GEN. ROSE ON FRIDAY'S NATO AIR STRIKE AGAINST SERB TARGET

SARAJEVO, Aug 5 (Hina) - Two NATO A-10 airplanes, constructed for attacks at armoured targets, launched an air strike at a Serb target in the surroundings of Sarajevo at 18:32 Friday. In the attack they destroyed one Serb tank, possibly of the T-72 type. This was stated by the U.N. peacekeeping commander in Bosnia- Herzegovina, British General Michael Rose on Friday evening in Sarajevo. According to him, the tank was within the Sarajevo heavy weapons exclusion zone, 12 km. S. of Sarajevo airport. The tanks was located on Mount Igman in an uninhabited area, according to the same reports. General Rose said that this tank had been deliberately chosen as the target for the air strike, because it was situated in a zone where no damage could be caused to civilians targets. Serb had been also previously warned to pull back their men from all pieces of heavy weaponry within the Sarajevo exclusion zone. The U.N. peacekeeping commander said this night that shortly before today's air strike he personally had contacted with Serb General Manojlo Milovanovic warning him that western planes would continue air strikes if the Serbs did not return by tomorrow night the heavy arms stolen from a U.N.-guarded weapons collection site in Ilidza this morning. Gen. Milovanovic promised Gen. Rose that a return of stolen arms would be done. The British General added that this was the way to make Serbs understand that the U.N.-controlled arms depots cannot be a supermarket where anyone may help himself as he wishes. Gen. Rose also said that the NATO airplanes' action was challenged by the Serb provocations made in the several consecutive days toward UNPROFOR. Such an action would have been even undertaken on Friday morning if the weather conditions had allowed this. He added that the heavy weapons that were targeted by today's air strike had been within the Sarajevo exclusion zone for longer time. The U.N. military observers noticed today at least 10 pieces of Serb heavy arms within this exclusion zone. They also sighted one tank and one armoured transporting vehicle, stolen from the collection point at Ilidza this morning, in the vicinity of Semizovac (a village near Sarajevo) The U.N. peacekeeping commander in Bosnia stressed that the cooperation between the U.N. Protection Force and NATO proved excellent in this evening's action. (hina) mm 052226 MET aug 94