, huhh?..:)
Posted on 06/02/2005 8:54:24 PM PDT by Hoplite
Agencies in Belgrade
Friday June 3, 2005
The Guardian
They are the images that have finally, 10 years later, shocked a nation. A man, several men, are unloaded from a truck, marched to a wooded hillside and shot, one by one, in the back. Two prisoners are ordered to carry the bodies to a barn. They too are then executed. The murder of thousands of Bosnian Muslims from Srebrenica in the summer of 1995 is well documented. But a video that emerged this week during the trial of the former Serbian president, Slobodan Milosevic, has provoked a bout of soul-searching in Serbia, parts of which are still in denial over the horrors of the Bosnian war.
The footage was the first such graphic material from the massacre in Srebrenica to be shown in the country, where more than half of the population refuses to believe it even took place, according to a poll last month. "Serbia is deeply shocked," President Boris Tadic said. "Those images are proof of a monstrous crime committed against persons of a different religion. And the guilty had walked as free men until now."
Eight alleged former members of a Serb paramilitary group, the Scorpions, filmed actually carrying out the murders, have been arrested on the strength of the footage, officials said yesterday.
The faces of the perpetrators can be seen and their insults to the Muslims heard. The film was shot by a member of the Scorpions.
"The killers had walked freely among us, on our streets, behaving as if they were ordinary, honorable citizens," Mr Tadic said. "All those who committed war crimes must be held accountable; only in this way will we be able to have a future. We must not close our eyes to the cruelty that took place."
He added that the crimes at Srebrenica "were carried out in the name of our nation".
"But crimes are always individual and the perpetrators of these monstrous crimes must be punished."
Srebrenica was overrun by Bosnian Serb forces in July 1995, with UN peacekeepers powerless to stop their advance. Some 8,000 Bosnian men and boys were led away to their deaths, survivors telling of how they were lined up and shot in several batches, then buried in mass graves.
The prime minister, Vojislav Kostunica, called the executions a "disgraceful".
UN prosecutors say the killings in the video footage took place on Mount Treskavica near the wartime Bosnian Serb capital, Pale, which is south-west of Srebrenica. The Scorpions were allegedly under orders from Serbian police in Belgrade and the link could directly tie Mr Milosevic with the crimes committed in Bosnia.
Another point about the executions. I'm not so sure it was all revenge, at least not on Mladic's part. I wouldn't be surprised if the decision, in Mladic's mind, was not simply in the interest of expediency. From what I understand, the Serbs were shocked that Srebrenica fell so easily. Then, what to do with all those prisoners? Mladic's lines were stretched very thin at the time. Does he try to keep up with and feed all those prisoners when he can barely feed his own soldiers? Let them go to shoot at him again next Tuesday? No, he decided to send some on the turkey shoot and get some target practice. Execute the rest. Horrifying, but true.
Yes, I will grant you that it was more of a turkey shoot than actual "battling".
hey,take a look at this clown shoe!
Ha! Ha! Google brings us such silly people sometimes!
Has anyone ever told you to layoff the crack?
LOL!!!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comment #183 Removed by Moderator
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comment #184 Removed by Moderator
And you are probably a TROLL!!!!
, huhh?..:)
Prove it.
Based on your statement, the Albanians were/are pro actively and intentionally targeting Serbs for extermination. Thanks for the clarification.
The rabid apologists are truly amazing aren't they? All they have is (essentially what they're implying is) "they're muslim, they deserve it"... How disgraceful
Kind of like what Oric thought when he slaughtered all those Serbs for simply being Serbs, disgraceful indeed.
BlindAsHell
they did committ crimes......but not 8,000. for that the criminals are being rounded up. Ceku did the same thing...and it a president....Thaqi and Ramush are both criminals and they are party leaders and treated well...others are pardoned or released....
It is a president...:)) meaning "is a president" correction....
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.