All for a bunk bed

By Thursday morning 630 ethnic Albanians from Kosovo had arrived in Germany from Macedonia and a similar number were due later in the day. Kranici said his village had been burned down, with only seven houses left, 8220;and what a coincidence, they allbelonged to Serbian police8221;.

8220;We know that those who stayed behind have no chance8221; to make it, he said. Kranici arrived in Nuremberg without any belongings, and only a few refugees carried whatever they could grab in plastic bags.

All 59 refugees were overwhelmed to have left the horrors behind and appeared grateful for the assistance. 8220;They were moved, and shook hands with the crew, hugged the soldiers,8221; said one relief official. Two women were whisked away from the plane by an ambulance after suffering froma sprained ankle and blood pressure problems, a doctor later said. 8220;Thank God, nothing serious.8221;

Bavarian officials had been scrambling not to raise any bureaucratic hurdles after the refugees8217; arrival. There were no passport controls 8212; many refugees are known not to have any identity papers anymore 8212; but the men, women and children were taken directly to their new temporary home, away from the masses of reporters at the airport.

At the immigrants8217; reception centre warm meals were servedbefore the Kosovars were left to rest in their rooms where they share bathrooms and kitchens. In a few days, Bavarian authorities have said, refugees will be taken to various regions inside Germany8217;s southernmost state after receiving pocket money of 80 marks 41 euros, 44 dollars each. But the prospect of a little money in his pocket can certainly not warm up young Ridvan Orbevtica to his new environment.

8220;My brother is still down there,8221; he cried. 8220;I don8217;t know what became of him.8221; Ridvan had been marching for two weeks after the Serbs chased him from his village. 8220;When I turned around, I saw the houses on fire,8221; he said. A woman said: 8220;We had five minutes to pack, then we had to hide in the mountains for five days.8221;

Another man spoke of panic among refugees when Macedonian border guards turned them back. The men, women and children will not forget the horrors they have seen for a long time 8212; if ever. 8220;How can you forget when you see a woman die as she is giving birth because no doctors areallowed,8221; said a man.

8220;We were living like prisoners, were not allowed to leave our houses in broad daylight. The sick died because they were not allowed to see doctors.8221; An old man said he fled his house in panic as the Serbs were getting closer. 8220;I remembered the other massacres and thought now this will happen to me, too.8221; But Shaban Kranici wants only one thing to come true: 8220;I want my people to be independent and live in peace, like any other people,8221; he said.