Macedonia drives back rebels

The armoured column heads for the hills

Macedonian forces have pledged to press on with their all-out offensive until ethnic Albanian rebels are driven out of the country.

Their threat came as Western powers urged the government in Skopje to open serious talks with ethnic Albanian leaders after a day of the fiercest fighting yet.

We will go on until the final takeover of all terrorist positions

Interior Ministry spokesman

The former Yugoslav republic's infantry smashed their way through rebel positions in the hills around Tetovo, Macedonia's second-largest city, forcing the guerrillas to pull back.

Troops, supported by tanks and helicopters, spent the day slowly advancing, exchanging fire with the rebels who have been bombarding the city since first appearing on its outskirts 12 days ago.

Final takeover

Government forces are ratcheting up the pressure

Government spokesman Antonio Milososki said Sunday's offensive - which the government said last week would "neutralise and eliminate" the rebels - had gone according to plan.

"Several terrorists positions have been taken... we will go on until the final takeover of all terrorist positions," he said.

Reporting from the scene, BBC correspondent Nick Wood witnessed more than 200 troops, sheltering behind tanks and armoured personnel carriers, progressing up the thickly-forested hillsides.

After several hours of fighting, they took the village of Gajre, which faces the main ethnic Albanian rebel base across the valley at Selce.

Tanks pushed their way through trees felled to block the road and moved gradually into the village, firing as they went.

The National Liberation Army rebels withdrew into the woods above the village.

Calls for restraint

As Western diplomatic sources called for restraint, Nato Secretary-General George Robertson and European Union security chief Javier Solana were both due in Skopje on Monday.

"Our message tomorrow will be: you've made your military move, now remember it has to be a twin-track strategy and please start talking to the moderate Albanians," a Western source told Reuters.

At least one policeman, a soldier and four civilians were wounded in Sunday's fighting.

The director of the Tetovo hospital said the policeman and the four ethnic Albanian civilians had suffered bullet wounds.

A house is set on fire in the artillery barrage

Mortars have been brought up to help the advancing troops, and are targeting the rebel positions at Selce.

Sunday's attack was the first time government forces had been sent into the hills, after pounding suspected guerrilla positions above the town for more than a week.

The attack began after a fierce artillery bombardment beginning at dawn.

A long convoy of army vehicles passed through Tetovo ahead of the offensive, and helicopter gunships were in action for a second consecutive day.

'Retake territory'

"Actions undertaken until now only succeeded in containing the terrorists, but we now want to retake the territory," Interior Ministry spokesman Stevo Pendarovski told the BBC.

"We are right now in the real war," he said.

The guerrillas are believed to have between 300 and 700 lightly armed fighters in the mountains and in villages where up to 20,000 people may still be living.

Civilians have been warned to pack up and leave the areas at the heart of the conflict. Thousands have done so.

The guerrillas have threatened to escalate the conflict if the Macedonian authorities reject their offer of a truce and talks.