Kentucky woman accused of Bosnian war crimes

Boston Herald ^ | 3/17/11 | Jennifer Hewlett

[Bokababe]

LEXINGTON, Ky. — U.S. authorities have arrested a 51-year-old Croatian-born woman in Kentucky who is accused of war crimes against civilians during the Bosnian civil war in the 1990s.

Azra Basic, who was living in Stanton, Ky., is accused of torturing and murdering ethnic Serbs at prison camps from April to June 1992. Bosnia and Herzegovina officials want Basic returned to that country to stand trial

Eyewitnesses Radojica Garic and Dragan Kovacevic said Basic murdered Blagoje Djuras, who had been beaten to unconsciousness by Croatian police and soldiers, by slitting his throat with a knife, according to a court document.

"After that, Azra took us by the hair and dragged us to the wound on the neck from which the blood ran and made us drink that blood," Garic said......

[Slump Tester]

"Was she a muslim or Christian?"

Either way, she needs to cover her face.

[manc]

it still sickens me how we went in over there.

The left have no clue when it comes to foreign policy, infact they have no clue on about anything

[Bokababe]

The cross with the four “S” or C’s in Cyrillic is the symbol of Serbia.

Yes, the C's (in Cyrillic) mean "Samo Sloga Srbina Spasava". Translation: "Only Unity will Save the Serbs". It's attributed to St. Sava in the 12th century.

St. Sava also said something about the Serbs that is true today as it was when he said it:

"At first we were confused. The East thought that we were West, while the West considered us to be East. Some of us misunderstood our place in the clash of currents, so they cried that we belong to neither side, and others that we belong exclusively to one side or the other. But I tell you, Ireneus, we are doomed by fate to be the East in the West and the West in the East, to acknowledge only heavenly Jerusalem beyond us, and here on earth--no one."

[PzLdr]

Croatians are largely Roman Catholic. During WW II, their Fascist militias and police had the dubious distinction of being written up [twice] for brutality to prisoners—by the SS.

[Bokababe]

This woman Azra Basic was likely neo-Ustashi.

The original WWII Croatian Ustashi were so sadistic and brutal that even their German allies were repulsed. Muslims were also accepted into the Ustashi and were considered "Honorary Croats". Sadly, the Ustashi wasn't destroyed when the Nazis lost, instead most of them just left the country and went to South America or came to the US. In the 1990s, many of them returned to Croatia to start a revival. Azra's sadistic brutality was the same MO as the original Ustashi.

[cizinec]

If she’s ethnically Croat, she’s Catholic.

That is highly probable. However (we are talking about the Balkans here, so there is always a however), I know some ethnic Croats who are Orthodox. Yes, I know, that's supposed to make you Serbian. It doesn't, apparently, and there is more to being Croat or Serbian than religion.

Having said that, there is only religion to do with being a "Bosniak," which is just a made up term for either a Croat or Serb who became or whose family became Muslim. I suspect this one is from a Muslim family who married a Croat or is a Croat with a muslim background. Being "Croatian born" doesn't mean anything about your ethnic identity or religion.

[BobL]

But, but, Croatia was the GOOD GUYS. All the eeeeeeeevil in that part of the world was committed by the Serbs.

Why are they railroading this poor woman, who only wants to start a new life...thousands of miles away from those horrible Serbs?

...at least that’s what we were told.

[BobL]

“Croatians are largely Roman Catholic. During WW II, their Fascist militias and police had the dubious distinction of being written up [twice] for brutality to prisoners—by the SS.”

That says a lot and explains the anger of the Serbs in that part of the world. I cannot even begin to imagine what it took to get the SS to write you up for brutality.

[Sarajevo]

Having said that, there is only religion to do with being a "Bosniak," which is just a made up term for either a Croat or Serb who became or whose family became Muslim.

That is an interesting point that was brought up in the book, "Croatia, A Nation Forged in War" by Marcus Tanner. He stated that the Serbs and Croats were forced to convert my the Ottomans or they would lose their right to their property.

[gusty]

Probably a Catholic Croat. I lot of people do not realize that the Bosnian War was a three way contest. Croat, Muslim and Serb fighting everybody. Even Muslims from Bihac fighting against the Sarajevo Muslims. There was a movie with Dennis Quade, I forget the name, that showed all sides murdering each other.
In the picture above, that wouldn’t be Raylen Givens taken her into custody, it is Kentucky.

[Bokababe]

I cannot even begin to imagine what it took to get the SS to write you up for brutality.

Just to give you an idea, the name of the weapon above translates to "Serb cutter". Instead of gas or bullets, the this was used to slit Serb, Jewish and Gypsy throats at the Croat-run deathcamp called Jasenovac, where the population was more than half women, children and old people. One Ustashi bragged that he was able to slit over 1,000 throats in one night. The Ustashi laughed at the Germans who wasted so much money on gas & bullets when "a knife would do just as well".

The worst of it was that most of the top level of these guys were never punished. The second in command, Andrija Artukovic, lived in the US until the mid 1980's. When he was finally deported, he was a senile old man that was treated more like an "old hero" (under house arrest) than anything else. There is more on the Ustashi and their deathcamp Jasenovac here with quite a collection of photos.

It's worth noting that Jasenovac was the first WWII deathcamp in Europe and the only one not run by Nazi Germany, but by the Croats themselves.

[Bokababe]

I lot of people do not realize that the Bosnian War was a three way contest. Croat, Muslim and Serb fighting everybody.

Actually, it was a four way, if you count Fikret Abdic's forces.

Abdic was a secular Muslim who was the duly elected president of Bosnia that Izetbegovic pushed aside. Abdic was also a successful business man. The Serbs made a deal with Abdic and they fought on the same side, against Izetbegovic's forces who were receiving support from Iran and importing ME Muslims for the fight. But for whatever reason we chose to back Izetbegovic, the Islamist, even though Izetbegovic had been a youth recruiter during WWII for the Nazi-backed (and Mufti of Jerusalem blessed) Handzar SS Division.

When Izetbegovic (our guy) won, he decimated those who had backed Abdic in the Velika Kladusa area of Bosnia, turning loose the ME sword wielders on them -- Muslim against Muslim -- which didn't fit the news paradigm at the time so the MSM ignored it. A lot of Abdic's forces escaped to Serbia.

[BobL]

“Just to give you an idea, the name of the weapon above translates to “Serb cutter”...”

Thanks for the insight and the history. I don’t know it well, but I ALWAYS look real hard when people say that the Christians are the ‘bad guys’. This is just another example.

[Cindy]

Thank you for the ping Bokababe.

If she is convicted; I do hope she gets the death penalty.

[Terabitten]

Thanks for the insight and the history. I don’t know it well, but I ALWAYS look real hard when people say that the Christians are the ‘bad guys’. This is just another example.

Look a touch deeper. The Croats are Roman Catholic, the Serbs are Orthodox Christian.