BELGRADE, 1 July (Hina) - Croatia's consul in Belgrade, Neven Vrankovic, on Tuesday handed a protest note to the Foreign Ministry of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia over last night's incident in which the Croatian Embassy building
in Belgrade was damaged.
OFFICIAL
BELGRADE, 1 July (Hina) - Croatia's consul in Belgrade, Neven Vrankovic,
on Tuesday handed a protest note to the Foreign Ministry of the Federal
Republic of Yugoslavia over last night's incident in which the Croatian
Embassy building in Belgrade was damaged. #L#
The incident happened after yesterday's basketball match between
the Croatian and Yugoslav national teams in Badalona, when some 1,000
fans gathered in front of the Croatian Embassy and started throwing
stones at the building.
Vrankovic handed the note to Assistant Foreign Minister and head of
the department for neighbouring countries, Dragomir Vucevic.
"The incident lasted from 1 to 3 a.m. I was at the embassy at that
time. Shots could be heard and bulletmarks were left on the front of the
building," Vrankovic told the news agency Beta, adding that barrage fire
could be heard.
Some 20 minutes after the incident was reported to the police,
about 40 special police members surrounded the embassy.
"The incident was very unpleasant and the police could not control
the situation," Vrankovic said, adding he had no major objections to the
work of the police since 'they carried out their duty in a relatively
professional manner'.
The fans threw firecrackers and torches which fell on the embassy's
terrace and there was a danger of fire breaking out, Vranovic said.
The Yugoslav Foreign Ministry distanced itself from the incident,
saying the incident was an act of vandalism, adding it should not affect
efforts aimed at the normalisation of relations, Vrankovic said.
The Helsinki Committee for Human Rights issued a statement tonight
in which it condemned the 'vandalistic attack' on the Croatian Embassy
and called on responsible bodies to punish perpetrators.
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