Memory – Crime against Tuzla youth – May 25, 1995

Gate: 29 years ago, the worst crime against the civilian population took place in Tuzla

29 years ago, the most serious crime against the civilian population took place in Tuzla, which was committed at the gathering place for young people, namely Kapija. Yesterday, with pain in their chests and tears in their eyes, citizens remembered the 71 people who were killed by an aggressor’s grenade.

On the fateful May 25, 1995, at exactly 8:55 p.m., a shell fired from Serbian positions on Mount Ozren at the main gathering place in the center of Tuzla killed 71 people, and from that moment on, the lives of almost 200 wounded people were completely changed.

The average age of the murdered citizens is 21 years, and the youngest victim is two-and-a-half-year-old Sandro Kalesić, who was hit in the heart by shrapnel while sitting with his parents in a cafe.

The massacre at the Gate is also known as a crime against the youth of Tuzla, and the commemoration on May 25 began at 9:30 a.m. with the laying of wreaths and flowers to the civilian victims in the Slana Banja complex, where the eternal resting place of the murdered is located.

At 11:00 a.m., a commemoration ceremony was held and wreaths and flowers were laid for the civilian victims at the place of suffering, i.e. Kapija, and at 8:55 p.m. the sirens were sounded, the people of Tuzla remembered the terrible moment when a grenade was thrown 24 years ago.

Former Republika Srpska (VRS) General Novak Đukić was sentenced to death for the massacre at the Gate in Tuzla. He should spend 20 years behind bars, however, he did not respond to the execution of the sentence under the pretext that he was receiving treatment in Serbia.

Although a warrant has been issued for him, Đukić cannot currently be extradited to Bosnia and Herzegovina because he has Serbian citizenship. However, he can serve his sentence in Serbia, because that country signed an agreement with Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2010 that enables mutual execution of sentences, if requested by the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which has not yet been done.

To make the absurdity even greater, Đukić today moves freely through Serbia, so in November 2019 he attended the promotion of the book by the Ministry of Defense of Serbia in Belgrade "Tuzla gate – directed tragedy" by Ilija Branković, author of the book from 2017. "Diversion on Kapija square in Tuzla".

At the Tuzla gate, the following were killed: Razija Dedović, Alma Brguljak, Senada Hasanović, Fahrudin Ramić, Pera Marinović, Šaban Mustačević, Edhem Sarajlić, Adnan Beganović, Asmir Bakalović, Suzana Dušić, Almasa Ćerimović, Amir Dapa, Amir Đuzel, Vesna Kurtalić, Edisa Memic, Sanja Ćajić, Nedim Rekić, Mustafa Vuković, Adnan Hujdurović, Edina Ahmetašević, Amira Mehinović, Franc Kantor, Asim Slijepčević, Sandro Kalesić, Edin Hodžić, Indira Borić, Sulejman Mehanović, Damir Kurbašić, Ilinka Tadić, Selma Nuhanović, Edin Mehmedović, Nihad Šišić, Amir Čekić, Indira Okanović, Ilvana Bošnjaković, Admir Alispahić, Jasenko Rosić, Damir Bojkić, Samir Mujić, Rajif Rahmani, Almir Jahić, Lejla Bučuk, Azur Mujabašić, Azur Vantic, Suzana Abuismail, Šemsa Hasičić, Senahid Salamović, Nenad Marković . Fatušić, Elvir Murselović, Adnan Saimović, Jasminka Sarajlić and four other persons who have not been identified.

Recording: AlJazeera Balkans Text: RTVTK