Troops' inaction over Kosovo violence questioned

1.00pm - By KIM SENGUPTA

MITROVICA - The funeral of two young boys whose deaths triggered the violence engulfing Kosovo passed off peacefully yesterday, as Nato rushed more troops to areas of conflict between Albanians and Serbs.

Fresh questions were being raised, however, about why the international force in the former Yugoslav province had allowed the systematic ethnic cleansing to take place, with troops and police accused of simply watching while Albanian mobs drove out Serbian residents and ransacked and burned their properties.

There were no reports of any serious disturbances in the province yesterday. However, an explosive device was discovered and diffused in the centre of the capital, Pristina.

While Nato and the United Nations publicly insisted yesterday that the fleeing Serbians, huddled into military camps, will be returned to their homes, officials on the ground expressed open scepticism.

There is growing realisation that the ethnic map of Kosovo has been permanently changed, with little chance of the refugees being able to resettle safely in their former homes.

There was deep apprehension that yesterday's funerals of Avni Vaseli and Egzon Delou, both aged 12, could provide the spark for a fresh round of violence.

The two boys, along with Avni's nine-year-old Florent Vaseli, allegedly drowned in the Ibar river, next to their village after being chased by a gang of Serbs with dogs. Florent's body has not been found.

The account of the deaths was provided by Florent's 14-year-old brother, Fitim, who managed to swim free, and its broadcast, on the local television station, led to three days of murders and looting. A police investigation has failed to find any corroborating evidence for the claim.

The father of the dead boys had publicly asked that the funeral should not be the excuse for further rioting, an appeal echoed by the Kosovo interim government and the United Nations. And yesterday's burial at the village of Cabra, with around 8,000 people attending, was a quiet and dignified affair.

Bajran Rexhapi, the Kosovo Prime Minister, present at the ceremony, said, "Your dignified stand makes us proud. You have set an example for all Kosovars of how to show dignity at a difficult time."

Before the funeral, Sali Deliu, Egion's uncle, said "The Serbs killed our boy. But we will leave it up to the law and the authorities to take care of it for now. We shall not take revenge, and we are sorry for all those who have been killed because of the deaths of our children."

Cabra is near Mitrovica, which has long been a scene of clashes between the two communities. Another village, near the town, Svinjare, was attacked by Albanians who burnt Serbian homes and drove livestock into the flames, after the inhabitants had left.

Witnesses, including journalists, said that French soldiers in a nearby encampment, with a clear view of the village, did nothing to stop the attacks or the subsequent destruction of property, although they did evacuate the Serbs.

Asked why his men had failed to intervene, the French commander at Mitrovica, Brigadier Xavier Michell, said:

"All the French soldiers were deployed between the two communities in Mitrovica. We have just enough to protect the Serb population there. I put the soldiers where we thought they would be most effective. What happened in Svinjare is unfortunate. The attacks were synchronised and organised. The situation remains fragile."

Barry Pollin, on secondment from the Northern Ireland Police Service, and police commander at Mitrovica, said that there was no evidence to support the claim that the boys were chased into the river by Serbs.

"The whole matter is very emotive. But we have conducted a professional investigation in the cold light of day, and there is no evidence to corroborate the story of the surviving boy," he said.

In Obilic more than 220 Serbians were evacuated after a rampage by Albanian youths who also set the church alight. A block of flats attacked and looted was right next to the police station, but no policeman intervened.

Sergeant Jean Philippe Stephan, a French officer serving with the UN police, said: "We have 60 police here, but that was not large enough to stop the mob. All we could do was form a protective cordon to take the Serbs out. We could not do anything else."

A handful of Serbs have remained behind in enclaves in southern and central Kosovo. Caglavica, a hamlet near, Pristina, was attacked and homes set on fire. It is now being guarded by Swedish troops.

Standing in front of a charred house, Dragan, who would give only his first name, said, "Nothing was done to protect us. We did not expect anything like this. I stayed behind in Kosovo after the war, and I got on well with Albanians. Both my neighbours' homes were burnt, but my one escaped. I have sent my family out of here, but I intend to stay behind. We have no doubts that the whole thing was planned."

- INDEPENDENT