Kosovo Rebels Reportedly Agree to Free Hostages
Ethnic Albanian rebels have agreed to release all eight Yugoslav soldiers they have been holding hostage since the troops’ convoy strayed into rebel-held territory in Kosovo province five days ago, an international official said Tuesday.
The head of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, Norwegian Foreign Minister Knut Vollebaek, said negotiations with the separatist Kosovo Liberation Army ended successfully.
“We have had positive results,” he said at a news conference. “We have reached an agreement with the KLA on an early release of the detainees.”
He refused to elaborate on details, including when the soldiers would be freed and whether any ethnic Albanian prisoners would be exchanged for them, as the rebels had demanded.
However, an OSCE statement issued later in the day suggested that the releases were planned for today. It said an “important meeting” between international representatives and KLA leaders would be held in the rebel-held village of Glogovac this morning.
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