Ethnic Albanian rebels have begun handing in weapons to NATO troops in Macedonia in line with a controversial peace plan, a National Liberation Army commander said today.
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"We have started disarming", Commander Shpati told
Reuters
from the region around Kumanovo where NATO has set up its first of a series of collection points.
About 4,500 NATO troops are expected in the tiny Balkan state on a 30-day deployment to gather 3,300 weapons from the NLA, which fought Macedonian government forces for six months before agreeing a ceasefire.
The NLA is yielding weapons and ammunition in return for greater civil rights for the Albanian minority population. The Macedonian parliament begins debating constitutional changes later this week.
The operation is moving ahead the death of a British soldier, who was killed by a piece of concrete thrown through the windshield of his vehicle.
"I think it is very sad and tragic and regrettable. We are investigating with police. But life goes on and the operation will continue," a spokesman for NATO representatives in Skopje said.
In a further sign of mounting tensions ahead of Operation Essential Harvest, two devices exploded overnight in the Macedonian capital's old city causing property damage but no injuries.
And at a Macedonian army checkpoint in the north of the country, about 300 protesters blocked the road to prevent the army from withdrawing under the terms of an agreement with NATO, saying they feared a rebel attack.