Serbs slam Nato Karadzic raid

"Nobody will arrest a Serb," protesters chanted

Some 2,000 angry Bosnian Serbs have protested against a Nato raid to arrest war crimes fugitive Radovan Karadzic in his old stronghold of Pale.

A priest and his son were injured in the operation by about 40 troops from the US, Britain and other nations, who failed to find Mr Karadzic.

"Fascists," chanted the protesters, many of whom regard their war-time leader as a national hero.

Mr Karadzic is wanted on charges of genocide during the 1992-95 war.

Fugitive for some seven years, Mr Karadzic retains the loyalty of senior political and military figures within the Bosnian Serb establishment, the BBC's Nick Hawton in Belgrade says.

It is some of these people who are believed to help keep him one step ahead of his pursuers, our correspondent adds.

On Thursday, the most senior Bosnian Serb officials - including Prime Minister Dragan Mikerevic - also joined the rally outside Pale's Orthodox church where priest Jeremia Starovlah and his son Aleksander were wounded.

Gun fire

The Nato troops surrounded a church and the priest's house in Pale, near the Bosnian capital Sarajevo, in the early hours of Thursday.

A soldier put a gun to my head - I heard my husband cry for help, but I could do nothing Vitorka Starovlah Priest's wife Pale protest pictures Timeline: Hunting Karadzic

They used explosives to break into the building, shattering windows and leaving a hole at the main entrance. The priest and his son were injured in the blast.

A hospital spokeswoman in the nearby town of Tuzla said both had suffered heavy injuries to the head and the priest was on a life support machine.

The priest's wife told Bosnian Serb radio the raid was like "the worst horror movie".

"Soldiers burst into the house and immediately took them to another room... a soldier put a gun to my head. I heard my husband cry for help, but I could do nothing," Vitorka Starovlah said.

Eyewitnesses reported hearing gun fire as troops sealed off the centre of town, but this was not confirmed by Nato peacekeepers.

Nato-led troops - known as S-For - have intensified their search for Mr Karadzic before they hand over their mission to a European Union force by the end of this year.

This was the third time in past three months that Nato has mounted an operation in Pale in its hunt for Mr Karadzic.