MUSLIM REFUGEES, SERBS CLASH AGAIN IN SEPARATION ZONE

SARAJEVO, 12 Nov (Hina) - Bosnian Muslim refugees, who are trying to return to their homes in the area of Koraj and Celici in northeastern Bosnia (in the inter-entity separation zone) and local Serbs, who are trying to prevent their return, clashed again this morning. #L# IFOR spokesman Simon Haselock said that the shooting had been reported in the area of the village of Gajevi, but there were still no reports on the consequences of the incident. Some 500 to 600 Bosniac civilians are currently in the area of Koraj, refusing to wait for the completion of a return permit procedure, which is being conducted by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees. The Russian IFOR soldiers were deployed yesterday in the area so as to prevent new clashes between the Serbs and Bosniac refugees as well as possible new entries of the Serb police in the separation zone, Haselock said. IFOR members were ready to take all measures in order to prevent new incidents. Colum Murphy, representative of the Office of the High Representative for the implementation of the peace agreement, said that the latest incidents in the separation zone meant that the bodies of authority of Bosnia-Herzegovina should be established as soon as possible. UNHCR spokesman Kris Janowski said that the main problem was the fact that Serb authorities refused to allow the return of Bosniac and Croat refugees, but added that entries of large groups of refugees were aggravating the process of return as well. So far, 127 persons have returned to their homes in the area of Jusici, while 160 refugees have returned to the area around Doboj. Most of the 20,000 people, who returned to Bosnia-Herzegovina after the signing of the Dayton peace agreement in the organisation of the UNHCR and Bosnian government, returned to the entity administered by the members of their ethnic group. A similar thing happened to other 200,000 refugees who returned to Bosnia- Herzegovina individually. (hina) rm mm 121346 MET nov 96