66 BODIES OF GENOCIDE VICTIMS EXUMED FROM A MASS GRAVE NEAR SREBRENICA

SREBRENICA, Bosnia (July 18,2008) - Bosnian forensic experts have completed excavation of a mass grave near the eastern Bosnian town of Srebrenica today. Officials of the Bosnian State Institute for Missing People confirmed 66 bodies of the genocide victims from Srebrenica were found in the mass grave called Pusumlici 2, along with three bags of bones and personal belongings.

These 66 genocide victims were among 10,000 Bosnian civilians mass murderd by the genocidal Serbian fascist aggressor in July 1995, during the Serbian aggression against Bosnia.

Murat Hurtic, the head of the Bosnian forensic team, says the last bodies of the genocide victims were taken out earlier today. The team exhumed two complete and 64 incomplete skeletons of the genocide victims.

An ID card found in the grave supports initial information that the bodies were of the Bosnian civilians from Srebrenica.

Over 3,200 genocide victims from this part of Bosnia have already been found in some 60 nearby mass graves, identified through DNA analysis and reburied.
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BOSNIAN PRESIDENCY MEMBER ZELJKO KOMSIC MET WITH IRANIAN AMBASSADOR TO BOSNIA AHMAD FARD HOSSEINI

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (July 18,2008) - The Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Bosnia Ahmad Fard Hosseini congratulated Bosnia on signing the Stabilization and Association Agreement with the European Union, at yesterday’s meeting with a nenber of the Bosnian State Presidency Željko Komšić.

He said that Iran understood and supported the path of Bosnia to the European Union and added that their country would remain open for Bosnia wishing to provide further help, first trough strengthening economic ties and relations among peoples.

He informed Bosnian Presidency Member Željko Komšić that construction of a modern health centre would begin in October on the territory of Novo Sarajevo Municipality, which would be a gift of the Islamic Republic of Iran to Bosnia.

Bosnian Presidency Member thanked for the Iran's willingness to finance construction of this health center in Bosnia and thanked the Iranian people and leadership for full support and generous assistance showed to Bosnia during the 1992-1995 Serbian,Montenegrin and Croatian aggressions against Bosnia.
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WORLD BANK ACCOUNTS FOR ABOUT 50% OF BOSNIAN FOREIGN DEBT

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (July 18,2008) - The Bosnian Finance Minister Dragan Vrankic talked with a delegation of the World Bank in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo yesterday which was helmed by Shigeo Katsu.

Vrankic said after the meeting that they were discussing the current political and economic issues in the country, the bank’s portfolio in Bosnia, and problems in its implementation. Possible future projects were also discussed, mainly in the areas of environmental protection, local communities and infrastructure, and worth 250 million Bosnian Marks.

Vrankic said that almost half of the country’s foreign debt (which totals 4 billion Bosnian Marks) is to the World Bank, and that its financial backing is a considerable contribution to restructuring processes.

“A general agreement is that Bosnia can keep the pace, but needs to make a step towards economic prosperity through the inflow of foreign capital, through investments. These, however, require a certain environment. If we provide that, then we have a chance of solving Bosnia’s biggest problem – unemployment”, Vrankic said.
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VOLKSWAGEN CHANGES STRATEGY IN BOSNIA

SARAJEVO, Bosnia (July 18,2008) - During a visit by the Sarajevo Canton Economy Minister, the management of Volkswagen Sarajevo in the Vogosca economic zone announced a change in their strategic focus after the Stabilisation and Assocition Agreement (SAA) signing between Bosnia and the EU.

Volkswagen wants to continue investing in the Bosnian manufacturing capacities and new jobs. By 2009, German company plans to expand the production of sophisticated automobile components in Bosnia, and explore the possibility of manufacturing one of VW models, technical director Uwe Bischoff announced. VW Sarajevo manufactures around 5,000 cars a year, for the local market.
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BOSNIA AND IRELAND INITIAL DOUBLE TAXATION AVOIDANCE DEAL

DUBLIN, Ireland (July 18,2008) - Bosnia and Ireland initialled the Double Taxation and Fiscal Evasion Agreement in Dublin yesterday. Its initialling is expected to improve the conditions of doing business for entrepreneurs from both countries.

During formal talks, assurances were given from Irish officials that current problems with the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty are no obstacle to the process of Bosnia’s EU integration.
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EXPLOSION INJURES FIVE AT A STEEL PLANT IN ZENICA

ZENICA, Bosnia (July 18,2008) - Five workers have been injured in an explosion at a Bosnian steelworks majority owned by Arcelor-Mittal (MT), a company official said today.

"The explosion occurred...at the blast furnace" of the plant in the central town of Zenica on Thursday night, the steelworks' spokeswoman, Slobodanka Lizdek said.

"We still don't know what caused the accident," she said, adding that an investigation had been launched into the cause of the explosion.

Arcelor-Mittal is the world's biggest steelmaker. In 2004, the company bought a majority stake in the Zenica plant, which currently produces 220,000 metric tons of steel a year.
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