ZGONJANIN: USTASHAS MURDERED THE MOST INNOCENT AMONG US IN THE MOST BRUTAL WAYS

PRIJEDOR, JULY 19 /SRNA/ - Ustashas in the Independent State of Croatia /NDH/ attempted to exterminate the Serbs by killing children, from newborns to 14-year-olds, in the most horrific, monstrous, and brutal ways, Mira Zgonjanin, envoy of the President of Republika Srpska, said today in Prijedor.

At the commemoration of the Day of Remembrance for Children Murdered during the Genocide against Serbs, Jews, and Roma in the NDH /1941–1945/, she emphasized that the Serbian people have a duty to remember, because forgetting is a second death.

"Here, they tried to kill us in the Ustasha genocide. They murdered the most innocent among us, and we must speak about it," Zgonjanin told reporters.

She emphasized that the truth, which has been hidden for a long time, needs to be revealed.

She reiterated the words of Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik on the occasion of today’s commemoration: "The truth is our justice, and remembrance is our obligation."

"This is an obligation to those who suffered unjustly, to the innocent children who were killed, and to their innocent souls who have never been and will never be just a number," Zgonjanin said.

According to her, the Serbian people have a duty to pass this truth on to new generations, who must learn what happened here and what must never happen here again.

"The Government of Republika Srpska has designated this date for commemoration, which is of great importance, as it reflects Srpska’s desire and commitment to stand by its people and never allow forgetting," Zgonjanin said.

The Day of Remembrance for Children Murdered during the Genocide against Serbs, Jews, and Roma in the NDH /1941-1945/ is commemorated today in the hamlet of Macure, part of the Prijedor settlement of Gornji Jelovac.

According to incomplete historical data, 74,642 children, from newborns to 14-year-olds, were murdered in the NDH in the most monstrous ways.

The NDH was the only state in Europe that established concentration camps specifically for children - in Sisak, Jastrebarsko, Reka near Jastrebarsko, and Gornja Rijeka near Križevci.

It has been determined that 19,432 children perished in Jasenovac alone, while in the summer of 1942, 75 children under the age of 14 were killed in Gornji Jelovac without a single shot being fired.

The commemoration of the Day of Remembrance for Children Murdered during the Genocide against Serbs, Jews, and Roma in the Independent State of Croatia /1941-1945/ is organized by the Republika Srpska Government's Committee for Preservation of the Traditions of Liberation Wars.