KNIN CEMETERY BLOCKED TO ENABLE EXHUMATIONS

KNIN, April 18 (Hina) - UN forces and members of the Croatian Interior Ministry blocked the central cemetery in the southern town of Knin on Wednesday morning where representatives of the Croatian judiciary and the Hague war crimes tribunal's Prosecutor's Office have begun joint investigations and preparations for exhumations. These activities are aimed at establishing the cause of death of people buried at the Knin cemetery after being killed during and after Storm, a 1995 operation Croatia embarked upon to liberate parts of its then Serb-occupied territories. A lot of equipment has been brought to the cemetery inside 30 big United Nations vehicles. The areas to be exhumed are being combed for mines. The national headquarters for the protection of the dignity of the Homeland Defence War, Croatia's early 1990s war of independence from the ex-Yugoslav federation, and the Knin branch of HVIDR-a, an association of disabled war veterans, today announced a protest rally for Monday. The protesters will try to stop the exhumations, they told a news conference. Their argument is that no war crimes were committed during Storm and that all the Serbs who were killed died in military operations. HONOS, an association protecting the values of the Homeland Defence War, has criticised the government for permitting exhumations at Knin's cemetery. A statement signed by HONOS president Nenad Ivankovic accuses the government of a "sycophantic and irresponsible policy" and of "criminalising" the Homeland War. (hina) ha sb