Rebels in Serbia Zone Giving Up Their Fight

Saying their fight was over, ethnic Albanian rebels in southern Serbia began laying aside their weapons Tuesday for collection by NATO.

The rebels, who number fewer than 1,000 and face a vastly more powerful army, occupy a narrow strip of land separating Kosovo province from the rest of Serbia, the main Yugoslav republic. Their last strongholds are to be taken over Thursday by Yugoslav army troops, moving with NATO backing in a deal to end the insurrection.

But ethnic Albanian rebels in the neighboring country of Macedonia fought Tuesday, exchanging fire with Macedonian troops in the city of Tetovo and the disputed villages of Vaksince and Slupcane.

The International Committee of the Red Cross expressed concern about the fate of about 10,000 civilians who it said were trapped in rebel-held villages targeted by Macedonian troops.

Macedonia’s security council on Tuesday ruled out talking with the militants. “We have enough power to combat this terrorism drama,” said Defense Minister Ljuben Paunovski.

The pact in southern Serbia signed Monday between key guerrilla chiefs and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization commits the insurgents to disband and disarm by month’s end.

A rebel leader who goes by the name of Commander Shpetim handed over his faction’s weapons and formally surrendered Tuesday.

“We respect demilitarization,” said Shpetim, the highest-ranking rebel commander to give up.

But he told a reporter that “we will organize ourselves again to defend our people” if Yugoslavia reverts to the policies of former President Slobodan Milosevic, alluding to the crackdown on ethnic Albanians in Kosovo in 1999.