INVESTIGATING JUDGE: LEVAR WAS KILLED BY EXPLOSIVE DEVICE

GOSPIC, Aug 28 (Hina) - The death of Hague witness Milan Levar, who was killed in an explosion in the back yard of his family house in Gospic, was not caused by a steel bottle but by some kind of explosive device, Gospic County Court investigating judge Pavao Rukavina said on Tuesday. "We have discovered so far that it was not a steel bottle that exploded but some kind of explosive device, and pieces of that device were discovered at the site," said Rukavina, who is heading an investigation into the crime. The doctor who performed autopsy on the victim said Levar's wounds were caused by the explosion. "It was some kind of explosive device and at the moment we do not know what it was. Levar's death was a violent one," he added. The investigation continues. Milan Levar testified in 1997 before the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague about alleged crimes committed against Serb civilians by the Croat side in the Gospic area in late 1991. Levar accused generals Mirko Norac and Tihomir Oreskovic as the ones most responsible for the alleged killings. Levar appeared in public in April this year while Hague investigators were visiting Gospic. (hina) rml