LETTER: Bosnian refugees: sickening indifference of Western politicians

From Mr J. G. Mighell

Sir: The photo on Saturday's front page must be one of the most heart- rending illustrations of events in Western Europe of the last 50 years, with the possible exception of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.

In 1956 we no doubt all came to the conclusion, rightly or wrongly, that military intervention by Nato would inevitably have resulted in a full- scale conventional (or possibly nuclear) war with the Soviet Union. Perhaps we had no option but to do nothing.

What is now happening in Bosnia, some 950 miles from London (ie, no further away than Naples), has no parallel in Western Europe since the Holocaust.I remain convinced that military intervention by Nato/UN forces will still be effective, as it would always have been since the beginning of hostilities. What do I mean by "effective"? I mean that, for however long it might take, we should no longer see scenes such as that on your front page today.

For some 40 years we maintained forces to meet the supposed threat from the Soviet Union at a fraction of the cost of effective intervention in the former Yugoslavia.

I am sickened beyond belief by what is now happening in Bosnia and by the indifference of the politicians of Western Europe to the fate of their fellow Europeans.

Yours sincerely,

J. G. Mighell

London, NW1

15 July