Kosovo's government and foreign donors must promptly close contaminated Roma settlements and relocate hundreds of the minority, a prominent human rights think tank said yesterday.

"The Kosovo authorities need to work with international donors to close lead-contaminated camps occupied by internally displaced Roma without delay, relocate their inhabitants, and provide medical treatment for lead poisoning," Human Rights Watch said in a report.

The UN resettled the Roma in camps in a heavily contaminated area near a defunct lead mine in Kosovo's north after Nato's 11-week air war ended the breakaway Serbian province's 1998-1999 conflict.

The move was originally intended to be temporary, yet about 670 Roma still live in camps near the site, with damaging consequences for their health.

World Health Organisation-backed testing confirmed children in the camps were badly affected, with some suffering from stunted physical and mental growth.

"Excessive lead levels in the human body can cause damage to the nervous and reproductive systems, as well as kidney failure," said the HRW report.

"Very high lead levels result in coma and death. Lead is particularly harmful to children, as it can cause irreversible brain damage.

HRW researcher Wanda Troszczynska-van Genderen said: "Roma have been stuck in these poisoned camps for a decade.

"How long would the UN and Kosovo officials put up with it if their own families were forced to live in a place like that?"

To make things worse, HRW said, the camps are located in a municipality under the control of ethnic Serbs, who do not accept the jurisdictions of the Kosovo government after it declared independence from Serbia in February last year.

"After 10 years, it's about time we had some momentum to solve this problem," said Troszczynska-van Genderen.