In Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) last year, by the end of November, 76 exhumations and 28 cleanings were carried out, ie the collection of mortal remains found on the surface of the terrain, unburied.
The remains of 80 victims of the past war were exhumed, while in the same period in 2020, 53 victims were exhumed. By the end of November, 71 victims had been identified, and five more victims of the past war had been identified in December.
Emza Fazlic, a spokeswoman for the Institute for Missing Persons of BiH, while presenting these data, mentioned that the Institute’s results in the search for missing persons in 2021 were significantly better compared to 2020 in all segments.
According to her, last year, when it comes to the search for missing persons, was marked by the discovery of two mass graves. One is a mass grave discovered at the Dobro Polje site, Kalinovik Municipality, where the remains of at least ten victims have been exhumed. After DNA analysis of the remains, it was determined that these remains belong to the victims of the genocide committed in Srebrenica in 1995.
Also, Fazlic stated that this is the most remote locality where the remains of genocide victims were found, and how these victims found themselves will be determined in the investigation conducted by the Prosecutor’s Office of BiH.
Last year was also marked by the exhumation at the Pribosijevici site near Rogatica, where the remains of at least four victims of the past war were exhumed. According to the information of the Institute for Missing Persons, it is assumed that they are members of the same family.
Fazlic noted that, apart from exhumations and identifications, a total of 120 re-exhumations were carried out last year. The remains that were subsequently found and identified were added to the previously buried incomplete skeletal remains of the victims.
Further, she pointed out that in our country in earlier years, ie until 2001, victims were identified on the basis of recognizing the personal belongings of victims, clothing, and in this way more than 8.000 people were identified.
“Investigations into the most serious war crimes cases remain. Those who have information about the locations of graves decide to keep quiet about it. On the other hand, families only pray for the bones of their loved ones. But, the vow of silence is growing stronger despite the fact that almost three decades have passed since the war,” Fazlic concluded.
