Petrinja Fighting

Last updated
Battle for Petrinja
Part of the Croatian War of Independence
Petrinja - crkva sv Lovro.jpg
Date2 September 1991 - 22 September 1991
Location
Petrinja, Croatia
Result Yugoslav-SAO Krajina victory
Territorial
changes		 Petrinja is entirely captured by the Serb Forces
Belligerents
Flag of Serbian Krajina (1991).svg SAO Krajina
Support by:
Flag of Yugoslavia (1946-1991; 3-5).svg Yugoslavia 		Flag of Croatia.svg Croatia
Commanders and leaders
Flag of Serbian Krajina (1991).svg Slobodan Tarbuk Unknown
Strength
Far Greater Unknown
Casualties and losses
Unknown 224 soldiers killed
Petrinja killings begin

The Fighting in Petrinja refers to a set of combat activities undertaken by Croatian forces at the beginning of the Croatian War of Independence to defend town of Petrinja. Due to the weak armament of Croatian forces, the still unfavorable international environment, the great superiority in technology and manpower of Serb forces, the strong fifth column, and the numerous rebellions, the city fell into the hands of rebel Serb forces. [1] [2]

Contents

The Fight

After the ethnic cleansing of the surrounding area and the creation of a strategically cleared area on the other side of the river, the paramilitary units of the insurgent Serbs, and the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), which was controlled by the Serbs, attacked Petrinja. [2] [3]

Fighting broke out on September 2. Petrinja was attacked by the JNA from its tank garrison under the command of Tarbuka, before the September peace conference on Yugoslavia, the battles for the barracks and the expiration of the moratorium on Croatian independence. [4]

Tanks and armored vehicles came out of the barracks in Petrinja and entered the center of the city, which was followed by firing from them and demolition of everything they encountered. The Croatian authorities mobilized all men between the ages of 18 and 50 to join the ZNG reserve in order to strengthen the defense. The Croatian defenders resisted the most at Taborište, Pecki and other points that were the approach to the city. [5]

Lieutenant Colonel Tarbuk threatened the Croatian forces at 12.18 pm and ordered the firing of five to six grenades towards the villa "Gavrilović". With this, the JNA committed an open attack on the city and the inhabitants of Petrinja, during which the city suffered one of the greatest destructions in its history. The fighting lasted until 19:50. Tank missiles. were destroyed dj. kindergarten, church of St. Lovre, secondary school center, municipal court, Municipality building, several commercial buildings, among which "Slavijatrans" workshop, "Gavrilovića" food silo, shoe factory, hospital building, and several residential and commercial buildings. 11 civilians and three ZNG members were brought to the hospital in Sisak; Nikola Lokner and Stjepan Bučar died. [6] Serbian attacks on the city continued. The next day, September 3, fighting took place in the positions around the village of Pecki, which is defended by the Croatian Guard, and the attacks come from Luščan and Bačuga. More than 40 mines were fired in the mortar attack; six Croatian fighters were wounded. Hope for the success of the defense was provided by the news that the 57th battalion of the Sisak National Guard Corps, under the command of Antun Bobetko, conquered the military-storage area of the JNA called Barutana in nearby Sisak, which was the first conquered JNA barracks in Croatia. On September 7, Serbian forces attacked a strategically important settlement in the immediate vicinity of Petrinja from the south, Taborište . The ZNG troops were forced to withdraw from the position there. On September 8, from the "V. Gaćeša" barracks, 10 tanks went to positions towards Kotar forest (Kotar-Stari gaj), immediately southeast of Petrinja. During the day, JNA attacks on positions of Croatian forces in Hrastovica and Pecko became more frequent.  On September 9, around 100 Serbian reservists gathered near an inn in Mali Šušnjar and set off on foot towards Hrastovica, a place south of the city, west of Taborište. Immediately after arriving at the positions around the railway station not far from Hrastovica, they opened rapid fire on the place. On the same day, a ZNG and MUP patrol was ambushed in the village of Križu . On that occasion, Andrija Barić, a member of the MUP reserve, was killed, and one member was seriously wounded. [7]

Not long after, an infantry attack on Križ and Hrastovica followed (it was a coordinated action by Serbian troops and the JNA). Across Kupa, in Sisak, the situation worsened, so increased security measures had to be implemented. A curfew was introduced from 11:00 PM to 5:00 AM; blackout measures also came into effect. Together with the local Serbs whom it previously armed, it was occupied by the JNA on September 12entered Hrvatska Kostajnica, and on September 13, a large part of the Croatian forces there naively surrendered (relying on promises, school friendships and family ties), but a part decided to break through the encirclement towards free territory. [8]  On September 13, members of the JNA entered the facilities of the "Kodričevo" work unit of the "Gavrilović" factory in Petrinja. Some hope was offered by the news that Croatian defenders had captured JNA Major General Milan Aksentijević and several JNA officers in the vicinity of Karlovac.  On September 14, Serbian forces attacked Croatian forces in Topusko. The JNA uses various weapons to fire at Petrinja, and around 5:30 p.m. it hits the "Gavrilović" silo and the tower of the church of St. Kate. Hrvatska Kostajnica fell to the end in the hands of the JNA. Serbs in Petrinja captured and shot 14 members of the MUP and ZNG. [9]

The attack on September 16, 1991, which was ordered by Slobodan Tarbuk, is notorious. They captured 17 Croatian soldiers and killed them at Villa Gavrilović;  other sources state September 18, 1991 as the date of the execution, the place of execution is the position around the new hospital, and they say that ZNG members were massacred. On September 16, a mortar attack on Petrinja, Brest and Mošćenica began from the direction of the barracks "V. Gaćeša". The infantry of the JNA entered the city from the direction of the same barracks, and at the same time around the bypass in Petrinja, Češki Selo and Drenčina, the Croatian defenders are retaliating against the superior enemy. During the fighting, the Serbian forces destroyed the toxic ammonia tank in "Gavrilović", which contains 87 tons of ammonia. On the same day, the JNA entered the business circle of "Gavrilović" and destroyed it. With six shells, they also hit the " Finel " wood industry, and the shells also fell on Mošćenica and Praćno, settlements east of Petrinja, and to the west near Sisak; several family houses were affected. The fire trucks of the special unit from Zagreb arrive in Brest, but the JNA does not allow the fire in " Gavrilović " to be extinguished. About forty wounded guardsmen and civilians from Petrinja, Brest and Mošćanica were brought to the hospital in Sisak; ZNG members Stjepan and Zlatko Žugaj were killed. A member of the units Jugoslav Vidić singled out Stjepan Komes from a group of workers in the MI "Gavrilović" circle (he shook hands with President Tuđman during the President's visit to Petrinja) and cut off his hand with a butcher's knife; Stjepan Komes died from his wound. On this terrible day, the good news for the defenders of Petrinja was that the Croatian army destroyed the radar system in the Sašin Greda military-missile base near Sisak, and conquered that base, which was held by JNA soldiers. [10]

Soon the Serbs occupied Hrvatska Dubica and all the Croatian villages around them. [3] [11]

Although Petrinja fell on September 21, [2] [3] [11] Croatian forces from the area did not surrender. The village of Nova Drenčina, to which Petrinja continues to the north, is essentially merged with that city and represents the northern quarter. On October 6, Serbs attacked Nova Drenčina. Then they killed Nikola Jelekovac and ZNG member Mirko Vidović in the attack, and destroyed and set fire to a large number of residential and commercial buildings. [12] [13]

Aftermath

After all the exiles who had to leave Petrinja and their homes due to the occupation in 1991 were listed, this figure was reached: 10,535 citizens, of which 9,352 were Croats, 215 Muslims, 790 Serbs and 178 others. During the battle for the city and the occupation of Petrinja, Petrinja suffered great damage to commercial buildings. More than 3,350 residential buildings were damaged and destroyed, of which 1,579 apartments and houses were completely demolished and burned, if there was no possibility of repairing these homes. Because of this, most of the returnees were left without any property with which they could continue their lives. During the occupation, more than 300 Croat Civilians were killed in Petrinja. [14] [15] The military casualties of the Croatian forces, whose place of residence and life belonged to the former municipality of Petrinja, by the end of the Homeland War were as follows: 224 veterans were killed and missing. [16]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Petrinja</span> Town in Continental Croatia, Croatia

Petrinja is a town in central Croatia near Sisak in the historic region of Banovina. It is administratively located in Sisak-Moslavina County.

The Škabrnja massacre was the killing of 62 Croatian civilians and five prisoners of war by Serbian Autonomous Oblast Krajina Territorial Defence troops and the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) in the villages of Škabrnja and Nadin east of Zadar on 18–19 November 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence. The massacre occurred shortly after an agreement to evacuate Zadar's JNA garrison following an increase in fighting between the Croatian National Guard and the JNA. Most of the killings were committed by SAO Krajina troops which followed the leading armoured JNA units fighting their way into Škabrnja on 18 November. During the initial attack, the attacking force employed a human shield of captured civilians forced to walk in front of armoured vehicles. Most of the civilian population fled the village and about 120–130 were captured by the JNA and detained in the village school and kindergarten. However, others who took shelter in basements were killed in or just outside their homes. A portion of those killed in the massacre were buried in a mass grave in Škabrnja, while dozens of bodies were turned over to Croatian authorities.

The Baćin massacre was the killing of 83 civilians just outside the village of Baćin, near Hrvatska Dubica, committed by Croatian Serb paramilitaries. The killings took place on 21 October 1991 during the Croatian War of Independence. Most of the civilians were Croats, but they also included two ethnic Serbs, taken from Hrvatska Dubica, Baćin and the nearby village of Cerovljani. The civilians were killed in the area of Krečane, at the very bank of the Una River, and their bodies were left unburied for two weeks. Most of them were subsequently bulldozed into a shallow mass grave, while a number of the bodies were thrown into the river. Further killings of Croat civilians continued in Baćin and surrounding areas until February 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of the Barracks</span> Part of the Croatian War of Independence

The Battle of the Barracks was a series of engagements that occurred in mid-to-late 1991 between the Croatian National Guard and the Croatian police on one side and the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) on the other. The battle took place around numerous JNA posts in Croatia, starting when Croatian forces blockaded the JNA barracks, weapons storage depots and other facilities. It formally began on 14 September; its objective was to neutralise the JNA positions in ZNG-held territory and to secure arms and ammunition supplies for the poorly equipped ZNG.

The Battle of Zadar was a military engagement between the Yugoslav People's Army, supported by the Croatian Serb Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Krajina, and the Croatian National Guard, supported by the Croatian Police. The battle was fought north and east of the city of Zadar, Croatia, in the second half of September and early October 1991 during the Croatian War of Independence. Although the JNA's initial orders were to lift the Croatian siege of the JNA's barracks in the city and isolate the region of Dalmatia from the rest of Croatia, the orders were amended during the battle to include capturing the Port of Zadar in the city centre. The JNA's advance was supported by the Yugoslav Air Force and Navy.

The Dalj massacre was the killing of Croats in Dalj, Croatia from 1 August 1991 until June 1992, during the Croatian War of Independence. In addition to civilian victims, the figure includes 20 Croatian policemen, 15 Croatian National Guard troops and four civil defencemen who had been defending the police station and water supply building in the village on 1 August 1991. While some of the policemen and the ZNG troops died in combat, those who surrendered were killed after they became prisoners of war. They tried to fight off an attack by the Croatian Serb SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia Territorial Defence Forces, supported by the Yugoslav People's Army and the Serb Volunteer Guard paramilitaries. The SAO SBWS was declared an autonomous territory in eastern Croatia following the Battle of Borovo Selo just to the south of Dalj.

The 1992 Yugoslav People's Army column incident in Tuzla, also known as Tuzla column was an attack on the 92nd Motorized Brigade of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) in the Bosnian city of Tuzla on 15 May 1992. The incident occurred at the road junction of Brčanska Malta. At least 54 soldiers of the JNA were killed and 44 wounded during the attacks. What started off as a peaceful retreat by agreement with local authorities ended in an ambush, when Patriotic League, Green Berets and Bosniaks from local police attacked the column. It was a repeat of a similar incident that occurred in Sarajevo a week prior.

Operation Whirlwind was a failed Croatian Army (HV) offensive in the Banovina region of Croatia, fought from 11–13 December 1991, during the early stages of the Croatian War of Independence. The offensive employed a single infantry brigade as the main attacking force, supported by a bridging unit and a handful of tanks and armoured personnel carriers. Although the offensive met hardly any resistance in its initial stage, achieving tactical surprise, the operation was poorly planned, supported and executed as a result of limited training and combat experience. The offensive established a short-lived bridgehead, evacuated in panic two days after the operation commenced, under tank and mortar fire from the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) deployed north of Glina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Gospić</span> Battle of the Croatian War of Independence

The Battle of Gospić was fought in the environs of Gospić, Croatia, from 29 August until 22 September 1991 during the Croatian War of Independence. The battle pitted the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), stationed in five barracks in the town, and paramilitary elements of the Serbian Guard against the Croatian National Guard (ZNG), police forces based in Gospić and police reinforcements from elsewhere in Croatia. Fighting in the eastern districts of Gospić, controlled by JNA forces with supporting artillery, was largely static but the balance shifted in favor of the Croatian forces following the capture of several JNA depots and barracks on 14 September. The remaining barracks were captured by 20 September leading to the expulsion of the JNA and Serbian Guard forces from the town.

The Battle of Šibenik, also known as the September War, was an armed conflict fought between the Yugoslav People's Army, supported by the Croatian Serb-established Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Krajina, and the Croatian National Guard, supported by the Croatian Police. The battle was fought to the north and west of the city of Šibenik, Croatia on 16–22 September 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence. The JNA's initial orders were to relieve Croatian siege of their barracks in the city and isolate the region of Dalmatia from the rest of Croatia. The JNA's advance was supported by the Yugoslav Air Force and the Yugoslav Navy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2nd Guards Brigade (Croatia)</span> Military unit

The 2nd Guards Brigade, nicknamed "the Thunders", was one of the original Croatian National Guard (ZNG) brigades formed in 1991 and one of the most elite mechanized infantry units in the Croatian Ground Army (HV) during its existence, during which it saw action in a number of engagements during the War of Independence (1991–1995).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1991 Yugoslav campaign in Croatia</span> Conflict between SFR Yugoslavia and Croatia

The 1991 Yugoslav campaign in Croatia was a series of engagements between the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), the Yugoslav Navy and the Yugoslav Air Force, and the Croatian National Guard (ZNG) then the Croatian Army (HV) during the Croatian War of Independence. The JNA was originally deployed in order to preserve Yugoslavia, and the initial plan of the campaign entailed the military occupation of Croatia and the removal of the Croatian leadership elected in 1990. The JNA intervention was the culmination of its involvement in the confiscation of weapons from Croatia's Territorial Defence, and in the Croatian Serb revolt that had begun in August 1990. From that time, the JNA had been frequently deployed to form a buffer zone between the Croatian Serb guerrillas and the ZNG or the Croatian police. In effect, these JNA buffer zones often secured the territorial gains of the insurgents and led to an increasingly hostile relationship between the JNA and Croatia. The JNA campaign plan was amended shortly before the campaign to include the relief of JNA barracks besieged by the ZNG. The besieging and subsequent capture of several JNA facilities allowed Croatia to arm its previously poorly equipped military and to equip and recruit new ethnic Croat conscripts and officers of the Yugoslav People's Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Croatian Special Police order of battle in 1991–1995</span> Military unit

The order of battle of the Croatian Special Police Units in 1991–1995 included up to 30 individual special forces units subordinated to the Ministry of the Interior. The special police was created around the Ministry of the Interior's existing airborne special forces unit following an open revolt of the Croatian Serbs against the Government of Croatia in August 1990. It further developed with the increasing involvement of the Yugoslav People's Army in the conflict, supporting the Croatian Serbs. The conflict escalated into the Croatian War of Independence in 1991. The special police took part in the first clashes of the war in Pakrac and at the Plitvice Lakes. As Croatia had no army, the 3,000-strong special forces became the country's most effective fighting force.

The Battle of Logorište was fought east of Duga Resa and south of Karlovac, Croatia, from 4–6 November 1991 during the Croatian War of Independence, between the Croatian National Guard and the Yugoslav People's Army. The ZNG placed the JNA-held Logorište barracks under a blockade as part of the countrywide Battle of the Barracks, which aimed to pin down JNA units isolated in their bases and force them to surrender weapons and ammunition to the ZNG. However, the JNA garrison broke out from the besieged barracks with part of its stored equipment before the ZNG claimed the vacant base. The breakout was supported by JNA units and SAO Krajina units deployed to lift the blockade of the barracks and other JNA garrisons in Karlovac. A battle ensued as the ZNG attempted to contain advancing JNA units, ending with a ceasefire signed in The Hague.

The siege of Varaždin Barracks, also referred to locally as Varaždin's days of war, was the blockade and capture of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) barracks and other facilities in and around the city of Varaždin during the Croatian War of Independence. The blockade began on 14 September 1991, quickly escalated into fighting, and ended on 22 September with the surrender of the JNA garrison. It was part of the Battle of the Barracks—an effort by Croatian armed forces to isolate JNA units based at barracks in Croatia, or capture the barracks to provide arms for Croatia's nascent army.

The siege of Bjelovar Barracks, also known by the codename Operation Bilogora, was the blockade and capture of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) barracks and other facilities in and around the city of Bjelovar, a part of the JNA 32nd (Varaždin) Corps, during the Croatian War of Independence. A general blockade of the JNA facilities in Croatia was ordered on 14 September 1991, and it continued until 29 September when the JNA garrison was captured by Croatian forces. Its capture occurred one week after the bulk of the 32nd Corps surrendered. It was part of the Battle of the Barracks—an effort by Croatian armed forces to isolate JNA units based at barracks in Croatia, or capture the barracks to provide arms for Croatia's nascent army.

Operation Stinger was an offensive undertaken by the forces of the SAO Krajina, an unrecognized Croatian Serb region opposing the Republic of Croatia, against positions held by the Croatian police in the region of Banovina on 26–27 July 1991, during the Croatian War of Independence. It was primarily aimed at police stations in Glina and Kozibrod, as well as police-held positions in a string of villages between the town of Dvor and Kozibrod. In addition to Glina and Kozibrod, heavy fighting took place in the village of Struga, north of Dvor, where Croatian Serb forces employed a human shield consisting of Croat civilians taken from their homes in Struga and the nearby village of Zamlača.

The Petrinja Killings refers to a series of mass murders and other crimes that were committed by various Serb forces against Croat POWs and civilians, from September 1991 until June 1992, in the town of Petrinja and in surrounding areas.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Hrvatska Kostajnica</span> 1991 Battle of the Croatian War of Independence

The Battle of Hrvatska Kostajnica was a military engagement fought between the proclaimed Croatian-Serb Serbian Autonomous Oblast of Krajina supported by the Yugoslav People’s Army and local Territorial Defense based in Bosanska Kostajnica, against the Croatian National Guard (ZNG) and Croatian policemen. Fought between July 17th, ending with the capture of Kostajnica on September 13th, the desired result was mainly to kill Croatian President Franjo Tuđman, whom was inspecting Croatian National Guard personnel in Hrvatska Kostajnica.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Nuštar</span>

The Battle of Nuštar was a major battle during the Croatian War of Independence. Fought between the 2nd of November to the 5th of November, 1991. It was fought between Croatia, and SAO Krajina which was supported by the Yugoslav People’s Army, between the dates of 2–5 November 1991. Nuštar was situated near Vukovar and Vinkovci, it was a major necessity to the Croatian defenders at Vukovar and Vinkovci, due it’s road that led to nearby villages and towns, which had supplied the Croats in Vukovar. Nuštar saw major artillery shelling from the Yugoslav People’s Army, along with air strikes conducted by the Yugoslav Air Force. Despite the major bombing and shelling from the Yugoslav People’s Army and the Yugoslav Air Force, The Croatian garrison in Nuštar never fell, but it suffered massive infrastructural damage.

References

  1. ↑ Balkan Battlegrounds: A Military History of the Yugoslav Conflict. Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Russian and European Analysis. 2002. p. 84. ISBN   978-0-16-066472-4.
  2. 1 2 3 Sarkotić, Gordana (2015-09-21). "21. rujna 1991. Petrinja – okupacija i zločini u gradu". narod.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 2024-08-26.
  3. 1 2 3 Narod.hr (2014-09-15). "Kontekst ratova za vojarne: razoružavanje teritorijalne obrane Hrvatske, uvođenje embarga i otvoreni napad JNA". narod.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 2024-08-26.
  4. ↑ https://www.independent.co.uk/news/the-town-had-been-cleansed-the-devastation-of-battle-lay-all-around-just-two-old-people-remained-1595248.html
  5. ↑ Balkan Battlegrounds: A Military History of the Yugoslav Conflict. Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Russian and European Analysis. 2002. p. 83. ISBN   978-0-16-066472-4.
  6. ↑ https://books.google.de/books?id=qmN95fFocsMC&redir_esc=y
  7. ↑ Rupić, Marko, ed. (2007). Republika Hrvatska i Domovinski rat 1990. – 1995. – Dokumenti, Knjiga 1 [The Republic of Croatia and the Croatian War of Independence 1990–1995 – Documents, volume 1] (PDF). Zagreb, Croatia: Hrvatski memorijalno-dokumentacijski centar Domovinskog rata. ISBN 978-953-7439-03-3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-26. Retrieved 2014-03-07.
  8. ↑ https://books.google.de/books?id=qmN95fFocsMC&redir_esc=y
  9. ↑ Rupić, Marko, ed. (2007). Republika Hrvatska i Domovinski rat 1990. – 1995. – Dokumenti, Knjiga 1 [The Republic of Croatia and the Croatian War of Independence 1990–1995 – Documents, volume 1] (PDF). Zagreb, Croatia: Hrvatski memorijalno-dokumentacijski centar Domovinskog rata. ISBN 978-953-7439-03-3. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-11-26. Retrieved 2014-03-07.
  10. ↑ Bjelajac, Mile; Žunec, Ozren (2009). "The War in Croatia, 1991–1995". In Charles W. Ingrao; Thomas Allan Emmert (eds.). Confronting the Yugoslav Controversies: A Scholars' Initiative. West Lafayette, Indiana: Purdue University Press. pp. 230–271. ISBN 978-1-55753-533-7.
  11. 1 2 Narod.hr (2015-06-12). "Obilježena masovna grobnica hrvatskih civila i branitelja na petrinjskom podučju". narod.hr (in Croatian). Retrieved 2024-08-26.
  12. ↑ https://www.independent.co.uk/news/the-town-had-been-cleansed-the-devastation-of-battle-lay-all-around-just-two-old-people-remained-1595248.html
  13. ↑ Bjelajac, Mile; Žunec, Ozren (2009). "The War in Croatia, 1991–1995". In Charles W. Ingrao; Thomas Allan Emmert (eds.). Confronting the Yugoslav Controversies: A Scholars' Initiative. West Lafayette, Indiana: Purdue University Press. pp. 230–271. ISBN 978-1-55753-533-7.
  14. ↑ "The Prosecutor vs. Milan Martic – Judgement" (PDF). International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia. 12 June 2007.
  15. ↑ "Stravičan prizor: Kraj Petrinje pronađena masovna grobnica". 2012-03-23. Archived from the original on 2012-03-23. Retrieved 2024-08-26.
  16. ↑ Hoare, Marko Attila (2010). "The War of Yugoslav Succession". In Ramet, Sabrina P. (ed.). Central and Southeast European Politics Since 1989. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 111–136. ISBN   978-1-139-48750-4.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.