August 1999 Military News

KYRGYZSTAN / HOSTAGES Voice of America 31 August 1999 -- More than a dozen hostages are being held by up to 750 guerillas, and attempts to free the hostages have resulted in civilian deaths. Kyrgyzstan is calling on Russia for military assistance to fight the gunmen.
CONGO PEACE Voice of America 31 August 1999 -- Rival leaders of the rebel Congolese Rally for Democracy -- or R-C-D -- have signed a cease-fire agreement aimed at ending the year-old war in Congo- Kinshasa.
CAMBODIA - U-N Voice of America 31 August 1999 -- A United Nations negotiating team has concluded two rounds of talks with Cambodian government officials on establishment of a war crimes tribunal for former Khmer Rouge leaders.
RUSSIA EXPLOSION Voice of America 31 August 1999 -- A bomb has ripped through a crowded underground shopping mall in Moscow, within 200 meters of the Kremlin. At least 29 people were injured, some seriously.
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN Voice of America 31 August 1999 -- Russian troops are in the third-day of an offensive against Islamic militants who control several villages in the Karamakhi region of Dagestan.
U.S.- EAST TIMOR Voice of America 31 August 1999 -- President Clinton has discussed the situation in East Timor by phone with his National Security Adviser Sandy Berger and with the Prime Minister of Portugal Antonio Guterres.
EAST TIMOR / TUESDAY Voice of America 31 August 1999 -- With vote counting in the United Nations supervised referendum on East Timor set to begin, militias opposed to seeing the territory break away from Indonesia are continuing to disrupt the process and threaten U-N staff.
EAST TIMOR COUNT Voice of America 31 August 1999 -- Indonesia has deemed Monday's ballot on East Timor independence -- fair, despite dozens of allegations of irregularities from pro-Indonesia groups.
BRITAIN / EAST TIMOR Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- Britain, which played an active role in East Timor's bid for independence, has welcomed today's so- far peaceful poll. Britain was asked by the United Nations to help support the referendum.
EAST TIMOR VOTES Voice of America 30 August 1999 --Hundreds of thousands of people in East Timor have taken part in a United Nations-supervised referendum on whether they want to remain a part of Indonesia or become independent.
Text: State Dept. on Extension of Abkhazia Peace Force Mandate USIA 31 August 1999 -- The State Department announced August 31 that Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze and the Georgian National Security Council had agreed in principle to extend the mandate of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) peacekeeping force in Abkhazia.
WHITE HOUSE PRESS BRIEFING USIA 31 August 1999 -- We've been working with the Portuguese to do what we can to foster fair and free democratic elections in East Timor, or balloting process in East Timor. And the President thought that the balloting there went well. We are going to look forward to seeing how the UN conducts the vote count over the next week or so. But we were pleased by the high turnout, found that an encouraging sign and the relative lack of violence on the ground there.
EAST TIMOR REFERENDUM APPEARS TO BE A SUCCESS USIA 30 August 1999 -- Foley said that security concerns did lead to the temporary closing of a small number of polling stations, "but the reports we have indicate that none of these interruptions interfered with individuals' abilityto vote."
INDONESIA - EAST TIMOR Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- East Timor Resistance leader Xanana Gusmao was allowed out from house arrest in the Indonesian capital Monday, to cast his vote in the day's historic ballot.
U-S - E-TIMOR Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- The United States has labeled the referendum (Monday)on independence for East Timor a success. But officials say Indonesia still has a responsibility to maintain order in the province as the votes are being counted.
LANKA / GRAVES Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- A Sri Lankan soldier convicted last year of the rape and murder of a Tamil schoolgirl has identified six new burial sites which he says contain the bodies of Tamil youth who dissapeared in the northern Jaffna peninsula after the military took control of the area in 1995.
RUSSIAN / DAGESTAN Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- Russian forces last week declared victory over Muslim insurgents who captured several villages in the remote mountains of the southern Dagestan region. But that declaration may have been premature.
KYRGYZ BOMBING Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- Warplanes have bombed several villages in southern Kyrgyzstan where hundreds of gunmen are holding at least a dozen hostages, including four Japanese geologists.
CONGO PEACE Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- The rival leaders of the rebel "Congolese Rally for Democracy" have arrived in Lusaka, Zambia to sign a peace agreement aimed
BURUNDI - REBELS Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- Burundi's army says a deadly attack late Saturday by Hutu rebels ended with a heavy casualty toll among both civilians and rebel fighters.
ALGERIA'S SEARCH FOR PEACE Voice of America 30 August 1999 -- In July, Algeria hosted the annual summit of the Organization of African Unity. Participants and observers agreed it was the most successful in years.
TIMOR BALLOT Voice of America 29 August 1999 -- Australian Prime Minister John Howard has told Indonesia's President B-J Habibie that Australian defense force units are on alert ahead of a ballot Monday in East Timor likely to see the province vote for independence.
EAST TIMOR / SUNDAY Voice of America 29 August 1999 -- In East Timor, groups fighting for and against independence are promising not to disrupt Monday's United Nations / sponsored referendum on the future of the disputed territory.
AFGHAN BLAST Voice of America 29 August 1999 -- The leader of Afghanistan's Taleban Islamic movement is blaming an unnamed foreign country for a bomb blast near his home in Kandahar, but says the United States was not involved.
EAST TIMOR VIOLENCE Voice of America 28 August 1999 -- There have been more attacks by armed militias against pro-independence groups in East Timor.
EAST TIMOR / SATURDAY Voice of America 28 August 1999 -- At least four more people have been killed in violence in East Timor linked to Monday's United Nations-supervised referendum.
VENEZUELA CLASH Voice of America 27 August 1999 -- Violent clashes erupted outside the Capitol building in Caracas Friday - injuring several people. At issue is a political battle over reforms and re- writing Venezuela's constitution.
EAST TIMOR GETS TO CHOOSE Voice of America 27 August 1999 -- The island of Timor, part of the Indonesian archipelago, is very much back in this news these days as half the island's population prepares for a critical and historic vote on Monday.
EAST TIMOR / VIOLENCE Voice of America 27 August 1999 -- The United Nations representative in East Timor is blaming Indonesian authorities for failing to control violence by armed militias who oppose possible separation from Jakarta.
JASSM lifts off at White Sands Missile Range Air Armament Center Public Affairs 27 Aug 1999 -- The Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile flight test was successfully conducted Aug. 12 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The flawless unpowered test indicates a problem with the missile's electrical system experienced during the missile's first flight test April 8 has been remedied.
E - TIMOR RESOLUTION Voice of America 27 August 1999 -- At the United Nations (today/Friday), the Security Council voted to extend the U-N mission in East Timor until the end of November.
TERRORISM IN ASIA Voice of America RUSSIA / DAGESTAN (S) Voice of America 27 August 1999 -- Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has made an unscheduled visit to the southern Dagestan region where troops are mopping up after an operation to crush a Muslim insurgency.
KYRGYZ HOSTAGES Voice of America 27 August 1999 -- Kyrgyzstan has appealed to Russia for special equipment to help in a battle with an estimated one- thousand gunmen who are holding hostages in a remote region along the Kyrgyz border with Tajikistan. The government of neighboring Uzbekistan also is supporting the Kyrgyz military effort.
PRESS CONFERENCE ON ANGOLA SANCTIONS 26 August 1999 -- Out of Angola's small population of 11 million people, 1 million had been killed since the beginning of the war more than 20 years ago and nearly 2 million had been internally displaced.
United Nations Security Council Condemns Use of Child Soldiers USIA 26 August 1999 -- The UN Security Council has for the first time adopted a resolution underscoring the importance of protecting children during armed conflicts and not using them as soldiers.
UNSC Condemns Use of Children as Soldiers in Armed Conflicts USIA 26 August 1999 -- The United Nations Security Council has strongly condemned the recruitment of children as soldiers and other abuses directed against them during armed conflicts "including killing and maiming, sexual violence, abduction and forced displacement," and the targeting of places that have "a significant presence of children", such as schools and hospitals.
U-N / AFGHANISTAN Voice of America 26 August 1999 -- The United Nations Refugee Agency, U-N-H-C-R, reports an estimated 160-thousand people have fled the recent upsurge of fighting in northeastern Afghanistan. People displaced by fighting between Taleban soldiers and opposition troops are scattered in different areas of the country.
U-N - AFGHAN DEBATE At the United Nations Friday, the Security Council held a day-long debate on the situation in Afghanistan.
EAST TIMOR / SIT REP Voice of America 26 August 1999 -- At least two people have died after shooting broke out in East Timor's capital, following an anti- independence rally.
U-N - E. TIMOR VIOLENCE Voice of America 26 August 1999 -- United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan has condemned the wave of violence that rocked East Timor Thursday and called on Indonesia to take stronger steps to curb the turmoil.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA BOMBS Voice of America 26 August 1999 -- Russia's Defense Minister, Igor Sergeyev, has denied that Russian jets carried out strikes in breakaway Chechnya against Muslim insurgents who were retreating from neighboring Dagestan. The minister's comments contradict earlier statements by lower level officials.
KYRGYZ EMERGENCY Voice of America 26 August 1999 -- A state of emergency has been declared in southern Kyrgyzstan, where government troops have launched an operation to crush armed militants holding 25 hostages.
CLINTON - HAITI Voice of America 26 August 1999 -- The United States is preparing to withdraw its last contingent of full-time troops from Haiti in the coming months, and replace them with rotating units made up of mostly military reservists. The move comes amid increasing Congressional pressure on the Clinton administration to reduce U.S. military commitments around the world.
CAMBODIA / TRIAL Voice of America 26 August 1999 -- Thousands of people marched through Phnom Penh Thursday. They were demanding that senior Khmer Rouge leaders accused of war crimes be tried by an independent tribunal run by the United Nations. The Cambodian capital, the Cambodian government is warning that the U-N's proposal for a war crimes tribunal might spark renewed civil war.
BRAZIL-PROTEST UPDATE Voice of America 26 August 1999 -- In Brazil, at least 60-thousand people held a massive demonstration in the Brazilian capital Thursday to protest against the government of President Fernando Henrique Cardoso.
ANGOLA-SANCTIONS Voice of America 25 August 1999 -- Experts began meeting at the United Nations in New York today (Thursday) to study how Angola's Unita opposition group is evading international sanctions and to recommend new measures to strengthen those sanctions.
EAST TIMOR RALLY Voice of America 25 August 1999 -- Tens of thousands of independence supporters rallied Wednesday in the East Timorese capital Dili, in the closing days of the territory's political campaign.
UN - CHILDREN IN WAR Voice of America 25 August 1999 -- At the United Nations (Wednesday), the Security Council discussed how to protect the growing number of children affected by armed conflict.
LANKA - MINISTER Voice of America 25 August 1999 -- Sri Lanka's Foreign Minister says, due to the unpredictability of the Tamil Tiger rebels, the government is unable to find a political solution to the country's 16 year ethnic war.
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN Voice of America 25 August 1999 -- Russian troops say they have regained control of all mountain villages seized by Islamic separatists early this month in the southern Dagestan region.
AFGHAN EXPLOSION UPDATE (S-L) Voice of America 25 August 1999 -- A powerful truck bomb has exploded near the home of the Taleban's supreme leader, killing at least 10 people and injuring several others in Afghanistan's southern city of Kandahar. No one has claimed responsibility for the blast which shattered windows and sent people running for cover.
EAST TIMOR REFERENDUM: INDONESIA'S 'LITMUS TEST' USIA Foreign Media Reaction Daily Digest 25 August 1999 -- Most writers outside Indonesia saw the vote as a "litmus test" for the ability of Indonesia's fledgling democracy to resolve "separatist problems" in the wake of the political demise of President Soeharto just over a year ago. Many expressed concern about the violence that has wracked that troubled province in the run-up to the referendum, but concluded that the UN had set a "successful precedent" by bringing Indonesian, Timorese and Portuguese interlocutors together to engage in a dialogue on East Timor's future.
E. TIMOR CAMPAIGN Voice of America 24 August 1999 -- With less than a week to go before the autonomy referendum in East Timor, both pro-independence and pro-integration leaders are expressing their frustration at the situation in the territory.
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN Voice of America 24 August 1999 -- Russian forces say they have regained control of three villages in the southern Dagestan region that had been occupied by Muslim insurgents for more than two-weeks. Federal troops are said to be making progress against rebels still holed up in other settlements in the sparsely populated Dagestani mountains.
U-N-H-C-R - CONGO-BRAZZAVILLE Voice of America 24 August 1999 -- The United Nations Refugee Agency, U-N-H-C-R, says it is bracing for a possible heavy influx of refugees from Congo-Brazzaville into neighboring Gabon.
BURMA - POLITICS UPDATE Voice of America 24 August 1999 -- Burmese opposition leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, is quoted as giving support to Burmese dissidents campaigning for a mass movement and possible civil unrest on September ninth. The Nobel Laureate says her party, however, is not leading the campaign.
ANGOLA / HUNGER Voice of America 24 August 1999 -- The humanitarian situation in Angola has deteriorated dramatically. Hundreds of thousands of Angolans displaced by civil war are now threatened not only by violent death, but also by starvation. An estimated one-thousand people have been killed by shelling this year and where up to 10-people die daily from hunger.
AFGHAN EXPLOSION Voice of America 24 August 1999 -- A powerful explosion has shaken the southern Afghan city of Kandahar. The cause of the explosion is not yet known.
U-N - E. TIMOR Voice of America 23 August 1999 -- United Nations officials in East Timor are accusing pro-Indonesia militia groups of stepping up a campaign of terror and intimidation in the disputed territory. The comments come as East Timor's political campaign moves into its last week.
STRIKE VIOLENCE Voice of America 23 August 1999 -- Striking students at Mexico's largest university, The National Autonomous University of Mexico, known as UNAM (oon NAHM), used homemade bombs and other weapons to drive back some 300 students opposed to the strike who tried to enter the campus on Monday. Authorities are still refraining from taking any action against the militants who seized the university more than four months ago.
Humanitarian Aid for Angola Lacking USIA 23 August 1999 -- According to the officials, about 70 percent of Angola's population is living in besieged provincial capitals or government-held areas on the coast; 1.7 million are internally displaced; and those Angolans who have been helping others are now in need of help themselves because of job loss, soaring inflation, and lack of access to arable land.
DAGESTAN WRAP Voice of America 23 August 1999 -- Russian troops say they have captured a strategic mountain village held for two weeks by Muslim insurgents in the southern region of Dagestan. The capture came hours after the rebels announced they had withdrawn from the region.
DAGESTAN SITREP Voice of America 23 August 1999 -- Muslim insurgents say they have withdrawn from some positions in Russia's Dagestan Republic, but government air and ground forces continue to pound several villages in the region.
UN - ANGOLA Voice of America 23 August 1999 -- At the United Nations (Monday), humanitarian officials briefed the Security Council on the deteriorating situation in Angola.
BURMA POLITICS Voice of America 23 August 1999 -- Burmese students in exile, hoping to create a mass movement against Burma's military government, have nevertheless rejected reports they are seeking a general uprising early next month.
RUSSIA-DAGESTAN UPDATE Voice of America 22 August 1999 -- Russia's Prime minister has summoned security chiefs for an urgent meeting as the conflict in the southern republic of Dagestan rages for a third week. Both government troops and Muslim rebels are claiming gains in the latest fighting.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 22 August 1999 -- There are reports of more fighting (Sunday) between Afghanistan's dominant Taleban faction and opposition forces. The Taleban says it has recaptured most of the territory it lost to opposition forces earlier this week
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN Voice of America 21 August 1999 -- Fighting continues in southern Russia, where government troops are battling Muslim insurgents holding a cluster of mountain villages in Dagestan. The Russian military command claims its forces have killed up to 100 rebels in just one day of fighting.
PAK KILLINGS Voice of America 21 August 1999 -- A Pakistani court has convicted and sentenced to death two men for murdering four U-S citizens and their Pakistani driver in, Karachi, almost two years ago.
AFGHAN FIGHTING (S/L) Voice of America 21 August 1999 -- Fighting continues in Afghanistan where opposition fighters say they have gained ground against the dominant Taleban Islamic movement. Fierce fighting has erupted on several battlefronts reportedly causing a number of casualties on both sides.
RUSSIA - DAGESTAN Voice of America 20 August 1999 -- Russian warplanes have bombed targets inside the breakaway Chechnya region in an attempt to cut off supply lines to Muslim rebels battling government troops in neighboring Dagestan.
AFGHANISTAN / U-N Voice of America 20 August 1999 -- The United Nations is calling on warring factions in Afghanistan to stop using "child- soldiers."
Upgraded SH-60R rolls out Tester August 19, 1999 -- Lockheed Martin Federal Systems in Owego, N.Y., together with the Navy, celebrated the rollout of the first fully upgraded SH-60R multi-mission prototype helicopter Aug 5.
RAPE / WAR CRIMES Voice of America 19 August 1999 -- A U-N special investigator says the systematic rape of women in armed conflict is used as a weapon of war and a tool of genocide. The investigator is calling for concerted action to bring those responsible for these crimes to justice and to compensate the victims.
CAMBODIA/UNITED NATIONS Voice of America 19 August 1999 -- A deadline is looming for Cambodia and the United Nations to reach agreement on a joint tribunal to prosecute members of the Khmer Rouge "Killing Fields" regime. a U-N team will arrive in Cambodia next week to offer a deal, even though its current proposal has already been rejected.
BURMA ARRESTS Voice of America 19 August 1999 -- Burma's military government is stepping up efforts to thwart moves by anti-government groups to stage protests and acts of civil disobedience on September ninth. the military government Thursday announced the arrest of 32 people.
BRAZIL-TRIAL (L-UPDATE Voice of America 19 August 1999 -- Some Brazilian officials and human rights groups have expressed dismay over a jury verdict early Thursday acquitting three police officers accused in the massacre of 19 landless peasants three years ago.
ANGOLA/REPORTER Voice of America 19 August 1999 -- A reporter for the Voice of America's special Portuguese-language program for Angola says he fears for his life after authorities seized him Thursday and threatened him with prosecution in connection with a dispatch he filed.
AFGHANISTAN - U-N Voice of America 19 August 1999 -- Afghanistan's Taleban and opposition forces are locked in heavy fighting in eastern and northern parts of the war-ravaged country. thousands of people have been displaced by fighting that began late last month.
AFGHANISTAN Pakistan Foreign Secretary's Press Briefing, 19 August 1999 -- Those who have provided weapons, ammunition, logistic support and military training to the Afghan opposition have wrongly accused Pakistan of providing similar assistance to the Taliban. These are totally malicious and baseless allegations.
ATROCITIES IN ACHE Voice of America 19 August 1999 -- Under other conditions, Aceh on the northern tip of Indonesia could be close to a paradise on earth with its gleaming beaches, breathtaking vistas, and hospitable people. Instead, the province is the scene of some of the ugliest atrocities in Indonesia, largely -- though not exclusively -- committed by an army that often seems out of control.
E.TIMOR VIOLENCE Voice of America 18 August 1999 -- A pro-Indonesia militia group in East Timor launched an attack (Wednesday) on a student center. the attack was apparently intended to disrupt the political campaigning for the U-N supervised autonomy referendum to be held August 30th.
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN Voice of America 18 August 1999 -- At least eight Russian soldiers have been killed in a day of heavy fighting with Islamic rebels in the mountains of Dagestan. the casualties came as Russia's top defense officials arrived in the region to direct the anti-insurgency campaign.
EDITORIAL: COLOMBIAN'S CRY "NO MORE" Voice of America 18 August 1999 -- The Voice of America presents differing points of view on a wide variety of issues. Next, an editorial expressing the policies of the United States Government:
COLOMBIA FARC Voice of America 18 August 1999 -- U-S and Colombian officials are stressing the ties between leftist rebel groups and drug traffickers as a way to emphasize the need for more aid to the violence-torn nation. But some analysts say the official rhetoric may be overheated to justify greater involvement by the United States in Colombia.
TALEBAN PUNISHMENT Voice of America 18 August 1999 -- The hard-line Islamic Taleban movement has imposed a number of edicts which have drawn criticism from international human rights organizations and many Western countries for their harshness.
U-S - ERITREA Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- The United States says it is encouraged by prospects for agreement to end the bloody 15-month old conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea. That assessment emerged Tuesday following talks between Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki.
U-N - TIMOR Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- At the United Nations today (Tuesday), the U-N official in charge of setting up the referendum, known as a "popular consultation," on East Timor's political future, Carina Perelli, said she is optimistic that the process will succeed.
WAR IN DAGESTAN Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- Russia is again at war in the Caucasus and predicting victory over the rebels challenging Moscow's authority. Whether they will hold out as stubbornly in Dagestan as they did in Chechnya remains to be seen.
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- Senior Russian officials say the fight against Islamic rebels in the southern republic of Dagestan could be over within days. the insurgents appear to be resisting all efforts to dislodge them.
INDONESIA - EAST TIMOR Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- Shots were fired Tuesday at the office of a pro-independence group in the disputed territory of East Timor. the violence comes as East Timor celebrates Indonesia's national day for what could be the last time
UGANDA / RWANDA FIGHTING Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- Ugandan and Rwandan troops are fighting deep inside rebel-held Congo. the long-time allies are at odds over what to do with a rebellion they have spent more than a year supporting.
CONGO FIGHTING Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- Officials from Rwanda and Uganda have agreed to a cease-fire between their forces in the rebel-held city of Kisangani in the Democratic Republic of Congo. the cease-fire comes after several days of heavy fighting between the two sides.
CONGO - UN Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- The Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the United Nations, Andre Kapanga, says the Security Council's response to the outbreak of fighting between Rwandan and Ugandan troops has been timid and even encourages aggression.
ANGOLA / UNITA Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- As southern African leaders meet in Mozambique, a key participant has voiced cautious support for renewed dialogue between government authorities and UNITA rebels in Angola. the conflict in Angola is one of the main topics at the summit agenda.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- The Taleban and the opposition Northern Alliance are making conflicting claims about advances in eastern Afghanistan. reports fighting broke out in the Afghan region Monday when opposition fighters attacked Taleban positions.
AFGHAN DISPLACED Voice of America 17 August 1999 -- The United Nations reports huge numbers of displaced people are arriving in the Afghan capital, Kabul, from combat areas in the northern and eastern parts of the country. thousands of people have been forced out of their homes as a result of fighting between the Taleban forces and opposition troops.
Secretary Albright Meets With Eritrea's President Isaias USIA 17 August 1999 --
Eritrean President Cautiously Optimistic About Peace USIA 16 August 1999 -- Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki has said he is "cautiously optimistic" about the chances for peace between his country and Ethiopia. "The prospects for peace appear better than at any time in the past 15 months" since a border dispute erupted into armed conflict, he added.
RUSSIA DAGESTAN Voice of America 16 August 1999 -- Russian president Boris Yeltsin has pledged to take tough measures to restore order in the troubled northern Caucasus. But he has ruled out declaring a state of emergency. Russian government forces in Dagestan are reporting progress in battling a Muslim insurgency.
CLINTON - AFRICA Voice of America 16 August 1999 -- President Clinton applauded progress toward conflict resolution in Africa and urged Congress to approve funds the Administration has proposed to help African countries develop their own peace-keeping capabilities.
BRAZIL TRIAL Voice of America 16 August 1999 -- The trial of 150 policemen accused of gunning down 19 demonstrators in Brazil three years ago has opened in the northern city of Belem. The 1996 incident was one of the worst massacres of landless peasants in recent years.
ANGOLA / SAF Voice of America 16 August 1999 -- South African officials have denied Angolan charges that a large stockpile of weapons destined for the UNITA rebel movement is currently located on the outskirts of Pretoria.
ANGOLA - SAVIMBI Voice of America 16 August 1999 -- The leader of Angola's UNITA rebel movement, Jonas Savimbi, says he favors a renewed dialogue with the government of President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 16 August 1999 -- Opposition soldiers have reportedly opened new fronts in eastern Afghanistan as the latest upsurge in fighting continues. A Pakistan-based news agency says Afghan opposition fighters have also taken ground in the west.
CONGO/FIGHTING Voice of America 15 August 1999 -- There is more trouble in the alliance backing rebels in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Troops from Uganda and Rwanda are fighting each other in the rebel-held city of Kisangani.
RUSSIA- DAGESTAN (L-UPDATE) Voice of America 15 August 1999 -- Russia's breakaway Chechnya region has declared a state of emergency beginning Monday, and placed all military units on full alert. The move comes as Russian forces are intensifying effort to dislodge muslim rebels entrenched along Chechnya border with Dagestan.
AFGHANISTAN - U-N Voice of America 15 August 1999 -- The United Nations says it is "greatly alarmed" the latest upsurge in fighting in Afghanistan is causing massive displacement of civilians. U-N officials are reporting that Islamic Taleban have been following a scorched-earth campaign in the recent fighting north of the Afghan capital.
EAST TIMOR TALKS / L-O Voice of America 13 August 1999 -- One day before the start of East Timor's political campaign period, the United Nations has announced a new effort to try to insure peace after the vote.
ETHIOPIA / ERITREA Voice of America 13 August 1999 -- Regional mediators trying to the end the war between Ethiopia and Eritrea now face a spread of the conflict to Somalia. Ethiopia says Eritrea is arming Somali rebels.
COLOMBIA - SATIRIST MURDER Voice of America 13 August 1999 -- In Colombia, the best-known political humorist in the country was gunned down Friday(today). In a country where people are hardened to massacres and mass kidnappings, the assassination of the 39-year old satirist has shaken even the most skeptical Colombian.
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN (L-ALT) Voice of America 13 August 1999 -- Acting Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says Russia has launched a massive operation to retake territory seized by Islamic rebels in the mountainous northern Caucasus republic of Dagestan. The operation will also include sorties into the breakaway Chechnya region.
NAMIBIA / RIGHTS (L-ONLY Voice of America 13 August 1999 -- The Namibian Government has admitted its security forces committed human-rights abuses in the troubled Caprivi Strip region following an attack there by separatist rebels.
ANGOLA / KILLINGS Voice of America 13 August 1999 -- In Angola, authorities say they have uncovered evidence of new mass killings allegedly committed by the UNITA rebel movement near the besieged provincial capital of Cuito.
EAST TIMOR - INDONESIA Voice of America 12 August 1999 -- The Indonesian government has agreed to a plan to reinforce the U-N presence in East Timor. The decision by the Indonesian government comes amid talks with the U- N and East Timor's former colonial ruler, Portugal.
U-S / EAST TIMOR Voice of America 12 August 1999 -- The United States has accused Indonesian officials and anti-independence militia leaders in East Timor of trying to intimidate voters ahead of the upcoming independence vote in the territory.
JASSM Gets Off Ground Successfully AAC Public Affairs, Eglin AFB A successful flight test of Eglin’s Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile was conducted Aug 12 at White Sands Missile Range, N.M. The flawless unpowered test indicates that the problem with the electrical system experienced during the missile’s first flight test on April 8 has been remedied.
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN Voice of America 12 August 1999 -- Russian military chiefs are making plans for a massive air campaign to crush a Muslim insurgency in the northern Caucasus. The rebels have shot down another Russian helicopter and appear to be holding their own.
WORLD OPINION ROUNDUP: MORE CAUCASUS TROUBLE ANDANOTHER PRIME MINISTER IN MOSCOW Voice of America 12 August 1999 -- Another budding civil war in an Islamic republic in southern Russia's Caucasus region and yet another swing of the revolving door at the Kremlin that brings in a new prime minister in Moscow highlight global press comment this week.
INDONESIA-TIMOR Voice of America 11 August 1999 -- Election monitors from the Carter Center, headed by former U-S President Jimmy Carter, have accused the Indonesian government of trying to undermine this month's United Nations autonomy referendum in East Timor. The comments come as top U-N and Indonesian officials meet to discuss the referendum and East Timor's future after the vote.
LIBERIA/GUINEA ATTACK Voice of America 11 August 1999 -- Liberian President Charles Taylor says unidentified insurgents have invaded the West African nation from neighboring Guinea and have taken control of several areas along the border. Liberia is still recovering from eight years of civil war that began with a similar invasion of rebels led by Mr. Taylor a decade ago.
RUSSIA / DAGESTAN Voice of America 11 August 1999 -- A council of Muslim clerics in Russia's southern republic of Dagestan has proclaimed a renegade Chechen warlord as their commander in what they are calling a holy war against Moscow's rule. Casualties are mounting as Russia steps up its use of air power in a bid to quickly crush the insurgency.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 11 August 1999 -- Another round of fighting has erupted in Afghanistan between the Taleban and opposition forces. Echoes of artillery could be heard throughout the city as the Taleban launched another offensive in recaptured territory north of the capitol.
U-N - EAST TIMOR (L - ONLY) Voice of America 10 August 1999 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is proposing an increase in U-N police presence in troubled East Timor, amid continuing concerns about the security situation in the former Portuguese colony. Mr. Annan says additional police will be needed to ensure security after a referendum on the territory's future is held later this month.
TURKEY / IRAN Voice of America 10 August 1999 -- Turkey and Iran appear to have ironed out their differences over an alleged border incursion by Turkish forces. Turkish and Iranian security officials discussed the matter in talks Tuesday in the Turkish capital.
CONGO / REBELS Voice of America 10 August 1999 -- African diplomats are expected to be in rebel held Congo (Tuesday) to try to advance a regional peace plan to end the country's civil war. Rivalries within the rebellion are making it harder to strike a deal with the government in Kinshasa.
COLOMBIA-PEACE Voice of America 10 August 1999 -- Colombian President Andres Pastrana has again called on the country's main leftist-guerrilla group to open peace talks to end more than 35-years of fighting. The two sides appear to be far from sitting down at the negotiating table.
RUSSIA POL - CAUCASUS Voice of America 10 August 1999 -- Acting Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has pledged to quickly crush a Muslim insurgency in the southern republic of Dagestan. The newly appointed prime minister has been thrust into the center of Russia's worst security crisis since the war in Chechnya.
AFGHAN REFUGEES Voice of America 10 August 1999 -- International aid agencies in Afghanistan's capital, Kabul, say they are assessing the current situation involving thousands of people evacuated from their homes by Taleban forces.
Text: OSCE Welcomes Major Step Towards Peace in Tajikistan USIA 10 August 1999 -- The Chairman-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Norwegian Foreign Minister Knut Vollebaek, has praised opposition forces in Tajikistan for agreeing to disband their armed formations.
QUESTION OF EAST TIMOR Report of the Secretary-General S/1999/862 - 9 August 1999 -- During the interim period, the Indonesian authorities will continue to be fully responsible for the maintenance of law and order, specifically the police, as affirmed by the 5 May Agreement. I trust that Indonesia will take all steps necessary to discharge this responsibility effectively.
INDONESIA-TIMOR Voice of America 09 August 1999 -- The U-N mission in East Timor has set August 14th as the official start of the political campaign for a special autonomy referendum on whether the territory should remain with Indonesia, or push for full independence. East Timor's opposing factions will be expected to stick to a strict code of conduct during the campaign.
BRITAIN / YEMEN VOICE OF AMERICA 09 August 1999 -- Lawyers for the eight British citizens convicted of terrorism by a court in Yemen have denounced the verdict as a miscarriage of justice.The eight -- along with two Algerians -- were sentenced to jail terms ranging from eight-months to seven-years, although three were released for time served.
YEMEN VERDICT Voice of America 09 August 1999 -- A court in Yemen has found 10 foreign nationals guilty of plotting to commit acts of terrorism. The controversial trial has been at the center of a dispute between Yemen and Britain.
INDIA - MILITANTS Voice of America 09 August 1999 -- In India's Assam state, suspected militants have exploded a bomb, derailing a train and injuring at least five people. Authorities say Monday's bomb blast is the latest in a string of attacks by guerrillas in India's border states of Assam in the northeast and Kashmir in the north.
HONDURAS GRAVES Voice of America 09 August 1999 -- In Honduras, the head of the National Human Rights Commission, Leo Valladares (Vie ah dahr' raze), says that there is evidence of unmarked graves on the site of an air base once used by U-S forces. The site may contain remains of Nicaraguans as well as Honduran political prisoners.
RUSSIA CAUCASUS-UPDATE Voice of America 09 August 1999 -- Fighting in southern Russia between local security forces and suspected Islamic militants has claimed its first casualties. Four policemen have been killed and at least 15 others injured in the clashes. More violence is expected around the three villages held by rebels.
RUSSIA /CAUCASUS Voice of America 18 August 1999 -- Russian Prime Minister Sergei Stepashin is flying to the northern Caucasus region, where security forces are said to be battling suspected Muslim insurgents near the border with breakaway Chechnya. Preparations are underway for a major military operation against the rebels.
RUSSIA-CAUCASUS (L Voice of America 07 August 1999 -- Russian helicopters have fired on an armed group that surrounded a village in a remote northern Caucasus region bordering Chechnya. Prime Minister Sergei Stepashin has dispatched senior military commanders to the region.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 07 August 1999 -- Afghanistan's opposition says its fighters have retaken two districts in the north as they continue to make gains against Taleban forces. The swift counter-offensive by opposition commander Ahmed Shah Masood has halted the Taleban's plan to bring the remaining 10-percent of the country under its control.
EAST TIMOR - SECURITY Voice of America 06 August 1999 -- The United Nations in Indonesia's disputed territory of East Timor Friday reported two attacks on its staff.
U-N - CONGO PEACEKEEPING Voice of America 06 August 1999 -- The United Nations Security Council has authorized the deployment of a special military team to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly Zaire. The team will pave the way for a possible U-N peacekeeping force in the country.
NAMIBIA SECESSIONISTS Voice of America 06 August 1999 -- The Namibian Government has imposed a state of emergency in the eastern part of the Caprivi Strip. That government action comes after at least fifteen people were killed in an attack by members of the Caprivi Liberation Front.
AFGHAN / FIGHTING Voice of America 06 August 1999 -- Taleban forces in Afghanistan are moving reinforcements to the battlefront, north of Kabul -- a day after opposition fighters regained territory they lost last week, during massive Taleban offensive. Military activity in the capital seems to indicate that another Taleban offensive is likely soon.
U-N - AFGHANISTAN Voice of America 06 August 1999 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is expressing concern (Friday) about reports that thousands of foreign combatants are taking part in fighting in Afghanistan.
Text: U.S. State Department Statement on Violence in Aceh Province USIA 05 August 1999 -- U.S. State Department spokesman James Rubin released a statement August 5 expressing the United States' deep concern about "the rising tide of violence" in the Indonesian province of Aceh which he said has claimed more than a hundred lives and has caused tens of thousands of Acehnese to flee their homes in recent months.
TURKEY - OCALAN Voice of America 05 August 1999 -- Members of the Kurdistan Workers Party -- or P-K-K -- say they will comply with their condemned leader's call to stop fighting for Kurdish self rule and withdraw their forces from Turkish territory.
CONGO BOMBING (L-ONLY Voice of America 05 August 1999 -- Democratic Republic of Congo rebel leader Jean-Pierre Bemba says the death toll in a bombing raid in northern Congo on Wednesday has risen to at least 524. Rebel leaders say the bombing has dimmed hopes for peace to end the country's year-long war.
EDITORIAL: COLOMBIA'S FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISM Voice of America 05 August 1999 -- The Voice of America presents differing points of view on a wide variety of issues. Next, an editorial expressing the policies of the United States Government:
AFGHAN - FIGHTING Voice of America 05 August 1999 -- In Afghanistan, the Taleban say they have lost the airbase at Bagram to opposition fighters and have been forced back to the positions they held over a week ago - before the start of their summer offensive.
CONGO BOMBING Voice of America 04 August 1999 -- A rebel leader in the Democratic Republic of Congo says more than 500 people have been killed in a bombing raid in the north of the country (Wednesday).
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 04 August 1999 -- The Taleban movement in Afghanistan says it is helping thousands of people move away from the area where heavy fighting has taken place during the past week.
SIERRA LEONE Voice of America 03 August 1999 -- Eight years of civil conflict in (the West African country of) Sierra Leone came to an end nearly a month ago (on July 7) with the signing of a peace agreement between the Government and the rebel "Revolutionary United Front".
NAMIBIA POLITICS Voice of America 03 August 1999 -- The insurgents are believed to be aligned to the Caprivi Liberation Front which is demanding independence for the Caprivi Strip.
OCALAN - TURKEY Voice of America 03 August 1999 -- Imprisoned Kurdish rebel chief Abdullah Ocalan has called for members of his outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party, the P-K-K, to lay down their arms and withdraw outside the borders of Turkey for what he termed -- the sake of peace.
RUSSIA CLASH Voice of America 03 August 1999 -- Twelve people have been killed in a gun battle between Russian police and guerrillas from the breakaway Chechnya region.
ALGERIA REFERENDUM Voice of America 03 August 1999 -- Officials in Algeria are appealing for a high voter turnout next month in a national referendum about a peace deal with Islamic militants.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 03 August 1999 -- says Afghanistan's Taleban movement has pushed its forces to the mouth of the opposition's stronghold asfighting continues in the country.
NAMIBIA FIGHTING Voice of America 02 August 1999 -- In Namibia's "Caprivi Strip," suspected supporters of a secessionist movement attacked a military base and temporarily occupied the offices of the state-owned Namibian Broadcasting Corporation.
CONGO/REBELS Voice of America 02 August 1999 -- Rebel leader Jean-Pierre Bemba says he hopes his signature will put pressure on Congo's other main rebel group to resolve its internal differences and sign the accord as well.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 02 August 1999 -- There has been no let up in fighting in Afghanistan, where Taleban forces reportedly have made significant gains in their military campaign to dislodge the last remaining opposition forces.
CONGO / REBELS Voice of America 01 August 1999 -- The leader of one of Congo-Kinshasa's rebel groups "The Movement for the Liberation of Congo" has signed the cease-fire agreement that was accepted by regional heads of state on July 10th.
COLOMBIA CLASHES Voice of America 01 August 1999 -- At least nine people have been killed in a massive attack by Colombian guerrillas in northwestern Colombia.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 01 August 1999 -- In Afghanistan, both sides are claiming control of a major air-base as heavy fighting continues between the Taleban and the Northern Alliance.
CHECHNYA VIOLATES BASIC LEGAL NORMS Russian Federation Ministry of Justice information 08.12.1999 13:00