ASHDOWN TELLS BOSNIAN SERB POLICE CHIEF TO RETRACT TERRORISM ALLEGATIONS
BBC Monitoring International Reports - June 3, 2005

Text of report in English by Croatian news agency HINA

Sarajevo, 3 June: The international community's High Representative to Bosnia and Hercegovina, Paddy Ashdown, on Thursday [3 June] urged Republika Srpska [Bosnian Serb Republic] Police Director Dragomir Andan to retract his statement that Islamic terrorists responsible for last year's bombing attacks in Madrid had prepared themselves in Bosnia and Hercegovina.

Ashdown's office said in a press release that the EU Police Mission (EUPM) had conducted an inquiry into the statement Adnan made last month, particularly his allegation that the fuses used in the Madrid attacks were produced in Bosnia and Hercegovina.

Andan also said at a press conference that members of "the white Al-Qa'idah" were being recruited in Bosnia and Hercegovina and after that they carried out terrorist attacks round the world.

A report Ashdown received from EUPM Commissioner Kevin Carty found that Andan's allegations were unfounded. "It is clear from his report that Mr Andan made these claims without having any firm evidence," the Office of the High Representative said.

Ashdown said that Adnan's comments were of a political nature and that they were damaging to the Ministry of the Interior of Republika Srpska and to Bosnia and Hercegovina.

The High Representative asked Andan to send a letter to Carty by June 6 in which he would retract the comments he had made at the press conference and acknowledge they were unfounded.

Source: HINA news agency, Zagreb, in English 0821 gmt 3 Jun 05

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