MUNICIPALITY’S PATRON SAINT DAY AND DAY OF MRKONJIĆ BRIGADE ON 2 AUGUST

MRKONJIĆ GRAD, 23 JULY /SRNA/ – The celebration of the municipality’s patron saint day, Saint Prophet Elijah, and the Day of the 11th Mrkonjić Light Infantry Brigade will be held in Mrkonjić Grad on 2 August, then prepare for 4 August, when it will commemorate the Day of Remembrance for those killed and expelled during the Croatian military Operation Storm in 1995.

Municipal Mayor Dragan Vođević recalled that Mrkonjić Grad was cleansed of Serbs on 10 October 1995, and that they returned to their homes only after the signing of the Dayton Peace Agreement in 1996.

Vođević recalled that, after the return of the population from exile in February 1996, one of the largest mass graves in Republika Srpska was discovered in Mrkonjić Grad, from which 181 bodies were exhumed.

"Another 182 bodies and human remains were found throughout the municipality, so at present we have records of 363 or 364 people who were killed," Vođević told SRNA.

Vođević emphasized that history and the past must never be forgotten and that lessons should be learned from them, while also stressing that work must continue on the development of the local community.

He pointed out that much has been done in Mrkonjić Grad over the past three decades with the assistance of the governments of Serbia and Republika Srpska, enabling residents to live normal lives.

The programme marking 2 August will begin at 9:30 a.m. with a divine liturgy at the Church of Saint Sava in Mrkonjić Grad. This will be followed by the laying of wreaths at the memorial site of the mass grave at the town cemetery and at the central memorial monument in the Serb Army Square.

At 8:45 p.m. in King Peter I Karađorđević Square, a patron saint celebration ceremony will be held, followed by a musical programme.

The Croatian criminal military-police Operation Storm began on 4 August 1995 with an offensive by the Croatian army and police, as well as units of the Croatian Defence Council /HVO/, in the areas of Banija, Lika, Kordun, and northern Dalmatia.

According to the Veritas Documentation - Information Centre, more than 220,000 Serbs were expelled during Operation Storm. The centre has recorded the names of 1,903 Serbs who were killed or remain missing during and after the operation, of whom 1,247, or 66 percent, were civilians. About three-quarters of the victims were over the age of 60.