Bosnia, Jul 12: Bosnians commemorated on Saturday the massacre of about 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica, marking the 25th anniversary of killings that shocked the world and have stood out as Europe's only atrocity since World War Two constituting genocide.
Nine newly identified victims were buried at a flower-shaped cemetery near the town, where tall white tombstones mark the graves of 6,643 other victims.
"After 25 years we succeeded in finding his mortal remains, so they can be laid to their final rest," said Fikret Pezic, who buried his father Hasan.
The remains of some 1,000 victims of the massacre in the eastern town during Bosnia's 1992-1995 war are still missing.
Ifeta Hasanovic decided to bury incomplete remains of her husband, saying: "We were aware they cannot be complete after 25 years, at least there are some, I did not want to make any new delays."
World leaders addressed the ceremony by video link, unable to attend because of coronavirus epidemic. Instead of the tens of thousands visitors who typically attend the commemoration each year, only a few thousand came after organisers banned organised visits.
During the Bosnian war, Bosnian Serb forces pushed non-Serbs out of territories they sought for their Serb statelet. Fleeing Muslims took shelter in several eastern towns, including Srebrenica, that were designated as United Nations "safe zones".
On July 11, 1995, the Serb forces commanded by General Ratko Mladic overran Srebrenica, which was protected by lightly armed Dutch peacekeepers.
They sent women and children away and captured and executed the men and boys they found. The bodies were dumped into mass graves and later exhumed by U.N. investigators and used as evidence in war crimes trials of Bosnian Serb leaders.
"We grieve with the families that tirelessly seek justice for the 8,000 innocent lives lost, all these years later," said U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Washington brokered Bosnia's peace deal months after the massacre.
Most people at the commemoration were Muslim Bosniaks, reflecting conflicting narratives about the bloodshed - which hinders reconciliation nearly 25 years after the end of war in which about 100,000 people were killed.
The U.N. war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia convicted Mladic and his political chief Radovan Karadzic over Srebrenica genocide but they remained heroes for Serbs, many of whom deny that genocide happened.
On Saturday, the Serbs in the nearby town of Bratunac organised an event marking July 11 as the "Srebrenica Liberation Day".
Sefik Dzaferovic, the Bosniak chairman of Bosnia's tripartite presidency, called for legislation that would ban denial of genocide.
"There can be no trust as long as we witness attacks on the truth, denial of genocide and glorification and celebration of executors," Dzaferovic told the commemoration gathering.
Comments
who knows with immense pressure from policticans he might have been framed ..becoz ruling party needs one particular community votes and we know how murders of prashanth poojari and vaman poojari ( witness in murder ) got closed .vaman poojaris death shown as suicide .prashanth poojari murder cases all accused are getting acquitted .one jihadi who shouted islamic war cry while butchering our prashant poojari was standing next to abhaya chandra jain ... so conspiracy theory cannot be ruled out ... ankit is just accused and he is not proven guilty , so let our court decide who is culprit ... we dont talk in rubbish language like hang him , shoot him ... as we are not living in third rated countries , which asks proof from males if rape has hapened ...such a pathetic rules ...long live sangh parivar ... jaio sri ram
Narianna....are you not aware that the bloody goon has admitted his criminal deeds... Are u still in the influence of snake food ??? ....
If he comes out within 10 days, I will be not surprised, since we know the DNA of Indians .... as it happened in the case of Sadvi and Akshamdam cases....
I dont think he has stabbed ..if proved , let him be punished for murder ... but certainly not for silly silly cases ...
comment #16 , first ninna community members ge lecture kodu mama ... no need to advise billawa leaders ... third rated kelasa maaadtha irodu nimma jana maarre ... Mr Kazi , we are not living in third rated country to hang anyone without trial and he has not done any major mistake ... anyways he will come out within 10 days ...love to see many one particular community guys using hindu names and posting their frustration .:) hahaha ...
before punishing this culprit, find which VHP criminal is behind this idiot fellow and put him in the jail forever
These Billava boys are brain washed by RSS leaders. Why can't they brain wash their own children for such criminal act? No they will send their children to abroad for higher studies and for job.
Billava leaders must open their mind and guide their youngsters the real motto of these RSS leaders and keep them away from their bhakthi. etc.
baddy maga, i am waiting for him to get in case like this, he s flying all the time in our colony, police should break his leg again he should not enter our place.
Viren, right is right and wrong is wrong....where is the proof for your allegation against minorities....totally rubbish.....This criminal has been thought to do this by Sanghis to promote communal disharmony around.....
Good job police, specially the mosque for installing CCTV camera, otherwise this criminal would have went scott free. Give him harshest punishment so that others should learn good lesson from it....
Viren ..........No killing justfied .....as far as Nationalism concern no one need your Help...thay all know who you are and your dirty RSS and its wings....so keep your Brahmanism with you at home ....we all know who killed RTI Activists that too being a HINDU....OK ...adella OK neevu ee deshadalli dwesha YAKE ...saaka ?
Elli Nyaya illavo allide ....karya...
send him out of india, hang him to death,,,very dangerous people....
lets pray for his family, god bless u all.
this is a serious issue, should consider him as a main suspect of all the crime and should investigate properly all the goons should be caught and punished properly, my big suggestion is to cut the legs of these type of goons and let them sit on streets for begging,
Very Sad news rickshaw driver, \let his soul rest in peace\" but killing in Hindustan, stone pelting in Hindustan all these doing are really condemnable, but this Criminal does not look like Poojary Family definitely I belong too but his Nature his body language looks like \"Cross Breed\" you readers must have understood that means must Illegal!!!!!!! so you Understand our Local language says for that type of Goons, he never ever can become a good Human, if you punish or put in Jail whatever you do Tail of \"DOG\" can never become straight
Jai hoo Modianna"
guilty must be punished.
Every crime is condemnable. but, we all know that you are a nationalist. If compared to the crime of those who back stab our motherland what u did is nothing.
totally Brain washed by the RSS goons.
lets kill this dog in street by stone.
Should be put on Lie detector, to get the details of his masters / brain washers / supporters .... Afterwords should be hanged in a public place .... as a lesson for the other goons of the coastal districts ...
hang him to death, these type of creatures are creating trouble to the society.
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