IZETBEGOVIC COMMENTS ON MOSTAR INCIDENTS

SARAJEVO, Feb 10 (Hina) - Commenting on Monday's events in Mostar Bosnia-Herzegovina's collective Presidency chairman, Alija Izetbegovic, said to reporters that "local big shots of the western part of the town" bore the responsibility for them. Izetbegovic is completely sure that "no federal Croatian officials have been involved in tragic events that claimed the life of one persons and in which about twenty people were injured" but that local big shots of western Mostar were involved. They are doing so, because by the establishment of the Federation and a single Mostar they would lose their privileges and power, Izetbegovic explained. He added that he had been talking with the Bosnian (Croat- Moslem) Federation President Kresimir Zubak during the day about the events in Mostar. Izetbegovic said that he and Zubak had different kinds of information on the nature of Monday's events in Mostar, but they had agreed to call together on citizens of Mostar to show restraint. Izetbegovic condemned particularly that the targets of the attack were Bosniaks (Moslems) "who only wanted to visit cemeteries of their ancestors, as they did so yesterday in other parts of the country on occasion of Bayram holidays." A co-chairman of Bosnia-Herzegovina's Council of Ministers, Haris Silajdzic, travelled to Mostar on Monday afternoon. He had the task to visit the wounded in hospitals and survey the situation in the town, according to Izetbegovic. (hina) mm mš 102009 MET feb 97