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May 23, 1999
Web posted at: 8:49 p.m. EDT (0049 GMT)

In this story: Men were treated 'like animals' Refugee camps need more space Specter of winter looms for refugees RELATED STORIES, SITES

BLACE, Macedonia (CNN) -- A second wave of hundreds of men left for dead in Kosovo crossed the border into Albania on Sunday, while thousands more Kosovars flowed into Macedonia in the second refugee surge in as many days.

The weekend flow into Macedonia could top 15,000 refugees, U.N. refugee officials said.

Many came with fresh horror stories. Most said they fled because they feared for their lives. One woman said both her father and mother had been killed. Others were given just 30 minutes to leave, they said.

Nearly 1,000 refugees arrived on buses early Sunday. Another several thousand crossed the border packed into a train a few hours later, aid officials said.

A visiting U.S. congressional delegation saw firsthand the exodus across the border.

"It's different when it's an earthquake and it's a tragedy. You accept that as God's will," said Rep. David Hobson, an Ohio Republican. "But you can't accept this; the world should not accept this."

Men were treated 'like animals'

The new wave of ethnic Albanian men, given up for dead, said they had been treated badly while imprisoned inside Kosovo.

Ethnic Albanian men said they were beaten and mistreated by Serb forces

Sunday's group of 500 men, many weeping, joined the 600 who crossed the Albanian border Saturday, and began searching the refugee camps for familiar faces.

"They treated us like animals," said Bahri Hyseni, who said he was imprisoned 22 days ago. "They beat us. They cut some men's ears. They beat us in front of our families."

Like Saturday's arrivals, the men said they were accused by the Serbs of being terrorists and members of the Kosovo Liberation Army.

Refugee camps need more space

Aid workers said they have space for nearly 20,000 additional refugees, but expressed concern that if the Kosovars continue to arrive at the rate of several thousand a day, their limited resources will be exhausted quickly.

Many may have to take shelter next to the entry point at the border.

"If we get another 8,000 today, we are going to have to put them up in this transit camp and madly try to erect as many new tents as we can in whatever space we have," said Ron Redmond of the office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

Specter of winter looms for refugees

Aid workers are worried that their resources will be exhausted by huge waves of Kosovars arriving at refugee camps

The UNHCR said it had stepped up efforts to return refugees and Kosovars displaced within the province. The agency said it is making plans for a winterization program in case, by the end of autumn, refugees have not been able to go back to their homes.

"Everybody knows the Balkan winter is a severe winter," said British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook. "The sooner we get started the better."

A U.N. mission in Yugoslavia to assess the impact of the war on civilians is continuing, NATO spokesman Jamie Shea told reporters Sunday. The team visited a village in northern Kosovo on Saturday and described a scene of desolation.

Many displaced Kosovars reported "living like dogs," roaming from town to town and hiding in woods, Shea said, citing the U.N. team.

Correspondents Martin Savidge and Kasra Naji contributed to this report.

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