Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Srebrenica and All Wars in Bosnia (11/07)

Despite numerous denials and ambiguities, it is believed that on July 11, 1995, the Republika Srpska army, police and volunteer units committed a major war crime against the male Bosniak population of the village of Srebrenica during the civil war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH).

According to UN Security Council Resolution №824 of May 6, 1993, Srebrenica, among other settlements in BiH, was declared a demilitarized zone under the protection of the UN. However, this was not done, and a contingent of the BiH Army — Bosniak Army — under the command of Nasser Oric, as well as volunteer formations, remained in the zone around Srebrenica.

On May 30, 1995, UN Secretary-General Boutros Ghali accused the BiH authorities of non-compliance with the requirements of the resolution, after which attacks from Srebrenica on Serb-controlled territories became more frequent. The list of those killed in the territory in 1992—1995, containing the names of 3,200 people, was not subsequently accepted for consideration by the Hague Tribunal.

On July 11, 1995, units of the RS Army under the command of General Ratko Mladic took Srebrenica and, according to the Hague Tribunal, killed about 8,000 and drove away about 30,000 Bosniaks. The Dutch UNPROFOR battalion did not have time to defend Srebrenica from a Serb attack. The Srebrenica massacre is one of the most dramatic episodes in the history of the Balkans.

Today, when trying to create a unified BiH law on holidays, representatives of the Bosniak-Muslim Federation constantly propose to celebrate this day as the Day of Remembrance for the Victims of Srebrenica and All Wars, however, the Serbian side is categorically against this. In FBiH itself, this day is a public holiday. Many hours of mourning events are held annually in Srebrenica.

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