UNHCR SATISFIED WITH RETURN OF PEOPLE TO THEIR FLATS IN W.MOSTAR

MOSTAR, Feb 27 (Hina) - A spokesman for UNHCR, Chris Janowski, on Thursday said he was very satisfied that residents who had been evicted from their flats in western Mostar after distressing events on February 10, returned home. At a news conference in Mostar, Janowski advocated for the return of Mostar citizens who had been expelled before the tragic events. A spokesman for SFOR South-East Sector, Pierre Bayle, confirmed that SFOR had not been informed of the arrival of Bosniaks (Moslems) at the cemetery in Liska Street on February 10. Had SFOR been informed, they would have been there and nothing would have happened, Bayle said. He explained that when Moslem marchers from eastern Mostar were coming into the street, an SFOR jeep was at the pavement by chance, but it left the street in order not to disrupt them. The SFOR car was not on official patrol at the time. The head of the OSCE regional office in Mostar, Edward Joseph, said that there problems concerning free movement following the February 10 incident. He added that several international officials complained to him that they were afraid of travelling along the (Moslem-controlled) road from Mostar to Sarajevo. An IPTF deputy commander for the Mostar area, Berthold Hubegger, said that the international police task force (IPTF) from the Mostar area had not engaged in the investigation of the February 10 events. He said that responsible officials should implement the investigation report's recommendations, but he declined to answer a reporter's question who should do it. (hina) jn mš 271449 MET feb 97