Yugoslav President Kostunica's Plane was to be shot down

The incident took place several days ago, though the first piece of information penetrated into the press only yesterday, as Alun Roberts, an international police official, appeared before journalists.

Roberts said, that the international police and stabilization forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina (SFOR) had averted a terrorist attack on the leaders of Yugoslavia, Croatia, and Bosnia. Two days before the summit, the special services received information about some planned activities aimed against the supreme leadership of these Balkan states. As a result, “all necessary measures were taken in the sixth canton of the Muslim-Croat Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

It should be remembered that on July 15, in Saraevo, the so-called Summit of Reconciliation took place, in which an agreement about good-neighborly relations was signed. The terrorists intended to time their attack during the summit.

According to some sources information, the question is about Islamic militants, whose headquarter is situated in the city of Travnik, in the south of Bosnia. According to the temporary press center of the Serb Republic, in Bosnia, terrorists might belong to Al-Qaida, which is very active on the Muslim territory of Bosnia.

It should be added that, according to latest information, Roberts very indefinably said something about prevention of the attack “on the leaders of the participant states”. However, according to non-official information, Islamic militants in Travnik intended to attack with missiles namely Yugoslav President Vojislav Kostunica, who was flying to Saraevo with some attendants. It was Kostunica who was the target of the terrorists.

Sergei Yugov PRAVDA.Ru

Translated by Vera Solovieva

Read the original in Russian: http://www.pravda.ru/main/2002/07/18/44354.html