OSTOJIĆ: STORM WAS THE WORST EXODUS OF SERBS SINCE WORLD WAR II

BANJA LUKA, AUGUST 4 /SRNA/ - Republika Srpska Minister of Labor, War Veterans' and Disabled Persons' Protection Radan Ostojić said that the criminal Operation Storm was the most terrible exodus experienced by Serbs since World War II, and that no one has been held accountable for that crime.

"What happened in 1995 was the most terrible exodus since World War II, supported by certain Western countries. We are here so that these events are not forgotten and so that we call them by their proper name," Ostojić told reporters in Banja Luka after laying wreaths at the Central Memorial to Fallen Soldiers of the Defensive-Patriotic War.

He said that Storm was a crime planned in Croatia and Western countries, and that those responsible are therefore protected.

"This is a day of sadness and mourning, and that is how we feel it," Ostojić said.

Banja Luka Mayor Draško Stanivuković said that it is the human, national and moral duty of the Serbian people to pay tribute and express gratitude to all the heroes who defended Srpska with their lives, taking part in all the most important battles for freedom.

"Today we had the opportunity to do so in front of this monument in the centre of Banja Luka, where their names are engraved in golden letters," Stanivuković said.