Written statement of Witness-expert Savo Štrbac *

Witness Statement
L Bio information
My name is Savo Strbac. I was born in 1949, in v. Rastevié near Benkovac, Croatia.
Till 4 August 1995 I lived in a socially-owned flat in Benkovac. From thenon, I have
resided in Belgrade, as a refugee. I am married and a father of two. I am a Serb as to my
ethnie background. I have citizenship of both Croatia and Serbia.
I eamed a BA degree in law at the University of Zagreb Law Faculty in 1972, and
passed my bar exam there, four years la ter.
From 1977 to 1990 I was a judge of the Municipal Court in Benkovac and of the
District Court in Zadar.
When the Croatian Democratie Union (HDZ) party came to power in the Republic
of Croatia (RC), I quit my post as judge and set up a law office, as a member of the
Croatian Bar Association, in Korenica, on 1 Novem15er T990. During 1990 anâ I991~=,=o-r1====='="~
legally represented and defended persecuted Serbs in Croatia. In 1992-1995, as a member
of the Bar of the Republic of Serbian Krajina (R.SK), I was the counsel of parties before
the law courts of the RSK. On my arrivai in Belgrade, again as a member of the Serbian
Bar Association, I ccintinued to practise law up to 2011, when I retired because of my
illness.
From the outbreak of war onwards I was involved in the work of the RSK
Commission for Prisoner Exchanges, at fust as a Commission member and from 1993 as
its Chairman. The same year, I also became Secretary of the RSK Govemment, arid I held
these posts until the end of war. In peace-time I have been active on the Commissions for
Humanitarian Issues and Missing/Disappeared Persons of the Federal Republic of
Yugoslavia (FRY) and of the Bosnian Serb Republic of Srpska (R.S), where I used to and
still enjoy status of an expert specializing in the region ofRC.
2. Veritas
At the end of 1993, in cooperation with a group of intellectuals having medical and
legal backgrounds from the areas of the then RSK (former UNP A areas), I established a
Documentation and Information Centre "V eritas" which I have been heading from its
inception.
The Centre was based in Knin before the exodus of the Krajina Serbs (August/95)
and now in Belgrade, with offices in Banja Luka.
Until August 1995, the activities of VERITAS were focused on the gathering of
documentary evidence of the suffering of Serbs in the are as of RC and of all inhabitants of
the RSK and their property in pre-war, war and post-war periods; publication of gathered
and analyzed documentary evidence and their submission to local and international
institutions in order to initiate prosecution of those responsible for crimes against
humanity and international law.
In November 1994, VERITAS established direct contacts with the International
Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and agreed cooperation between
them.
Even after the Serb exodus, though working in diffi.cult circumstances, VERIT AS
has been engaged in the settlement of newly created problems of Croatian Serbs, such as:
Po Ws, killed and missing persans; destruction and looting of property; regulation of the
status of a refugee and expellee in a new community; return of refugees to their homes,
etc. It has also continued to cooperate with ICTY as a partner in all investigations into the
crimes against Croatian Serb victims.
2
VERlT AS used to cooperate, and continues to cooperate with organisations and
institutions, national and international, dealing with problems related to PoWs, missing
persons/enforced disappearances and killed in the territory of the former Yugoslavia.
VERlT AS representatives actively participated in the meetings of state commissions of
Serbia, Croatia and ofBosnia and Herzegovina (BiH).
VERlTAS cooperated and cooperates also with international humanitarian
organisations (ICRC, UNHCR, ICMP, and OSCE) that used to have their offices in the
territories of Serbia, BiH and Croatia, and it has been actively cooperating in the last few
years also with the judicial authorities in the region, especially with the war crimes
prosecutor' s offices in Serbia and BiH.
VERlTAS, now with offices in Belgrade and Banja Luka, has a six permanent
and three and a number of contract associates of
3. Reported victims
3.1. Motivation
Working first as a judge and then as an attorney, crossing on a daily basis the newly
drawn borders between the Croatian and Serbian sides, taking part in the negotiations on
humanitarian issues and exchanges of prisoners and detainees between the warring
parties, reading the press and listening to and watching the electronic media and lending
also an ear to the 'voice of the people' on both sides of the fault-lines in the early 1990s, I
realised that the war was imminent, which was the reason why I decided to use ali my
skills and experience, gained in the many years of my employ in the justice
administration system in ethnically mixed communities, and focus them on prevention
and alleviation of the consequences thereof.
Having read Franjo Tudjman's book "Wastelands ofhistorical reality", where he eut
down the victims of the Ustashi camp of Jasenovac, who numbered 700 000 accord.ing to
the official figures of the former Yugoslavia at that time, to a mere 30 000, I made up my
mind to start recording immediate! y, without the necessary passage of time, the suffering
of my people, which I have been doing to the present day.
3.2. Methods
In compiling information on killed and missing Serbs, Veritas employed ali known
methods, such as: information from families, media information, reports of nongovemmental,
govemmental and international organisations, reports made by rnilitary
units of international peace-keeping forces, memoir writings, court transcripts,
interviewed witnesses, visits to mass murder places and victims burial sites, reports on
exhumations and identifications of victims, cross-checking of lists of missing persons and
comparing them with the census and registration of refugees, making public lists and
information about the missing person~ in the media.
The Veritas's keynote report "Compilation of information on unidentified persons ",
which I co-authored, was presented to the International Conference on Missing Persons
organised by ICRC in Geneva, on 19-22 February 2003. The Report was publicised in the
ICRC Record of Proceedings of the Conference in English, and in my book "A Chronicle
ofPersecuted Krajina Serbs ", 2005 edition.
3
3.3. Criteria
The main criteria to have Serb victims included in the list compiled by Veritas are as
follows:
- The victims should have lived or fought in the territory of Croatia or the RSK;
- The victims should have been killed or gone missing in the war or the post-war
period in the territory of Croatia or the RSK, or in the refugee convoys or in Croatian or
Bosnian (Muslim)-run detention camps, prisons or camps;
- There is high likelihood or certainty that death or disappearance has a causal link
3.4. Classification of victims
If family made positive identification ( conventional or DNA testing) and taken over
human remains, or agreed that the remains stay at the primary gravesite, the victim is
classi:fied as "killedlburied".
In all other cases, irrespective of the information on the killing, the victim is classi:fied
as missing.
According to this criterion, Veritas has classi:fied the (intemally) missing into three
groups:
Missing - There are no reports that the victim is alive or dead;
Missing/dead There is a report on the killing but not on the burial place;
Missinglburied - There is a report on both killing and the burial place but the human
remains have not been tumed over to the victim's family.
With a considerable lapse oftime since the end of the war, it is very unlikely that tho se
from the missing list are still living, so that the missing category has long since become the
killed category.
4. Serb victims of war and post-war periods in the territory of Croatia and the former
RSK, 1990 -1998
4.1. Total death toll
4.1.1. Based on V eritas research and records, I made a report "Serb victims of war
and post-warin the territory of Croatia and the former RSK (UNPA) in 1990-1998".
Since ethnically motivated killings of Serbs have not ceased even in the post-war
period, I have covered in this report the period from the outset of the conflict to the end of
1998, which was the period when such ldllings were more frequent.
The place of killing or where the person was last heard of or seen has served as a
criterion for classifying victims by region.
4.1.2. On the basis of the above criteria, Veritas verified until 31 December 2012, a
total of7,032 killed and rnissing persans, ofwhich nurnber 5,076 (72%) have been buried to
date, whereas 1,956 (28%) are still regarded as missing (by group: missing = 1,046;
missing/killed = 441; missing/buried = 469 persans).
Of ali victims 6,016 (86%) are men and 1,016 (14%) women; 4,265 (61 %) are
cornbatants, 187 (3%) policemen and 2,580 (37%) civilians.
Of all victirns 62 (1%) is under 18 years of age; 4,862 (69%) is between 18 and 60
years old; 1 ,569 (22%) a ver 60 years old; and 53 9 (8%) is of an unidenti:fied age.
Four persans were killed in 1990; 2,692 (38%) in 1991; 905 (13%) in 1992; 799 (11%)
in 1993; 245 (4%) in 1994; and 2,326 (33%) were killed in 1995.
Ethnically motivated murders of Serbs, mainly elderly people who remained behind or
who returned from exile, went on over the next few years. In 1996, there were as many as 40
such murders, in 1997 there were 13, and in 1998 there were 8 more murders of the elderly.
Out of 61 people killed in this period, 28 bodies have not yet been recovered.
Serbs have perished in all the terri tory of the RSK: in Banij a region 1, 166 ( 17% of ali
Serb victims); in East Slavonia 1,120 (16%); in Lika 1,107 (16%); in Kordun region 468
(7%); in Northern Dalmatia 1,593 (23%); in Western Slavonia 1,113 (16%); but also outside
these territories: in Croatia beyond the RSK boundaries 131 (2%), in BiH as many as 334 (5%
of ali Serb victims).
4.2. Direct victims
4.2.1. For the purposes ofthese proceedings VERJTAS disaggregated all victims in the war
and post-war periods into:
Direct victims - Victims proven to have died at the hands of the enemy or whose
death came as a consequence of activity by the enemy forces; and
Indirect victims - Victims who died on the Serb side and whose death was not caused
by direct operations of the enemy but which de:finitely had a causal link with the state of
war.
Enemy/opposing side is understood to mean both sides that the RSK fought against
and which killed Serbs, including regular army and paramilitary forces, primarily the forces
of the Republic of Croatia and, to a lesser extent, those of the BiH Army and the HVO
(Croatian Defence Council) militia of Bosnian Croats in Herzeg-Bos nia.
4.2.2. According to the aforementioned criteria, VERJTAS recorded 6,284 direct victims
(89% ofthe aggregate number), ofthese 4,382 (70%) were buried unti131 December 2012,
and 1,902 (30%) are listed as missing (by group: missing = 1,026; missing/killed =
434; missinglburied = 442).
Victims are 3,868 (62%) uniformed and 2,416 (38%) civilian people; 5,361 (85%) men
and 923 (15%) women.
Under 18 years of age there are 57 (1%) victims; between 18 and 60 years of age 4,288
(68%); over the age of 60 1,443 (23%); and 496 (8%) are of an unidentified age.
Two victims were killed in 1990; 2,571 (41%) in 1991;.719 (11%) in 1992; 635 (10%)
in 1993; 165 (3%) in 1994; 2,138 (34%) in 1995; 35 in 1996; 11 in 1997; and eight were
killed in 1998.
Serbs were killed throughout the territory of the former RSK: in Banija 1,052; in Lika
991; in Kordun 394; in Northern Dalmatia 1,297; in Western Slavonia 1,092; in East
Slavonia 1,068; but they were also ldlled outside the RSK: in Croatia beyond the Krajina
territory 126 ofthem died and another 264 perished in BiH.
4.2.3. Croatian armed forces (army, police, paramilitary groups) killed a total of 5,998
persons (95%), of this nurnber 3,626 (61 %) were uniformed men and 2,372 (39%) civilians.
As far as uniformed victims are concerned, we have established so far that at least 406
killings were wilful ( after they surrendered, put down their weapons or left positions heading
for the Republic of Srpska or the Republic of Serbia); at least 144 were killed in the pounding
by the artillery or in the air raids; at least 71 died at the bands of infiltrated subversive
terrorist groups; at least 128 died in hospitals of the wounds they received; at least 157 died
upon being captured; one person committed suicide in a besieged barracks; cause of death is
yet to be determined for 6 persons; others (2,713) lost their life in combat, fighting the
Croatian regular army or paramilitaries.
Insofar as civilian victims, it has been ascertained that their death was caused by
(firearms, various explosives, burning to death, hanging, tbrowing into wells or otherwise):
1,575 (66%), mainly in 1995 when 760 people in total were killed, largely in operations
''Flash" and "Storm"; Thére follows then 1991, the year in whic;h 601 people died by these
causes;
Shelling (including artillery fire and air missiles fi.red against the RSK and refugee
-c-=~~==~con.YQ~sJ:leein_ to the Re ublic of S ska killed at least 109 people (4%), mostly in 1995
when 66 persons died o:f shells; · · · ·- - - ·
Or.dinary subversive-terrorist group activity killed at least 14 people;
While in detention (varions killing methods, apartfrom suicides, camps and prisons
in Croatia) at least 283 (12%) people died (1991=226, 1992=34, 1993=2, 1995 =18, 1996 =
3);
Death by other causes was established for at least 29 victims; 26 died while being
hospitalised and tbree took their lives in Croatian jails;
Unspecified cause of death, in the territory controlled by the Croatian authorities,
according to Veritas information, exists in at least 362 cases (15%). The victims are all
civilians reported missing and on whom there is no reliable informatîon as to how they died.
4.2.4. HVO forces killed 19 uniformed men: 15 on combat assignment; 2 were murdered;
one died in hospital of injuries sustained, and one as a prisoner of war;
4.2.5. Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina (AB ill) killed 183 people:
- 160 (4%) were uniformed, ofwhom there is evidence that 18 had been deliberately
killed; 16 died at the hands of infiltrated subversive terrorist groups; 5 died in hospital as a
result of the wounds they suffered; 11 died after they had been taken prisoner, and 110 on
combat assignments; and
- 23 (1%) civilians, for the most part in 1995 when the Fifth Corps of ABiH in
operation "Storm" attacked refugee convoys fl.eeing Kordun and Banija regions, hqt also in
previous years when soldiers of this Corps made incursions into the RSK territory.
4.2.6. At the hands of unidentifi.ed, combined, three enemy sides (Croatian Army,
HVO and ABiH), a total of 84 people died, ofthese:
- 63 uniformed men: 29 died on combat assignment; 29 upon being taken prisoner; 3
were victims of wilful killing; 1 died of artillery fire; and one was killed by an infiltrated
subversive-terrorist group; and
- 21 civilians: 4 died of shelling; 7 were murdered; 3 died in hospital of wounds
inflicted on them; and in 7 instances causes of death were unspecifi.ed.
4.3. Indirect victims
4.3.1. The number of indirect victims recorded is 748 (12% of ail victims on the Serb side),
of these 694 (93%) were buried, and another 54 (7%) are still regarded as missing persans
(by group: missing = 20; missinglkilled = 7; missinglburied =27). Among the indirect
victims 655 (88%) are men and 93 (12%) women; 164 (21 %) are non-combatants, 548 (74%)
are combatants and 36 (5%) are police officers.
Among the viètims there were 5 under the age of 18; 574 (77%) between the ages of
18 and 60; 126 ( 17%) over 60 years of age; 4 3 ( 6%) were of an unidentified age.
In 1990, 2 persans were killed; in 1991 120 (16%); in 1992 187 (25%); in 1993 164
(22%); in 1994 80 (11%); in 1995 188 (26%); in 1996 5; and in 1997 2 persans were killed.
~~~~====V~ic:.::ti:::::m::::s~b.::::el:::o=nging to this category lost their lives throughout the territory of the
K.raJina: 114 in Banija region; llo in 1ika region; 74 in Koraun region; 296 in Noîiliern
Dalmatia; 21 in Western Slavonia; 52 in Eastern Slavonia, but also outside the RSK territory:
inside Croatia 5, and in BiH territory 70 persans.
4.3.2. Uniformed personnel died in the following ways:
In connection with a combat assignment ( own minefields, landmines, mishandling of
firearms, forcing the crossing ofwaterways, etc.) 55 persans lost life;
Deliberate killing (by firearms, planted explosives, buming to death, hanging by the
neck, etc.), whereas the clashes between the RSK army and police with the paramilitaries and
mafia groups took a toll of 109 lives;
Involuntary manslaughter (unlawful killing by a fellow combatant on assignment)
was the cause of death in 58 incidents;
Suicide (willing act of taking one's own life by a firearm, hanging, drowning or an
explosive or otherwise) was committed by 94 persans.
Transport death count (when coming to, or returning from, military posts including
when airborne) was 96;
Death by natural causes (death related to the carrying out of the assignment- cardiac
arrest or stroke, etc.) occurred in 110 instances;
Dea th in hospitals ( death as a result of wounds suffered by combatants, or caused by
various illnesses related to fue carrying out of combat assignments) occurred in 31 cases;
Unspecified cause of death in Serb-controlled territory was indicated in 31 cases (ail
persans listed as ldlledlmissing wifu no information on how fuey died). ·
4.3.3. Manner in which civilians died:
In refugee convoys fleeing the Croatian operations codenamed "Flash" and "Storm" but
also in sorne other events that preceded these operations: 100 persans are listed as having
died by natural causes, 9 committed suicide, 20 died in hospitals, 15 in mutual showdowns, 2
were victims of involuntary manslaughter, 2 went missing after having been arrested by RSK
police, 5 were killed in traffic accidents, and Il died in other ways.
Civilian victims also included 19 people who remained behind in their homes and died
of cold weather, starvation or shortage ofmedicines "by natural causes".
4.3.4. In fuis category of victims, uniformed personnel died 3.6 times more frequently
than civilians, men 7 times more often than women, and three-fourths ofvictims were aged
between 18 and 60, and the most frequent method of dying was by means of combat.
. Comparison of these figures shows that the most vulnerable group were men of military age.
4.4. Exhumation and identification
Since 2001, the competent institutions in R. Croatia, on their own or in cooperation
with ICTY investigators, have exhumed 1,058 bodies of Serb victims (301 at the cemetery in
Knin, 154 at the gravesite in Gracac, 27 at the gravesite in Korenica, 160 at the cemetery in
Petrinja, 64 at the cemetery in Dvor, 58 at the gravesite in Zitnik, 28 at the gravesite in v.
Medari, 34 at the gravesite in v. Ok.ucani, 48 at the gravesite in v. Vrbovljani, 17 at the
location called Rizvanu5a, 19 at the gravesite of v. Kulrunjevci, 31 at the cemetery of
Sibenik, and at least 100 corpses removed from smaller or individua1 graves), of these
victims 685 were identified until31 December 2012, and results ofDNA tests are awaited for
the other victims.
On their own, and not assisted by the competent Croatian institutions, families haye
-=-c--cc---,-,-~=t'L!!raffi.c~e~d,=.~disip.terred.,jdenti:_b_uried a :further 392 sets of human remains of Serb
vl.ctims. . . .. ..
Veritas now ha.S information on about 500 more grave sites of Serb victims in Croatia,
mostly of .tho se who died in operations "Flash" and "Storm", victims who can, with a bit of
goodwill.on the Croatian part, ali be exhumed without delay, as the authorities could have
done in ail these years.
V eritas bas also compiled a. certain amount of information on possible burial sites,
individual and mass graves of Serbs who died at ail stages of the war, information that needs
to be verified on the ground.
4.5. Is Veritas information complete and final?
This Veritas list of the killed and missing is neither complete nor final. Verification is
currently underway for sorne 190 more persons who are most likely to have been killed or
gone missing in war-time in the territories ofRC and RSK (UNP As).
The list does not include, either, the killedlmissing former JNA soldiers who were
killedlmissing in RC territory, unless they were born or lived in Croatia, and there were 307
(95 killed and 212 missing) according to the records of the Serbian Govemment Commission
for Missing Persons. The Serbian Government list does not contain, either, the names of the
JNA soldiers whose human remains were tumed over to the families immediately upon their
killing. V eritas is not in possession of information on this category of the ldlled. According to
sorne Serb sources there were more than a thousand killed in this category.
4.6. Availability of information
Veritas bas made its information on the killed and missing available to the public in
various ways: exchanges of human remains and procedures related to identification and
funerals have been attended by officiais ofvarious organizations dealing with the protection of
human rights (human rights watchdogs) as well as by media representatives; V eritas published
both in war-time and in the post-war period publications devoted to certain events and they
contained, alrnost without exception, lists of missing and ldlled; Since June 1999 Veritas has
been issuing a monthly bulletin, and from January 2011 also an e-daily bulletin, containing
written contributions on the killed and rnissing persons, in particular those on exhumations,
identifications and funerals; A nurnber of regional print media in the post-war period have
published as a story in instalrnents the Veritas lists of killed and missing; From June 1999 it
has an internet page of its own, also posting k.illed and rnissing persons lists.
4.7. Cbecking and updating of information
Veritas has made victim lists public indicating, at the same time, that they are neither
complete nor final, and calling on aU those having any comments, suggestions or
amendments to make to contact them. And many people approached us requesting
information from us or being willing to provide sorne. Bach new piece of information was
checked by us, and if confmned from another source, it was entered in our database, in the
files created for each name entered in the database.
Veritas updates the lists on its web page occasionally, usually once or twice a year.
One of the categories which is most subject to change is the victim's status upon the
killing or disappearance (status II), or the status when a missing person, following
identification and burial, is turned into deadlburied status.
5. Objections f:ded by Croatia
5.1. Regarding Veritas list of victims
After having received from the Agent of the Republic of Serbia be fore the International
Court of Justice (ICJ) objections filed by the Croatian side conceming ten names from the list
of Serb victims annexed to the Counter-Memorial, we immediately checked the information
and found that they were right.
Namely, VERITAS has entered five out of ten names (Rajsié, Mirko; Bajié, Branko;
Bolié, Zeljko, Dobrié, Dragan and Paravinja, Olga) into its database from the list compiled
by the Committee for the Protection of Rights and Interests of Displaced Persons which
assisted victims' families to enjoy in Serbia the right to survivors' disability benefits; the
name of Korolija, Dusan was taloen over by the VERITAS database from the report of 23
January 1996, submitted by the UN Team indicating that the victim's body was found in a
well, on 12 September 1995, in the village ofivosevci, afterbeing traced by his family who
took shelter in Serbia, as confinned in a report by the Croatian Helsinki Committee for
Sector South; the name of Banda, Zivko was taken over by the VERITAS database from the
"List ofkilled JNA, TO (territorial deferree), police and combatants of the RSK Army (SVK)
in the fighting in 1991-1994", as compiled by the RSK Army General Staff; the name of
Konjevié, Nikola was entered in 2000 from a list of the ICRC which had a tracing request for
him as a missing person, whereas Poznanovié, Marijana was registered in the VERITAS
.base upon her husband, Branko Lukié, made a direct request as early as 12 August 1996.
VERITAS has taloen aU disputed names off the list of direct victims ofwar and postwarperiod.
We are grateful to the Croatian side for raising all these objections that we appreciated
in the light of their contribution to the accuracy and authenticity of the Veritas records of
victims.
5.2. Regarding a pbotograph from Vukovar
Having received from the Agent of the Republic of Serbia before the ICJ an objection
filed by the Croatian side that I have purposely had a photo from Vukovar (Annex 2) inserted
in my paper "Crimes against Serbs in the territory of Croatia in 1990-1999", I aver that I have
not chosen that photo and placed it in my paper. In point of fact, in 1999 Belgrade was the
venue of a scientific conference "Serbs as refugees, expellees and displaced persons at the
close of the 20th century ", which was organized by the University of Belgrade Centre for
Strategie Studies, in which I participated with this paper. I showed no photographs nor had I
any photos when I presented my paper at the conference. (Had I intended it I could have
tapped into more than 500 photographs contained in the protocol of Serbs killed in the
operation Storm that was.submitted tous by Croats.).
The papers presented at the scientific conference were published as the Record of
Conference Proceedings, defi.nitely once the conference wound up, and all the illustrations in
the Record of the Conference Proceedings including that for my paper have been selected by
someone else without consulting me in the fust place. The Record of Conference Proceedings
was published in both Serbian and English. It contains other photographs that are likely to
have been selected at random liloe the one for my paper.
6. Victims of Operation "Storm"
6.1. The list covers the period prior to operation "Storm,, from 4 August 1995 to end-1998,
when Serbs were killed in large numbers, both those who remained behind and those who
returned to their homes in the territories of RC and the former RSK, because of their ethnie
origin.
The list of Operation Storm victims is but an extract ofthe consolidated list of"SERB
VICTIMS OF W AR AND POST -W AR PERIOD IN THE TERRIT ORY OF CROATIA
AND THE FORMER RSK 1990 -1998".
Analysis focuses on all victims of operation Storm (paragraph 6.2.), direct victim.s
(paragraph 6.3.) and indirect victims (paragraph 6.4.) have been specifi.cally analyzed.
6.2. Overall victims
According to VERITAS records held until31 December 2012 a total of 1,834 victims
of operation Storm were verified, ofthese to the indicated date 891 (49%) were buried, 943
(51%) were still regarded as missing persons by group (missing 496; missing/killed 198;
missing/buried 249).
Among the victim.s there are 1,298 (71%) men and 536 (29%) women; 1,181 (64%)
civilians and 653 (36%) uniformed personnel.
Among the victims of operation Storm, at the time of their killing/disappearance 10
were und er 18 years of age; 8 85 ( 48%) were aged between 18 and 60; 8 87 ( 48%) were over
the age of 60, and 52 (3%) were of an unspecifi.ed age group (by and large, elderly people).
fN OPERATION "Storm, Serbs perished in large numbers from the launching of the
operation to the end of 1995 (1,789), and ethnically motivated killings of mainly elderly
people, who remained behind or retumed to their homes, went on in the succeeding years: in
1996 31 were killed, in 1997 10, and in 1998 4 more people were killed.
Serbs perished in all the territory of the former UNP A Sectors South and North: in
Banija 548 were killed; in Lika 446; in Kordtm 159; in Northem Dalmatia 593, but they also
perished outside these regions: in the interior of Croatia 6 Serbs were killed, and 82 in BiH
terri tory.
6.3. Direct victims
6.3.1. The above indicated criteria were used by VERITAS to record victims of operation
Storm: 1,713 (93% of all victims in this operation were direct victims), ofthese 1,248 (73%)
were men and 465 (27%) women; 1,070 (62%) civilians and 643 (38%) uniformed personneL
Among the victims, 9 persons are under the age of 18; 858 (50%) are aged between 18
and 60; 801 (47%) are over 60 years of age; and 45 (3%) are in an unspecified age group.
Between the launching of operation Storm and end-1995 1,672 (98%) were killed, and
the killings went on in the years that followed: in 1996 there were 28 (2%) killed; in 1997 9
killings; and in 1998 there were 4 more persons killed.
Serbs were killed in all regions of the RSK that came under attack in the Operation: in
Banija there were 529 Serbs killed, in Lika 433; in Kordun 155; in Northem Dalmatia 553;
and Serbs were killed in refu ee convoys fleeing via BiH (then Bosnian Serb Republic of
Srpska), wheri 37 lost their lives, out tliey were ruso killed in Croatian territory outsi et e ~
RSK, where 6 such murders have been recorded by V eritas.
Of ail direct victims of this operation, 808 (47%) were identified and buried until31
December 2012, of these 451 (56%) were non-combatants and 357 (44%) uniformed
personnel (349 soldiers and 8 police offi.cers), or 638 (79%) men and 170 (21 %) women.
Among the victims, 905 (53% of all direct victims of the Operation) were on the
missing list as at 31 December 2012, of this number 610 (67%) were men and 295 (33%)
women.
6.3.2. At the bands of Croatian armed forces (militru:y, police and paramilitaries) died a
total of 1,662 (97% of all direct victims of operation Storm, ofthese 612 (95%) combatants
and 1,050 (98%) non-combatants. ·
6.3.3. At the bands ofHVO died 1 person in uniform; the cause of death was murder.
6.3.4. At the bands of ABiH died a total of33 (2%) persons:
- 18 (3%) uniformed personnel: 8 were deliberately killed; 7 killed upon being
captured, and 3 were killed on a combat assignment.
- 15 (1%) civilians (all killed in 1995 when the 5th Corps of ABiH in operation Storm
attacked refugee convoys fleeing Kordun and Banija): 10 were killed; 1 person died of shells;
1 died in a. h<)spital of wounds; 1 killed upon being captured and 2 died .. by· methods
unidentified so far.
6.3.5. At the hands of the hitherto unidentified or combined, three enemies- CA, HVO
and ABiH, died a total of 17 (1 %) persons:
- 12 (2%) uniformed personnel, who also died at the bands of the enemy: 3 on combat
assignment; 7 upon being taken prisoner and 2 by wilful killing, and
- 5 civilians: 3 murdered, 1 died in hospital as a result of the injuries inflicted and 1 by
an unidentified method.
6.3.6. Comparing directs victims of the operation "Storm" with the overall victims of
war, it transpires that the operation "Storm" took a 25-percent heavier death toll on civilians,
namely 13 per cent more victims among women and 25 per cent more civilian deaths in the
age group of over 60.
6.4. Indirect victims:
6.4.1. Among the victims of operation "Storm" on the Serb side whose death cannat be
directly blamed on the enemy side, there was a total ofrecorded 121 dead (7% of all victims
on the Serb side in this operation), ofthese 38 persans are still on the missing list.
Indirect victirns are 70 women (58%) and 51 men (42%), 111 civilians (92%) and 10
uniformed personnel (8%).
Among indirect victims under 18 years of age there is one persan; between the ages of
18 and 60, there are 20 ofthem; 93 victims are aged over 60; 7 victims are of an unidentified
age.
6.4.2. Uniformed personnel, according to VERITAS investigations, have died in one
was cause one case;
Suicide was committed by one persan;
Traffi.c accident claimed 2 lives;
Death by natural causes pronounced in 3 incidents;
Death in hospital occurred in one instance;
Unspecified cause of death pronounced in 2 cases.
6.4.3. Civilian fatalities caused in refugee convoys by the operation "Storm": 76
registered as dying by natural causes; 5 committed suicide; 19 died in hospitals; 3 killed in
the settling of accounts among them; 1 killed out of negligence (involuntary manslaughter); 4
killed in traffic accidents; and 3 were dead otherwise.
6.4.4. In this category of victims, there were 11 times more victims ·among civilians
than among uniformed personnel; women were killed 16 per cent more than men; the
victims included three-fourths of people over 60, and asto causes most deaths were "by
natural causes" (79). Comparison of these figures shows that the elderly and women were
the most vulnerable group.
6.5. Exhumations, victim identifications and funerals
A total o~ 891 sets ofhuman remains of operation Storm victims were buried until31
December 2012. · · · ·
With the assistance of the competent institutions in the Republic of Croatia exhumed
were 819 bodies: from group graves 786 (301 at the cemetery in Knin, 154 at the gravesite in
Gracac, 27 at the gravesite in Korenica, 160 at the gravesite in Petrinja, 64 at the gravesite in
Dvor, 31 at the cemetery in Sibenik and 49 at the gravesite in v. Zitnik) and 33 from
individual graves, of these 525 human remains have been identified. Families have traced,
without any assistance, and found, mostly in "grotto graves", and buried another 289 sets of
human remains.
In summary, out of a total of 819 exhumed human remains of victims in this operation,
294 sets ofhuman remains have not yet been identified.
In the territory of BiH until the end of 2012 a total of 77 sets of human remains from
this operation were identified (with the assistance of the competent institutions 49, by
unassisted families 28) and aU of them were buried.
A total of 527 civilian victirns of operation Storm were identifi.ed and buried until 31
December 2012: 247 exhurned rernains were in group graves (Knin 139, Gracac 61, Korenica
3, Zitnik 6, Petrinja 26, Dvor 12), 170 at the so-called individuallocation sites, and 110
corpses were found and buried by farnilies or relatives without any assistance by the
authorities. (Previously, they had not been buried at ali.).
Veritas is in possession of sorne further 350 known grave sites of Serb victirns related
to operation Storm, and information on the rnajority of these locations was supplied by the
Croatian side itself (Zadar cemetery 59; Vrlika gravesite 7; Slunj gravesite 16; Sas gravesite
15; Glina gravesite 51; Seliste gravesite 15; Licka Jasenica 4, and a dozen srnaller sites); the
other locations have been traced by the Veritas investigators.
6.6. Th ose killed in the territory of the Republic of Srpska (Bill)
6.6.1. The Krajina Serbs killed or missing in the Bosnian Serb Republic of Srpska
territory (BiR), in thè fighting with the Croatian Arrriy, HVO or ABiH, in the border zone or
in air attacks on refugee convoys, have been classifi.ed as direct victims of operation Storm.
There are 37 persons in this category, of them 23 are civilians and 14 combatants; 34 were
killed by the Croatian Anny, one by HVO forces, and 2 by ABiH.
6.6.2. In an air attack against a refugee convoy on 7 August 1995, near v. Bravsko
( other topographie place names for this settlernent are Klenovac and Janjilo ), which is
situated between Petrovac and Kljuc, Croatian jets killed nine people, including four children
and girls· aged 20, and dozens were either lightly or seriously injured. This convoy of
refugees, fleeing from Northem Dalmatia and Lika, crossed the River Una at Martinbrod into
the Republic of Srpska.
Narnes ofvictirns: 1. Drca, Darinka (1927) from Brotinje, Donji Lapac; 2. Drca, Jovica
(1989) from Brotinje~ Donji Lapac; 3. Dubajié, Mirjana (1974) from Brotinje, Donji Lapac; 4.
Rajié, Nevenka (1984) from Donji Lapac; 5. Rajié, Zarko (1986) from Donji Lapac; 6.
Stjelja, Branko (1923) from Zagrad, Benkovac; 7. Stjelja, Mirko (1961) from Zagrad,
Benkovac; 8. Vukovié, Darko (1982) from Donji Lapac; 9. Vukovié, Krstan (1951) from
Donji Lapac.
Identifi.ed on the scene were: Rajié, Nevenka and her brother Zarko, who were frrst
buried in Banja Luka and were later transferred to Apatin, and Vukovié, Krstan and his son
Darko, who were buried at the gravesite of v. Han Kola neàr Banja Luka. ·
Drca, Darinka and her grandson Jovica and relative Dubajié, Mhjana were given burial
at a location known as Caplje near Sanski Most, their remains were exhumed on 6 August
2001 and moved to the gravesite of v. Suvaja near Donji Lapac.
The incident has not been covered by the ICTY Indictment in the case concerning the
operation Storm.
The convoy of refugees fleeing Kordun and Banija was headed to the River Una and
crossed into the Republic of Srpska at a bridge on the road connecting Dvor and Novi Grad.
Part of this convoy was attacked near a place called Svodno also by Croatian jets at around
6:00P.M., on 8 August 1995. At least three persons were killed in the attack, and as many as
fi.fteen were slightly or severely injured.
VICTIMS: Galogaza, Marija (1930), Galogaza, Rade (1955) and Malobabic, Mile
(1953), all from Slavsko Polje near Vrginmost. Ail identified on site and buried at the City
Cemetery in Prijedor ..
The sources of Veritas' s knowledge of this attack were Soka Malobabic, wife of killed
Milo, who was also wounded in the attack, like her minor children, as well as Vida Galogaza,
Rade's wife, who was also wounded in the attack, including RTRS journalist Rade Mutic,
who reportec,l on the site.
The incident was not included in the indictment before the ICTY, in the "Storm" case.
6.6.3. In the BiH area, mainly the Republic of Srpska at the time, additional 45 persons were
killed from the category of indirect victims, including 28 women and 17 men, as well as 38
civilians and 7 troopers. Most of the civilians died of "natural causes" in refugee convoys,
~,.--,-~==whereaS o:f jlDÎfo]JJJed p~rSQ__J:'l~ ·~ were nkilled ~.hl traffic. accidentS, 2 in inter-personal
showdown, 1 died of"natural causes" and 2 ofyet unidentified causes.····
6.6.4. In the BiH area, during the post-"Storm" period, from August-October 1995, at least'
further 25 uniformed personnel were killed. Those were Serbs, forcibly drafted after
abandoning the RSK, while moving in a refugee convoy through the Republic of Srpska,
that is, on the border between the Republic of Srpska and then FRY, i.e. in Serbia, who were
returned to the battlefield in BiH where they were killed in the fighting with the Croatian
Army, HVO and ABiH. These victims were registered as war victims, but were not included
among "Storm" operation victims.
6.7. Number ofvictims in the period 4-12 August 1995
During the "Storm" operation from 4-12 August 1995- according to VERITAS sources
-a total of 1,513 persons (direct victims) were killed, including 887 civilians, 616 soldiers
and 10 policemen.
Serb killings occurred in aU regions in an almost identical manner, which is best
illustrated by daily compilations of the reports by the Humanitarian Crisis Committee, seated
in Zagreb.
6.8. Persons killed in the attacl{s on convoys between Glina and Dvor
At least 189 persons were killed in the refugee convoy on the Glina - Dvor road, in
different ways (by artillery grenades, aircraft grenades, massacre, small arms used by the
infantry) mostly by the Croatian Army and, in sorne cases, also by the combined action of the
Croatian Army and members of the 5111 MC ABiH. Most of the killed persons were from
Kordun and Plasko (Lika), more than two thirds ofwhom were civilians.
On this road, near the village of Zirovac, the refugee convoy was attacked
simultaneously by HV ("black mambas") and the 5111 MC ABiH ("505111 Buzim"), killing at
least 67 persons, including 43 civilians, 23 soldiers and 1 policeman. Among the victims
were 46 men and 21 women, mainly from the Kordun area ( 49). There is a video of this
attack, filmed by members of the 505111 Buzim Brigade.
The murdered were buried in several group graves, of which the ones at Dvor (64
corpses) and Petrinja (164 corpses) were exhumed. Out of this number, 88 were ~dentified
(21 from the Dvor gravesite and 67 from the Petrinja gravesite), whereas other corpses are
still in the process of identification.
Out ·of the total number of persons killed near Zirovac, 17 persons have been identified
so far, while the others are still registered as missing.
6.9. Victims killed in Knin
In the municipality of Knin, during the "Storm" and post-"Storm" period, a total of 357
persons were killed, out of which 237 were civilians, 115 were so1diers and 5 were
=c-====pclicemen, whereas_in__the town ofKnin itself, 70 persons were killed, including 36 civilians,
31 soldiers and 3 policemen.
At the Knin cemetery, ICTY organized exhumation of 301 corpses, out of which number
250 have been identified so far. Among the identified ones are also those who were not from
the Knin area or the municipality of Knin.
6.10. Comparison of the victim lists of Veritas and Croatian Helsinki Committee (CHC)
6.10.1. CHC, as the first non-governmental organization marked as Croatian, collected and
publicized data on Serb victims killed in the "Storm" and post-"Storm" periods. The
collected data were published by the CHC in two reports: The fust report "Military operation
"Storm" and its aftermath", prepared for UN Sector South in April 1999, contains a list of
410 civilians indicating the way they were killed, whereas the second report "Military
operation "Storm" and its aftermath", prepared for UN Sector North in July 2001, includes a
list of286 civilians, indicating the way they were killed.
We in Veritas analyzed very extensively both ofthese lists and compared them with our
owndata.
In most cases, the list of victims' names and the accompanying data were identical with
the Veritas information.
6.10.2. According to the analysis for Sector South, the CHC list included at least 12 living
personE;; 33 persons were registered under another namei 6 persons appeared in duplicate,
whereas 50 were not on '(ERITAS files. Further investigation confirmed that the CHC data
were correct for 30 persons who previously had not been on VERlTAS file; therefore, for 30
persons our records are solely based on the CHC report.
According to the VERlTAS analysis for Sector North, we have found out that as many
as 90 persons from that list have not been on VERlTAS files, of which number three narnes
appeared in duplicate and 4 have not been identified. Out of 83 persons who.have not been
registered by VERlTAS, subsequent checks made on the basis of other sources revealed that
another 53 persons have been ldlled or missing. Among those who were registered in our
database, we have established earlier that one person was killed in 1991, one was alive and
living in Serbia, and two other names were in duplicate. ·
The above mentioned CHC reports are still subject to verification. For exarnple, as I
prepared this report, I found out that the CHC list duplicated another victirn's name under
two different names (Brnjavac, Mile Nikola = Milicevié, Mile Nikola), whereas one victim,
entered in the CHC report under another name, had already been entered in our records under
his other real narne (Kajganié, Vlade = Milankovié, Vlade).
6.10.3. I am convinced that the VERITAS list of Serb victims is more complete and correct than
the CHC list for the simple reason that VERITAS has continuously been dealing, ever since its
establishment, with Serb victims by running additional check ups in cooperation with other
institutions and organizations concemed with victims, beginning from reporting that a person is
missing a1l the way to his!her identification and burial. On the other hand, CHC has not been
researching into Serb victirns after the release of the above reports.
It was only after the above mentioned CHC reports were out that exhumations and
identifications of Serb victims have been organized, including the publication of a book of
the missing in the territory of the Republic ofCroatia by ICRC, through which the VERITAS
list has been comp1emented and expanded.
6.11.1. Donji Skrad, municipality ofDuga Resa:
Ac cor ding to the 1991 census taken in the Re public of Croatia, it had a population of
99 residents: 94 Serbs (04.95%), 1 Yugoslav and 4 others.
On 5 August 1995, the HV soldiers came to this village; six of these soldi~rs forced
their way into bouse number 56 and massacred 5 civilians, i.e. ali who were in the house at
the time, including 4 women.
This fate was escaped by one victim (Dmitrovié, Danica, 1930), but the same killers
came again, raped her and threw her body into the well where she drowned.
VICTIMS: 1. Koncalovié, Stanka (1905); 2. Konca1ovié, Smiljana (1942); 3.
Dmitrovié, Nilcola (1930); 4. Drnitrovié, Kata (1914), 5. Gazibara, Zorka (1910); 6.
Dmitrovié, Danica (1931).
Of the above mentioned victims, only the body of Koncalovié, Smiljana has been
recovered so far and exhumed on 19 March 2003, at Mali Kozinac.
The average age ofvictims was 74.8 years.
None of the incidents which occurred in Sector North, including this one, have been
covered by the indictment in the "Storm" case before the ICTY.
The source ofVeritas's knowledge are familles ofvictims: Musulin. Ru.Za, daughter of
Dmitrovié, Nikola and Danica, and Koncalovié, Branko, son of Koncalovié, Smiljan and
grandson of Koncalovié, Stanka.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village was .
inhabited by 19 villagers (1 0 men and 9 women) among whom on! y two residents were aged
betv11een 15 and 24, none ofwhom were under the age of15.
6.11.2. Komié, municipality ofKorenica:
According to the 1991 census laken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of 153: 152 Serbs (99.35%) and 1 Yugoslav.
During operation "Storm", several residents of the village ofKomié remained behind in
their homes. Young people hid in the nearby forest at daytime, not knowing how the HV
soldiers would react when coming to the village. And they did come on 12 August and killed
ail who happened to be there, namely 7 civilians, including 5 women, sorne of whom they
torched to death together with their homes.
VICTIMS: 1. Brkljac, Marija (1921), 2. éurcié, Staka (1920); 3. Lavrnié, Petar (1933),
4. Lavrnié, Sava (1903), 5. Pavlica, Milica (1906), 6. Sunajko, Milica (1913); 7. Sunajlco,
Rade (1907).
Out of these victims, 4 have been given burial so far, whereas the remaining 3 are still
regarded as missing.
The average age of victims is 79.
The sources ofVeritas's knowledge are residents of this village and relatives of the
victims: Ugarkovié, Jela, daughter ofBrkljac, Marija, late Marinko Lavrnié and late Masa
Lavrnié.
The incident has not been induded in the indictment for the "Storm" case before the
ICTY.
According ta the 2011 census taloen in the Republic ofCroatia, this village had a
population 20 (14 men and 6 women), none ofWPi.om-were unâer=th~::rmd=§=were~=========+
aged between 20 and 44.
6.11.3. Glogovo, municipality of Gracac:
According to the 1991 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of66: 65 Serbs (98.48%) and 1 Croat.
On 4 August 1995, a dozen residents of the village of Glogovo took shelter at the
"Dubrava" pasture, situated between the villages of Bruvno and Omsica. On 7 August, the
youngest among them, named Boris Jaksié, came dawn into the village ta fetch sorne water
and bumped into Croatian soldiers. The soldiers sent hlm bacle to bring the others in arder to
provide them with documents. Borisom came bacle with his parents and an old man named
Rade Petrovié. As soon as they came, they were ail killed.
VICTIMS: 1. JakSié, Boris (1971); 2. JakSié, Nada (1946); 3. Jaksié, Bura (1938) and
4. Petrovié, Rade (1919).
All victims are still registered as missing. .
The average age ofvictims is 51.5 godina, including 1 woman.
The sources of Veritas's knowledge are families of victims: wife of Petrovié, Rade,
now deceased Petrovié, Dragica and their son Petrovié, Petar.
Even though the crimes committed in the municipality of Gracac have been included in
the indictment for the « Storm » case, no evidence was taken on the Glogovo crime.
According ta the 2011 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, this village had a
population of 11, including 6 men and 5 women, none ofwhoni was under the age of 35.
6.11.4. Doljani, opstina Vrhovine:
According ta the 1991 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a population
of 548, including 535 Serbs (98.18%), 3 Croats, 2 Yugoslavs and 5 others.
During operation "Storm", a group of elderly, infirm or sick residents remained behind
in the village. Ail those who stayed in their homes, about a dozen of them, including 7
women, were killed between 5-9 August. They were killed in or by their homes, many of
whom were torched along with their houses.
VICTIMS: 1. Mandié, Jela (1912); 2. Jovié, Staka (1908); 3. Vukmanovié, Stojan
(1920); 4. éurcié, Milka (1925); 5. Hrkalovié, Petar (1939); 6. Hrkalovié, Zorka (1929), 7.
NaranCié, Milan (1954), 8. Stojanovié, Pera (1920), 9. Ruzié, Dusan (1930), 10. Jovié, Marija
(1941), ll.Hrkalovié, Danica (1912), 12. Narancié, Stojan (1948).
Of these victims, four have been buried so far (2 corpses have been exhumed from
primary individual graves and 2 have been found and buried by relatives), whereas the others
are still registered as rnissing.
The average age ofvictims was 67.
The source ofVeritas's knowledge are victims' families: Grbié, Zora, daughter of the
rnissing Vukmanovié, Stojan and Kangrga, Stojan and Milos, ·who were captured during
operation "Storm".
This incident has not been included in the indictment for the « Storm » case.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, this village had the total
population of95, including 52 men and 43 women.
According to the 1991 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, the village of Palankq
had a population of84- 82 Serbs (98.62%), 1 Yugoslav and 1 oth~r; the village ofNadvrelo
had a population of 57 who were al! Serbs; the village of Zrmanja had a population of 69 of
whom 68 were Serbs (98.55%).
The villages ofZrmanja (Gudura hamlet), Nadvrelo and Palanka all forming one whole,
popularly called Zrmanja, where elderly, infrrrn and sick residents remained behind during the
operation "Storm", at least 12 people or all who were in the village when the Croatian soldiers
came were killed during the month of August 1995.
VICTIMS: 1. Milanovié, Milan (1908), 2. Perié, Dusan (1927), 3. Bogunovié, Marija
(1910), 4. Canak, f>urad (1915), 5. Marcetié, Borislav (1947), 6. Lukié, Stevo (1920), 7.
Sujica, Dusan (1927), 8. Milanovié, Vlado (1936), 9. Jokié, Milica (1906), 10. Komazec,
Gojko (1938), 11. Marcetié, Milan (1948), 12. Budimir, llinka (1914).
Of these victims, five have so far been buried (they were exhumed at Gracac gravesite
and four were found and buried by their relatives), whereas the others are still registered as
missing.
The average age ofvÎ.ctims was 71, including 3 women whose average age was 85.
Veritas's sources of information were families of the missing: Medié, Milka wife ofthe
missing Milanovié, Vlada; Komazec, Buka wife of the missing Komazec, Gojka and the
local resident Marcetic, Simo.
This incident was not included in the indictment for the "Storm" case.
For the murder of Canak, Bwda, the County Court of Zadar convicted Ivica Petrié and
sentenced him to 6 years in prison.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, the village ofZrmanja
had a population of only 21, of whom 12 ·were men and 9 women, including only one persan
under the age of 3 5; the village of Palanka had a population of 19, of who rn 7 were men and
12 women, aY}d no one was under the age of 44; and the village of Nadrvelo had a population
of only one pers on aged over 70.
6.11.6. Golubié, municipality of Knin:
According to the 1991 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of 1,424-1,389 Serbs (97.54%), 7 Croats, 1 Muslim, 1 Yugoslav and 16 others.
On 6 August 1995, Croatian Army soliders came to the village of Golubié, killing in an
ethnie "cleansing" at !east 15 residents, mainly in their homes or front yards. They literally
swept all who happened to be in the village at the time, whereas one persan, fearing death,
cornmitted suicide by gulping down tablets mixed with alcohol.
VICTIMS: 1. Radinovié- Vasié, Vaso (1923), 2. Radinovié- Panié, Nikola (1928), 3.
Radinovié- Lukié, Branko (1920), 4. Radujko, Manda aka Ma5a (1928), 5. Radujko, Nikola
(1930), 6. Marie, Tode (1929), 7. Grubié, Nevenka aka Milka (1910), 8. Arula, Nikola
(1941), 9. Sljivar, Milica (1935), 10. Opa.Cié, Elena aka Jeka (1921), 11. Jerkovié, Nikola
(1926), 12. Jerkovié, Jovan (19~8), 13. Cucak, Gliso (1934), 14. Marie, DtiSan (1943), 15.
Radinovié-Loncina, Nikola (1927), 16. Stancevié, Stevo (1944).
Ail murder victims were buried at K.nin cemetery where they were exhumed in 2001 by
ICTY investigators, identified and reburied.
Stancevié, Stevo, who committed suicide, was buried by two local residents after the
suicide in the maize field where they found his body and from where his relatives, five years
later, exhumed it and transferred to the family grave. V eritas is still keeping his on file as ari
The average age ofvictims was 66, including 3 women aged T5, on average.
The sources of Veritas knowledge are ff,IID.ilies of victims: Grubié, Jovo son of killed
Grubié, Nevenka; Jerkovié, Mirko son of the killed Jerkovié, Nikola, and Marie, Cedo and
Jerkovié, Tiija, residents ofthis village.
This incident was not included in the final indictment for the "Storm" case.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, this village had a
population ofl, 029, of whom there were 501 men and 528 women, including 252 Serb
returnees and the rest were Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina settled there,for whom the
state ofCroatia built a settlement comprising more than 120 houses.
6.11.7. Radljevac, municipality ofKnin:
According to the 1991 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of 387; 384 (99.2%) were Serbs, 2 Croats and 1 Yugoslav.
a) On 5 August 1995, Croatian Almy soldiers stopped a tractor with 7 locals from the
village of Golubic in thevillige of Radljevac, in front of the house of E>uro Dobrijevié; they
were all civilians, including 3 women, fleeing the area and the soldiers killed them all by
frring at them from their weapons.
VICTIMS: 1. Bjelié, Marija (1942), 2. Bjelié, Petar (1931), 3. Damjanovié, E>uka (1931),
4. Damjanovié, Dusan (1929), 5. Vukovié, Milica (1929), 6. Vukovié, Tanasije (1935), 7.
Vukovié, Bosko (1938).
Ail murdered victims were buried at K.nin cemetery, from where they were exhumed in
2001 by ICTY investigators, identified and reburied.
The average age ofvictims was 61.42.
Veritas's sources of information were families of the victims: Bjelié, Drenka, daughter
of Bjelié, Marije and Petar; Damjanovié, Petar son of Damjanovié, E>uka and Dusan; and
Vukovié, Sretko ànd other residents of the village.
This incident was not included in the final indictment for the "Storm" case.
b) On 5-6 August 1995, Croatian Army soldiers, in a sweeping operation of the village
of Radljevac, killed 3 civilians found in the village at the time.
VICTIMS: 8. Bajié, Jovo (1932), 9. Miljevié, Ilija (1912), 10. Stojalwvié, Rade.
The human remains of two victims have been exhumed, one. at Knin cemetecy and the
other in individual graves in the village of Radljevac; they have been identified, whereas the
third (Stojakovic, Rade) is still kept on file as missing.
The average age for the two victims whose age was known, was 73, whereas the third
was also an elderly person.
Veritas's sources of information were families of the victims: Bajié, Mirko, brother of
Bajié, Jovo and other residents of this village.
c) On 5 August 1995, Croati~ Arm.y soldiers captured three soldiers ofthe RSKArm.y
and executed them in the village of Radljavac, connected to Knin via Donji Lapac- the
direction in which the refugee convoy was headed.
======~VICIIMS· 1 1 mAlfirevié, Vojin 1955 12. Markos Petar 1949 13. Tintor, Vojin
(1952).
Their human remains have been exhumed at Knin cemetery and identified.
Veritas' s sources of information were relatives and neighbour.s · of the victims:
Alfrrevié, Dusan, father of Alfuevié, Vojin; Markos, Nada, wife ofMarkos, Petar and Tintor,
Rada, wife ofTintor, Vojin, as well as Miljevié, llija, resudebt ifv. Radljevac.
The average age of the victims who se was 4 3.
This incident was not included in the final indictment for the "Storm" case.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, this village had a
population of75, ofwhom 36 were men and 39 women, including 6 under the age of 14.
6.11.8. Mokro Polje, municipality ofKnin:·
According to the 1991 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of 803; 801 (99. 75%) Serbs and 2 others.
a) On 6 August, Croatian Army soldiers came to the village ofMokro Polje killing at
least 6 people. They killed and set on fue at least four people who took shelter in a village
store (cooperative). The victims were spouses Ruzica and Stevan Manojlovic fi:om the village
ofivosevci, who were fleeing in a tractor, as weil as TraZivuk, Savo and Strbac, Slobodan,
bothfrom Kistanje, who were fleeing on foot and whom the Manojlovié couple picloed up and
gave .a ride.
The local resident by the name of Babié, Ruzica, was shot dead in her home and the
other resident, by the name of Kanazir, Jeka, was thrown into a well from where she was
recovered 40 days later.
All the six sets of remains were exhumed at Knin cemetery in 2001 and they were all
identified.
VICTIMS: 1. Manojlovié, Ruzica (1937), 2. Manojlovié, Stevan (1940), 3. Tra:livuk,
Savo (1944), 4. Strbac, Slobodan (1959), 5. Babié, Ruzica (1926); and 6. Kanazir, Jeka
(1928).
This incident was not included in the final indictment fo·r the "Storm" case.
Veritas's sources of information were relatives and neighbours of the victims:
Manojlovié, Zeljko son of Ruzica and Stevan; Trazivuk, Maja daughter of Tra:livuk, Savo
and Strbac, Jeka, wife of Strbac, Slobodan, as weil as the resident of v. Mokro Polje Babié,
Ilija.
This incident was not included in the indictment for the "Storm" case.
b) On 7 August 1995, the Croatian Army soldiers came to the house of Popovié,
Obrad at Mokro Polje, killing his wife Stana and his mentally retarded son Mirko and
shooting Obrad through the head, but he survived anyway.
The victims' corpses were buried by a family member in the field in front of the
house.
VICTIMS: 5. Popovié, Sfana (1926); 6. Popovié, Mirko (1952); 7. Popovié, Obrad
(wounded).
This incident was included in the fmal indictment for the "Storm" case.
Veritas' s sources of information were relatives and neighbours of the victims: Popovié,
Obrad and his son Milan, and the local resident Babié, llija.
This incident was not included in the indictment for the "Storm" case.
c) On 1 September 1995, UNPROFOR soldiers came across the murdered elderly
woman, Babic, Sava, shot in the head in a "Fiéa" car at Mokro Polje.
The victim is still regarded as missing.
VICTIMS: 8. Babié, Sava (f) (1913)
Veritas's sources of information were relatives of the victim: Babié, Mirko, son and
UNPROFOR.
This incident was included in the final indictment for the "Storm" case.
. The average age of all the 9 victims àt Mokro Polje is 61.66, including 5 women aged
69 on average.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, this village had a
population of 227, of whom 113 were men and 114 women, including 11 persans under the
age of25.
6.11.09. Sas, municipality ofKostajnica
According to the 1991 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of735; 601 (81.77%) Serbs, 79 (10.75%) Croats; 40 (5.44%) Yugoslavs and 15
(2. 04%) others.
On 7-8 August 1995, the Croatian Army entered the village killing at least 6 civilians who
remained behind at their homes. According to sorne information, most of the victims were killed
by a certahi Mikcié, (Miklicié) Nikola, a Croatian Army soldier.
VICTIMS: 1. Jergovié, Ljubica (1930); 2. Aleksié, Milka (1906); 3. Vukas, Miladin (1941);
4. Dobrié, Anda (1935); 5. Kurilj, Miljka (1924); 6. Kurilj, Nikola (1923).
The average age ofvictims is 68.5.
The corps of Aleksié, Milka was exhumed on 20 May 2004 at Slovinci and buried at Sa5
gravesite.
None of the incidents in Sector North, including this one, has been included in the
indictment for the "Storm" case, before the ICTY.
Veritas's sources of information were families of the victim: Aleksié, Duro son of
Aleksié, Milka; Crljenica, Milan, neighbour; Gligié, Dragica daughter of Kurilj, Miljka and
Nikol; Novakovié, Ljuba sister ofVukas, Miladin.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, this village had a
population of 3 07. Although until Mar ch 2013 no ethnie structure of the population by
villages has been released, according to Veritas information, this village is now populated
onefifth Serbs, onefifth local Croats and the rest are Croats who settledfi·om BiH
6.11.10. Lu8Cani near Petrinje, 6 -7 August 1995
According to the 1991 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of 670; 648 (96. 72%) Serbs, 3 (0.45%) Croats; 5 (0. 75%) Yugoslavs and 14
(2.09%) others.
On 6-7 August 1995, the Croatian Anny entered the village, killing at least 11 persans, of
whom 10 were civilians who remained behind in their homes.
VICTIMS: 1. Bajlovié, Katarina (1906); 2. Bajlovié, Bozo (1933); 3. Lazié, Jovan (1936);
4. Opacié, Rade (1907); 5.Kmjajié, Sofija (1928); 6. Daié, Dragan (1955); 7. Daié, Ljubica (1950); 8.
Daié, Draginja (1908); 9. Lazié, Branko (1925); 10. Lazié, Mihajlo (1936); 11. Loncarevié, Mirko
(193,0).
The average age ofvictirns is 66.45.
The corps of Krnjajic, Sofija was exh.umed at Petrinja gravesite and identified in Zagreb, on
=====:trr0F1J"'ill1y2U09~e-corpse~xhumed=at=E>vor=gravesite!=ce~b~é,-Jovan,-,::wa&idtmtifi.e_dc=On2'Z.:=~~t~obe~======l
2009; ofLoncarevié, Mirko and of Lazié, Branka were identified in Zagreb on 13 July 201 O.
None of the incidents in Sector North, including this one, were included in the
indictment of the "Storm" case before the ICTY.
Veritas's sources of information were families of victims: Bajlovié, Stanko son of
Bajlovié, Katarije; Lazié, Stana wife ofLazié, Mihajlo; Lazié, Milja wife ofLazié~ Jovan and
Opacié, Milàn son of Opacié, Rade.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of 163.
6.11.11. Kijani, municipality of Gracac
According to the 1991 census taken in the Republic of Croatia, this village had a
population of222; 217 (97. 75%) Serbs, 1 (0.45%) Yugoslav and 4 (1.80%) others.
On 4 August 1995, Croatian Anny soldiers entered the village, killing 14 civilians, ail who
happened to be in the village at the time, and destroyed and torched houses.
VICTIMS: 1. Blanu8a, Sava (1920); 2. Bolta, Dane (1900); 3. Jelaca, Branko (1929); 4.
Jelaca, Ma1ija (1913); 5. Jelaca, Milica (1925); 6. Jelaca, Smiljana (1915); 7. Kesié, Du8an
(1939); 8. KolundZija, Mileva (1925); 9. Sovilj, Radomir (1952); 10. Sovilj, Mira (1950); 11. Sovilj,
Vlade (1931); 12. Sovilj, Danica (1932); 13. Sovilj, Mara (1923); 14. Surla, Ana (1945).
The average age ofvictims is 66.5.
So far, 9. co.rpses have been identified: Bolta, Dane; Jelaca, Milica, ·and her daughter
Surla, Ana; Kesié, Dusan; Sovilj, Vlade; Sovilj, Danica; Sovilj, Radomir and his sister Sovilj,
Mira, ali exh.umed at Gracac gravesite, whereas Sovilj, Mara, mother of Radomir and Mira
was exh.umed from the individual grave at Kijani.
Veritas's sources of information were farnilies of victims: Bolta, Nikola son of Boita,
Darre; Jelaca, Dusan son of Jelaca, Marija; Jelaca, Darre nephew of Jelaca, Smiljana; Jelaca,
Milenko, son of Jelaca, Milica and brother of Surla, Ana; Jelaca, Branko son of Jelaca,
Branko; Kesié, Milorad son of Kesié, Dusan; Sovilj, Mile son of Sovilj, Vlade and Sovilj,
Nikola, brother of Sovilj, Radomir and Mira, and son of Sovilj, Mara.
This incident was included in the final indictment for the "Storm" case.
According to the 2011 census taken in the Republic ofCroatia, this village had a
population of 56.
8. My activities in prisoner-exclwnges)
8.1. As long as the JNA forces were stationed in the territory of Croatia and RSK
(until 19 May 1992), prisoner exchanges took place simultaneously or separately in the
:framework of civilian and rnilitary exchange commissions. Some exchanges were organized
ad hoc at the highest state level.
As an attorney-at-law, in July 1991, I helped organize and carry out the fust larger
prisoner exchange between the Croatian and Serb sides, and very often I was invited to
provide advice or to directly take part in the work of ail these commissions.
When, on 6 July 1993, the Republic and District prisoner exchange commissions
were set up in the RSK, all other commissions, civilian and rnilitary, ceased to exist in RSK
territory.
=======~8 .. 2-=A..s=the-Chairman of fue RSK Government Commission for Prisoner Exchange
since its inception, I closely cooperated also with the FRY Government Commission for
Humanitarian Issues and Missing Persans and the State Commission qf the Republic of
Srpska for Prisoner Exchange, which were set up in the meantime. Th~se Commissions
:frequently acted together as the "Serb Bloc" at the meetings with RC, HVO and FBiH
Commissions. Cooperation between the Serb Bloc Commissions continued ail the way to the
faU of the RSK..
83. According to the Agreement on cooperation and tracing of rnissing persans
which was signed at Dayton on 17 November 1995 by the Foreign Ministers of the FRY and
R. Croatia, and according to the Protocol of Cooperation between the FRY Government
Commission for Humanitarian Issues and Missing Persans and the Croatian Government
Commission for Detained and Missing Persans which was signed in Zagreb on 17 April1996
by the Chairrnen of the FRY and Croatian Commissions, responsibility for the rnissing and
detained Serbs of Croatia and the RSK. was taken over by the FRY Commission, i.e. the
Serbian Government Commission for Missing Persans, later on.
8.4. As soon as I arrived in Belgrade, I resumed cooperation with the FR Y
Government Commission for Humanitarian Issues and Missing Persans, in my capacity as an
expert specialized in the Republic of Croatia and the RSK by being included at ail stages of
the Commission's work, beginning with collection of data and information on the captured
and mi.ssing Serbs (but also on persans from the tracing lists·ofthe other sides) ail the way to
attending negotiations with all regional commissions and actively participating in the
exchanges themselves.
8.5. I also attended some of the meetings where the Croatian commission handed over
to the Serbian Commission documents on tho se killed in operations "Flash" and "Storm".
On 20 and 21 August 1996, at a meeting in Zagreb, the Croatian Government
Commission for Detained and Missing Persans turned over to the FRY Govemment
Commission for Humanitarian Issues and Missing Persans a document "List of identified
persans killed in "Flash" (79 names and "List of identified persans killed in operation
"Storm" (163 names).
On 6-7 March 1997, the Croatian Govemment Commission for Detained and
Missing Persans handed over to the FRY Government Commission for Humanitarian Issues
and Missing Persons a document entitled "Persons killed in the military-police operation
'Storm' together with burial sites of their human remains", indicating 788 gravesites, of
which 163 persans have been identified and the others marked as NN (unidentified persans),
were buried at various locations. At the same meeting, the Serbian side took over from the
Croatian side another document entitled "Persons ldlled in thé military-police operation
'Flash' together with the burial places oftheir human remains", indicating 168 gravesites of
wbich 79 persons were identi:fied and the others were marked as NN (unidenti:fied persons).
8.6. During 1997 and 1998, at a number of meetings, the Croatian side handed over to
the Serbian side a total of 669 protocols of unidentified bodies in "Storm" (580) and "Flash"
(98).
Full protocols contained: a photograph of the body, fmgerprint(s), information of
identity, status, sex, place and time of recovery, description of footwear, clotb.ing and other
persona! effects, including the burial site of the body.
Sorne (incomplete) protocols lacked photographs (35), fmgerprints (523 from
"Storm" and 69 from "Flash"); they rarely contained descriptions of personal effects and
=====~d~es~c~riptions of footwear and clothing were very scarce.
The breakdown ofthose killed in ''Storm", junging oy llie innications conta:ine rn e
protocols was as follows: civilians = 231, soldiers = 317, policemen= 3 .and NN =·29;
women = 95, men= 460 and NN = 25. ·
Copiés of ali protocols were handed over by the FR Y Commission to V eritas, which
assisted families of missing persons, for years, on the basis of information contained in the
protocols, in tracing their missing relatives. The results of identifications made in this way
(345 from "Storm" and "Flash") have been also transmitted to the Croatian side, and these
preliminary identifications, later on, helped identify the corpses through traditional methods.
8.7. To the present day, I have retained the status of an expert in the Serbian
Commission and V eritas, as an organization, also participated in ali the phases of search for
the missing persans. Bothl and Veritas as a whole almost had identical cooperation with the
Commissions from BiH, the Republic of Srpska in particular.
9. Cooperation with the Office of the Tribunal Prosecutor (OTP)
9.1. Convinced that the ICTY will objectively and impartially treat ail the crimes
committed in the territory of the Former Yugoslavia, Veritas accepted the offered
cooperation immediately upon the ICTY establishment, which was reflected in taking
evidence on the grave breeches of humanitarian law in the territories of the Republic of
Croatia and the former RSK .(former lJN:P A are as).
Representatives of Veritas and ICTY made fust contacts in November 1994 in Knin. In
Marchand May 1995, ICTY officiais took over from Veritas, also in Knin, 14 files detailing
cases of grave breeches of humanitarian law against Serbs in the Republic of Croatia and RSK
territory.
Even after the exodus of Serbs from the former RSK (UNP A Sectors West, North and
South) in May and August 1995, at the request of ICTY, cooperation was resumed in such a
way that Veritas provided witnesses and other evidence for ICTY (written documents,
photos, videos and tape recordings ... ) for the incidents in which Serbs were victims and into
which an investigation had been opened. Witnesses were interrogated in the Republic of
Srpska and the FRY, depending on where they lived, but also on the current relations
between the states concerned and ICTY. ·
Cooperation was agreed with senior ICTY officiais: representatives of Veritas,
headed by myself, met in October 1996 in Belgrade withjudge Silvie Pantz; in Januayl997
and in February 1998, they met twice in Belgrade with ChiefiCTY Prosecuror Louise Arbour
and her successor Carla Del Ponte, in November 1999 and October 2000 in Banjaluka, and in
September 2001, in Belgrade.
9.2. At the request of OTP, Veritas sought out 533 witnesses, of whom we have
established the addresses for 463 (for 9 persons we were unable to establish identity at ail,
and 22 died in the meantime ).
A large number of requested witnesses were picked in such a way that V eritas took
statements from eyewitnesses who indicated that war crimes were committed. Witness
statements were handed over to ICTY in files prepared according to timeline of incidents.
At all stages of investigation, we succeeded in making contact with 376 persons, of
whom 236 agreed to give evidence and almost all of them gave statements to OTP
investigators. In the initial period, many witnesses refused to testify before the ICTY and, as
time went by, more and more of them were willing to accept the subpoena.
MosLof the above mentioned witnesses were for operation "Storm". Once the
indictment was issued for "Storm" in 2007, at the request of OTP, veritas provïaeâ filfther
100 witnesses and they all gave evidence in the stage of additional investigation.
Atthe i:nain hearing, 35 witnesses from the Veritas list testified before the ICTY.
Throughout this period, these witnesses received a kind of moral or psychological support
from Veritas. Whenever a called witness refused to take the stand in The Hague, the
prosecutors would turn to Veritas for help in motivating these witnesses to testi:fy.
9.3. For each incident investigated by ICTY investigators, we offered them far
more witnesses than they were willing to interrogate in the fust place. They used to tell us
that they had sufficient evidence on that specifie incident and that they did not need
additional witnesses or that the specifie incident had been left out of the further
investigations.
Veritas made available its records containing gathered documentary evidence, varions
reports, video and tape recordings, fmdings and expert opinions etc., to ICTY investigators
who most frequently reviewed this material and made their selection.
9.4. Cooperation between V eritasa and OTP also resulted in exhumations of Serb
victims of the incidents into which extensive investigations had been conducted or for which
indictments had already been issued. Namely, Veritas supplied them with lists of missing
Serbs and with what we received from the Croatian side, such as lists of lcilled persons,
together with their burial sites and protocols of those lcilled and buried, whereupon the
decision was made to begin with exhumations. In 2001 and 2002, OTP exhumed,
independently or in cooperation with the Croatian authorities, as many as 512 human
remains, a1most all from operation "Storm".
9.5. in 2003, Veritas founded and provided for ICTY investigators a group of relatives
for saliva DNA sampling, for 11 victims in operation "Medaclci dzep" (September 1993),
whose DNA identification was made in The Netherlands.
9.6. However, despite our insistence to the OTP, many lcnown group graves
containing victims of "Storm" have remained un-exhumed to the present day. Prosecutors
and investigators informed us, both in writing and in oral communications, that the ICTY
lacked the funds for other identifications and that no new victims were needed because they
already had enough of them to prove before any court of law the conclusions about the
systematic and wide-spread murders of Serbs in operation "Storm".
Belgrade, February, 2013
Savo Strbac