(6 Apr 1999) English/Nat
Top NATO officials have arrived in Macedonia to oversee relief efforts for thousands of ethnic-Albanians who have fled Kosovo in recent days.
In a stern message to Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic, NATO demanded an end to the forced migration of Kosovo's Albanian population.
Meanwhile, international aid continues to pour into Macedonia.
On Tuesday, Israel sent a mobile field hospital to the region.
NATO's deputy secretary general Sergio Belanzino left Sofia for Skopje, Macedonia, on Tuesday, as the refugee crisis in the region deepens.
As ethnic-Albanians continue to pour over the border from Kosovo, Macedonian officials warn conditions at border camps are rapidly deteriorating.
In a message to Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic, Belanzino reiterated NATO's demand for an end to military action against Kosovo's Albanian community.
SOUNDBITE: (English)
"Listen to the international community and to the good of your country. Don't insist in your tragic, brutal and ruthless- and in the end stupid- policy."
SUPER CAPTION: Sergio Belanzino, NATO deputy secretary general
But the flow of refugees from Kosovo shows no sign of abating.
At the weekend thousands more ethnic-Albanians poured over the Kosovo-Macedonia border, swelling the already overcrowded makeshift camp of Blace.
The international community is working to alleviate conditions at hotspots on the Kosovo-Macedonia border.
Citing its own memories of persecution in Europe, Israel on Tuesday sent a 100-bed army field hospital and staff to the area.
SOUNDBITE: (English)
"The people of Israel- maybe our parents- felt what it is to be a refugee in Europe about 55 years ago. It is very symbolic that now we can come here and help those who suffer now."
SUPER CAPTION: Hezi Levi, Israeli Defence Force
Relief workers in Macedonia say conditions at the border camps are dire, and that outbreak of disease among the refugees is imminent.
Thousands have been bused out of the camp in recent days, but their numbers swelled again after a train delivered several thousand more refugees to the border late Sunday.
At least 831-thousand of the 2 (m) million prewar Kosovo population have been displaced since the conflict began in February 1998.
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