EMMY AWARDS GO PLACES SIMON JENKINS For Jennifer, it is African adventure In praise of Sir “Us Absolutely Fabulous with 20% off Flumphrey and his ilk British celebrate, page 3 Holiday token, page 12 Making things work, page 18 erv ci? Mil :?K!s THE TIMES jo No. 64,809 WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 241993 1.'%® SSfc Croat militia turn prisoners of war into human bombs ONE OF the three men cried ridgeline trenches and crawled wire used to detonate them. “It or forced to dig trenches in areas his dead brother who lay between “Don't shoot, don't shoot; we are forward through die knee-high couldn't have been caused by exposed to lethal small-arms and the lines," he said. Then he saw jvfustim soldiers” as be stumbled A nthony Loyd describes how men of the foliage to try to recover what was ;‘S anything other than what is report¬ sniper fire. Muslim soldiers moving in their unnaturally op the slope in no Coldstream Guards had to recover the remains of left of their comrades.. Exposed on ed by the Bosnian army,” he said. But the use of prisoners of war in positions, and be blew the men up. man's land towards the Bosnian three Muslims, blown up on a Bosnian the forward slope separating their This is a war crime." this way signifies a further limit to We tried to stop him, but he was army trendies above Novi Travnik battlefield by mines strapped to their bodies positions from their opponents', Every faction in central Bosnia the cold-bloodedness and cynical ready even to shoot at us." in central Bosnia. they managed only to recover a has consistently fought with com¬ methods that walk the Balkan He sighed heavily, aware per¬ The cause of his bunched gait pair of legs before they were fired plete disregard for any humanitar¬ battlefields- The Croat militia haps of how unconvincing his and the terror in his voice soon upon and forced to withdraw. ian code. Just as the Croats killed admitted responsibility with an story sounded. There are lots of became apparent to the troops panic seized the trench defend¬ Mujak. and fines Hajrichad been It was a month before the United the Muslim villagers in Stupni Do unnerving facility. In a dingy grey similar incidents it’s not just ahead of him. Anti-tank mines had ers. An officer ordered bis men to captured by the Croat militia Nations could organise a six-hour a month ago, so the Muslims apartment building. Ilija Maria Croats killing Muslims," he said. been strapped to his chest and open fire; they refused. “It was during an assault two days before. ceasefire to collect the remains of slaughtered Croats in Uzdol two 33, deputy commander of the “But the world hasn't paid any back. Rope bound his hands to his tOTiWa" said one of them. Safe* They ended their lives in starlit the other two. By then the Muslims months earlier. Such massacres Stjepan Tomasevic Brigade, the attention, and we are not prepared sides, and wire ran bora his torso Dtrvnjak. 30. “There was such a spangled eruptions 30 yards from refused to leave their trenches, are frequent, and seldom exposed militia unit defending Novi to give tip our soldier to the ^back towards the Croat militia short time to make the decision. the Muslim lines; showering them doubting the Croats' integrity. It to the eyes of the press or UN. ■Travnik. said the act was perpe¬ international community for trial." positions from which he had The officer ran back to the com¬ with shrapnel and gore. A further was left to three British soldiers to Snipers shoot women, children trated by an individual soldier, He paused again, “It’s a dirty appeared. It unravelled slowly as mand bunker and asked what to depth of depravity and horror had perform the grisly task. Captain and the aged with as little com¬ and added a bizarre defence. war. Insanity becomes normality he advanced. His two companions do. Before we could deride, there been reached in Bosnia's war. Robert Yorke, of the Coldstream punction as they do enemy sol¬ “Yes. it happened. One of my here" had been identically rigged, con¬ were three huge explosions.” That night a group of soldiers Guards, found two sets of shat¬ diers. while prisoners of war are men did it He didn't do it to kill verted into walking bombs. Mevhidin Muslimovic. Nedad scrambled over the tip of their tered remain, and the twin-flex often killed as a matter of routine, them, only to force them to collect Convoy delayed, page 13 Molyneaux urges Rate cut fails lepart- Major to call off ng its sector extra Dublin initiative 'on. >r the By Philip Webster, political editor m dra- to dispel yester- JOHN Majors Northern Ire¬ to deliver the unionist demand ? that a land peace initiative suffered a that Ireland should give up its rfment body blow last night when the territorial claim on the North. luction f v • ' Ulster Unionists virtually He also suggested that the jf the urged him to call off his price being demanded by the i plan Budget fears attempts to secure an agree¬ IRA in exchange for a halt to veness ment with Dublin. its murderous activities — a aor. mem's By Janet Bush, economics correspondent, and Nicholas Wood The prime minister was united Ireland — was too warned of “simmering fears" great serials KENNETH Clarke yesterday consistent with the govern¬ running at 1.4 per cent and of betrayal over the peace He gave a warning of an lerged delivered die interest rate cut ment's inflation target Offici¬ fiscal tightening inevitable, a moves. He was told to build on impending crisis in Ulster i. Pre¬ that had always been expected als also dted improved bolder move is necessary to the cross-community hunger unless action was taken to luding as a sweetener to deficit- medium-lemi prospects for maintain consumer demand for peace in the North and to calm the simmering fears of 'S. will ted to cutting measures in the Bud¬ inflation and substantial inter¬ and avoid strangling die frag¬ work towards a strengthening betrayal that the Hume-Ad- get next week. But what est rate cuts in continental ile recovery." of local democracy. ams peace plan had aroused taking -•»- s.. • i. ... rii'r. should have been good news Europe. John Monks, the TUC gen¬ James Molyneaux, the Ul¬ and said that “something C. ad of was greeted with widespread Tito move met with a mixed eral secretary, also called for a ster Unionist party leader, must be done to reduce the nervousness and disap¬ reaction from the big mort¬ bigger cut, saying: This timid declared in the Commons that fever". : BBC pointment gage lenders. Only the Nation¬ move will do nothing to re¬ the British government was Instead Mr Molyneaux. would The half-point cut takes the wide and the NatWest bank store business confidence", being required to do a deal not whose support is vital to Mr d pro- base rate to 55 per cent, the immediately announced a cut and Gordon Brown, the shad¬ with Albert Reynolds, the Major's high-risk efforts, inde- tgreed lowest for 16 years. But indus¬ in their rates — from 7.99 to ow chancellor, said: “My fear Irish prime minister, but with urged him to concentrate his ndes. try and financial markets 7.74 per cent— while most of is that this may be nothing Gerry Adams. “No amount of efforts on reaching a settle¬ were concerned by the an¬ die others said they would more than a sweetener for the diplomatic verbiage can con¬ ment between the four main nouncement that it took lull hold fire until after the bitter pill which follows in the ceal the uncomfortable fact political parties in Northern account" of the Budget appar¬ Budget Budget 1 fear that the Conser¬ that Dublin is merely the Ireland. “It is those endeav¬ ently precluding another cut The financial markets were vatives will break yet more conduit," he told MPs. ours, supported as they are by next Tuesday- Business lead¬ election promises by raising His intervention was a seri¬ the prime minister, which will ers were hoping for a full one- taxes on millions of ordinary ous setbeack for Mr Major succeed where high drama point reduction to soften the people yet again," because his strategy for will fail as high drama always ■ blow of what most fear will be Alan Berth, the Liberal achieving peace in Northern fails." $ an undatable mix of tax Democrats' Treasury spokes¬ Ireland is as much based cm Ministers had been antici¬ Mortgage dilemma-2 his talks with Dublin as it is pating a cautionary speech 7 increases and spending cuts Peter Brookes-18 man. said that the reduction, an top of the higher taxes though minor, was good news on reconciling the conflicting Continued on page 2. col S Leading article-19 tor industry and world hope¬ views in the North. already in the pipeline for next Base rate cot-233 April fully be passed on quickly to Mr Molyneaux accepted Peter RidddL page 10 Stock market-J6 home owners, bat he said: “It that Dublin would not be able George Brock, page 18 The decision to cut rates at Pennington--25 all appeared to confirm that has the added disadvantage City Diary.. -27 that it will reduce further the the Budget will contain mea¬ Time not yd ripe-27 sures which, without more incomes of pensioners just substantial interest rate reduc¬ above the income support tions.