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Blagoje Jovović

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Blagoje Jovović
Born(1922-01-01)January 1, 1922
DiedJune 2, 1999(1999-06-02) (aged 77)
NationalitySerbian
Occupation(s)hotel owner, Serbian WW2 soldier, Ustaše hunter
Known formortally wounding Ante Pavelic

Blagoje Jovović (Template:Lang-sr, 1922 – June 2, 1999) was a participant of the antifascist war in Yugoslavia in both partisan and chetniks' movements, though he spent most of the war with Bjepavlić's Chetnik brigade. Jovović is notorious for attempting the assassination of Croatian Ustaše leader Ante Pavelić, on April 10, 1957.

Biography

Jovović was born in Kosić, in the vicinity of Danilovgrad.

In World War II he fought for the Yugoslav Army in the Fatherland, and he was a member of the Bjepavlić Chetnik brigade. At the time when the World War II started, Jovović was serving in Strumica, near the Yugoslav border with Greece. For his part in the April War he was honoured a medal. When the war was over, he came back to his birthplace, Kosić in Bjelopavlici.

As of July 1941 he took place in antifascist war against Italy. With Kosić’s partisan unit he participated in the battle of Pljevlja, and later he became the commander of that unit.

He denied to perform the order of his commander Ivan Milutinović to attack Baja Stanišić, who was planning to attack after finding out that communists were preparing to attack their political opponents, because “he didn’t want to take part in the brothers’ killing war”.

Meanwhile, he started fighting with the Chetniks,[1] under the command of Baja Stanisic, who was also previously his professor in military academy.

As of September 1944, he was part of delegation that was sent across the Adriatic Sea to Italy to negotiate with the British authorities.

Jovović spent his time in Italy in several immigration camps. He was surrounded by the people tied to the intelligence service operations. On one such occasion, he met Randolph Churchill who he didn't have a high opinion of.[2] At that time he also found out that the Catholic Church had been hiding Ante Pavelic inside the Vatican under the false name. Jovović conceived the idea of finding and executing Pavelić.

Jovović was known as a philanthropist, the founder and of Serbian Orthodox community “Saint Sava”, and one of the founders of the Organisation of Fighters “Draža Mihailović” as well as the member of the Board of the “Njegos” association.

While living in Argentina and running a successful hotel enterprise that he owned, Jovović receives tips about Ante Pavelić whereabouts. It was revealed he that he is in Argentina. Jakov Jovović has started with the assassination plans, but soon after Blagoje Jovović voluntarily agreed to execute it. They were also joined by Milo Krivokapić. A decision has been made, so the assassination was supposed to take place on April 9, 1957, on the eve of the Independent State of Croatia’s anniversary celebration, but it was decided that the assassination be delayed for the day after.[2] On April 10 at 9 P.M., local time, Pavelić, suspected that someone is following him, so he turned back and fired several shots towards Jovović. Jovović then started running after Pavelic and in his direction he fired five shots, with two hitting him. He then staggered, bent and he was begging for mercy.[2]

The assassination is illustrated in the following excerpt from the book “Two shots for Pavelić” („Два метка за Павелића”):[2]

I went after him. Walking fast. Nearly running. I got close seven-eight meters. Pavelic sensed me, saw… He started shouting: “I fuck your Serbian-Jewish communist mother!” I hear the shot, don't know where it comes from. I’m not stopping. Running straight towards Pavelić. I came two-three meters away from him and then took a shot. Once. Twice! I shot him in the back, as he was running away. Two bullets got in to him. He falls down. As he was carrying the purse, it falls aside to a garden. He fells down, doesn’t move, I had to believe that he could be pretending to be dead, when two bullets hit him. At the moment, I'm thinking – perhaps it’s better to have him alive, because he’s going to a hospital, people will find out who he really was, and then he's going to face the trial. Do I beat him? And then I looked at that purse. His documents? It’d be nice to get them… But, if the money is in the purse, and then they catch me and say I’m a thief? And also that I killed him for the money! I'm gonna leave both Pavelić and his purse. Somebody is shouting: “They run, they run!” And shots are fired in my direction. I turn back and shoot towards that place. I shoot three times. I start running around the buildings in a semicircular street. People come out. They ask – what happened? Breathless I respond: “Look at those fools and what they're are doing there, drunk, and they shoot at everything!” “That guy is either drunk or crazy”, I yell so that the people on the windows could hear me. A gun was in my pocket. I left one bullet, just in case – picturesquely illustrates Jovović.

— Tihomir Tiho Burzanovic, Book About Blagoje Jovovic: Two Shots for Pavelic („Књига о Благоју Јововићу Два метка за Павелића”), Sveti Sava

Pavelić never recovered from injuries, as he suffered from diabetes. He died on December 28, 1959 as the result of those wounds.

Jovović visited Serbia and Montenegro for the first time after 55 years in 1999 when he visited Ostrog, where he met Metropolitan Amfilohije. He publicly confessed, right there, that he was the person responsible for assassinating Ante Pavelić.[2]

Jovović died on June 2, 1999 in Rosario, just few months after the visit to his birthplace.

References


Notes

  1. ^ Zlatar, Pero (March 9, 2009). "The Secret of the Assassination of Ante Pavelic". dalje.com. dalje.com. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  2. ^ a b c d e [1] Tihomir Tiho Burzanović, Knjiga o Blagoju Jovoviću - Dva metka za Pavelića.

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