New details have emerged regarding reports that Croatia’s current defense minister, Damir Krsticevic, may face charges for war crimes in BiH. Rumors about the charges have circulated for the past few weeks, complicating the relationship between BiH and Croatia. According to Tanjug press agency, the specific complaints against Krsticevic derive from the Croatian Army’s actions in the vicinity of Jajce, in Republika Srpska.
The war crimes in question were committed on September 13, 1995 in the village of Bravnice, near the town of Jajce, during Operation Mistral – an offensive carried out by the Croatian Army and the Croatian Defense Council (HVO).
“After members of the Croatian Army attacked Srbobran (Donji Vakuf) on September 13, 1995, the Serb population in the area, most of them women, children and the elderly, started fleeing toward Jajce and Banja Luka. A column moving from Srbobran towards Jajce was attacked on September 13, 1995 near the village Bravnice, about three kilometers from Jajce, by members of the Croatian Army who were waiting in ambush and proceeded to kill without mercy,” writes Nacional.
According to the article, the victims were unarmed civilians from the refugee convoy,, taken completely by surprise, and offering no resistance.
Thus far, the BiH prosecutor’s office has not filed charges against the minister.
