SERBIAN FORCES ATTACK VILLAGES IN PODUJEVO MUNICIPALITY

PRISTINA, Jan 27 (Hina) - Serbian forces early on Wednesday morning started shelling several Albanian villages in Kosovo's municipality of Podujevo, 30 km north of the capital of Pristina, Kosovo Albanian sources reported on Wednesday. The Kosovo Democratic Alliance in Podujevo reported that Serbian forces started shelling the villages of Ljupce and Majamce at 8.20am. Half an hour later, heavy artillery started shelling villages in the western part of the Pristina-Podujevo road, including Lapastica and Obrance. Meanwhile, the Kosovo Information Centre reported that the attacks were spreading onto the villages of Luzane, Burice, Glamnik and Teran. At 9.30am, strong detonations and shelling could be heard coming from Podujevo. The same source reported new movements and amassing of Serbian forces, with Yugoslav tanks heading towards the village of Ljupce. School classes in Ljupce were cancelled and there are very few people in the village. A high official of the Kosovo Democratic Alliance for cooperation with the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Aljos Gasi, said the OSCE verifiers had been notified about today's shelling. The OSCE Verification Mission spokesman Sandy Blythe confirmed fierce clashes in the Podujevo area, but said there were no reports on victims. The pro-government Media Centre in Pristina reported only sporadic shooting in the area. (hina) rml