The legendary commander of the 505th Cavalry Bužim Brigade died on August 5, 1995, just a few hours before the final unblocking of this part of Krajina, leaving an indelible mark in the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
On this day, August 5, 1995, Brigadier General of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Izet Nanić, the legendary commander of the 505th Cavalry Bužim Brigade of the Fifth Corps of the RBiH Army and one of the greatest heroes of the defense and liberation war, died.
His name is still spoken with special respect throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially in Krajina, where he remains a symbol of courage, military ability, determination and uncompromising fight for freedom.
Izet Nanić was born on October 4, 1965 in Bužim, as the second of seven sons of Rasima and Ibrahim Nanić.
After finishing elementary school in his hometown, he continued his education in Zagreb, where he graduated from the Military High School. He entered the military academy in Belgrade in 1984, majoring in Air Force and Air Defense, he spent part of his education in Sarajevo, and finished the academy in Zagreb in 1987.
As a lieutenant of the then Yugoslav National Army, he served in Kragujevac. However, after he recognized the intentions of Greater Serbia’s politics and the aggression that was being prepared against Bosnia and Herzegovina, he left the JNA in early 1992 and returned to his native Bužim.
From the first days of the war, he actively participated in the organization of defense. He formed the Headquarters of the Territorial Defense in Bužim, and on August 1, 1992, he became its commander. He was the founder of the 105th Bužimka Strike Krajina Brigade, later the celebrated 505th Cavalry Motorized Brigade, which under his leadership would grow into one of the most elite units of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Nanić led the brigade through numerous offensives and defensive operations, achieving a number of military successes that went down in history. He paid special attention to the formation of special units, among which were ČSN-BSN “Hamza” and DIV “Gazije”, which proved to be one of the most successful units of the Fifth Corps.
On August 5, 1995, when the Croatian Army launched the military-police operation “Storm”, the units of the Fifth Corps of the RBiH Army simultaneously began operations to liberate the occupied territories and merge with the Croatian forces. Bužim’s 505th Knights Brigade broke through the enemy lines on Čorkovača and headed towards Dvor na Una.
Just a few hours before the final unblocking of this part of Krajina, Izet Nanić was killed in an enemy ambush, leading his fighters on the front line, in the fighting in the area of Suha Međa, i.e. Vijenc.
His death represented one of the heaviest losses for the Fifth Corps and the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but his sacrifice and military achievements remained permanently inscribed in the history of the country’s defense.
For exceptional war merits, he was awarded the “Golden Lily” award in 1994, while in 1998 he was awarded the “Order of Heroes of the Liberation War” posthumously, and was also promoted to the rank of brigadier general.
In his native Nanić Dolina, not far from Bužim, a monument was erected to Izet and his brother Nevzet, and the memory of the legendary commander and his “Bužim knights” lives on through numerous anniversaries, memories of comrades and generations who grow up learning about the man who laid down his life for the freedom of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
