MACEDONIA/KOSOVO BORDER: KOSOVO REFUGEE CRISIS LATEST скачать в хорошем качестве

MACEDONIA/KOSOVO BORDER: KOSOVO REFUGEE CRISIS LATEST

(25 May 1999) Eng/Albanian/Nat Thousands of ethnic Albanian refugees were waiting in no-man's land on Monday night, between the borders of Kosovo and Macedonia. APTN has exclusive pictures of between five to six thousand refugees all hoping to cross into Macedonia via Blace. Refugees say there are around twenty thousand more Kosovar Albanians just outside no man's land and it's expected they should reach the border within the next day or two. Aid workers say the sharp increase in refugees leaving Kosovo is clear evidence of efforts to clear out the last ethnic Albanian residents. Having finally made it to the Macedonian border, many refugees are discovering that their ordeal is far from over. Around five to six thousand Kosovar Albanians were gathered in no-man's land between the borders of Kosovo and Macedonia on Monday night, waiting to cross into Blace. They say they tried to hang on in Kosovo but finally gave up under the combined weight of NATO bombing and Serb police repression. Many of these refugees have now been waiting for up to sixteen hours out in the open, without food or water. However doctors are on hand to give medical aid to refugees and also to make sure that those who are sick are taken to refugee camps first. Refugees crossing the border say there are around twenty thousand more Kosovar Albanians just outside no man's land and it's expected they should reach the border within the next day or two. UPSOUND: (Albanian) "There are twenty thousand people on the other side" The crowds are so great that the border checkpoints can't deal with them all and tables and chairs have been set up outside to help process the thousands. Buses are then picking up the refugees and taking them to two camps in Stenkovec. The government owned buses have been rented by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees which is sponsoring the mission. However the Stenkovec camps are badly overcrowded and the so-called "welcome tents" will house the refugees for only one night before they're moved on again. The Macedonian government is having difficulty coping with the influx of refugees and in fact had refused to take anymore until the U-N persuaded it to think again. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Really we are worried about the coming days, who knows what is going on with Milosevic's plans maybe he's going again to prepare a great influx of refugees which is directing towards Macedonia. Certainly when we are talking about air lift, we're satisfied that in the past week it was properly working. But I would like this opportunity again to encourage the international community to continue with this air lift." SUPER CAPTION: Boris Trajkovski, Macedonia's Deputy Foreign Minister Aid workers say the sharp increase in refugees leaving Kosovo is clear evidence of efforts to clear out the last ethnic Albanian residents, especially from the capital Pristina. With so many people pouring across the border, refugee camps are becoming overcrowded. Cejrani is one of the largest camps in Macedonia. More than 30-thousand refugees are currently living there. On Monday, officials announced they would expand the number to cope with the influx. SOUNDBITE: (English) "Here in Cejrani camp we currently have 37-thousand refugees. Today we're expecting about four more thousand who have just crossed the border. We've had to expand our camp, build new tents as you can see behind me so enough people will have shelter, blankets, food and water tonight." SUPER CAPTION: Danni Woods, Spokesperson CARE Australia Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...