21.   Then in March, three eastern European nations joined NATO, and the alliance began bombing Yugoslavia.

22.   When the northern alliance began winning battles, more Taliban retreated there.

23.   Hundreds of thousands of refugees also returned from Zaire late last year after a Tutsi-dominated Zairean rebel alliance began an uprising in October.

24.   Relations between Moscow and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation have cooled since the alliance began an internal debate in December on its eastward enlargement, which Moscow opposes.

25.   The alliance began at the beginning of January with the merger of Viacom and Blockbuster.

26.   The incident is the third occasion that NATO aircraft have been fired on since the alliance began its peace mission four days ago.