Bosnia...
Some of the explosive devices found were built into small plastic toys for children, including a toy car, an ice cream cone and a helicopter. NATO officials said that they also found extensive instructional materials on explosives and conducting ambushes and sabotage. Students were apparently being trained to attack both military and civilian targets, conduct covert bombings, and lay booby-traps.
United States Admiral Leighton Smith, the commander of the NATO peace forces in Bosnia, was quoted as saying, "It doesn't take a genius to figure out we found something here that is an abomination ... clearly terrorist training activities. No one can escape the obvious, and that this is terrorist training activity going on in this building and it has direct association with people in the government."
The Bosnian government said that the site was an intelligence training facility that was in the process of being closed down. Found the building was a photograph of the Bosnian president on one wall in the foyer of the chalet. A picture of former Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeni was found on a table in an upstairs classroom.
An unidentified American officer said that the three alleged Iranians that were captured were believed to be instructors and the six Bosnians were students. Two others were captured, but their nationalities were not immediately identified. The officer said, "The Bosnians were employed by the ministry of the interior of this state of Bosnia as intelligence operatives."
Much of the material found in the chalet was in the Iranian language of Farsi. NATO officials said that so much was found that it would take weeks to go through it all. Also found in the raid were hollowed-out toys and pens that could be used for making drops of secret messages. Instructions on how to make these message exchanges were also found.
According to the Dayton Peace Agreement, the Bosnians have every right to have an intelligence service, however the presence of foreign nationals, in this case -- Iranians, is a clear violation. An American officer said, "There is no complaint that an intelligence school was run here, but methods of terrorism, sabotage, and kidnapping which obviously violate international accords are of our great concern."
(c) EmergencyNet News Service, 1996, All rights reserved, unless assigned.