From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: FW: Rebels Stockpile Up to 30 Times the Weapons Collected by NATO Visit our website: HTTP://WWW.STOPNATO.ORG.UK --------------------------------------------- -----Original Message----- From: Gregory Elich [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Monday, September 03, 2001 9:26 AM To: Undisclosed-Recipient:; Subject: Rebels Stockpile Up to 30 Times the Weapons Collected by NATO The Herald (Scotland) September 3, 2001 REBELS STOCKPILE UP TO 30 TIMES THE WEAPONS COLLECTED BY NATO By Ian Bruce THE Albanian rebel army which last week handed over more than 3000 weapons to British and French soldiers in Macedonia still has 30 times that amount of firepower stashed in hidden caches, and could resume hostilities within days if the fragile ceasefire breaks down. A secret Nato intelligence report claims that the self-styled National Liberation Army still has up to 8000 modern assault rifles, 25,000 second world war-vintage firearms, 55,000 pistols, more than 200 heavy machine-guns, 200 sniper rifles, about 50 anti-aircraft missiles, and 300 anti-tank missiles. It also has 200 mortars and a stock of 5000 landmines. Most are concealed in mountain caves or buried in cellars or under manure piles in remote villages. The report tallies almost exactly with the Macedonian government's own intelligence estimate of the NLA's 90,000 available arms, and supports the accusation that the collection of hardware is a token gesture at best. The NLA claims that it could field six "brigades" numbering about 16,000 fighters. Nato sources say the total is closer to 2500, although in an emergency, substantial reinforcements from the former Kosovo Liberation Army would infiltrate from the neighbouring province. Nato troops on the mountainous border detained almost 200 suspected guerrillas crossing into Kosovo from Macedonia last week as Operation Essential Harvest got under way. There are also at least 2000-3000 "second echelon" members of the NLA, non-combatants who carry out reconnaissance, supply, and communications jobs, and do not wear uniform. A source said: "These volunteers are not front-line guerrillas, but most of them possess weapons. "There was a gun culture in the Balkans before the Americans enshrined the right to bear arms in their constitution in 1776. Every Albanian male and most Slavs own rifles. "When Albania's government collapsed in 1997, upwards of 500,000 military-grade rifles and machine-guns were looted from army barracks. "These are now scattered all over the region. Many were used to oppose Serb forces in Kosovo in 1999. "On the other side, when the ethnic Albanian uprising started six months ago, a panicked Macedonian government handed out hundreds of assault rifles to Slav civilians, ostensibly to allow them to defend themselves. "In practice, it allowed certain groups of hardliners to form paramilitary units whose only purpose is to terrorise their ethnic Albanian fellow-countrymen if the opportunity arises." The NLA is not, however, alone in retaining its capacity for further conflict. Macedonia has sent helicopter crews to Ukraine to be trained to fly and fight Hind-D helicopter gunships. The five Hinds bought from Ukraine this year have been manned by Ukrainian "volunteers" during the periodic government offensives against rebel enclaves north of Tetovo, the country's second city. This ageing but still highly effective aircraft was nicknamed "The Devil's Cross", because of its shape, by Afghan mujahideen during their guerrilla campaign against Russian occupation in the 1980s. The mujahideen learned to fear the Hind more than any other weapon because of its ferocious array of rockets, cannon, machine-guns, and grenade launchers. Helicopter gunships are specifically designed for counter-insurgency. Meanwhile, Macedonia's parliament will today resume a key debate necessary to move along the peace effort with the Albanian rebels, putting the process back on track after a day in limbo when speaker Stojan Andov suspended discussion. Andov had insisted on a presidential guarantee that everyone who fled fighting could return home safely. Up to 120,000 people remain displaced by the fighting. _________________________________________________ KOMINFORM P.O. Box 66 00841 Helsinki Phone +358-40-7177941 Fax +358-9-7591081 http://www.kominf.pp.fi General class struggle news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe mails to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Geopolitical news: [EMAIL PROTECTED] subscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] __________________________________________________
