NATO troops today raided a Bosnian radio station owned by the daughter of war crimes suspect Mr Radovan Karadzic in his wartime stronghold of Pale.
About 30 soldiers - members of French, Italian and US contingents - searched Radio Sveti Jovan in Pale, six miles east of the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo.
Ms Sonja Karadzic, who opened the music and news station in 1996, ordered it to stay on air while troops were in the building.
She refused to disclose what the peacekeepers had discussed with her. The spokesman for the NATO-led troops, Lieut Cmdr Yves Vanier, claimed the operation had nothing to do with the search for Mr Karadzic.
"This is an unannounced inspection of a radio station that happens to be owned by Karadzic's daughter, but that is just a coincidence. It is part of our regular inspections of telecommunications and radio facilities, as is in our mandate. We check the equipment to make sure it is compliant," Lieut Cmdr Vanier said.
Under the agreement that ended the war, peacekeepers are authorised to make sure that all Bosnian broadcasters comply with NATO policies stipulating that air waves cannot be used for any activities running counter to the Dayton accord.
Mr Radovan Karadzic, the wartime Bosnian Serb leader, and his general, Ratko Mladic, were indicted for genocide and crimes against humanity by the UN war crimes tribunal. Both remain at large despite efforts by the international community to arrest them.