SHANNON BOYD: VARES COMPLETELY DESERTED

ZAGREB, Nov 4 (Hina) - Vares has been completely deserted, and the entire civilian population, Muslim and Croat, has fled to neighboring areas, stated today the UNPROFOR spokesperson Shannon Boyd at a press conference at the UNPROFOR HQ in Zagreb. She said the the B-H Army Command gave guarantees that it would not join in additional violence, i.e. violence after the conquest of territories. Boyd added that UNHCR and UNPROFOR are organizing an administrative office in order to open the communication network for supplying refugees from Vares, added Boyd. She said that "UNPROFOR engineers completed plans and are absolutely ready to reconstruct the Bijela bridge on the river Neretva... but that HVO has refused access to the bridge". She said that HVO demanded that before the reconstruction of the bridge began all three parties should sign an agreement "stipulating that the roads... would be used for humanitarian purposes only", the point with which UNPROFOR has agreed. Shannon Boyd mentioned an incident which occurred in Dalj, when some 15 to 20 local people were throwing stones on the members and the building of the UNPROFOR Civil Police. (end) m-jt 041826 MET nov 93