When was bosnian genocide

Serb forces attacked other predominantly Serb territories and carried out a reign of terror to expel Croats and Bosniaks.

In addition to these massacres, Serbs attacked Bosniak culture by destroying major institutions and burning books, rare manuscripts, and historical archives. However, the UN refused to intervene in a military manner. As early as August , the existence of Serbian concentration camps became public and the world began to recognize these crimes as genocide.

The objective was to ethnically purify the territory. Srebrenica was located in the territory of the Bosnian Serb Republic and had been a Bosniak enclave under UN protection since May A battalion of nearly Dutch peacekeepers were stationed there. Besieged since , the town had 44, residents, half of whom were refugees. Families were separated: men were forced to remain while women and children were boarded on buses and deported.

Around , civilians were trapped and cut off from food, medicine, water, and electricity for the duration of the 1,day siege. Horrific violence and human rights abuses took place during the siege. At a soccer game in at least 15 people were killed and 80 were wounded by a mortar attack.

Red Cross trucks were raided and destroyed and maternity wards were hit, killing mothers and newborns. Many more were killed while in line for water.

Food scarcity was a major issue for those who survived death by sniper fire and mortar attacks. An average Sarajevan lost 30 pounds during the siege. According to UN officials, in over 7, flights brought nearly 82, tons of aid into Sarajevo via humanitarian airlift. However, this effort was often suspended due to airport closings caused by shelling and sniper attacks in the area. On February 29, , the Bosnian government declared that the siege of Sarajevo was finally over.

That number includes those who escaped via an meter tunnel that opened during the summer of , the only direct link that Sarajevo had with the outside world.

The tunnel began at the edge of the besieged city and ran under the airport to Bosniak held territory on the other side; it was used to transport food, medicine, weapons, and wounded people.

The campaign against non-Serb civilians in the region also included ethnic cleansing, mass murder, and the destruction of Bosnian property and cultural sites, including the demolition of 13 mosques.

In , Croats began destroying mosques and Bosniak homes, murdering civilians, and pillaging villages. In , Croats targeted civilians by shelling major shopping centers and using Bosniaks as human shields in battle.

Hundreds of concentration camps were established, mass killings were carried out, and Muslim mosques and historic sites were destroyed. People were pressed tightly into barracks and deprived of basic necessities. Despite media coverage, the global community failed to take significant action. Nearly 14, Muslim men were incarcerated in the camps and more than 10, of them perished. One of the worst was Omarska, where thousands of Muslim and Croat civilian men were held in metal cages and killed in groups of ten to fifteen every few days.

Serbs denied access to those who wanted to investigate the camps, including relief officials and journalists. Serbs tried to cover up mass graves by moving bodies to mining sites where they were mangled by mining equipment or drenched in chemicals before being thrown into mine pits. Violence was committed on all sides.

Bosniaks and Croats also operated some camps where Serbs were detained. On February 6, , a plea was made to President Bill Clinton for military intervention after an attack on a marketplace in Sarajevo killed 68 people and wounded over The ceremony at the US Capitol, featuring a candle-lighting and names reading, is happening now. Join us right now to watch a live interview with a survivor, followed by a question-and-answer session. The Museum's commemoration ceremony, including remarks by the German ambassador and a Holocaust survivor, is happening now.

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