THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 29, 1995 TAG: 9501290091
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A11 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: DURRES, ALBANIA LENGTH: Short : 36 lines
A U.S. Marine who was shot and critically wounded in a bar on the eve of the first joint military exercise of Albanian and NATO forces was evacuated from this Adriatic port Saturday.
Police arrested a 24-year-old Albanian suspect in the shooting that occurred Friday night and which slightly wounded a second Marine.
Doctors from the Norfolk-based amphibious transport dock Ponce, assisted Albanian doctors in a seven-hour operation on the severely wounded 20-year-old Marine. Surgeons removed his left kidney and spleen, but could not retrieve the bullet. Albanian doctors said his life remained in danger.
The patient was taken by helicopter Saturday evening to a nearby airport for evacuation to Germany aboard a medical plane. The other Marine, who was shot in the arm, also was evacuated.
Their names and hometowns were not disclosed pending notification of relatives.
The incident cast a pall over the first exercise between Albanian soldiers and American, Italian, German and British troops - all of them NATO forces.
Ground and air exercises went ahead Saturday, but the sea exercise was postponed until today.
Gen. Sheme Kosova, chief of Albania's general staff, said the shooting was an isolated act with no bearing on U.S.-Albanian relations.
KEYWORDS: SHOOTING INJURIES U.S. MARINES by CNB