DAČIĆ SEES OFF 34 FIREFIGHTER-RESCUERS TO FRANCE

BELGRADE, JULY 31 /SRNA/ - Serbian Interior Minister Ivica Dačić saw off firefighter-rescuers heading to France today, where they went to help fight large forest fires.

Thirty-four members of the Emergency Situations Sector and three employees of the Ministry of Interior's Institute for Occupational Health have been sent to the French town of Velo. They will be deployed as part of the international assistance Serbia has provided to France through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, the Serbian Interior Ministry said. He reminded that 40 members of the Emergency Situations Sector had previously been sent to Spain. He said that a Super Puma helicopter, along with five members of the Helicopter Unit and a liaison officer, had also been deployed to Spain to help fight the fires. "Our helicopter has carried out five flights so far, and the reactions from the Spanish public have been extremely positive. Not only is our mission operating successfully, but it also has great political and diplomatic significance," Dačić said. Referring to the arrest in connection with the murder of a young Russian woman in Borča, Dačić said that a police dog found the suitcase containing her body in the Vizelj canal. "I would like to extend my praise to the Police Brigade and to the people who train and handle service dogs. Had it not been for the service dog Aki, whose handler is Vladan Kovačević, the search for the body would have lasted for hours, and perhaps even days," Dačić said. He explained that the search for the body was launched after the arrest of a Turkish national at Nikola Tesla Airport.