ai-Journal November 1995

Bosnia-Herzegovina.

 The missing people of Srebrenica.

The word "protection zone" suggested a safety which wasn’t there. The Bosnian Serbian army attacked the Muslim enclaves Srebrenica and Zepa in which is lied in the east of Bosnia-Herzegovina in July this year. After few days the battle was decided: About 40,000 people alone in Srebrenica had got homeless and went to the flight, were evacuated or arrested: - the latter primarily the men in this "age fit for military service".  The whereabouts of around 4000 men between 13 and 77 years is unsolved to this day. There are clear indications that it has come to kidnappings and murders. About 15,000 inhabitants of the enclave tried to escape through the woods in the by Bosnian controlled area at Tuzla. They were attacked by Serbian troops on their way there. Witnesses with whom employees of amnesty international could speak some days after the Fall of Srebrenicas, reported that men who surrendered to the Serbian troops were taken away or shot. There also are indications that mass executions have taken place. An eyewitness guesses that about 3000 men have been picked up by Serbian troops on the flight. To this day, you haven't appeared again. The people remained in the place retired with the soldiers of the UNPROFOR to a shut down battery factory to Potoaari. five kilometres to the north of Srebrenica. The interviews which ai-employees made  with former inhabitants of Srebrenicas, hardly allow no daubts that it has come to maltreatments, murders and rapes by the Serbian conquerors. Most of the refugees of Potoaari were evacuated to Tuzla under control of the red cross later. It shall have come to revenge actions against remained Serbians in the region in Tuzla. In the case of the smaller "protection zone" Zepa men also have been fetched and held out of busses. However, less reports on encroachments and lootings are with Ai considerably from Zepa than from Srebrenica.  Serebrenica had been besieged since 1992 by troops of the Bosnian Serbians. The UNO security council had declared the enclave the UNO protection zone and stationed some units of the defence force UNPROFOR in April 1993, which should ensure the safety of the inhabitants and supervise the armistice. For two years it had left at smaller military discussion, until the Serbian commanders on July 8th ordered the offensive. The enclave fell into the hands of the attackers three days later. According to researches of the Berlin "Tageszeitung" the military and secret service of the USA already knew before the attacks on Srebrenica about the of the forthcoming offensive. The paper quotes Eavesdrop protocols of conversations between the Serbian commander-in-chief. Pericic from Belgrade and the military chief  of the Bosnian Serbs, Mladic, in which the attack on the UNO-protection-zone was planned. Also  U.S. reconnaissance airplanes would have become evident with air exceptions already weeks before the attack, that the Serbians pulled together their troops around Srebrenica. Later photos which also would be withheld shall show shootings.

Washington has neither informed the UNO nor the NATO allies about their knowledge - in assessment of the "taz"  the fall Srebrenicas just like the expulsion of the Serbians from the Krajina was accepted, to not endanger one’s own peace campaign for Bosnia-Herzegovina.