-Caveat Lector- from alt.conspiracy ----- As always, Caveat Lector. Om K ----- <A HREF="aol://5863:126/alt.conspiracy:514495">Serb "reign of terror" turns Pristina into "wasteland" </A> ----- Subject: Serb "reign of terror" turns Pristina into "wasteland" From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] (Xjr3000) Date: Tue, Apr 13, 1999 5:50 AM Message-id: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Kukes, Albania (April 13) - Refugees from the suburbs of Kosovo's capital told on Tuesday of a burned-out city where just a few thousand people remain in hiding, perilously low on food and fearing for their lives. ''Pristina is dead,'' Saliq Kraisniqi, a 42-year-old accountant, told Reuters after crossing the border into Albania in a ragged convoy of 3,000 ethnic Albanians driven out of their homes by Serb forces. People from the area said parts of the once-thriving provincial capital resembled a ghost town, with some neighborhoods burned to the ground, sporadic gunfire echoing in the streets and acrid smoke blanketing the city center. From accounts given by many refugees, a Serb reign of terror that has forced hundreds of thousands of ethnic Albanians from their Yugoslav homes since the start of a NATO bombing campaign has continued unabated. People who lived on the outskirts of Pristina told of masked gunmen storming into their villages, killing a few of their neighbors to set an example and then ordering them out. Several thousand people from the towns of Silatina and Henc, near Pristina's airport, hid in the mountains for days until Serb troops found them. The men were told their families could return safely to their homes if they agreed to join in fighting Kosovo separatist guerrillas, but none took them up on the offer. Kraisniqi said they were beaten with gun butts for their defiance. His face was still painfully swollen, his lip split with a deep, bloody gash. On the way to the border, Serb soldiers taunted the refugees and at one point opened fire into a tractor-drawn cart, killing a 12-year-old boy, witnesses said. A young women was dragged away from her family and killed by Serb guards. Refugees believe she may have been resisting rape... Latest deportees could provide only scant details since most had been bottled up in their villages for days by Serb forces. But the picture emerged of a devastated city. Refugees estimated that as little as 10 percent of the original population of 250,000 remained, a testament to the efficiency of the Yugoslavian government's ''ethnic cleansing'' campaign. Most were too afraid to venture out for fear of being detected. Food was running out and electricity and water had been cut to much of the city. Shops owned by ethnic Albanians had been looted. The Yugoslav government has blamed NATO bombers for the devastation visited upon Pristina, but refugees scoff at that and say Serb forces were responsible. Soldiers occupy much of the city and have taken over some of the better homes. Tanks, troop carriers and armoured vehicles rumble constantly through the streets. Refugees now fear that those who remain will be used as ''human shields'' if NATO ground troops invade Kosovo. They have already suffered reprisals for NATO attacks. When NATO warplanes bombarded Pristina airport, knocking it out of commission, Serb artillery gunners responded by shelling nearby villages, killing two people, refugees said. -Reuters news, April 13, 1999 ----- Aloha, He'Ping, Om, Shalom, Salaam. Em Hotep, Peace Be, Omnia Bona Bonis, All My Relations. Adieu, Adios, Aloha. Amen. Roads End Kris DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om