DODIK: CRIME AGAINST JNA SOLDIERS IN TUZLA STAGED ACCORDING TO THE SCENARIO OF DOBROVOLJAČKA STREET

BANJA LUKA, MAY 14 /SRNA/ – The President of Republika Srpska Milorad Dodik emphasized that the crime committed against the soldiers of the former Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) in Tuzla was staged and prepared according to the Sarajevo scenario of the Dobrovoljačka Street massacre, which took place only two weeks earlier.

On the occasion of the 33rd anniversary of the horrific crime against JNA soldiers and civilians in Tuzla, Dodik told SRNA that Muslim paramilitary formations, on May 15, 1992, violated an agreement for the peaceful withdrawal of troops from the city and attacked a JNA convoy, triggering the exodus of 80,000 Serbs from the Tuzla region.

“The crimes in Sarajevo’s Dobrovoljačka Street and at Brčanska Malta in Tuzla confirm that Serbs in BiH were facing yet another genocide and ethnic cleansing in the 20th century. They are also proof of who was preparing for war and who was willing to sacrifice peace for a single goal – the realization of Alija’s ‘Islamic Declaration’ and the ‘Green Transversal’ project, conceived in the 1980s, which aimed to create a Balkan belt inhabited exclusively by Muslim population,” Dodik stressed.

The President of Republika Srpska said the monstrous killing of 54 JNA soldiers, the wounding of 78, and the capture of 44 others – five of whom were later killed, while the rest were abused, tortured, mistreated, and humiliated – was undoubtedly a war crime that must never be forgotten.

He stressed the brutality of the perpetrators and those who ordered the attack, noting that the event had been premeditated and organized to such an extent that cameras were set up for a live television broadcast of the killings, the burning of soldiers and civilians, and the destruction of vehicles and equipment.

“Current and future generations must commemorate these events, and the victims must not be forgotten. If we forget, such things could easily happen again. This was the case in both World Wars, when information about Serbian victims was hidden, falsified, and manipulated. History must not repeat itself – and to prevent that, we must foster a culture of remembrance. None of these victims is just a number. Each has a name and surname, ancestors and descendants. It is our sacred duty to remember them and speak their names,” Dodik said.

He underscored that these individuals were victims of a monstrous Muslim political agenda, which, according to him, persists even today through different means – with foreign support, through lies, pressure, and politically motivated judicial persecution – in an attempt to subjugate Serbs and force them into submission.

“We will never allow that. Let those who are willing to trample even their own victims, to metaphorically kill them a second time for political gain, go down that path. Every Serb victim has already been killed twice – once by a bullet, and again by acquittals of their killers or the failure to even initiate legal proceedings. Those who want to align with that side may do so – we will not. We know what we are defending and from whom. And we will not stray from that path,” the President of Srpska declared.

He said that the institutions of Republika Srpska will not stop pursuing justice, despite the fact that the Hague Tribunal and the extrajudicial judiciary of BiH have refused to prosecute many crimes against Serbs.

“We know exactly why – because prosecuting the crimes in Dobrovoljačka Street and Brčanska Malta, as well as many others committed by Muslim formations from March to May 1992, would dismantle the false myth of an alleged aggression against BiH. That’s why they remain silent.

But lies have short lifespans, and the truth always comes to light – including the truth about the crimes committed against Serbs and about who the real aggressor was in their own country. We waited more than half a century for the truth about crimes from past wars – and we saw it eventually come to light. We will live to see the truth revealed about this war as well,” Dodik emphasized.

Tomorrow, Tuzla will mark 33 years since the attack by Muslim forces on JNA troops in the city and the subsequent exodus of the Serb population.

On May 15, 1992, Muslim forces attacked a JNA convoy in Tuzla that, according to a prior agreement, was supposed to peacefully withdraw from the military barracks. During the attack, 54 JNA soldiers were killed, 78 wounded, and 44 captured. Five of those captured were later killed, and the others were subjected to abuse and torture.