ALBANIA: KOSOVO REFUGEE CRISIS UPDATE (2)
(11 Apr 1999) Albanian/Nat The border between Kosovo and Albania remains open and overnight (10-11 April) approximately 3,000 more ethnic Albanians fled over the crossing point at Morini. The refugees told horror stories of massacres and widescale destruction of property carried out by Serb forces, who had ordered them to leave. The reports could not be independently confirmed. The Kosovo Liberation Army was also on the Albanian side of the border, looking for new recruits among the refugees. Crossing points out of Kosovo have been open sporadically. But late on Friday, Serb authorities abruptly flicked on the lights of a border crossing with Albania, which had been closed for three days. Residents of two Kosovo villages were forced out under police escort, and the authorities removed their vehicle licence plates before they crossed the border. A similar scenario unfolded on Saturday night (April 10). The border remained open, and three thousand dispossessed ethnic Albanians crossed into Albania. The refugees recounted horror stories of their treatment at the hands of the Serbs. SOUNDBITE: (Albanian) "We left at 12 o'clock .They pushed aside a man and a woman and told us that we should leave from here to Albania or Skopje." SUPER CAPTION: Samiy Bullatoci, refugee Many said they had witnessed massacres and destruction of their property. SOUNDBITE: (Albanian) "We have seen people killed, burnt houses. We cannot explain it. Even the things that we cannot imagine, they have done. We cannot explain it . They are barbaric Slavs." SUPER CAPTION: Gashi, refugee The reports could not be independently confirmed. Refugees who arrived in Macedonia on Saturday told similar stories of Serb police forcing them from their homes and terrorising them throughout their journey. They said they saw burned villages, bodies and trapped refugees along the way. At the Morini Crossing Point, soldiers of the Kosovo Liberation Army were on the lookout for young Albanian men to recruit into the ranks of the K-L-A. They say they intend to continue guerrilla warfare against the Serbs from the forests. And as the weary Kosovars went to join fellow refugees at the border camps, aid workers gave them blankets to keep them warm along the way. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
