Serbian police said Saturday they had discovered a crematory in southern Kosovo where ethnic Albanians allegedly had burned the bodies of at least 22 Serb civilians.
The police statement said the furnace, allegedly used to destroy the bodies of civilians killed by the rebels, was found in the village of Klecka, recently retaken by government forces.The statement, carried by the official Tanjug news agency, was the latest in a series of claims of brutality and atrocities by both sides. It could not be independently confirmed.
Meanwhile, the Red Cross evacuated 13 women and children, who were wounded Thursday by fierce shelling, from a crowded refugee village to the Kosovo capital of Pristina Saturday.
The victims were among an estimated 50,000 ethnic Albanians near Senik village in southwestern Kosovo, where they fled after their own communities were shelled by Yugoslav army tanks.
Fighting was reported Saturday in several locations. The Serb-run Media Center in Pristina said seven "terrorists" were killed in a shootout with police in Klina, western Kosovo.
Maggie Bryson of the International Red Cross said conditions around Senik were deplorable.
With the onset of cold weather, the estimated 50,000 refugees camped out in the open in isolated areas were facing an "absolutely dreadful" situation, she said.
"Without shelter, people cannot survive," she said.
In Belgrade, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Julia Taft on Friday warned that with winter on the way, there is a strong risk of a refugee disaster. She said she would ask President Clinton for emergency aid to stem such a crisis.