice as a reserve policeman" in Kosovo. Police did arrest one man who accused authorities of trying to play down the extent of the Yugoslav defeat in Kosovo and hide the Serb civilian exodus from the province. The flood of Serbs out of Kosovo has spurred alarm on the part of refugee agencies. Judith Kumin, a spokeswoman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, said the situation in Serbia was "a very grim one," with high unemployment, low food stocks and virtually no accommodations. "It was clear to our field teams that at least 50,000 people had arrived in or transited through the areas of central Serbia," she said. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of ethnic Albanians were returning to the homes they abandoned despite pleas from international officials to wait until mines and booby traps have been removed. "The picture in the municipality of Kukes, in northern Albania, has changed dramatically in just a week. Seven days ago there were around 112,000 refugees in Kukes," said Kumin. "Today there are fewer than 35,000, with less than 5,000 left in camps." Kumin said most of the refugees hailed from the southwestern part of Kosovo, with fewer people returning to other parts which were badly damaged during the conflict. Some 135,000 Albanians have come back to Kosovo since the war ended, and thousands more have come out of hiding within the province. As the refugees returned, the KLA's Thaci voiced concern about a number of prominent Albanian intellectuals and political activists believed to be prisoners of the Yugoslavs. "There are many Albanian political prisoners in Serbia ... who have been kidnapped, and we know nothing about their fate," Thaci said.
World leaders looked toward the future of the Balkans on Monday as Kosovo began its adjustment to peace. "What we are witnessing is not an end, but a new beginning," said British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, in Luxembourg for a meeting of European foreign ministers. "Today at this meeting we are discussing ... how the European Union can fulfill its lead role for the reconstruction of Kosovo." The same issue was on the table in Bonn, Germany, where EU leaders and U.S. President Bill Clinton met a day after the close of the Group of Eight summit in Cologne. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, whose country holds the EU's chairmanship, announced again his plan to convene a meeting in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, to discuss Kosovo recovery plans. The meeting, most likely in July, will include not only NATO and its allies, but all the Balkan nations affected by the Kosovo conflict. "We want to send a clear signal that the region can very much rely on the fact that we are not just talking about providing assistance, but that we really want to help, and will help," Schroeder said. But Schroeder and Clinton were clear that any aid provided to Yugoslavia would only benefit the country's citizens, and not help Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic rebuild Yugoslavia's shattered economy and infrastructure. "It is important that if the Serbs want to keep Mr. Milosevic, that at least they not freeze to death this winter, and that their hospitals not be forced to close," Clinton said Monday. "In terms of rebuilding bridges so people can go to work, I don't buy that. That's part of economic reconstruction, and I don't think we should help. Not a bit, not a penny." The leaders came to no conclusions about the cost of the Balkans aid, but said the Sarajevo meeting would begin the process of determining that. "It will probably cost a lot more than people think it will, but it will be cheaper than more war," Clinton said. Correspondents Richard Blystone, John King and Wolf Blitzer contributed to this report. RELATED STORIES: NATO air war officially ends as Yugoslav troops leave Kosovo RELATED SITES: Yugoslavia:
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