SERBS DENY ACCESS TO KIDNAPPED HUMANITARIANS

SARAJEVO, April 6 (Hina) - Bosnia Serbs still refuse to allow UN and the International Red Cross representatives to visit the kidnapped humanitarians (four Frenchmen, two Swiss, an American and a German), who are held prisoner in Sarajevo's occupied suburbs of Ilidza, Lukavica and Kula. According to UN spokesman in Sarajevo, Alexandar Ivanko, this problem was discussed yesterday at a meeting between a Serb leader, Nikola Koljevic, UNPROFOR commander, general Rupert Smith and UN Civil Department head, Enrique Aguilar. According to Ivanko, no progress had been made. The spokesman confirmed that Serbs yesterday stopped an UNPROFOR vehicle at the ill-famed checkpoint on a road connecting downtown Sarajevo with the airport, and seized communication equipment and two 66-mm mortars. Military spokesman in Sarajevo, Herve Gourmelon, said that Serbs had seized a machine-gun from a UN vehicle two weeks ago, at the same checkpoint. According to the agreement of June 1992, when UNPROFOR took control over Sarajevo airport, all sides agreed to ensure unimpeded traffic of UN personnel and vehicles on the Kasindolska road which leads into the city. Ivanko stressed that UNPROFOR would continue to use the Kasindolska road rather than an alternative road via the Bosnian army-controlled suburb of Dobrinja - which UNPROFOR felt was "too risky" even though nobody had ever been attacked or robbed there. UNPROFOR admitted that the agreement of January 31, when Serbs granted a free passing of UN officials, was not being adhered to. No fuel convoys have reached Sarajevo since March 2. Only today Serbs denied clearance to 18 UN supply convoys, and 7 of them were to carry fuel supplies for UN forces, said Gourmelon. (hina) mm rm as 061521 MET apr 95