US AND BRITISH EMBASSIES IN BOSNIA STILL CLOSED FOR SECURITY REASONS

SARAJEVO, Oct 18 (Hina) - The embassies of the United States and Great Britain in Sarajevo remained closed on Thursday for security reasons. Nobody, however, explained what kind of threats had been made neither was this closing linked with the US and British strikes in Afghanistan. Christopher Hoch, charge d'affaires of the US Embassy, told reporters that the offices would remain closed until the removal of the security threat, but added that he personally and other staff continued doing their job. Hoch is currently the highest ranking American diplomat in Bosnia as the new ambassador should arrive in Sarajevo in early November. Hoch expressed satisfaction with measures taken by Bosnian authorities in the anti-terrorist fight. According to him, great steps have been made in this field in Bosnia since the September terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Besides the said two embassies, US consulates in Mostar and Banja Luka and the US Agency for International Development (USAID) office in Tuzla as well as British Council and some other missions such as the branch office of the World Bank in the country are closed temporarily. Local staff, who were sent home, were told not to come to work in coming four or five days. US and British nationals, however, have not been advised to leave Bosnia. The OSCE mission and the Office of the High Representative (OHR) have said they are continuing with their regular activities. A spokesman for the NATO-led international peace keepers (SFOR), confirmed on Thursday that SFOR was fully informed about the nature of threats which caused the closing of the US and British diplomatic offices. Spokesman Daryl Morrell said they knew about the nature of those threats but they could not comment on them. According to him, because of those threats SFOR took no additional security measures, apart from those ones which were stepped up in the wake of the terrorist attacks in the USA. We are continuing with our regular patrols and we are continuing to perform our mission in this country, the spokesman said. The chairman of Bosnia's collective presidency, Jozo Krizanovic, has addressed the citizens saying that there is no special reason for concern. "Preventive security measures have been taken so as to protect in efficient manner diplomatic offices of friendly countries," read Krizanovic's message. An increasing number of guards and security troops around the American and British embassies in the Bosnian capital has been deployed since Wednesday. (hina) ms