Croatia keep faith with squad for Israel qualifier

ZAGREB - Croatia coach Slaven Bilic kept faith with the players who have preserved their place at the top of Group E in the Euro 2008 qualifying campaign when he named his squad on Thursday to face Israel next month.
Injured Parma forward Igor Budan is the only player missing from the squad that beat Estonia and Andorra earlier this month. Croatia face fourth-placed Israel on Oct. 13 in Zagreb.
However, Bilic told reporters injured midfielder Niko Kovac, who is in the squad, was unlikely to be ready after he picked up a muscle injury in the Austrian championship on Wednesday.
"It will be a tough game, no doubt about it. This game is our first 'match-ball' for clinching a berth at Euro 2008, while Israel are aware they have to win to keep their chances of qualifying alive," Bilic said at a news conference.
After nine matches, Croatia top the group with 23 points ahead of England on 20, Russia with 18 and Israel who have 17. The top two qualify for the finals in Austria and Switzerland.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Stipe Pletikosa (Spartak Moscow), Vedran Runje (Lens), Mario Galinovic (Panathinaikos)
Defenders: Dario Simic (AC Milan), Dino Drpic (Dinamo Zagreb), Robert Kovac (Borussia Dortmund), Josip Simunic (Hertha Berlin), Vedran Corluka (Manchester City), Dario Knezevic (Livorno)
Midfielders: Niko Kovac (Salzburg), Darijo Srna (Shakhtar Donetsk), Marko Babic (Real Betis), Niko Kranjcar (Portsmouth), Luka Modric (Dinamo Zagreb), Jerko Leko (AS Monaco), Jurica Vranjes (Werder Bremen), Danijel Pranjic (Heerenveen), Ivan Rakitic (Schalke), Ognjen Vukojevic (Dinamo Zagreb)
Forwards: Mladen Petric (Borussia Dortmund), Ivica Olic (Hamburg SV), Bosko Balaban (Dinamo Zagreb), Eduardo da Silva (Arsenal)
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Traffickers arrested in Croatia

Croatian police has captured nine people accused of transporting 307 illegal immigrants from the Balkans into the European Union.

The people arrested on Friday are suspected of belong to a chain gang that has transported the illegal immigrants, dpa said.

Most of the illegal immigrants were said to be ethnic Albanians.

Croatia's local media reported that there were three more fugitives suspected of being members of the gang, which received some 390,000 dollars from their trafficking activities.

Police forces from the EU cooperated in the investigation leading to the arrest of the nine suspects, which include Croation, Bosnian, Albanian and Serbian citizens police also confiscated some 6,000 amphetamine pills from the suspects.

BH Ratifies Border Agreement With Croatia

The Presidency of Bosnia-Herzegovina on Wednesday ratified an Agreement between BH and Croatia on border control, the Presidency’s press office said in a statement.

The Presidency received concurrence about the ratification from the Bosnian parliament. The agreement will be published in the official gazette soon, which will complete the process of its adoption by Bosnia-Herzegovina. The agreement will come into effect after Croatia has completed its process of ratification.