IFOR TROOPS THREATENED BY ARMED BOSNIAN SERB POLICE

SARAJEVO, Sept 17 (Hina) - IFOR troops deployed in the Prijedor area of northwestern Bosnia were threatened by armed Bosnian Serb police on Monday, IFOR spokesman Bratt Boudreau said in Sarajevo on Tuesday. During a routine check, Czech troops serving with the NATO-led Implementation Force (IFOR) stopped a vehicle in which the chief of the Prijedor police was riding and found a Kalashnikov automatic rifle inside. Since police officers are not allowed to carry such arms, the Czech soldiers tried to seize the weapon from chief Simo Drljaca, but he refused to hand it over and aimed the rifle at the IFOR soldiers, after which they fired two warning shots in the air, Boudreau said. The IFOR troops were then surrounded by a group of armed local Serb police who prevented them from performing their duty. Describing the incident as very serious, Boudreau said that it could have serious repercussions for the Serb police, but he did not specify which steps could be taken. UN and IFOR officials had often criticized Drljaca's behaviour in the past, describing him as an extremist inclined to provoking incidents. (hina) vm mm 171353 MET sep 96