(4 Sep 2003)
Bijeljina
1. Exterior of raided monastery
2. Statue of religious cross
3. Wide of monastery
4. Various of people standing in front of monastery
5. Church
6. Street scene
7. Wide view police station
8. "Wanted" poster of wartime Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic pinned up on police station
9. Zoom in to photo of Karadzic and his ID details - place and date of birth
10. SOUNDBITE: (Serbian) Milica Ostojic, Serb Police Spokeswoman:
"The members of the EU police mission informed us during the course of yesterday that they had information that within the premises of the church in Bijeljina one of the accused war criminals was hiding. After that the police in Bijeljina and the EU police went there, took over the place, checked it out and then concluded that the information was false because they could not find anyone there."
11. Wide of street scene
Sarajevo
12. Wide of SFOR (Stabilisation Force) headquarters
Sign reading: "HQ SFOR"
13. Barbed wire and bunker outside
14. SOUNDBITE: (English) Major Dale MacEachern, SFOR spokesman:
"With respect to yesterday's actions by the RS (Republica Serpska) police, SFOR commends the efforts of the RS police in their attempt to apprehend persons indicted for war crimes. As signatories for the Dayton peace accord the government and the legal bodies of Bosnia Herzegovina are responsible for apprehending these people (suspected war criminals) - they are actually committed to doing that - and this action yesterday is an example of their effort to fulfill their obligations."
15. Close up of surveillance dish
16. Security bunker
17. SOUNDBITE: (English) Jan Oskar Solnes, EU Police Mission:
"I cannot, of course, go into operational details, but I can say that I have learnt that the premises were searched up in Bijeljina and the suspected PIFWC (Person Indicted for War Crimes) was not found. From the EU PM (Police Mission) side we are very encouraged by this first RS police effort to apprehend a suspected war criminal. That's the main news in this story."
18. Close-up of SFOR sign
STORYLINE:
An attempt to arrest Radovan Karadzic was praised Thursday by international officials as a positive step on the
part of Bosnian Serb authorities who had previously refused to hunt the world's top war crimes suspect.
Although Bosnian Serb police did not find the wartime Bosnian Serb leader, the European Police Mission is "extremely encouraged" by this first attempt on their part to apprehend a such a high-profile suspect, said mission
spokesman Jan Oskar Solnes.
The mission is in charge of monitoring the work of the local police in Bosnia and oversaw Wednesday's operation.
Pro-Karadzic feeling remains high in the Bosnian Serb part of the republic, and authorities there had long refused to cooperate with international efforts to arrest him, usually claiming they do not know his whereabouts.
There has been speculation that the Serbian Orthodox church in Bosnia could be protecting him.
Bosnian Serb police on Wednesday searched the home of Bishop Vasilije in the northeastern Bosnian town of Bijeljina, based on a tip from the population that Karadzic might be hiding in the bishop's home. But the lead
turned out to be false.
Karadzic, the wartime leader of the Bosnian Serbs, was indicted in 1995 by the U.N. war crimes tribunal for alleged atrocities including genocide during the war.
Bosnia's war took 250,000 lives and turned half of the country's population of 3.5 (m) million into refugees.
He remains in hiding, and authorities believe he is in the Serb-controlled half of Bosnia.
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