Tuzla Massacre
| Tuzla Massacre | |
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| Location | Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina |
| Date | May 25, 1995 20:55 (UTC+1) |
| Target | City street |
| Attack type | Artillery fire |
| Deaths | 71 |
| Injured | 240 |
| Perpetrator(s) | Army of Republika Srpska |
The Tuzla Massacre was a massacre of civilians committed on May 25, 1995 in Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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[edit] The massacre
Between May 25 and May 28, 1995 a number of artillery projectiles were fired at Tuzla from Army of Republika Srpska positions near the village of Panjik on Mount Ozren some 25 km west of Tuzla. On May 25, 1995 (Marshall Tito's birthday and Relay of Youth in former Yugoslavia) at 20:55 hours, a shrapnel shell fired by a 130mm towed artillery piece, detonated in the part of the city called Kapija. There were 71 people killed and 240 wounded.[1][2][3] All of the victims were civilians and the majority were between the ages of 18-25.[1]
[edit] War crime verdict
Novak Đukić, a former Army of Republika Srpska officer was arrested in Banja Luka on November 7, 2007. At the time of the Tuzla massacre Đukić was the commander of the Tactical Group Ozren of the VRS. His trial began on March 11, 2008. On June 12, 2009, Đukić was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years imprisonment.[4]
[edit] Denial
In 2009, the prime minister of Republika Srpska, Milorad Dodik, stated that the attack was staged and questioned the Markale massacres at Sarajevo. The Tuzla municipality filed charges against Dodik over these statements. The city of Sarajevo filed criminal charges against Dodik for abuse of power, and inciting ethnic, racial and religious hatred.[5]
The Office of the High Representative said Dodik denied the war crimes committed and stated that "When such skewed facts come from an official in a position of high responsibility, an official who is obliged to uphold the Dayton Peace Accords and cooperate with the Hague Tribunal, then they are particularly irresponsible and undermine not only the institutions responsible for upholding the rule of law, but the credibility of the individual himself".[6]
[edit] See also
- List of massacres in Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Role of the media in the Yugoslav wars
- Serbian war crimes in the Yugoslav Wars
- Tuzla column Massacre
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Bosnian Serb jailed for massacre". BBC. 12 June 2009. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8097918.stm.
- ^ "Djukic: Regaining Faith in Bosnia Justice". Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. 19 May 2009. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/main/news/19068/.
- ^ "Bosnian War Crimes Charges Upheld". Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. 4 January 2008. http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/main/news/7229/.
- ^ "Novak Đukić sentenced to 25 years of long-term imprisonment". The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina. http://www.sudbih.gov.ba/?id=1281&jezik=e. Retrieved 12 May 2009.
- ^ "Sarajevo files charges against RS's Dodik". Southeast European Times. 7 October 2009. http://www.setimes.com/cocoon/setimes/xhtml/en_GB/features/setimes/newsbriefs/2009/10/07/nb-06.
- ^ "OHR slams Dodik statements". B92. 16 September 2009. http://www6.b92.net/eng/news/region-article.php?yyyy=2009&mm=09&dd=16&nav_id=61796.
[edit] External links
- Statement by the Mayor of Tuzla on the shelling
- Kapija 25.05.1995.godine
- NY Times
- Novak Đukić indictment
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