INDICTMENT AGAINST MILOSEVIC ONLY ABOUT CRIMES IN KOSOVO

THE HAGUE, May 27 (Hina) - The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague on Thursday unsealed an indictment against Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic and another four senior Yugoslav officials for crimes against humanity the Serb forces committed against Kosovo Albanians. Milosevic and the other four officials were accused of crimes against humanity, specifically killings, deportations, and expulsions, and violations of the law and customs of war committed in Kosovo, prosecutor Louise Arbour told reporters. Operations against Kosovar Albanians were carried out with the aim of removing a significant part of the Albanian population from Kosovo to secure a permanent Serb control over the province, the indictment said. Similar actions took place earlier during the wars in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina between 1991 and 1995, the indictment said. The Hague tribunal did not accuse the Yugoslav President for crimes committed in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. Our investigation continues, Arbour said when asked wh Milosevic was not accused of crimes in these two countries. I am convinced there will be other indictments against some or all of the indicted, she said, adding the legal bases for indictments for crimes in another state were different than that for Kosovo. The indictment was confirmed by an ICTY judge on May 24, but could not be issued until noon May 27 for security reasons, Arbour said. She said the indictment includes international arrest warrants. (Hina) lml jn