March 2000 Military News

ASG ABDUCTIONS March 31, 2000 -- The Philippine Star has reported the abduction of some 53 students, teachers, and a Catholic priest by the Muslim insurgent band, the Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG).
COUP PLOTTERS AND JUNTA MEMBERS CHARGED March 31, 2000 -- Ecuadoran Supreme Court has charged four prominent political figures for their parts in the January coup.
Text: State Department Issues Warning Against Travel to Colombia The U.S. State Department late March 31 released a public announcement reminding U.S. citizens against travel to Colombia due to a significant increase in terrorist activities there.
PRESS BRIEFING ON CHILDREN IN ARMED CONFLICT 31 March 2000 -- The early re-establishment of education programmes must be part of any effort to protect and rehabilitate children once a conflict was over.
U-N / CHILDREN IN WARS Voice of America 31 March 2000 -- International child welfare officials are urging greater coordination among groups trying to help young victims of war.
SUDAN / DISPLACED CAMPS Voice of America 31 March 2000 -- War-ravaged southern Sudan is a long way from the country's capital, Khartoum. But thousands of southern Sudanese -- displaced by civil war in the South -- are living in desert camps dotting the outskirts of the city.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 31 March 2000 -- United Nations human rights chief Mary Robinson is beginning a five-day visit to Russia to check for human rights abuses in the rebellious republic of Chechnya.
AFGHAN RIGHTS Voice of America 31 March 2000 -- A United Nations special investigator says the human rights situation in Afghanistan is appalling.
Text: U.S. Ambassador to the OSCE Delivers Statement on Chechnya 30 March 2000 -- U.S. Ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) David T. Johnson said March 30 that the U.S. government regrets that "security conditions make it impossible to deploy the AG [the OSCE's Assistance Group] in Grozny in the near future."
TORTURE REPORTING HANDBOOK Voice of America 30 March 2000 -- The British government has published a "Torture Reporting Handbook," the first government-sponsored manual to help human-rights groups collect evidence of abuse that help bring the violators to justice.
ISRAEL / SYRIA ANALYSIS Voice of America 30 March 2000 -- Although the news media labeled the meeting in Geneva between President Clinton and Syrian President Hafez al-Assad a failure, many observers in the Middle East viewed it in less negative terms.
SRI LANKA FIGHTING Voice of America 30 March 2000 -- At least 80 soldiers and five officers have been killed in more than five days of heavy fighting in Northern Sri Lanka.
CONGO-KINSHASA / RIGHTS Voice of America 30 March 2000 -- A U-N report on the human rights situation in Congo-Kinshasa says the presence of foreign armed forces and other armed groups in the country is creating a climate of violence and extreme insecurity.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 30 March 2000 -- A Russian army colonel has been charged with raping and killing a young Chechen woman. The case was filed days before the Council of Europe is due to take up the issue of alleged human rights abuses in Chechnya.
BURUNDI / RIGHTS Voice of America 30 March 2000 -- A U-N special investigator says the human- rights situation in Burundi has worsened during the past year.
U-N ANGOLA RELIEF Voice of America 30 March 2000 -- A United Nations official who recently returned from Angola said today (Thursday) that security and access remain major problems in delivering relief services there.
TIMOR / REFUGEES Voice of America 29 March 2000 -- The United Nations and the Indonesian government may be making headway in talks aimed at allowing continued humanitarian assistance to East Timorese refugees living in West Timor.
CLINTON-SYRIA Voice of America 29 March 2000 -- Clinton says it's not enough for the Syrians to merely reject the latest Israeli proposal, and he says if there is to be a negotiating process, Damascus will have to respond with a plan of its own.
SOMALIA / DJIBOUTI Voice of America 29 March 2000 -- In the Horn of Africa, the latest effort to end years of violence in Somalia is collapsing before it even gets started.
CHECHNYA RIGHTS Voice of America 29 March 2000 -- Human rights groups from Russia and the West are asking the U-N Human Rights Commission to condemn the Russian military for what they say are gross human rights violations against civilians in Chechnya.
AFGHAN / U-N WITHDRAWAL Voice of America 29 March 2000 -- The United Nations says it has withdrawn its international staff from southern Afghanistan, in protest against raids by armed Taleban soldiers on U-N offices in Kandahar.
U-N / AFGHAN REPATRIATION Voice of America 29 March 2000 -- The United Nations has started the voluntary repatriation of Afghan refugees living in Pakistan.
LANKAN STRIFE Voice of America 28 March 2000 -- Heavy fighting in northern Sri Lanka has reulted in the deaths of at least 32 government soldiers and an officer.
TURKEY / RIGHTS Voice of America 28 March 2000 -- One of Turkey's most prominent human-rights defenders has returned to prison to finish his punishment for calling for a peaceful solution to the Kurdish conflict in Turkey.
ERITREAN DISPLACEMENT CAMPS Voice of America 28 March 2000 -- Nearly one-half-million people have been displaced in Eritrea since fighting broke out with neighboring Ethiopia two-years ago.
COLOMBIA-REBEL ZONE Voice of America 28 March 2000 -- San Vicente del Caguan - with some 14-thousand people - has been under FARC control since late 1998, when government troops withdrew from the area as part of an agreement creating a huge demilitarized zone in southern Colombia. Removing troops from this zone - which is about the size of Switzerland - was a FARC precondition for opening peace talks with the government of President Andres Pastrana.
UNHCR / CHECHNYA Voice of America 28 March 2000 -- The U-N Refugee Agency says civilians are continuing to flee fighting in southern Chechnya for the neighboring Russian Republic of Ingushetia.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY - aide to the RF Acting President -- 28 March 2000 -- I would like to refute several Interfax reports. One gets the impression that there are active hostilities, scaled conflicts in Chechnya. This is not true. Thus, one report says the federal aviation made over 120 sorties to bomb bandit formations in the past 24 hours. In actual fact, the front-line aviation made 28 sorties to deliver blows at groups of bandits.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY - aide to the RF Acting President -- 27 March 2000 -- Strikes were delivered at the Surkhlam strategic height, also in the Cheberloi district. An air defence system, six emplacements with large-calibre machine-guns and camouflaged stationary base were destroyed there. In the past 24 hours, a group of fighters was blockaded on an area of 12-15 km in the vicinity of Tsentoroi, 15 km outside Nozhai-Yurt. I cannot tell you now how many fighters were in the group, but artillery and aviation were used against them.
U-N RAPID PEACEKEEPING FORCE Voice of America 27 March 2000 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan called today (Monday) for swifter response and adequate forces in U-N peacekeeping operations.
INDONESIA / HUMAN RIGHTS Voice of America 27 March 2000 -- A delegation of Indonesian lawyers and human rights groups are on its way to Geneva, to urge the United Nations to set up an international tribunal for those responsible for atrocities last year in East Timor.
ISRAEL / SYRIA Voice of America 27 March 2000 -- U-S Middle East envoy Dennis Ross says the United States will continue efforts to restart peace talks between Israel and Syria.
RWANDA / KAGAME Voice of America 27 March 2000 -- Rwanda's army has always been the power, now it has the presidency. Defense Minister Paul Kagame is the acting head of state following the resignation of the man he made president six-years ago.
CLINTON-ASSAD SUMMIT: DESPITE 'FAILURE,' U.S. IS STILL MIDEAST'S 'SAFETY VALVE' Issue Focus - Foreign Media Reaction 27 March 2000 -- Middle Eastern and European commentators regretted the "failure" of the summit meeting between President Clinton and Syrian President Assad in Geneva yesterday. Nevertheless, most judged that region-wide "peace is near," not because of altruism or war weariness, but because "Syria is alone" in its opposition to Israel.
U-S AMBASSADOR - EAST TIMOR Voice of America 26 March 2000 -- United States Ambassador to Indonesia, Robert Gelbard, says the Indonesian military should roundup and physically remove the leaders of pro-Jakarta militia groups from East and West Timor as a way to put an end to continued intimidation and attacks by the militia groups.
CLINTON-SYRIA Voice of America 26 March 2000 -- President Clinton and his Syrian counterpart have opened a meeting in Geneva on prospects for re-starting Israeli-Syrian peace talks.
SRI LANKA OFFICERS Voice of America 26 March 2000 -- The Sri Lankan government has prematurely retired seven senior army officers after a military court found them responsible for last year's failures in battles against the Tamil Tiger rebels.
LIBYA/US Voice of America 25 March 2000 -- U-S State Department officials plan to arrive in Libya today (Saturday) to assess whether the country is a safe place for Americans to visit or work.
NORTHERN IRELAND/UNIONISTS Voice of America 25 March 2000 -- In Northern Ireland, the council of the Ulster Unionist party -- which advocates continued union with Britain -- has voted to keep David Trimble as its leader, but only by a small margin.
Text: U.S. Condemns Military Offensives in DROC 24 March 2000 -- The United States "condemns" the reported military offensives launched in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DROC) by the RCD-Goma rebel group and Rwandan forces, and in the Katanga province by Congolese government troops, and calls on these parties to "halt these operations immediately."
Text: Rubin on International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) 24 March 2000 -- "It is the role of the ICTR, not the United States, to adjudicate the guilt or innocence of Elizaphan Ntakirutimana" -- who is in detention in Arusha, Tanzania.
LEBANON / SYRIA Voice of America 24 March 2000 -- The 1989 accord that put an end to the Lebanese civil war called for a gradual redeployment and withdrawal of Syrian troops, but most never departed.
NORTHERN IRELAND SHOWDOWN Voice of America 24 March 2000 -- In Northern Ireland, the leader of the party that favors continued ties with Britain faces a challenge to his leadership, which could undermine efforts to get the peace process back on track.
ERITREA / U-S FOOD AID Voice of America 24 March 2000 -- The United States has pledged 20-million dollars worth of food aid for Eritrea, the first U-S donation since war broke out between Ethiopia and Eritrea in 1998, despite the nearly one half-million people displaced in Eritrea by the conflict.
COLOMBIA-VIOLENCE, PT II Voice of America 24 March 2000 -- Colombia is considered one of the most dangerous places in the world for journalists to work. Colombia's ongoing violence affects people of all walks of life.
BURUNDI REFUGEES Voice of America 24 March 2000 -- The United Nations Refugee Agency, U-N-H- C-R, says the government of Burundi has mined its border with Tanzania, thus preventing refugees from fleeing the fighting between government and rebel forces.
YUGOSLAV WAR CRIMES Voice of America 24 March 2000 -- Judges at the U-N War Crimes Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia have added four-and-a-half years to the sentence of a commander in the Bosnian Croat armyconvicted of mistreating Muslim prisoners under his care in 1993.
INDONESIA - ACEH Voice of America 24 March 2000 -- Legislators in Indonesia are proposing the province of Aceh - where indpendence sentiment is strong -- be given a new name, and far-reaching autonomy.
U.S. Presses for Change in U.N. Peacekeeping Assessments By Judy Aita Washington File 24 March 2000 -- Warning that the United Nations faces "a coming train wreck over the peacekeeping budget," U.S. Ambassador Richard Holbrooke said March 23 that the UN member states must restructure the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) and the system of financing peacekeeping operations.
Transcript: Holbrooke Calls for Reform of UN Peacekeeping Funding 23 March 2000 -- The United Nations faces "a coming train wreck over the peacekeeping budget," in which the Security Council may vote for peacekeeping, but the UN will be unable to fund it, according to U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Richard Holbrooke
Text: Ambassador Nancy Soderberg's Remarks to the UN Security Council 23 March 2000 -- The disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of ex-combatants into civil society is an essential element of peace agreements, says U.S. Ambassador Nancy Soderberg.
CLINTON-ASSAD SUMMIT 'AN OPPORTUNITY NOT TO BE MISSED' Issue Focus - Foreign Media Reaction 23 March 2000 -- Sunday's summit meeting between President Clinton and Syrian President Hafez al-Assad in Geneva has raised "worldwide expectations" that peace talks between Israel and Syria may resume soon.
SECRETARY-GENERAL'S STATEMENT TO SECURITY COUNCIL ON ROLE OF UN PEACEKEEPING IN DISARMAMENT, DEMOBILIZATION AND REINTEGRATION Press Release SG/SM/7337 SC/6831 - 23 March 2000 -- If peacekeeping operations are to support disarmament, demobilization and reintegration processes efficiently, it is essential that provisions for disarmament, demobilization and reintegration be integrated into any peace agreement that is reached.
SECURITY COUNCIL STRESSES SUCCESS OF DISARMAMENT, DEMOBILIZATION AND REINTEGRATION; REQUIRES POLITICAL COMMITMENT OF PARTIES Press Release SC/6832/Rev.1* - 23 March 2000 -- Security Council stressed that the success of the process required, as a precondition, the political commitment of the parties involved.
DISARMAMENT, DEMOBILIZATION AND REINTEGRATION AT HEART OF PEACEKEEPING EFFORTS, SECRETARY-GENERAL TELLS SECURITY COUNCIL Press Release SC/6830 - 23 March 2000 -- Secretary-General Kofi Annan told the Security Council today that the process of disarmament, demobilization and reintegration was at the heart of peacekeeping efforts, not only in bringing stability to conflict areas, but in addressing their root causes.
RWANDA PRESIDENT Voice of America 23 March 2000 -- The president of Rwanda has resigned (Thursday) following a power struggle with the country's military.
COLOMBIA-VIOLENCE PT I Voice of America 23 March 2000 -- Continuing violence in Colombia is increasingly eroding free speech in the South American nation, as murders of journalists, academics and others mount.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY - aide to the RF Acting President -- 23 March 2000 -- The law enforcement ministries say the situation in Chechnya remains rather complicated, although hostilities have virtually stopped, and there have been no direct clashes, with the exception of shoot-outs outside Komsomolskoye and the limited actions of frontline aviation undertaken to liquidate small bandit groups.
ON MIGRATION SITUATION IN THE REPUBLIC OF INGUSHETIA SERGEI V. KHETAGUROV - Head of the Federal Migration Service -- 23 March 2000 -- I would like to start with the statement made recently by President of the Ingush Republic Aushev. He asserted that there are 211,000 refugees from Grozny on the territory of Ingushetia and federal authorities have stopped supplying them with bread and hot meals.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY - aide to the RF Acting President -- 22 March 2000 -- The operational situation in the republic remains very complicated and hardly changed in the past 24 hours. Fourteen fighters were killed and six surrendered yesterday and last night during an attempt to break out of Komsomolskoye.
ISRAEL / SYRIA Voice of America 22 March 2000 -- The Israeli Minister said this might not be the last chance to negotiate an agreement. But, he said it was a very important chance. He noted the next six months would be crucial.
U-S - LIBYA Voice of America 22 March 2000 -- A delegation of U-S officials is heading to Libya this week to determine if a U-S travel ban should remain in place.
CAMBODIA / U-N Voice of America 22 March 2000 -- A team of United Nations negotiators left Cambodia empty-handed, Wednesday, after failure of talks on setting up a tribunal for leaders of the bloody Khmer Rouge regime of the 1970's.
U-N-CONGO WARNING Voice of America 22 March 2000 -- The U-N Security Council is warning that increased fighting in Congo-Kinshasa threatens the deployment of a 55-hundred member international observer force.
COLOMBIA WAR Voice of America 22 March 2000 -- Colombia's guerrilla conflict directly affected millions of Colombians Tuesday when they were left without electricity following a series of rebel attacks against the power system.
BOSNIA BRIEFING Voice of America 22 March 2000 -- The United Nations Security Council heard today (Wednesday) that progress is being made in building a multi-ethnic society in Bosnia, but the progress is slow.
AFRICA: TWO YEARS AFTER CLINTON'S VISIT-PART-II Voice of America 22 March 2000 -- Ethiopia and Eritrea are of course at war with each other. Uganda is deeply involved in the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo. So they have disappointed the Clinton Administration.
AFRICA: TWO YEARS AFTER CLINTON'S VISIT PART-I Voice of America 22 March 2000 -- Professor Mazrui says Africa lacks a strong constituency in the United States -- a view shared by many Africans. He calls for a formation of a large pro-Africa constituency that can put pressure on Congress, adding that U-S lawmakers respond to the wider public.
U.N. Warns That DRC Peacekeeping Deployment Is Jeopardized By Judy Aita Washington File 22 March 2000 -- The Security Council and U.N. peacekeeping officials March 22 warned the parties involved in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) that if the unrest there continues it could threaten the long-awaited deployment of U.N. peacekeepers.
U.S. Calls on Indonesian Military to End Support for Timor Militias By Judy Aita Washington File 21 March 2000 -- U.S. Ambassador Nancy Soderberg called on the Indonesian Government to ensure an end to all militia activity along East Timor's border by disarming and disbanding militia groups that have been attacking both UN personnel and East Timor civilians.
Text: OSCE Human Rights Director Leads Chechnya Visit 21 March 2000 -- Ambassador Gérard Stoudmann, Director of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR), led a delegation to Chechnya March 20 to assess the preparations in Chechnya for the Russian Federation presidential election.
SECURITY COUNCIL BRIEFED ON SITUATION IN EAST TIMOR BY ASSISTANT SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR PEACEKEEPING Press Release SC/6826 - 21 March 2000 -- The "social peace" of East Timor had been threatened by the prevailing economic and social conditions in that country.
U-N - EAST TIMOR Voice of America 21 March 2000 -- In East Timor - which gained its independence from Indonesia last year - the main problems are unemployment, crime, and the continued activity of armed militia groups.
TURKEY / KURDS Voice of America 21 March 2000 -- Tens of thousands of Kurds in Turkey have gathered around bonfires, singing Kurdish songs to celebrate their New Year, called Newroz [pron: nev-`ROOZ]. Turkey's government has officially permitted the festivities for the first time in years.
NORTHERN IRELAND Voice of America 21 March 2000 -- Northern Ireland's peace process can make or break business prospects for its population of one-and-one-half million.
CROATIA / WAR CRIMES Voice of America 21 March 2000 -- A former Bosnian Croat paramilitary leader has been flown to the U-N war crimes tribunal where he is wanted on charges of leading an ethnic cleansing campaign against Muslims in the southern Bosnian city of Mostar.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 21 March 2000 -- Russia's military says it is carrying out a mopping-up operation in the southern Chechen village of Komsomolskoye.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY - aide to the RF Acting President -- 21 March 2000 -- The operational information is still concerned with Komsomolskoye. As of now, some 600 bandits have been liquidated there. I think this figure will grow, because not all cellars have been checked in the settlement.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY - aide to the RF Acting President -- 20 March 2000 -- Acting president Vladimir Putin arrived in Grozny's Severny Airport at 1:15 p.m. Moscow time today. He came on a Su-27 fighter, in the co-pilot's seat. He will attend several conferences there, as well as the ceremony of the withdrawal of a paratrooper regiment of the 98th Kostroma Division to its permanent deployment site in Kostroma.
RUSSIA / PUTIN Voice of America 20 March 2000 -- Acting Russian President Vladimir Putin has flown to Chechnya in a fighter jet to show support for federal troops just days before presidential elections.
Preparatory Commission For International Criminal Court Hears Statement By Former Yugoslavia Tribunal Judge, UN Press Release, 20 March 2000 -- As the Preparatory Commission for the International Criminal Court continued its work on formulating the rules and guidelines necessary for the eventual functioning of the Court, a judge from the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia described the Tribunal's practice and experience in some unresolved areas still under discussion within the Commission.
YUGOSLAV WAR CRIMES Voice of America 20 March 2000 -- War crimes prosecutors opened their case against three Bosnian Serbs charged with rape, torture and enslavement of Muslim women in 1992.
AFGHANISTAN-U-N Voice of America 20 March 2000 -- The United Nations special envoy to Afghanistan, Francesc (fran-sesk) Vendrell, says there are signs that a major military offensive may be impending in that country.
CAMBODIA - KILLING FIELD Voice of America 19 March 2000 -- A high-ranking United Nations official delivered a ringing endorsement of the trend toward international justice Sunday in a visit to a 20-year-old "killing field" in Cambodia.
WAR CRIMES TRIAL Voice of America 18 March 2000 -- The Yugoslav War Crimes Tribunal opens a major trial on Monday of three Bosnian Serbs charged with the rape, torture or enslavement of Muslim women in the southeastern Bosnian town of Foca eight years ago.
SUDAN OPPOSITION Voice of America 17 March 2000 -- The crisis in the Sudanese opposition alliance began last May, when leaders of Umma held private talks with the then-speaker of Sudan's parliament, Hasan al Turabi. Umma again broke ranks in November and held talks with Sudanese President Omar el Bashir.
MEXICO GUERRILLAS Voice of America 17 March 2000 -- A small leftist group in Mexico has claimed responsibility for an attempted mortar attack against federal police Wednesday that injured two children.
ISRAEL / LEBANON Voice of America 17 March 2000 -- The Israeli Army has reportedly presented Prime Minister Ehud Barak with its plans to withdraw from southern Lebanon by July of this year.
CAMBODIA / KHMER ROUGE Voice of America 17 March 2000 -- U-N and Cambodian negotiators have reported progress (Friday) in their opening round of talks on setting up a special court to try leaders of the brutal Khmer Rouge regime of the 1970s.
RUSSIA POLITICS Voice of America 17 March 2000 -- Acting President Putin got a thinly-veiled endorsement Friday from Russia's top commander in Chechnya, Major General Gennady Troshev.
PRESS CONFERENCE BY MISSION OF RWANDA 17 March 2000 -- Allegations of Rwandan collaboration with the rebel National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA) were merely hearsay generated by those interested in distorting the facts for their own reasons, Rwanda's Permanent Representative to the United Nations said.
SAF / ANGOLA Voice of America 17 March 2000 -- One of the mysteries in this week's controversial United Nations report on Angola sanctions violations involves a visit to South Africa last year by a top leader of the UNITA rebel movement.
RWANDA-UNITA SANCTIONS Voice of America 17 March 2000 -- Rwanda's ambassador to the United Nations today (Friday) categorically denied allegations that his government has been violating U-N sanctions against UNITA.
SUDAN / OPPOSITION Voice of America 16 March 2000 -- The Sudanese opposition umbrella group, the National Democratic Alliance, is facing a serious crisis, with one of its most important members on the verge of being ousted.
CAMBODIA / KHMER ROUGE Voice of America 16 March 2000 -- A top-level United Nations team arrived in Cambodia Thursday for make-or-break talks on U-N participation in genocide trials for former Khmer Rouge leaders.
ANGOLA / SAF Voice of America 16 March 2000 -- The South African government has denied selling weapons or supplies to Angola's UNITA rebel movement. South African officials say they are not defying international sanctions.
Honduras, Nicaragua Sign Pact to Avoid War Over Maritime Dispute By Eric Green Washington File 16 March 2000 -- Following their fourth round of talks concerning a maritime dispute, Honduras and Nicaragua have signed a memorandum of understanding that will "practically eliminate the possibility of any type of military confrontation between the two countries."
Text: U.S. Statement on Angola Sanctions Report 15 March 2000 -- A new U.N. report on Angola sanctions busting demonstrates that the Security Council should undertake new measures to strengthen the sanctions, U.S. Ambassador James Cunningham said.
U.N. Panel Reports on Angolan Sanctions Busters By Judy Aita Washington File 15 March 2000 -- Reporting on the efforts of UNITA rebels to buy weapons to wage war against the Angolan government, U.N. investigators named the former Zaire, Burkina Faso, Congo-Brazzaville, Rwanda, and Togo as sanctions busters.
ISRAEL / LEBANON Voice of America 15 March 2000 -- Israeli warplanes have attacked suspected guerrilla positions in southern Lebanon after rockets and mortars were fired at Israeli military outposts.
SRI LANKAN PRESIDENT Voice of America 15 March 2000 -- Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga says her government will go ahead with peace talks with the Tamil Tiger rebels, despite last week's bombing, which killed at east 30 people and wounded more than 60 others.
UNICEF / CONGO-KINSHASA Voice of America 15 March 2000 -- The United Nations says the civil war in Congo-Kinshasa is taking a heavy toll on the health and well being of the country's women and children.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 15 March 2000 -- Russia has banned journalists from broadcasting interviews with senior Chechen rebel leaders, including President Aslan Maskhadov.
U-N ANGOLA SANCTIONS DEBATE Voice of America 15 March 2000 -- The report was remarkable in that it named nations and heads of state who allegedly violated U-N sanctions against UNITA, which has been fighting a guerilla war in Angola for more than 20 years.
CHAIRMAN OF SECURITY COUNCIL'S ANGOLA SANCTIONS COMMITTEEE BRIEFS COUNCIL ON EXPERT PANEL REPORT INVESTIGATING SANCTIONS VIOLATIONS Press Release SC/6825 - 15 March 2000 -- Unless continued vigilance focused the world's attention on sanctions violations, the leader of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), Jonas Savimbi, would soon find willing, cut-rate suppliers who would "re-emerge from under the rocks once the spotlight shifted elsewhere", the Security Council was told today.
PRESS CONFERENCE ON EXPERT PANEL REPORT ON SANCTIONS AGAINST UNITA 15 March 2000 - Not one of the report's 39 recommendations was unreasonable. Some were clearly more ambitious and more demanding of the Security Council than others, but all were within the realm of the possible.
PRESS BRIEFING BY HEAD OF STANDBY ARRANGEMENTS UNIT 14 March 2000 - The United Nations Standby Arrangements system was a valuable step towards establishing a rapid deployment capacity for the Organization.
HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE CONCLUDES CONSIDERATION OF SECOND PERIODIC REPORT OF REPUBLIC OF CONGO Press Release HR/CT/547 - 14 March 2000 -- Basil Ikouebe, the Permanent Representative of the Republic of the Congo, said certain questions had to be asked, such as: should elections be organized over the dead bodies of combatants? The other alternative was to engage in "democratic window dressing"...
Under Secretary of State Lieberman on Babitsky The Washington Times 14 March 2000 -- The reported detention, abuse and "prisoner exchange" of Radio Liberty journalist Andrei Babitsky by Russian military authorities has raised questions about Russia's commitment to freedom of the press.
TIMOR / REFUGEES Voice of America 14 March 2000 -- The United Nations says some anti-independence East Timorese refugees have asked for help to return home from camps in West Timor.
SHARIA LAW / PENALTIES Voice of America 14 March 2000 -- Many in Nigeria remain fearful of Islamic law, or Sharia. They reject the punishments it prescribes for serious crimes - flogging or the amputation of limbs or flogging. Many human rights activist agree, calling such punishments "cruel and unusual." But others say these kinds of punishments are not necessarily part of Sharia.
ISRAEL / LEBANON Voice of America 14 March 2000 -- Israeli warplanes have bombed suspected guerrilla bases in southern Lebanon following a series of attacks on Israeli and allied militia posts.
CONGO FIGHTING Voice of America 14 March 2000 -- Warring parties in Congo-Kinshasa are reporting fighting in the east of the country. Rebel officials say they have inflicted heavy casualties on Congo government troops and their allies.
U-N ANGOLA SANCTIONS PREVIEW Voice of America 14 March 2000 -- A contentious session of the United Nations Security Council is expected Wednesday, when the Council formally receives a report on sanctions against UNITA, the rebel group in Angola.
ANGOLA / SANCTIONS Voice of America 14 March 2000 -- South Africa's Foreign Minister is vowing firm action against South Africans involved in violating international sanctions against Angola's UNITA rebel movement.
INDONESIA / ACEH Voice of America 14 March 2000 -- The Director General of the International Committee of the Red Cross Paul Grossrieder says the problems in Aceh have reached a critical stage. Red Cross officials say murder and torture in the province are common.
U-N-SIERRA LEONE Voice of America 13 March 2000 -- Sierra Leone's rebel leader Foday Sankoh came under heavy criticism Monday at a meeting of the United Nations Security Council.
NIGERIA / KADUNA Voice of America 13 March 2000 -- Three weeks after sectarian violence in the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna that killed hundreds of people, thousands of ethnic Ibo Christians remain camped in the city's main police barracks, unwilling or unable to return to their homes.
ISRAEL / LEBANON Voice of America 13 March 2000 -- Israeli warplanes have raided suspected guerrilla targets in southern Lebanon and pounded the bases of radical Palestinian groups near the Syrian border.
SECURITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE CONCERNING SIERRA LEONE DISCUSSES BREACH OF SANCTIONS REGIME Press Release SC/6822 - 13 March 2000
SECURITY COUNCIL STRESSES NEED FOR DISARMAMENT, DEMOBILIZATION AND REINTEGRATION OF EX-COMBATANTS IN SIERRA LEONE Press Release SC/6821 - 13 March 2000 -- The Security Council was told today that the main steps to be taken in Sierra Leone should include the early disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of all ex-combatants; the extension of State authority throughout the country; national reconciliation and democratization; and improvement of the country's capacity to ensure its own security.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY 13.03.2000 -- For actually about a week, there have been two centres of resistance there - the settlement of Komsomolskoye (we'll talk about it later) and the area of Urus-Kert and Selmentauzen. The resistance in the second area has been virtually suppressed, and the region has been mopped up. But a medium-large group of some 40-50 fighters was detected 15 km outside Selmentauzen to the south, which is being liquidated now. As for Komsomolskoye, the battle is still raging there.
RUSSIA / COUNCIL OF EUROPE Voice of America 13 March 2000 -- The Council of Europe has accused Russian troops and Chechen rebels of war crimes and has condemned Russia's destruction of the Chechen capital, Grozny.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA CAPTURE Voice of America 13 March 2000 -- Russian special forces have captured prominent Chechen rebel commander Salman Raduyev and brought him to Moscow to face terrorism charges.
YUGOSLAV WAR CRIMES Voice of America 13 March 2000 -- Prosecutors at the Yugoslav war crimes tribunal in The Hague have started laying out their case against a Bosnian Serb general charged with genocide.
NIGERIA/VIOLENCE Voice of America 12 March 2000 -- After two outbreaks of sectarian violence, Nigerians are examining how a debate over the introduction of Islamic law in some states turned into a national crisis.
SRI LANKA SUSPECTS Voice of America 12 March 2000 -- Six persons have been detained by the Sri Lankan police in connection with Friday's bomb blast in Colombo.
LEBANON/ARAB LEAGUE Voice of America 11 March 2000 -- One Arab foreign minister after another leveled criticism against Israel for attacking Lebanese territory. Israeli planes destroyed several electric power substations in Beirut last month, leaving the capital's power grid in shambles.
LANKA BLAST UPDATE Voice of America 11 March 2000 -- Sri Lankan security forces in Colombo have clashed with Tamil rebels blamed for a suicide bombing and shootout on Friday that left at least 21 people dead and more than 60 wounded.
RUSSIA - CHECHNYA Voice of America 11 March 2000 -- Russian military commanders say their forces have defeated Chechen rebels deep in the Caucasus Mountains where fighting has been underway for weeks.
ANGOLA - U-N SANCTIONS Voice of America 11 March 2000 -- A new U-N Security Council report accuses the leaders of several African nations of violating United Nations sanctions against the Angolan rebel group, UNITA.
YUGOSLAV WAR CRIMES TRIAL Voice of America 10 March 2000 -- Bosnian Serb General Radislav Krstic is charged with genocide for commanding the execution of thousands of Muslims after the fall of the United Nations-declared safe area of Srebrenica in 1995.
TIMOR REFUGEES Voice of America 10 March 2000 -- The United Nations Refugee Agency, U-N-H-C-R, says it is concerned about Indonesia's plans to cut off aid to East Timorese refugees in West Timor by the end of the month.
INDONESIA MILITIA CRACKDOWN Voice of America 10 March 2000 -- Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid says the government is going to crack down on armed militia groups in West Timor.
LANKA / BLAST Voice of America 10 March 2000 -- At least 19 persons have been killed and 45 injured in a bomb blast in the capital of Sri Lanka, Colombo.
CONGO REFUGEES Voice of America 10 March 2000 -- The United Nations Refugee Agency, U-N-H-C-R, says refugees from Congo-Kinshasa continue to flee across the river to neighboring Congo-Brazzaville to escape fighting between government soldiers and rebels.
REPORT OF THE PANEL OF EXPERTS ON VIOLATIONS OF SECURITY COUNCIL SANCTIONS AGAINST UNITA S/2000/203 10 March 2000 -- Despite the imposition of these various sanctions by the Security Council, it has been clear to all concerned that the sanctions were not working effectively. UNITA was still able to procure what it needed for its war machine, and sell its diamonds. UNITA officials still traveled with little restriction, and UNITA continued to be active in international capitals through "unofficial" offices and representatives.
RUSSIA / BABITSKY Voice of America 10 March 2000 -- Russian prosecutor-general's office is bringing criminal charges against Radio Liberty reporter Andrei Babitsky, contending he aided Chechen rebels.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 10 March 2000 -- Russia's acting president, Vladimir Putin, suggests Moscow may introduce direct presidential rule in the breakaway republic of Chechnya.
ISRAEL - LEBANON PULLOUT Voice of America 09 March 2000 -- Israel has maintained the zone for 18 years, to head off rocket and other attacks into Northern Israel, by the radical Islamic terrorist group Hezbollah.
COLOMBIA-VENEZUELA-DISPUTE Voice of America 09 March 2000 -- Colombia has sharply criticized Venezuela for revealing its plans to hold secret talks in Caracas with a representative of a Colombian rebel group.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 09 March 2000 -- Russia's military says it is trying to block rebels from infiltrating into the Russian-occupied lowlands of Chechnya.
CAMBODIA / U-S Voice of America 09 March 2000 -- The United States has been quietly lobbying Cambodia and the United Nations to reach agreement on jointly running trials for atrocities that took place under the Khmer Rouge regime of the 1970s.
ALBRIGHT REFUGEES Voice of America 09 March 2000 -- Croatia and the Bosnian Serbs have signed a declaration that would allow thousands of war-time refugees to return home.
AFRICA / LOBBYING Voice of America 09 March 2000 -- The countries of Africa could advance their interests even further if they became more adept at influencing, or lobbying, U-S policymakers.
U.N. Security Council Discusses Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Assistance By Judy Aita Washington File 09 March 2000 United Nations -- The relationship between peacekeeping and providing humanitarian assistance to war-affected civilians was the topic of a day-long debate in the Security Council March 9.
INDONESIA - MALAYSIA Voice of America 09 March 2000 -- says Malaysia has already begun to play the role of a mediator between the Indonesian government and separatists from the northern province of Aceh.
U-N SIERRA LEONE Voice of America 08 March 2000 -- A senior United Nations official said that serious human rights abuses continue in Sierra Leone, despite the presence of U-N peacekeeping troops in that West African nation.
Text: U.S. Calls on Ethiopia and Eritrea to Keep Working for Peace 08 March 2000 -- The United States calls upon the governments of Eritrea and Ethiopia to remain "fully engaged" in the Organization of African Unity peace process, and extends its "unqualified support" to the continuing efforts of the OAU
NIGERIA / SOKOTO Voice of America 08 March 2000 -- Calm has returned to the northern Nigerian city of Sokoto, after a student demonstration in favor of Islamic Sharia law on Tuesday turned violent.
LEBANON / ISRAEL Voice of America 08 March 2000 -- Lebanon's president, Emile Lahoud, warned Israel to expect difficulties if it withdraws from southern Lebanon without a peace accord.
COLOMBIA DRUGS Voice of America 08 March 2000 -- Located in Colombia's Amazon region, far from government control, Putumayo produces close to a quarter of the world's cocaine.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 08 March 2000 -- Russian aircraft and artillery are attacking the village of Komsomolskoye, trying to flush out hundreds of fighters there.
Clear on Chechnya U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright Washington Post 08 March 2000 -- On no other issue has it been more important for us to be clear than on the war in Chechnya. We respect Russia's territorial integrity, and we don't question its duty to combat terrorism on its own soil. But where Russian actions have called for criticism, we have not minced words.
ALBRIGHT / BOSNIA Voice of America 08 March 2000 -- Secretary of State Albright says next month's municipal elections in Bosnia can be a key step toward the goal of a multi-ethnic society.
EIJ AFFILIATES IN LONDON CONDEMN EGYPTIAN EXECUTIONS AND CEASEFIRE Wednesday, March 08, 2000 -- Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) statements condemn on human rights grounds the Egyptian government's execution of two convicted jihad terrorists in February.
POLL REVEALS RISING FEAR OF CRIME Tuesday, March 07, 2000 -- Reuters reported that a poll conducted in Colombia revealed that almost three-quarters of Colombians are frightened to go out at night and most avoid talking to strangers because of a rising wave of violent crime.
SUDAN / U-S Voice of America 07 March 2000 -- In Sudan, hundreds of students from the war-ravaged south have demonstrated in Khartoum, demanding greater autonomy for southern Sudan.
U-N PEACEKEEPING STUDY Voice of America 07 March 2000 -- United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan today (Tuesday) appointed a special study group which will examine ways to make U-N peacekeeping operations more effective.
NIGERIA TENSION Voice of America 07 March 2000 -- Ethnic and religious tensions are easing somewhat in southeastern Nigeria -- one week after hundreds of people died in sectarian violence there.
NIGERIA / SHARIA Voice of America 07 March 2000 -- As sectarian violence continues to claim lives in Nigeria, the governor of Zamfara state is calling for a truce in the debate over Islamic Sharia law.
ISRAEL'S LEBANON PULLOUT Voice of America 07 March 2000 -- For the past 18 years, Israel and its Lebanese Christian militia allies have occupied a strip of southern Lebanon about 14-and-one-half kilometers deep, to protect against guerilla attacks.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY 07.03.2000 -- The Chechen situation hasn't changed greatly since March 6. The main combat operations were still conducted in the vicinity of Komsomolskoye village. A battle still rages there, with the federals mopping up and destroying guerrilla dug-outs and pill-boxes. Paramilitary squads were spotted near Selmentauzen and in the vicinity of Ulus-Kert and Vedeno, where the fighting also continues.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 07 March 2000 -- Russian warplanes and artillery are bombarding hundreds of rebels who captured a strategic Russian-controlled settlement 25 kilometers south of the Chechen capital, Grozny.
INDONESIA / ACEH / RIGHTS Voice of America 07 March 2000 -- Amnesty International says the Indonesian military is forcing Indonesian human rights investigators to go into hiding in the northern province of Aceh.
ISRAEL / LEBANON Voice of America 06 March 2000 -- Israeli warplanes have bombed guerrilla positions in south Lebanon one day after the Israeli cabinet voted to pull its soldiers out of Lebanon by July.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 06 March 2000 -- A Chechen rebel unit has reportedly surrendered to Russian troops as both sides battle for control of Chechnya's southern mountains.
ON THE SITUATION IN THE NORTH CAUCASUS SERGEI V. YASTRZHEMBSKY 06.03.2000 -- The main events are taking place in the Argun Gorge, and the situation there has not changed since last Thursday in terms of the site of the main battles. Consequently, all Saturday and Sunday reports about the encirclement and liquidation of a large group of paratroopers surprised us. Several interesting radio intercepts, as well as the testimony of captured fighters, show that the fighters are still planning subversion terrorist acts and attacks on commandants' offices.
YUGOSLAVIA / WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL Voice of America 06 March 2000 -- A Bosnian Serb man detained Sunday by British peacekeeping forces in Bosnia is in the Netherlands for trial by the Yugoslav war crimes Tribunal.
ANGOLAN REFUGEES Voice of America 06 March 2000 -- Twenty-thousand Angolan refugees are being relocated from a flood-threatened region in Zambia by the Geneva-based International Organization for Migration.
Honduras, Nicaragua Seek to Resolve Maritime Dispute By Eric Green Washington File 06 March 2000 -- The foreign ministers of Honduras and Nicaragua are holding a fourth round of talks March 6-7 aimed at reducing tensions arising from a maritime dispute between the two countries.
NIGERIA GOVERNOR Voice of America 05 March 2000 -- In southeastern Nigeria, the governor of Abia state is warning that sectarian and ethnic violence could resume if members of the Ibo ethnic group are attacked again in the northern part of the country.
ISRAEL/LEBANON Voice of America 05 March 2000 -- The Israeli Cabinet has voted unanimously to withdraw its forces from south Lebanon by July, but says it wants to carry out the redeployment within the framework of a peace agreement.
RUSSIA/CHECHNYA Voice of America 05 March 2000 -- Russian troops are battling Chechen fighters near villages south of Grozny, the capital of the war- torn Chechen republic. Fierce clashes erupted when about 70 Chechens moved out of the Caucasus Mountains into the lowland areas.
SUDAN/U-S Voice of America 04 March 2000 -- U-S special envoy Harry Johnston arrived in Sudan saying his mandate includes issues of particular concern to the U-S government - namely, the war with southern Sudanese rebels, humanitarian aid to those displaced by the war and human rights.
RUSSIA-AMBUSH Voice of America 04 March 2000 -- The heaviest clashes are reported near the village of Ulus-Kert, which lies just outside the gorge. Earlier on Saturday, there were reports that 70 Russian paratroopers had been killed in a rebel ambush in the area -- a claim that Kremlin and military officials deny.
EAST TIMOR CLASHES Voice of America 03 March 2000 -- United Nations peacekeepers in East Timor have come under attack from armed militia groups four times in the past two days.
Transcript: Under Secretary Thomas Pickering in Jakarta 03 March 2000 -- "The United States strongly supports Indonesia's efforts at political and economic reform," and "supports Indonesia's territorial integrity," Under Secretary of State Thomas Pickering said. "It is not in favor of dividing up Indonesia."
NIGERIA / SHARIA Voice of America 03 March 2000 -- Islamic law - or Sharia - has been suspended in several northern states of Nigeria after days of violent protests against the law that resulted in many deaths.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 03 March 2000 -- Russia's military confirms that Chechen rebels ambushed and killed 37 Russian troops and seriously injured 29 on the outskirts of the Chechen capital, Grozny.
UNHCR / CHECHNYA Voice of America 03 March 2000 -- The United Nations Refugee Agency, U-N-H-C-R, says thousands of people in the Chechen capital, Grozny are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.
CAMBODIA - VIETNAM Voice of America 03 March 2000 -- Vietnam's new foreign minister arrived in Cambodia Friday for high-level talks with Prime Minister Hun Sen. The talks failed to resolve a long-running and bitter border dispute.
YUGOSLAV WAR CRIMES Voice of America 03 March 2000 -- Judges at the Yugoslav war crimes tribunal have issued their harshest sentence to date: 45 years in prison for a Croatian general who planned and ordered the ethnic cleansing of Muslims from central Bosnia in 1993.
ISRAEL CLASH Voice of America 02 March 2000 -- Israeli police say at least two Palestinians belonging to the Hamas guerrilla group were killed in exchange of gunfire and a series of explosions in an Arab town in the northern part of the country.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 02 March 2000 -- Chechen President Aslan Maskhadov is calling for immediate negotiations with Moscow on ending the war in his breakaway republic, but says his forces are prepared to fight Russian troops indefinitely.
AFGHAN FIGHTING Voice of America 02 March 2000 -- Reports say fighting between Afghanistan's Taleban movement and opposition forces has continued for the second straight day north of the capital, Kabul.
NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION STAFF EVACUATED FROM SOUTHERN SUDAN Press Release IHA/697 - 2 March 2000 -- The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) today confirmed on behalf of Operation Lifeline Sudan the evacuation of 149 staff members of non-governmental organizations working under the umbrella of Operation Lifeline Sudan (OLS).
SUDAN REBEL AID Voice of America 01 March 2000 -- The international aid effort to Sudan is in crisis (Wednesday) as the deadline passes for relief officials to agree to new rebel demands.
NIGERIA / OBASANJO Voice of America 01 March 2000 -- Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo has called for restraint and dialogue between Christians and Muslims.
NIGERIA VIOLENCE Voice of America 01 March 2000 -- In southeastern Nigeria, the death toll from this week's sectarian violence has climbed over 400. Most of the victims are reported to be Muslims from the Hausa ethnic group.
INDONESIA / WAHID Voice of America 01 March 2000 -- After four months in office, Indonesia's President Abdurrahman Wahid has earned a reputation for dropping bomb-shell policy statements that he retracts or amends in a matter of days.
RUSSIA / CHECHNYA Voice of America 01 March 2000 -- Russian police are preparing to take over the lead role in the conflict in Chechnya from the army, following the capture of the last rebel stronghold.
RUSSIA / BABITSKY Voice of America 01 March 2000 -- Lawyers representing Radio Liberty news reporter Andrei Babitsky say he requires hospitalization following his mistreatment by Russian authorities in Chechnya.
BRITAIN/AFGHAN REFUGEES Voice of America 01 March 2000 -- Britain's home ecretary, Jack Straw, has decided to grant refugee status to only eight of the 170 Afghan nationals who arrived in London last month aboard a hijacked Afghan airliner.
AFGHAN FIGHING Voice of America 01 March 2000 -- Reports say fresh hostilities have broken out in Afghanistan, where forces of the ruling Taleban movement and the opposition alliance are locked in heavy fighting north of the capital, Kabul.
RUSSIA: 'WAR CRIMES' ALLEGATIONS DISPUTED BY RUSSIAN MEDIA; OTHERS 'HORRIFIED' March 1, 2000 -- As Russia declared an end to its full-scale offensive in Chechnya, overseas media remained focused on events in the restive republic. In copious comment, analysts outside of Russia reacted with alarm to allegations, leveled by some human rights groups, of "atrocities" and "war crimes" committed by Russian troops against Chechens. Coinciding with reports of abuse in military "filtration" camps and Moscow's restriction of outside access to the war zone, a German television station's release of a videotape purportedly showing a mass grave of Chechen fighters drew sharply different reactions from commentators in Russia, on the one hand, and those elsewhere.

NEWSLETTER

Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list

Military

Further Reading

March 2000 Military News