OHR BiH TV News Summary, 18 August 1998

BiH Federation House of Representatives held a session, discussing the Law on Rights of Veterans and Their Families as the only issue. The most important novelty was the basics for calculating the amount of pensions and it was accepted that this amount should be equal to military salary from the last year. The session ended with adoption of the law and the HoR also adopted the Law on BiH External Debts, while discussion on the draft Law on Work was delayed for 25 of August.
4:00

ISO 9001 Standard Certificate was issued to private company “Grizelj ITG”. “Grizelj ITG” was the first BiH company to receive the certificate and it was issued by a leading European company for certificates “RV TIF”. Presidency member Zubak was also present at the occasion.
2:00

FRY and Croatian ministers of foreign affairs met in Zagreb. One of the issues was also BiH and FRY FA Minister Jovanovic said that FRY is open for establishment of diplomatic relations.
0:30

Kosovo Albanians negotiation team leader, Agani refused to start negotiations with the Serbian side, conditioning it with cease of violence over the civilian population and with withdrawal of Serbian forces from the area. Agani also addressed a letter to Serbian negotiation team in which he confirmed Albanian readiness to negotiate, but after these conditions are fulfilled, and the time and way of negotiations will be determined afterwards via US Ambassador Hill. Strong detonations were reported in Djakovica region today, as well as fighting in some villages of Obilic municipality, 10 Km from Pristina.
3:30

There followed the world news – US President Clinton admitted “inappropriate” relationship with White House volunteer Monica Levinski at his yesterday’s hearing before the Grand Jury. Resignation of Russian President Yeltsin will be asked at the session of Duma on Friday. Yeltsin is considered to be the main culprit for Rubla devaluation and poor Russian economic situation. The Reuters agency reported on new conflicts in Congo. US Embassy in Islamabad was closed after one person was extradited from this country under suspicion to have committed the bomb attack in Kenya and Tanzania. IRA took responsibility for car-bomb attack in Northern Ireland city of Omagh on Saturday where 28 people were killed and 220 injured.
4:00

About 120 Srebrenica citizens, mostly women, visited Srebrenica and two cemeteries today. All of them were out from Srebrenica from three to seven years. The visit was supported by SFOR and IPTF and the visit ended without troubles.
2:00

Investigation on involvement of Holland UN Battalion in Srebrenica tragedy was put ad acta. Holland Battalion Captain Ruten severely condemned co-operation of his contingent in Serb ethnic cleansing of Srebrenica. Ruten said he was ready to stay with these people and protect them, and that some of hiss colleagues were gathering Bosniak citizens into buses that drove them away, while Serbs were passively watching from aside. After he saw bodies of nine killed Bosniaks, Ruten tried to oppose this co-operation with Serbs, but was prevented by his colleagues and even had a severe arguing with one of them. Ruten also accused Holland information services for deliberate erasing of a film where he collected evidence on behaviour of Holland blue helmets.
2:30

Former British member of UN Peace Forces, Colonel Waters testified before the ICTY today, on massacres of BiH Croats over Bosniak population in the village of Ahmici in 1993 when about 120 civilians were killed and their houses burned under attacks of HVO.
2:00

Una/Sana Canton experts team for missing persons is conducting exhumations in the region of Prijedor for 40 days already. About 200 bodies were exhumed so far in about 70 single and mass graves and identification procedure is being carried out. Expert team members also praised co-operation of the Serb police from Prijedor.
2:00