NATO has launched air-strikes against Yugoslavia after its refusal to make peace in its dissident province of Kosovo. The strikes, initially by cruise missiles, began just over two hours ago. Among the targets hit are the military airport, an aeroplane factory, army barracks and a radar site near the capital, Belgrade; sites near Kosovo's capital Pristina, where the electricity is blacked out; and the northern city of Novi Sad.
On RTE's 9.00 News bulletin, Zizko Jakzic of the Serbian Information Bureau condemned the attacks as being in breach of the UN charter. He said that Serbia posed no threat to its external neighbours. Gani Sejdiv, a Kosovo Albanian now living in Dublin said that there was no alternative to the attacks, in the context of the intransigence of the Serb leadership.
Bomb explosions were heard throughout Yugoslavia as the first wave of NATO air-strikes continued. Confirmation that the operation had begun came within the with announcements by the NATO Secretary General, Javier Solana, the US President, Bill Clinton, and the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. There is a report that up to eight cruise missiles have hit Montenegro's main airport. Britain and Canada have said that their fighters have taken part in the attacks, and the first of the large US bombers thought to have taken part in the assault have returned to a base in Gloucestershire.
The strikes began with sea and air-launched cruise missiles, according to US defence officials. President Clinton has said that United States forces acted without NATO allies in commencing the air-strikes against Serbian military targets. Mr. Clinton stressed that the action comes after exhaustive diplomatic efforts failed to convince Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to sign a peace deal with ethnic Albanian separatists.
It has also been confirmed that RAF Harrier jump jets were involved in the first waves of attacks. British Prime Minister Tony Blair said that "Any political leader thinks long and hard before committing forces to action...I would not do it if I did not think it was the right thing to do." His Cabinet colleague Defence Secretary George Robertson revealed that HMS Splendid is on patrol in the area and has made preparation to fire Tomahawk land attack missiles. A NATO spokesperson has said that forces from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Holland, and Spain also participated in the attacks.
It has been reported that reported that the USS Philippine Sea, based on the Adriatic Sea launched nine Tomahawk cruise missiles over the course of an hour as part of the attack. The USS Gonzales also took part in the missile strike.
Italian news first reported that the NATO attacks had begun. Yugoslavia declared a state of emergency earlier today and the roads out of Pristina are jammed as ethnic Albanians and Serbs head home or flee to the relative security of other parts of Serbia or neighbouring Macedonia. Hundreds of ethnic Albanian women and children clamoured to board a convoy of six buses and about twenty cars that set out north for Serbia and on towards Bulgaria.
Eight American B-52 bombers took off this morning from their base in Gloucestershire in England for an undisclosed destination. Each of the planes was believed to be carrying twenty Cruise missiles. The British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, insisted there was no further room for negotiations with President Milosevic. However, the Russians, who are traditional allies of the Serbs, have stayed in contact with Mr. Milosevic and appear still anxious to secure a peaceful outcome.
The Department of Foreign Affairs here has warned Irish citizens against travelling to the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the Republika Srpska and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia for the time being. In a statement, the department advises any Irish citizens in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Republika Srpska to leave. NATO commanders were ordered last night to initiate military action after the failure of talks between the American special envoy, Richard Holbrooke, and President Slobodan Milosevic.
