12 April 1993 Srebrenica shelling

Last updated

12 April 1993 Srebrenica shelling
Srebrenica.jpg
Panorama of Srebrenica
Coordinates 44°06′15″N19°17′50″E / 44.10417°N 19.29722°E / 44.10417; 19.29722

On 12 April 1993, the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) launched an artillery attack against the town of Srebrenica. The attack left 56 dead (including 14 children killed on a school playground), and 73 seriously wounded. The attack followed the suspension of cease-fire talks, and only hours before NATO would implement a no-fly zone in accordance to an UN resolution. VRS officials had previously told UNHCR representatives that unless the town surrendered within two days, the VRS would shell it.

Contents

Background

Eastern Bosnia battleground in January 1993. Map 20 - Bosnia - Srebrenica-Cerska, January 1993.jpg
Eastern Bosnia battleground in January 1993.

Srebrenica was a Bosnian Muslim (Bosniak) enclave in a vulnerable location that was easily targeted by artillery. [1] After VRS overran the town in April 1992, Muslim irregulars recaptured it in May. [2] During the subsequent winter, the town was used as a starting point for Muslim guerrilla activity against Serb settlements in the eastern part of Bosnia. [2] Muslim raids on Serb settlements enraged the VRS, inviting for revenge attacks. [3] Bosnian Muslim forces attacked Kravica, a Serb village, in January 1993. [4] The VRS responded with a counter-offensive, capturing Konjević Polje and Cerska, severing the Srebrenica–Žepa link and reducing the size of the Srebrenica enclave to 150 km2.[ when? ] [4] Thousands of Muslim refugees, cleansed from surrounding settlements, had flocked to the town, sleeping in the open. [3] The population swelled to 50–60,000. [4] The VRS blockaded aid convoys from entering the town. [3] There were reports of terror inflicted by both sides in the months following January. [4]

On 12 March, UNPROFOR commander Philippe Morillon had promised the town residents that they were under UN protection and that he would 'never abandon' them. [1] This move angered his superiors, but made him a hero in Srebrenica. [1] He had been held hostage by the Muslim citizens until he promised to bring security. [3] The residents lived under siege conditions. [4] Between March and April, 8–9,000 Bosnian Muslims were evacuated from the town by the UNHCR. [4] The Bosnian Muslim government opposed these evacuation, characterized them as contributing to the ethnic cleansing of the territory. [4]

At the beginning of April 1993, the Bosnian Serbs ordered through UNHCR the surrender of the Bosnian government within 48 hours. [3] They required that the UN forces assist the VRS (headed by Ratko Mladić) by evacuating and disarming over 60,000 people in the enclave. [3]

Shelling

On 12 April 1993 a VRS artillery attack of two short bombardments on Srebrenica left 56 dead, including children, and 73 seriously wounded. [5] Shells dropped on the densely packed streets of the town. [2] 14 bodies of children were found in a school playground (soccer field), [1] [6] which had been hit by a shell at around 3 PM according to HRW. [7] There was a total of 15 civilian casualties at the playground according to the ICTY. [8]

The attack came after suspension of cease-fire talks, hours before NATO would implement a no-fly zone according to UNSCR 781. [2] The VRS had earlier told UNHCR representatives that they would attack the town of Srebrenica within two days unless it surrendered. [9] The Bosnian Serb suspension of talks and shelling of the town 'seemed a deliberate act of malice and political intent'. [2] UN first reported that the shelling was a response to a Muslim attack, but later retracted the statement since there were no evidence for a Muslim aggression. [3] The UNPROFOR's handling has been criticized as ineffective. [3]

Witness accounts

American journalist Chuck Sudetic interviewed Bosnian Army doctor Nedret Mujkanović who claimed 36 people dead on site and 102 seriously wounded at the playground, whom he treated. "People were sitting around in front of the school," he said. "The children were playing football and other games. In less than one minute, seven rockets from a multiple-rocket launcher fell in an area about half the size of a football field." He claimed that the VRS knew that there was a refugee camp at the school and that they directed their fire at that location. [10]

Aftermath and legacy

Srebrenica Children Massacre Memorial Srebrenica Children Massacre Memorial.jpg
Srebrenica Children Massacre Memorial

On 16 April, the UN declared Srebrenica a safe zone, and also put the enclaves of Žepa and Goražde under UN protection. [4]

A photograph of a blood-covered and blinded boy lying on a stretcher, Sead Bekrić, was widely broadcast and made the front cover of Newsweek . [11] The word "Bosnia" was printed across Sead's injured chest. [12] After seeing him on CNN, a wealthy Croatian-American couple paid for his location and evacuation. [13]

The incident is included in the 26th point ("Shelling of civilian gatherings") in the initial indictment issued by the ICTY on 24 July 1995 against Bosnian Serb leaders Radovan Karadžić and Ratko Mladić. 15 civilian casualties at the Srebrenica playground are listed. [8]

The incident is also mentioned in Emir Suljagić's personal account of the siege and fall of Srebrenica, Postcards from the Grave .

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Srebrenica</span> Town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Srebrenica is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is a small mountain town, with its main industry being salt mining and a nearby spa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Sarajevo</span> Battle of the Bosnian War (1992–1996)

The Siege of Sarajevo was a prolonged blockade of Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the Bosnian War. After it was initially besieged by the forces of the Yugoslav People's Army, the city was then besieged by the Army of Republika Srpska. Lasting from 5 April 1992 to 29 February 1996, it was three times longer than the Battle of Stalingrad, more than a year longer than the siege of Leningrad, and was the longest siege of a capital city in the history of modern warfare.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naser Orić</span> Bosnian military commander

Naser Orić is a Bosnian former officer who commanded Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ARBiH) forces in the Srebrenica enclave in eastern Bosnia surrounded by Bosnian Serb forces, during the Bosnian War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bosnian War</span> 1992–1995 armed conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The Bosnian War was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started on 6 April 1992, following a number of earlier violent incidents. The war ended on 14 December 1995 when the Dayton accords were signed. The main belligerents were the forces of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia, and the Republika Srpska, the latter two entities being proto-states led and supplied by Croatia and Serbia, respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Srebrenica massacre</span> 1995 mass murder by the Bosnian Serb Army

The Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, was the July 1995 genocidal killing of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys in and around the town of Srebrenica during the Bosnian War. It was mainly perpetrated by units of the Bosnian Serb Army of Republika Srpska under Ratko Mladić, though the Serb paramilitary unit Scorpions also participated. The massacre was the first legally recognised genocide in Europe since the end of World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Protection Force</span> Military unit

The United Nations Protection Force was the first United Nations peacekeeping force in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav Wars. The force was formed in February 1992 and its mandate ended in March 1995, with the peacekeeping mission restructuring into three other forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bosnian genocide</span> Murder of Bosniaks and Bosnian Croats during the Bosnian War

The Bosnian genocide took place during the Bosnian War of 1992–1995 and included both the Srebrenica massacre and the wider crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing campaign perpetrated throughout areas controlled by the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS). The events in Srebrenica in 1995 included the killing of more than 8000 Bosniak men and boys, as well as the mass expulsion of another 2500030000 Bosniak civilians by VRS units under the command of General Ratko Mladić.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Radislav Krstić</span> Bosnian Serb commander and war criminal

Radislav Krstić is a former Bosnian Serb Deputy Commander and later Chief of Staff of the Drina Corps of the Army of Republika Srpska from October 1994 until 12 July 1995. He was promoted to the rank of major general in June 1995 and assumed command of the Drina Corps on 13 July 1995.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zdravko Tolimir</span>

Zdravko Tolimir was a Bosnian Serb military commander and war criminal, convicted of genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, extermination, murder, persecution on ethnic grounds and forced transfer. Tolimir was a commander of the Army of Republika Srpska during the Bosnian War. He was Assistant Commander of Intelligence and Security for the Bosnian Serb army and reported directly to the commander, General Ratko Mladić.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Žepa</span> Village in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Žepa is a village located in the municipality of Rogatica, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013 census, it has a population of 133 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Rogatica itself on the banks of short river with a same name, the Žepa river, which flows into the Drina river nearby, in a valley between the mountains Javor and Devetak.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dutchbat</span> United Nations battalion in the Bosnian war

Dutchbat was a Dutch battalion under the command of the United Nations in operation UNPROFOR. It was hastily formed out of the emerging 11th Airmobile Brigade between February 1994 and November 1995 to participate in peacekeeping operations. It was tasked to execute United Nations Security Council Resolution 819 in the Bosnian Muslim enclaves and the designated UN "safe havens" of Srebrenica and Žepa during the Bosnian War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Nations Security Council Resolution 819</span> United Nations resolution adopted in 1993

United Nations Security Council resolution 819, adopted unanimously on 16 April 1993, after reaffirming resolutions 713 (1991) and all (1992) subsequent resolutions, the Council expressed concern at the actions of Bosnian Serb paramilitary units in towns and villages in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, including attacks on civilians, the United Nations Protection Force and disruption to humanitarian aid convoys. The resolution marked the UN's first civilian "safe area" being declared; it failed to prevent the Srebrenica massacre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Srebrenica</span> 1992 - 1995 siege during the Bosnian War

The siege of Srebrenica was a three-year siege of the town of Srebrenica in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina which lasted from April 1992 to July 1995 during the Bosnian War. Initially assaulted by the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and the Serbian Volunteer Guard (SDG), the town was encircled by the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) in May 1992, starting a brutal siege which was to last for the majority of the Bosnian War. In June 1995, the commander of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ARBiH) in the enclave, Naser Orić, left Srebrenica and fled to the town of Tuzla. He was subsequently replaced by his deputy, Major Ramiz Bećirović.

<i>Report about Case Srebrenica</i> Report denying Srebrenica massacre

Report about Case Srebrenica (the first part) was a controversial official report on the July 1995 Srebrenica massacre in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was prepared by Darko Trifunović and published by the Republika Srpska Government Bureau for Relations with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

The Kravica attack was an attack on the Bosnian Serb village of Kravica by the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ARBiH) from the Srebrenica enclave on Orthodox Christmas Day, 7 January 1993. The attack was organized to coincide with the Serbian Orthodox Christmas, leaving the Serbs unprepared for any attack. 43-46 people died in the attack on the Serb side: 30-35 soldiers and 11-13 civilians.

The Kravica massacre was one of the mass executions of Bosniaks by the Army of Republika Srpska during the Srebrenica massacre. It was committed on 14 July, 1995. It is estimated that between 1,000 and 1,500 men were killed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Bihać (1992–1995)</span> Three-year-long siege of the northwestern Bosnian town of Bihać during the Bosnian War

The siege of Bihać was a three-year-long siege of the northwestern Bosnian town of Bihać by the Army of the Republika Srpska, the Army of the Republic of Serbian Krajina and Bosnian Muslim dissenters led by Fikret Abdić during the 1992–95 Bosnian War. The siege lasted for three years, from June 1992 until 4–5 August 1995, when Operation Storm ended it after the Croatian Army (HV) overran the rebel Serbs in Croatia and northwest of the besieged town.

Avdo Palić was a Bosnian military officer during the 1992–1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Palić held the rank of colonel in the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ARBiH) and commanded the Bosnian government forces in the enclave of Žepa during the entire 40-month-long siege.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christoph Flügge</span> German jurist and judge

Christoph Flügge is a German jurist and judge. From June 2001 to February 2007, he was Secretary of State in the Department of Justice of the State of Berlin. On 18 September 2008, he was appointed permanent judge at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). As a result of controversial comments made in 2009, some genocide scholars and victims' groups have accused him of genocide denial in relation to the Bosnian Genocide and more specifically the Srebrenica genocide. He served as a judge in the war crimes trial against Radovan Karadžić, but was removed from the case. In 2011, he was appointed presiding judge in the trial of Ratko Mladić, but there have been calls for his resignation from several Bosnian victims' groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Žepa</span> 1992 – 1995 siege during the Bosnian War

The siege of Žepa was a three-year long siege of the small Bosnian town of Žepa which had lasted from the summer of 1992 – July 1995 during the Bosnian War. It was initially besieged by the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) until it switched to the VRS. Throughout the siege, Žepa was part of the Srebrenica–Žepa link in eastern Bosnia. From April 1992 – February 1993, the ARBiH and the civilians of Žepa successfully resisted the Bosnian Serb army due to applying to guerrilla warfare.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Seib 2002, p. 60.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Burg & Shoup 2015, p. 140.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Greenberg, Barton & McGuinness 2000, p. 51.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Klip 2005, p. 602.
  5. Honig & Both 1996, p. 94.
  6. David Rohde (29 May 2012). Endgame: The Betrayal and Fall of Srebrenica, Europe's Worst Massacre Since World War II. Penguin Publishing Group. pp. 64–. ISBN   978-1-101-57509-3.
  7. Helsinki Watch (Organization : U.S.) (1993). Abuses continue in the former Yugoslavia: Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia-Hercegovina. Helsinki Watch.
  8. 1 2 IT-95-5-I.
  9. International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia - Trial of R. Krstić Archived 26 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  10. Chuck Sudetic, "CONFLICT IN THE BALKANS; A View of the Bosnia War From the Srebrenica Hospital's O.R.", The New York Times , 24 April 1993
  11. Josef Seethaler; Matthias Karmasin; Gabriele Melischek (2013). Selling War: The Role of the Mass Media in Hostile Conflicts from World War I to the "War on Terror". Intellect Books. pp. 147–. ISBN   978-1-84150-610-4.
  12. Mike Downey, "'94 WINTER OLYMPICS / Lillehammer: Few Know Troubles He's Seen", Los Angeles Times , 27 February 1994
  13. Raymond Moley; Malcolm Muir; Joseph Becker Phillips; Rex Smith; Samuel Thurston Williamson (1993). Newsweek. Vol. 121. Newsweek. p. 158.

Sources