PRISONERS OF WAR, REMAINS EXCHANGED

STARA GRADISKA, Aug 4 (Hina) - An exchange of prisoners of war was carried out on Monday evening on a bridge between Stara Gradiska and Bosanska Gradiska (border between Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina along the Sava river), on the basis of recent agreements in Geneva at which Croatia had monitor status. The Croatian side released nine imprisoned Serbs which, according to the president of the Croatian government's Commission for Imprisoned and Missing Persons, Ivan Grujic, was Croatia's last commitment from the Dayton Accord in relation to this issue. Nine Bosnian Croats who were on the missing persons list were set free from Serb prisons, Grujic added. A mutual turnover of remains was also carried out this evening. Croatia received the remains of Croatian air force pilot Rudolf Perisin, whose fate was a mystery for a long time, Grujic said, adding the Serb side received the remains of a major of the former Yugoslav People's Army. In the Mliniste area, between Glamoc and Mrkonjic Grad, today began the turnover of remains of Serb soldiers, coordinated by the Mostar-based Office for the Exchange of Dead and Missing Persons, which started the turnover of remains of Croats killed in the Bosanska Posavina area (northern BH) which, according to Grujic, was a significant step in solving the said issue. According to Bosnian Croat news agency Habena, the remains of 16 Serb soldiers killed in 1995 were turned over in Mliniste. (hina) ha 042342 MET aug 97