World digest 06/29/02

Indian prime minister sees no possibility of war

LUCKNOW, India -- India's prime minister ruled out the possibility of war with Pakistan, but expressed doubts Friday that the Pakistani leader would permanently stop incursions by Islamic militants.

"There is no possibility of war with Pakistan," Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee told reporters in Lucknow, the capital of northern Uttar Pradesh state.

Yet the violence continued in Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan and over which they have fought two wars. Police in the Indian part of Kashmir reported Friday that 17 people had been killed -- government forces and civilians.

Milosevic's supporters demand his release

BELGRADE, Yugoslavia -- Chanting "Freedom for Slobodan," 4,000 supporters of Slobodan Milosevic demonstrated Friday at a Belgrade square to mark the anniversary of the former president's extradition to the U.N. war crimes tribunal.

Milosevic was extradited June 28, 2001, to the U.N. tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, where he is on trial for charges of war crimes and genocide committed during the 1990s Balkan wars.

The extradition came after the United States threatened to withdraw support for the new Belgrade government unless Milosevic was handed over to the court. Milosevic's supporters, right-wing and nationalist parties consider the extradition high treason.

"This government is run by foreign forces," Mirko Marjanovic, the leader of Milosevic's Socialist Party, told the crowd Friday, adding that U.S. Ambassador "William Montgomery is effectively the head of the Serbian government."

U.S. rejects plan on prosecution exemption

UNITED NATIONS -- The United States rejected a French and British compromise at the Security Council Friday, renewing its threat to veto an extension of Bosnian peacekeeping operations unless U.S. soldiers are exempted from prosecution for war crimes.

The United States stands alone against the other 14 members of the council, most of whom backed the compromise plan.

It would require the new International Criminal Court, which comes into existence Monday, to defer any investigation of an American peackeeper for 12 months. That would allow the United States time to take an accused soldier home, but it would not grant the Americans immunity -- the key U.S. demand.

Court supporters say granting immunity would undermine the tribunal and international law.

The Security Council scheduled another meeting Sunday.

Israeli forces blast Hebron compound

HEBRON, West Bank -- Israeli forces blew up the fortress-like Palestinian headquarters where the army had said wanted Palestinians were holed up, taking down a quarter of it in one blast and leaving only rubble with a second early Saturday, said nearby residents.

"I saw hills of rubble," said Mohammed Maswadeh, whose windows were blown out by the blast about 120 yards away. "There's nothing called the headquarters anymore."

The Israel army would only say its operations were continuing in Hebron, but Palestinians living in three other homes around the compound all told The Associated Press the building was no longer standing.

-- From wire reports