ANNAN SYMPATHISES WITH FAMILIES OF SREBRENICA VICTIMS

NEW YORK, July 11 (Hina) - U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Tuesday expressed his sympathy for the families and friends of those killed after the fall of the eastern Bosnian town of Srebrenica into the hands of Bosnian Serb forces five years ago. In a special message, Annan expressed regret and dissatisfaction with the fact that the main culprits for war crimes committed during the siege of this U.N. protected zone and the mass killings of Muslims after the fall were still at large. Although they have been indicted for war crimes and the Hague war crimes tribunal has requested their hand-over, Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic live freely in Republika Srpska and Serbia. Consultations on the political, military and legal aspects of this tragic event will last the whole day today at the U.N. headquarters in New York. Several months ago, Annan issued a special report on the fall of Srebrenica in which it is openly admitted that the U.N. had failed to protect the town and its residents. Diplomats from U.N. member-countries will today see a documentary called 'A Scream From the Grave' on the suffering of Srebrenica residents. (hina) rml