Germany covers up Croatian murders

Germany Alert, 11 August 1995

SARAJEVO. United Nations officials, Great Britain and France are among the stunned parties to that German-planned, U.S. backed Croatian blitzkrieg that has set off the largest human refugee catastrophe in Europe since World War II.

Croatia used tanks and guns supplied by Germany (most of them from the former East German army) as it shelled refugees trying to flee its troops, most of whom were trained by the German *Bundeswehr*.

In Zagreb, president Franjo Tudjman, a nationalist and anti-Semitic, thanked Chancellor Helmut Kohl and Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel for all their support.

Tudjman had a lot to be thankful for. In addition to inventing Croatia five years ago (as it did under Hitler, the only other time the place was called independent), Germany ran the public relations blitz which accompanied the battle plan.

A contingent from the German interior ministry, two units from Bonn's foreign affairs department and German media specialists believed to be BND espionage agents stage managed a highly successful effort to minimized negative Croatian press.

UN officials, French officials, British military brass and journalists expressed astonishment that Croatian atrocities, like the shelling of fleeing Serbian refugees, received very low level play in the media compared to atrocities blamed on Serbs. y A Dutch military official, who declined to be quoted by name, declared that Germany and the U.S. had succeeded in internationalizing the Yugoslav civil war in their action. That is the most irresponsible action of all, the official said.