INTERIOR MINISTRY ISSUES STATEMENT ON SUNDAY ATTACK ON PEACE TRAIN

ZAGREB, 9 June (Hina) - The Croatian Interior Ministry on Monday issued a statement on yesterday's vandalistic attack on the Peace Train for Vukovar, which was stoned on its way back from Vukovar. "This brazen and very rude attack happened because of irresponsible and frivolous behaviour of the UNTAES (U.N. Transitional Administration in Eastern Slavonia) military component and Transitional Police (TPF) Force," the statement said. #L# 'Namely, the UNTAES military component and TPF members were not posted at the very location where two carriages of the train were stoned - on the location where Trpinje road crosses the railway-track. Moreover, they did not react to the stoning at all, nor did they do anything to effectively prevent it. The UNTAES military component failed to block the road 80 to 100 m from the railway-track, but blocked it immediately by the railway-track, thus allowing individuals to approach the railway-track at a distance from which it was possible to throw stones at the train. Despite the fact that they witnessed the attack on the first carriage, members of the UNTAES military component did nothing to prevent the stoning of the second carriage. Although they saw that the second carriage was being stoned, they did nothing to prevent the stoning of the third carriage. Despite such passive behaviour of the UNTAES military component, TPF members and CIVPOL, the perpetrators have been identified and the Vukovar-Srijem County police administration, based in Vinkovci, will press criminal charges against them with authorised judicial bodies in Vukovar, the statement said. (hina) rm jn 092005 MET jun 97