On the occasion of the 32nd anniversary of his death, Ambassador Castellani paid tribute to Gabriele Moreno Locatelli, an Italian believer and peacemaker, volunteer of the association “Blessed Peace Builders”, who was killed on the Vrbanja Bridge in Sarajevo on 3 October 1993.
The commemoration was attended by a large number of citizens and representatives of the Italian community, including members of the EUFOR mission, representatives of civil society and the Deputy Mayor of Sarajevo, Predrag Puharić.
Locatelli was crossing the bridge that day together with several members of the association, in a symbolic action to call on the warring parties to cease hostilities – precisely at the place where in April 1992 the first two civilian victims of the war, Suada Dilberović and Olga Sučić, were killed during an anti-war protest. Locatelli was, however, shot by a sniper and died in hospital a few hours later from his wounds.
“Today, my thoughts are with Gabriele Moreno’s family, his friends, his community and the institutions of his birthplace, Canzo. Recalling that, without any rhetoric, Gabriele Moreno’s sacrifice was not in vain. In order to pay tribute to him and give meaning to his sacrifice, numerous initiatives, projects and ideas have been launched over the years dedicated to those who need help the most. As the plaque on this bridge says: ‘now from your martyrdom new stories are emerging, stories that are realized in peace’”.
“The testimony of Gabriele Moreno and other of our compatriots who, for various reasons, lost their lives in BiH during the war, continues to inspire all those who advocate for real processes of reconciliation and interethnic dialogue in BiH, in order to support the stability, development and European integration of the country, which Italy strongly supports”, concluded the ambassador.
