82 BODIES EXHUMED AT KNIN CEMETERY SO FAR

KNIN, May 23 (Hina) - Since 21 April when the exhumation started at the town cemetery in Knin (southern Croatia), 82 corpses have been found and transferred to Zagreb for the DNA analysis, a local judge, Ivo Vukelja, said on Wednesday. He added that the bodies would be identified and it should be established whether crimes against humanity had been committed against those persons. A month ago, investigators of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) began excavating five marked sites in this graveyard where local Serbs, who died during the 1995 liberating operation "Storm" were interred. The Croatian government allowed ICTY investigators to unearth some graves at the Knin cemetery in order to establish the cause of death of those buried in summer 1995. According to allegations of some human rights organisations in Croatia, about 400 bodies were buried during the 'Storm' operation. On the other hand, Zagreb has always asserted that after the 1995 operation, 273 persons were interred in Knin in accordance with Geneva conventions. The exhumation will be completed by 21 June, Judge Vukelja said. (hina) ms