A witness for the State Prosecutor’s Office testified in a trial for crimes committed in Bugojno, stating that some prisoners died while digging trenches and fortifications in Gornji Vakuf.
Ilija Udovicic stated that he was a member of the Military Police of the Croatian Defence Council (HVO) and that he was captured by the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ARBiH) on July 24th, 1993. He said that after being captured, they were first taken to a furniture showroom, then transported around the city in a cistern, and finally brought to a stadium.
The witness mentioned that some of them were called out and taken to dig trenches on the line between the HVO and the ARBiH. He was part of a group of 100 prisoners taken from Bugojno.
“Someone told us to stop. Later we found out they were leading us to be executed,” Udovicic stated, adding that they felt relieved when no one said anything the next morning.
He recounted how 50 prisoners were taken from Bugojno through the woods to Gornji Vakuf.
“We stopped near the ‘Jasa’ factory, and that’s where I saw Selmo Cikotic,” the witness stated, describing that the accused was in uniform.
Udovicic testified that at that location, they separated prisoners in pairs and tied their hands with wire. He said they were later separated into groups of ten and taken to an open area where the wires were removed from their hands. He stated that they were later brought to a tavern where they stayed for eight days.
“We went to the front lines, to Ciganske njive and the relay station, digging trenches and bunkers,” the witness said, adding that one of the prisoners, Tabakovic, was killed by a sniper, and another died at the relay station.
“I told my boys, ‘don’t hide.’ Whoever wasn’t careful, got killed,” Udovicic stated, describing how the distance between the HVO and the ARBiH lines was 20 to 30 meters.
When prosecutor Mladen Vukojicic asked why he didn’t mention seeing Cikotic near the ‘Jasa’ factory in his earlier statement, the witness replied, “I don’t understand why I didn’t. It slipped my mind.”
Udovicic testified at the trial of Dzevad Mlaco, accused as the president of the War Presidency of Bugojno, and Cikotic, former commander of the Operational Group West of the ARBiH. Mlaco is accused of ordering the killing of prisoners of Croatian nationality, and Cikotic is accused of failing to prevent subordinates in the ARBiH from committing crimes, and of failing to take measures against the torture and killing of prisoners of war.
Cikotic’s Defense also asked why he did not mention the accused in his earlier statement, to which Udovicic replied that he did not mention many others either.
Witness Zeljko Istuk recounted that he was captured by the ARBiH as an HVO member in early July 1993 and spent around 60 days in captivity. He described that prisoners were first placed in garages, later in a school, and then at a stadium, and that he was among those taken to Gornji Vakuf.
“First they beat me and threw me onto a truck; they had camouflaged, olive-green uniforms… The wire cut into my hands,” the witness described his journey to Gornji Vakuf.
He recounted that they were later taken to a tavern, from where they were taken to dig trenches at Ciganske njive and the relay station. According to him, there were more than ten wounded at that time.
He said that he could have escaped from there whenever he wanted but didn’t because they threatened to kill the other prisoners if he did.
Istuk stated that he was beaten eight times and taken to the front lines as a human shield.
The trial continues on September 10th, Detektor writes.
E.Dz.
