Don't Bang Too Hard When It's State of War

"I will tell you something we find surprising.  Whenever Mr. Chernomirdin visits Belgrade   and this has happened for a third time in a row during the time he has been part of the mission which reflects not only Russian interests, but the interests of many other countries   the intensity of bombing reaches its peak.  Hence the question: 'Who's trying to undermine the negotiations?'" (Igor Ivanov, Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs)

In point of fact, on the evening of May 20, when Chernomirdin left after seven hours of negotiations with the FRY President Milosevic, the NATO air force bore down on Belgrade and after about 45 minutes past midnight hit Dr. Dragisa Misevic Clinic and Hospital Center in the Dedinje suburb of Belgrade.  The direct hit destroyed the Neurology Center of Dr. Dragisa Misevic Clinic and Hospital Center.  Three patients in that hospital died.  The day after the British Minister of Defense stated that Belgrade has to be bombed for that is where the brain of the Serbian operation on Kosovo is located.  Two of the people killed in the Belgrade hospital bombing were in a deep coma following strokes.

Playground Swing Severed by Shell Fragments

Irena Dinic was giving birth during the bombing.  She received cuts to her face, and soon after she and her daughter were rescued from the rubble.  The facilities housing the polyclinic and hospital areas for children suffering from pulmonary illnesses, for gynecology and obstetrics, for neurology, urology and haematolysis, geriatrics and otorinolaryngology, each and every one were completely destroyed.  It was also announced that significant damage occurred in the majority of buildings and facilities of this Center and other healthcare buildings in the neighborhood.  While the workers of the municipal authority were trimming the damaged linden trees in the park surrounding the hospital, our reporters gaze stopped at a playground swing severed by shell fragments.

This makes nine "mistakes" since the beginning of the air strikes against Yugoslavia, mistakes which the North Atlantic Alliance admitted to, explaining them away as the veering off of a projectile from its established course.  Among its "mistakes" NATO has not included the bombing of the village of Korise, near Prizren, in which at least 87 people got killed, with dozens wounded, because it continues to claim that Korise was legitimate military target.  Serbian sources indicate that at least 226 people got killed in these nine "acknowledged mistakes".  France Press checkmarked the "mistakes" committed thus far: April 6   Aleksinac; April 9   houses surrounding the electricity distribution center in Pristina; April 12   passenger train on the Grdelica Gorge in which 55 people got killed; April 14   two refugee convoys in the region of Djakovica, with 75 dead and 25 in critical condition; April 28   civilian houses in Surdulica, 20 killed; May 1   the bridge in Luzani across which the Nis Ekspres bus company vehicle was traveling, with 40 to 60 civilians killed; May 7   central part of Nis where the market, the hospital clinic and the university are located, with 15 dead and 70 injured; May 8   Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, three people killed with around 20 injured; in the same night an attack on the Supreme Headquarters of the Yugoslav Army was repeated as soon as rescue teams arrived...
Margit Savovic, President of UNICEF Committee for Yugoslavia, stated on May 22 that 38 children have been killed in NATO attacks on the refugee convoys in the villages of Korise and Surdulica.  The body count in the massacre in Korisa is the follwing: 10 newborns, 26 children under the age of 15, stated Savovic in today's press conference.  "It seems that the fate of those who fled NATO bombs is more disturbing than the fate of those who remain underneath the rubble, for the dead do not cry," stated Savovic.

The Roof Is Falling

On May 19 the NATO air force began a series of strikes against an unexpected target, the Dubrava Prison near Istok, Kosovo.  The first series of strikes claimed the lives of two inmates, with one guard and another two inmates wounded.  On May 21 their air force once again targeted the prison in Istok with additional projectiles.  At that time AFP announced that there were at least nine dead.  Then the number of dead was increased to "at least ten."  According to Aleksandar Rakocevic, Head Warden, three guards and one woman guard were seriously injured, while the Deputy Head Warden, Nedzmedin Kalicanin was killed.  At about 1:00 p.m., shortly after the departure of journalists, NATO once again bombed the prison in Istok.  At least five to six projectiles were dropped on the prison complex at a moment when several hundred prisoners and guards were in the prison yard.  The entire prison complex was covered by a thick layer of smoke.  The bomb fragments which were discovered carry the inscription "no lift", along with nearly the entire guiding mechanism.  "When the attack began we had to release the prisoners from their cells, because we did not want to allow that they be slaughtered," stated Head Warden Aleksandar Rakocevic, adding that "from the first moment it was clear that NATO is directly targeting buildings."  The building housing the guards and prison authorities, the heating plant, a motel and five pavilions housing the prisoners were completely destroyed.  One projectile destroyed the fifteen foot high prison wall, while the entire complex was covered with particles of bricks, concrete and metal.  The remains of projectiles were discovered by journalists hundreds of feet away from huge craters.  Shell fragments were found as far away as a thousand feet from the nearest building in the prison complex.  Several bombs also exploded on the fields adjacent to the penal complex.  There are several craters surrounding the walls of the prison, the Beta Agency journalist Rade Maroevic reported.  Several passenger cars and an ambulance were destroyed in the attack.  Later it was announced that a certain number of prisoners fled during the bombing.

Around a 1000 prisoners were serving their sentences in the Istok Prison.  Later reports indicate that the number of victims in that prison is larger that supposed   as many as a 100 killed and around 200 wounded is a figure which was mentioned.  The Head Warden states that there are no military buildings in the proximity of the prison.  The Istok Prison is located atop a hill, without any shelter from trees or other barriers which could provide cover for soldiers and their weapons.

The Beta Agency reporter quotes a prisoner whom he identifies as Boban, last name undisclosed, who stated that he was in his cell during the attack, that he heard horrible explosions, that "it appeared to him that the roof will fall on his head."  "Shortly after that the guards released us and we went outside," he stated, adding that "prisoners were killed when a projectile directly hit the yard."  A number of individuals sentenced for terrorism were among the inmates.

NATO spokesman in Bruxelles, Jamie Shae, along with NATO military representative Walter Yertz confirmed on May 22 that NATO airplanes bombed the Istok Prison, but stuck to their claim that "NATO bombed a military complex there."

What was the real reason for this operation is still open to speculation, while it is the opinion of this author that perhaps someone at Bruxelles came up with the bright idea of bombing the prison as a way of setting free inmates who could assume once again their positions in the KLA.

Yet another event reflects a completely incomprehensible tactic.  Spokesman Shea confirmed that the NATO air force struck the area of Kosara near the Albanian border which was under KLA control, according to Albanian sources.  Shea stated that stated that NATO military commanders identified the target as Kosani, and not Kosara, and that he will check whether what was at issue was a mere mistake in the exact name of the target, whether perhaps NATO bombed that target under the assumption that the border crossing was still under Yugoslav Army control, and that NATO will forthright strike Kosare from the list of its legitimate targets in the event that information surfaces which indicates that this area is under KLA control.  According to some reports these attacks resulted in the deaths of many members of the KLA, while according to other sources, only one death was reported, while many were suffered injuries.  Observers who are part of the Organization of European Security and Cooperation located in Bajaram Curija stated that they saw two helicopters transporting the wounded guerillas to Tirana   nine were carried on stretchers with one dead body.  They stated that the border area near the region of Kosara resounded withe the sound of fighting.  A solider from Ruma who was wounded in the region of the Kosara watchtower said: "We haven't withdrawn a yard from the beginning of the war.  Men get killed but neither they can advance, nor can we.  They still have support from the air.  There is a tampon zone along the border with everyone keeping to their positions, with no movement, we hold our ground and all else is mere lies and propaganda.  The border zone was expanded to 3-5 kilometers long before the war.  We have assumed our positions from the beginning and we remain strong, but the daily defense of our positions is fierce.  Their provocations are unending."
Despite these attacks, the leader of the KLA and at the same time the president of their parallel "government" of Kosovo, Hashim Taci, in a statement given to the AP television in Tirana called upon NATO on May 23 to continue and to step up its air strikes against the FRY, which Albanian leaders reiterateed after every such attack.  Parallel with these events, the western media keep repeating the claim that the KLA "is growing stronger everyday" and that since the defeat in March 24 its numbers have risen to 15,000 strong.
The Yugoslav authorities kept repeating that the members of the Yugoslav Army and Police have broken up all units of the separatist KLA.  On May 22, Radio Television Serbia (RTS), in a report from the Lapska region where it is claimed the "strongest base" of the KLA was located, made claims with on the spot footage that in the region of Podujevo there is no longer any fighting, that the KLA no longer exists in that region, that villages have not been destroyed and that "the remaining terrorist are giving up their arms or are being liquidated."  In the state television report it is claimed that "life is normal in Podujevo, that there are many people in the streets, and that electricity, water and staple food supplies are regular."  The RTS team visited a KLA stronghold in a school in the village of Obrandza, "in the operating zone of the terrorist 'Lap' section of the 151 brigade" of the KLA.  Footage of trenches and bunkers around the bill above Podujevo was shown, with shelter for mortar fire.  "Terrorists told foreign media that Obrandza will never fall   however, now there are no longer any terrorist," noted the RTS reporter.  A camp for infantry training located in the village of Velika Reka, on the slopes of Kopaonik, was shown, a place where there are no longer any KLA, just as in Gornja Lapasnica, Glavnik and Konjusevac...  "Even the last, hardcore criminals who are hiding in the woods are being liquidated, such as the terrorist commander Medzmija Umica, called Johnny, whose unit was liquidated on April 27," RTS claimed.

The next day, on May 23, RTS showed another destroyed KLA stronghold in the area of Suva Reka in Drenica, with trenches, dugouts and bunkers on the slopes of the Jezerska Mountain.  Goran Velickovic, a Major with the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Serbia (MUP), stated for RTS that on May 8 all antiterrorist actions in the broad region of Suva Reka have drawn to an end, that and that MUP is firmly in control in the region in which "one of the biggest strongholds of the Albanian terrorist bands in Budakovo and Papaz have been neutralized and destroyed."

Refuting a Speculation

Commander of the Pristina Corps of the Yugoslav Army, General Major Vladimir Lazarevic reiterated on April 9 that "the ground attack by Albanian terrorists and NATO from the north of Albania has begun centered around the area across the Junicke Mountains": "the attacks are being carried out by combined forces of Albanians terrorist including refugees from Kosovo, military units from Albania and special NATO units, with unprecedented NATO air support."  He added that in attacks which took place thus far, the aggressor suffered considerable losses in that part of the territory, which forced him to change his strategy.

The Commander of the Pristina Corps of the Yugoslav Army emphatically denied NATO claims that Yugoslav Army units have thus far had 13,000 deserters and that NATO destroyed 300 Yugoslav Army tanks in Kosovo.  "If this is true, why is NATO not stepping up the realization of its objectives.  That's all I have to say," stated General Lazarevic.
Reports about deserters were given considerable air time and NATO spokesmen and the western media interpreted this as an indication of weakness on the Yugoslav side.  Referring to Lazarevic's denials of speculations regarding supposed mass desertions, on May 25 Reuters called upon Vijesti of Podgorica which reports "several thousand" demonstrators in "the southern cities of Serbia" (Aleksandrovac, Raska, Prokuplje and Krusevac) who are demanding the withdrawal of the Army from Kosovo, and that around a thousand deserters from Krusevac and Aleksandrovac are refusing to return to their units.  According to the same source, General Nebojsa Pavkovic, Commander of the Third Army, did not succeed in persuading the deserters to return, something he managed to do previously in Raska.

However, in its report The New York Times notes that the key demand came from the women of Krusevac who insisted on getting more information about their husbands and sons.  Pavkovic, Commander of the Third Army and the Kosovo Operation, spoke in that community with hundreds of women, while at the same time truck carrying uniformed soldiers began returning to the city, "in all likelihood with permission to come back from Kosovo."  On of the women who took part in the meeting told The New York Times that criticism mostly referred to uncertainty and economic difficulties, complicated by the lengthy absence of menfolk.

The New York Times that following the "discussion which was at times heated," Pavkovic was given a hero's farewell.  Referring to statements by witnesses, the paper writes that at the end, one of the women gave the General a sweater she knitted herself.  Pavkovic described the soldiers who were conscripted into the Yugoslav Army in March of last year as heros, promising that reservists, some of who are in Kosovo for 40 days already, will soon be replaced, The New York Times reports.  An officer in Belgrade stated for this American daily newspaper that uniformed menfolk were given permission to return home.

According to those interviewed by VREME, one part of a unit constituted of reservists from Krusevac made an agreement with those who remained in Kosovo "to stand their ground" and decided to carry out the earlier promised leave of absence at their own initiative.  Armed, they managed to reach Brzec in Kopaonik where they met with General Pavkovic who supposedly agreed to let them go to their homes after they handed over their weapons.  Last week they were asked to return to Kosovo.  At the present moment, the returnees of Krusevac are bothered by whether their official status will be proclaimed as "on leave of absence" or "deserters."  Several days earlier, on May 21 news arrived from Pristina   spared from bombing on the previous day because of the visit by the UN team headed by De Mela   that the wounded ("Half of them are from Kosovo, mostly Metohija, then there are soldiers from Vojvodina, from Uzice and the neighberhood, and Gypsies and Egyptians") in the hospital in Pristina include two soldiers from the Krusevac unit.  One of them said: "We had some losses, ten of our boys near Pec and at the border, and we were an entire unit in operations around Istok.  We were reservists, some 600-700...  And you can imagine how we all feel out there, not knowing what's happening at home, while we were promised to be allowed to go back home several weeks ago.  We were idle, sitting in reserve without any action.  We broke these guys in that area a long time ago and our part of the territory is clean, and what else should we do than to go home to see our folks.  The promise was fulfilled, we got the green light and we got together and went home.  But sonny, this is war and there are often misunderstandings and different takes on whatever.  I'd like to see who's gone call me a deserter with all these bullet holes.  Our boys went home, and what happened.  People thought that we deserted.  We can't convince our people.  I stayed back with a hundred or so of our boys to keep watch until we get replaced, and when our b!
oys come back, we'll get our turn to visit our loved ones.  I had bad luck on a slope above Istok.  And it was not a shell fragment but a piece of a rock which the bomb detonation threw my way.  Immediately after my operation I called back home to Krusevac.  When all I could hear there was glee and a million questions, with my head spinning over here.  What are you talking folks, there are no deserters among us.  There was no longer any need for that many of us to stay there: we are reservists and we have not seen our wives and children for two months already   what are you talking about.  You know, Dad, there are all sorts of rumors here, I'm sick to the stomach."

NATO and Montenegrin Media

On May 20, Ivica Dacic, Spokesman for the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) made the following claim: "What is happening in Krusevac and Aleksandrovac is that parents are expressing interest in the schedule of return of a segment of Army and Police units, and not protests which NATO claims are demonstrations against the war."  He observed that it is "normal that parents are expressing interest for their children, especially in parts where the majority of the population is engaged in protecting the country," and that parents in Krusevac and Aleksandrovac were posing "legitimate questions regarding the return of units," adding that it is his hope that representatives of the Yugoslav Army "are devoting their attention to this."  Dacic accused NATO of misrepresenting such legitimate interests on the part of parents as demonstrations against the Army, noting that "NATO is persistently searching for cracks in FRY defenses."

On May 20, the President of the Serbian Radical Party and Vice-President of the Government of Serbia, Vojislav Seselj stated that demonstrations in Krusevac and Aleksandrovac were caused by "anti-Serb and traitorous elements working closely with NATO forces," and that "western media blew out of proportion the incidents in Krusevac and Aleksandrovac," but that this is not a problem warranting attention and that it should not cause celebration on the part of NATO leaders.  He accused Serbian Renewal Movement (SPO) activists of organizing protests by parents of soldiers in Krusevac and Aleksandrovac, and demanded that authorities investigate whether "SPO leadership has its mixed in this affair."

The locals SPO Council in Krusevac denied all accusations made by Vojislav Seselj: "Several days ago the residents of Krusevac did not protest against their sons protecting their motherland, but against local politicians and profiteers who are not giving them answers to legitimate human concerns, but are instead getting the police to show force," it is noted in the announcement by the SPO Regional Council for Krusevac, in which mention is made of one local member of the Radical Party of Serbia.
The Yugoslav Army Garrison Command for Krusevac verbally condemned the organizers of the demonstrations for "undermining the defense of the country, for betrayal and direct cooperation with the enemy."  On May 20, Goran Matic, Minister in the Government of Yugoslavia, stated that stated that the withdrawal of a part of the Army and Police force in Kosovo cannot be called desertion, that this is mere "propaganda", and he accused NATO of promoting stories of desertion across the Montenegrin media.
The "desertion issue" stirred up politicians in Serbia.  On May 20, the leader of the Radicals, Vojislav Seselj, stated that "conditions have been met" for arresting the President of the Social Democratic League of Vojvodina, Nenad Canak, and of Mayor of Cacak, Velimir Ilic, accusing them of "calling upon the people for armed resistance."  On May 26, Politika daily in its report on the SPS Community Council in Cacak wrote: "President of the Community Council of Cacak, Velimir Ilic is taking a vacation at the time of war!  This is official news from the Community Council of Cacak.  In fact, Ilic is hiding from military authorities who have issued a warrant for his arrest on the basis of "jeopardizing the defense capabilities of the country and traitorous activities which he engaged in from the beginning of the war."  The statement continues: "The gist of his activities are statements and participation in programs of Radio Free Europe (RFE) which is under the direct auspices of the CIA, where Ilic is nothing less than designating civilian buildings as targets, claiming that they are military targets."  Otherwise, in his statement for RFE Ilic attacked a certain colonel for placing certain military weapons somewhere.
Things became even more complicated in Cacak when on May 18 a Civilian Parliament was founded as an organization which brought together 20 reputable citizens of Cacak with the objective of fighting for peace.  On May 23 the Police prohibited the Civilian Parliament meetings in Cacak with the explanation that the organization has not been officially registered.  Following this prohibition, the citizens moved to the local restaurant in Cacak called "Prolece", but they had to leave it after they were told that during a state of war every gathering is prohibited both indoors and outside.  After that they all went to the church in Cacak and light candles.  On May 25 the Community Court in Cacak issued a fine against this organization in the amount of 28,000 dinars, with the deadline for payment of 48 hours.  This fine was issued on the basis of the fact that the citizens group held meetings which were not permitted by responsible authorities, and therefore they broke the Decree on the Gathering of Citizens During the State of War.  The financial penalty which can also be exchanged for prison terms was issued to: retired professor Milan Bozovic (7500 dinars), medical doctor Mirjana Hercog (5000), professor Nada Despotovic (5000), community defense attorney Verica Barac (5000), journalist Vesna Bijelic (2500) and the unemployed technician Dragan Sipetic (2500).

Laying Waste Novi Sad and Its Surroundings

Press agency news regarding the bombing of "Novi Sad and its surroundings" still continues to come in on a daily basis, although it does not adequately describe the suffering of the residents of those so-called "surroundings."  For instance, Petrovaradin, a city which is older than Novi Sad and which became the Athens of Serbia in every regard, and which is larger than for instance Sabac or Grnji Milanovac, is presently experiencing enormous problems after the destruction of the three bridges which connect it with the center of the community.  Now the single barge across the Danube (the other one is being repaired) needs to be waited on for several hours, and beginning with June 1 it appears that there will be even more problems because the Yugoslav Army already announced that the municipal authorities will be responsible for supplying fuel for the barge.  For over a month and a half Petrovaradin has been having enormous problems with water supplies, despite the fact that the main sources of water are located on its side of the Danube, but all the purification plants are on the Novi Sad side.  Citizens are also having trouble with registering their vehicles, even with fixing them, because there is no police station in Petrovaradin which is authorized to take care of this, and it turns out that there is also no mechanic who specializes in electrical problems.  In this fairly large city, considering the average size of cities in Serbia, there is not a single cinema or a highschool.  The military hospital and institute in Sremska Kamenica are not accepting patients who have problems with, let us say, stomach irregularity.

Even other towns and villages around Novi Sad suddenly discovered how much they depend upon the center of the old town, with the ever more scarce municipal transportation (the available fuel has been reduced by five times) making every job in the center of the city a nightmare.  At the same time, the air strikes against the city suburbs are becoming ever more frequent.  The only advantage of these suburbs is that practically every house in them has a yard and usually a lot of firewood in it, so that at least cooking in the suburbs of Novi Sad is less difficult.  At night cooking pots are going strong allover.

A Granny Goes To Empty the Ash...

In Valjevo there were peace activities in previous days also.  The Community Chief For Protocols called together the main editors of local media with the objective of forming a press center of the Drina Division (the call was selective and did not include correspondents, excluding those who work for RTS or Politika).  The meeting was purposeful   all who attended were given a crash course on reporting under state of war conditions.

Our correspondent did not report anything about this crash course, although it is possible that in the spirit of a famous anecdote he hails from Obrnovac.  In Obrenovac, after a night with many air strike alerts, while all were asleep, a granny went to empty the ash from the fire.  Something stuck to the bottom of the garbage container and the granny, according to habit, clammed her pail against the container twice in order to get rid of the ash.  The residents are still beating on her for this.
A lesson can be drawn from this   don't bang too hard when it's state of war.

A press conference was also held in Valjevo.  Editors were immediately told that no reports would be released from this event, although RTS noted the statement issued by the Commander of the Second Division, General Obradov, that 22 enemy projectiles and an F-16 airplane were downed in the territory of this Division.  The statement given by the head of the Information Service of the Yugoslav Army, Milivoje Novkovic, was also reported on: he praised the work of the media in Serbia, while he said that the media in Montenegro practically hired themselves out to NATO.

Otherwise the Command of the Second Army and the Military Marines of the Yugoslav Army accused the authorities in Montenegro of "unfounded and malicious attacks" on the Yugoslav Army and on the top officers in the command and units in Montenegro.  In the press release from the Command of the Second Army and the Military Marines it is stated that "a segment of the public information service is intensifying its propaganda campaign against the Yugoslav Army," while assessing that "it is similar in method and form to the propaganda coming from the aggressors on FR Yugoslavia, and it is objectively in service of realizing their objectives."  There was also news about demonstrations against reservists in Cetinje, and about another two sporadic incidents which were made fairly extensive use of in the tense atmosphere there.

Our correspondent from Valjevo describes in a specific way how politics pulsate under the state of war, formally and informally, directly and roundabout.  He writes that it occurred in Valjevo that during peacetime the former mayor of this city, now leader of New Democracy, Dusan Mihajlovic, visited the city.  Pointing out at the press conference that the war cannot be used for political purposes, whether it be for settling scores with opponents or for resolving questions of authority.  Mihajlovic stated that New Democracy called on everyone not to do anything which would weaken unity and the defense capabilities of the country, and noted that the majority of the leadership of New Democracy is in the ranks of the Army.  At the same time, as a party they continuously warn all those who have the power of decision making that force cannot solve any problem, that the only victory which can be realized in this conflict is peace, which is an honorable solution for all participants.  

Journalists asked Mihajlovic as an opposition politician and a politician who used to be in power, where are such "political examples" of political unity in meetings with President Milosevic   during the time when absolute unity between parties and people has been realized.  He stated that it is no secret that New Democracy is doing everything differently from the ruling coalition, and that a while back they stated publically that they do not accept an alliance with a political party and a leader who is a symbol of wrong national and state policies, a leader who symbolizes demagogy which cannot lead us to anything positive.  Since Mihajlovic did not name the party and the leader in question, anything could be supposed.  However, it was explained later that Mr. Mihajlovic was referring to Mr. Seselj.

But the answers by the Leader of New Democracy that they could all do differently has nothing to do with the fact that our country is under attack, for no mistake by the regime or the present government can serve as justification for the aggression, nor the fact that they are not participating in the defense of the country.  Admittedly, Mihajlovic believes that defense would be more effective if the unity of the people was exploited in order that representatives of all parties sit down and agree on how best to organize a defense.  They would readily participate in this even with the present government, because for New Democracy even the worst government which has been chosen by the people is better than the best government which NATO tanks could bring here.

Journalist asked Mihajlovic to comment a statement published in VREME regarding a fellow citizen from a Colony whose house has been destroyed, and who called the president to beg him to face reality and not to try to break the wall with his head, for nothing will be worth anything if Serbia becomes completely destroyed.  Mihajlovic responded that unfortunately Serbia is looking ever more like a house of Colonialists, but that it is a question how much everything that is happening to us depends on us and our leadership.  Known as a rational and pragmatic politician, Mihajlovic added that what is at issue are bigger interests and that we found ourselves under a lava flow which could have circumvented us, for it is absurd that 10 million Yugoslavs should go up against an armada of 19 most developed countries in the world, who managed to defeat their only opponent in the world, the Warsaw Pact, without firing a single bullet.  According to him it is clear that we cannot defeat NATO, just as NATO cannot force us to capitulate, so that peace and an honorable compromise are the only solution for both sides.  If this does not happen, a European Vietnam will occur, which is a road without return both for the aggressor and for us.

FBI Pays a Visit to a Serb

By day and by night, on fields and in cities, the war is continuing its course.  The weekly magazine Newsweek  published a story about the fact that the USA is planing a covert war against FR Yugoslavia, a war about which not even the North Atlantic Alliance leadership has been informed.  Quoting sources in the American administration this magazine reports that the US president Bill Clinton signed a document approving new methods of enemy activity against FR Yugoslavia, allowing the American intelligence agency CIA to begin organising the training of KLA members for performing diversionary missions such as attacks on Yugoslav Army communication and supply lines.  According to Newsweek, the CIA is planning to begin a computer war in order to log into computer systems of international banks in which the highest Yugoslav officials have substantial deposits.

An e-mail letter came into our editorial office from a small city in Texas.  Beside the fact that it proves that there are residents of Belgrade even in the Wild West, it also indicates something far more pertinent for the issue at hand:
"Well, dear friends, allow me tell you that the war has arrived even in America.  Yesterday, somewhere around 6:00 p.m. I heard a knock at my door.  Like every other resident of America I looked through the hole to see who it was only to see a man in a three piece suit.  I though to myself, here goes another Jehovah's witness or something of the sort who's about to make me join his sect, but like every cultured man I decided to open the door.  The man told me "Are you so-and-so?"  I answered in the affirmative and he showed me his FBI badge.  At that moment my blood pressure rose and my palms began sweating.  He said that he has several questions for me.  I immediately asked him whether I am being investigated.  According to the law, if you pose a question openly, you have the right to a truthful answer.  He said no, that the FBI is merely interested in potential terrorist attack and that because I am a Serb they would like to have a chat with me.  I asked him how he got my name and address, and he said that he got it through the university.  Then the questions began: how are my folks back home, are they having a hard time of it (the bastard!), do I have any connections with Zeljko Raznatvic Arkan, are there any military buildings near my home in Yugoslavia, is Slobodan Milosevic maybe sleeping over in my house at night, along with a list of other ridiculous queries.  Things became surreal when he began a monologue about the fact that there are Republicans and Democrats in the local FBI and that there are differing opinions regarding this war.  Then he began telling me how he went to Vietnam and how he finds Bill strange, at best, for he was among the first who was against that war, and now he's sending our boys to some jungle called the Balkans(?!).  After everything I told him cordially that should I hear of anyone planning a terrorist attack in Knoxville I will make a point of informing the authorities.  At that point he gave me his calling card and I noted that his last name indicates Polish origins, so I joked with him that he is also a Slav at heart.  He jumped in to say that his family came to the States in 1890.  Well, like that makes any difference!  There it is.  Now I'm sitting down to my computer to write a letter to the administration and a bunch of professors here to let them know what someone at the university is spending their time doing, and what the idle FBI folks in Knoxville are also doing.  Whoever would like a copy of the letter, just let me know!  To tell you honestly, the man in the three-piece-suit was neither unpleasant, nor did he threaten me in any way, but all the same he made me realise that in my 25 years in Yugoslavia I had never been interrogated by the special police, nor by ordinary police, for that matter, but because of my origins I lived to be interrogated about terrorism by Mr. Moulder.  This reminded me of the days when Japanese Americans used to be put into concentration camps during W.W.II, of he days of the KKK, etc.  Dear friends, if this continues, who knows how things will get to be here.  But just to let you know that the thing which I feared all along, that our nation will be branded for all ages, is happening before my eyes.  I wish you all in Yugoslavia much luck and good health, and hope that you will save your heads despite the hard times, and I hope that the guys on this side of the puddle will not allow themselves to be provoked and to be made afraid whenever Mr. Moulder knocks at their door."

Destroying Electricity Distribution Centres

The special war being waged against the population of Yugoslavia has continued here at the end of the second month amid total darkness, but once again in a completely transparent manner.  The residents of Belgrade spent the night between May 22 and 23 without electricity and water, following three days of practically continuous NATO bombing - electricity distribution centres in Novi Sad, Nis and Drmno, near Kostolac, were all targeted in that period with highly destructive projectiles.  The correspondent of the Beta Agency in Pozarevac reported that around 2:30 p.m. that an enormous flash of light was visible above the Drvno Electrical Plant in the area of Kostolac, which left Pozarevac, Kostolac and neighbouring towns and villages without electricity.  Shortly after electricity stopped in Nis, all phone lines also went dead.  The Serbian Electrical Industry (EPS) announced that on Monday the establishing of the entire electrical system in Serbia has been made very difficult because "the NATO air force has destroyed five of the most important electricity distribution centres."  The destruction of these electrical facilities also put out of operation the biggest electricity production facilities, the hydroelectric dams Djerdap, Bajina Basta, the electricity distribution centre in Obrenovac, Kostolac and Kolubara.  Citizens have been requested to limit their use of electricity because of the danger of further problems.  This is the fourth time since the beginning of the NATO aggression against Yugoslavia that the Serbian electricity system has been put out of operation, except that this time graphite cluster bombs were not the only ones deployed, but also highly destructive projectiles.  In Lazarevac the Beta Agency learned that in the attack on Kolubara 13 workers at the hydroelectric plant were injured.  The same source confirmed that destructive projectiles were used in this attack.  The municipal transit authority also announced that one projectile fell on the tram tracks which are located near a warehouse and that because of this there will be no transportation in the effected lines.  Nis, Kraljevo, Sabac, Pancevo, Subotica, Pozarevac, Kostolac, Cacak, Uzice, Smederevo, Pozega, Pozarevac, Leskovac, Kursumlija, Blace and Paracin were all left without electricity.  Sremska Mitrovica, Valjevo, Ruma, Batocina and Jagodina are partially supplied with electricity.

Belgrade's water supply was brought to a temporary standstill because the water purification plants and distribution centres were left without water, while the city drew on stored water supplies.  The Serbian Minister of Health stated that this total power outage jeopardised the lives of 1000 patients awaiting operations, 4000 patients on dialysis, and many children in incubators.

The Serbian Renewal Movement (SPO) condemned in the sharpest terms NATO's attack on the electrical system in Serbia, describing it as "an act of insanity with all characteristics of a war crime and a crime against humanity."  "By leaving priority consumers, hospitals and maternity wards, without electricity NATO hawks have demonstrated that their strategy of collective punishment of our people is characterised by shameful methods."  The comment given by the President of the Serbian Radical Party, Vojislav Seselj, was the following : "We have food because we produce it by ourselves, and we will endure all shortages of electricity, water, tobacco..."
Increased demand for wood stoves has been observed, although it is a question whether wood will be available in Belgrade.  All this has been made more difficult by incoherent news of diplomatic manoeuvres and peace initiatives which must remind our well read readers of the conclusion of Beckett's "Waiting for Godot."

Vladimir: "Shell we go?"

Estragon: "Let's go!"

They remain motionless.

Curtain.
The Yugoslav people which has learned how to endure every hardship also got used to this wonder, in the same way that it is getting used to everything with a dose of humour which comes through in barroom anecdotes from Obrenovac where one man has built himself a good garage with a deep ditch for going underneath his vehicle, and where his wife and mother-in-law came up with the bright idea of fixing up this ditch as a bomb shelter, brought in blankets and mattresses, and our clever hero, whenever they go under as a matter of precaution, puts a bunch of boards by way of a protective ceiling fro those underneath...

Every time he asks himself whether to knock before going in.

Milan Milosevic, Dragan Todorovic, Dimitrije Boarov, Aleksandar Ciric, Dragoslav Grujic, Dusko Radulovic and Beta Agency reporters