ANKARA (AP) - A Turkish prosecutor has charged an author with insulting the revered late leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in a biography about his wife, the book's publisher said yesterday. Ipek Calislar, the latest in a series of writers charged under Turkey's freedom-curbing laws, faces up to 4.5 years in prison if found guilty of insulting Ataturk, said Vahit Uysal of Dogan Publishing. In the book, «Latife Hanim,» Calislar says that the Turkish leader, facing an assassination attempt, left a house in a chador disguised as a woman.

ZAGREB (AP) Croatia's soccer federation expects to be punished by the sport's ruling bodies after a group of its fans formed a human swastika and gave Nazi salutes at Wednesday's friendly in Italy. «There is no doubt, FIFA and UEFA will take action,» federation spokesman Zoran Cvrk said yesterday. «It is terrible. Every form of racism, fascism or other deserves the severest condemnation.» About 200 supporters arranged themselves into the Nazi symbol about 30 minutes into Croatia's 2-0 win at Livorno's Armando Picchi Stadium. Many also gave Nazi salutes.

The head of the European Union's reconstruction program for the Balkans said late Thursday there was a chance that Croatia might not be ready to join the EU in 2009, but welcomed the country's ambitions. «In the worst case,» Croatia will only be able to join in 2014, Erhard Busek, special coordinator of the Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe, was quoted as saying in an interview with the Austria Press Agency. «But if they meet the requirements, and the situation is favorable, it could definitely be earlier,» Busek, a former Austrian vice chancellor and Balkans expert, was quoted as saying. (AP)

Seventy-three Romanian illegal immigrants were deported from France on Thursday and flown back to Bucharest, the French Interior Ministry said. Escorted by 85 police officers, the Romanians were handed over to Romanian authorities, the ministry said in a statement. Their expulsion comes a day after a group of 52 Romanian illegal immigrants left France by coach as part of a voluntary repatriation scheme providing them with financial assistance and help resettling in Romania. (AFP)

NATO soldiers raided an apartment in northwestern Bosnia yesterday belonging to a man suspected of helping shelter war crimes fugitives, the alliance said. NATO said it conducted a search operation at the house of Tomo Djuric in Banja Luka, adding the alliance believes Djuric is linked to groups that support fugitive war crimes suspects. The raid was part of efforts to break up the network. (AP)