Lawton, 30, a British national and producer for Associated Press
Television News, died from shrapnel wounds sustained when a shell
struck his car. At least two other civilians were feared dead in the
attack, and at least 10 others were injured.
On March 28, the Macedonian Army launched a mini-offensive against
Albanian insurgents in the village of Gracani in northern Macedonia.
Just across the border in Kosovo, NATO-led peacekeepers stepped up
patrols to intercept Albanian guerrillas crossing into Macedonia.
At the time of his death, Lawton had just arrived in the village of
Krivenik to cover the deployment of additional NATO-led peacekeeping
forces. Both Macedonian military officials and ethnic Albanian
insurgents denied responsibility for Lawton’s death and the other
civilian casualties.