Yugoslav protesters seize capital

BELGRADE, Yugoslavia -- The 13-year rule of the Yugoslav president appeared to have collapsed. \nEarlier in the day, hundreds of thousands of people swarmed through the capital to demand that Milosevic accept his apparent electoral defeat by Vojislav Kostunica in the Sept. 24 election. The uprising developed with stunning speed, swelling as security forces showed little willingness to battle the largest anti-Milosevic protest ever. \nThe government's Tanjug news agency, which defected to the opposition, said two people were killed and 65 injured in the rioting. All but 12 of the injured were treated and released from hospitals, Tanjug said. \nMany police put down their clubs and joined flag-waving crowds as they surged across central Belgrade through clouds of tear gas. \nProtesters tossed documents and portraits of Milosevic through the broken windows of the parliament complex. Smoke billowed from the building and from the state television headquarters nearby. \nElsewhere in the country, thousands more people joined smaller rallies in a number of towns. \n"What we are doing today is making history"' Kostunica proclaimed during an evening speech in front of Belgrade city hall, across from parliament. \nAt the White House, President Clinton said: "The people are trying to get their country back." British Prime Minister Tony Blair said of Milosevic: "Your time is up. Go now." \nOpposition leader Zoran Djindjic said Milosevic was holed up in the eastern town Bor, some 50 miles southeast of the capital, and that he had not been in touch with Kostunica's camp. But there were also rumors that Milosevic had left Serbia in a plane. \nThe United States and the European Union have imposed sanctions against the Milosevic regime for several years. But French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine said France, which holds the rotating EU presidency, is "taking the necessary steps" for the EU to reconsider the sanctions as soon as Monday. \nLater, both state television channels went off the air before coming back on under opposition control, and the state-run Tanjug news agency -- one of chief pillars of Milosevic's rule -- announced it is no longer loyal to him. \n"From this moment, Tanjug informs the Yugoslav public that it is with the people of this country," a statement carried by the agency said. Another Tanjug report referred to Kostunica as "President-elect of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia," \nA statement from Milosevic's Socialist Party of Serbia said it would "fight against violence and destruction" with "all its force and in all state institutions"' Tanjug reported. \nThe president has already countered in the courts in an apparent bid to cling to power: The Milosevic-controlled Yugoslav Constitutional Court issued a decision Wednesday that Tanjug said nullified "parts" of the election. The ruling outraged opposition supporters, who had brought the case in hopes Kostunica would be declared the winner. \nBut police offered little resistance and the clashes ebbed. Afterward, as night fell, thousands of demonstrators walked the streets in a relatively relaxed atmosphere. Some were drunk and brandishing handguns. \nThe crowd chanted "Kill him! Kill him!" as opposition leaders claimed victory over Milosevic.