28th anniversary of Srebrenica genocide commemorated in Ankara

By News Centre

Jointly organized by the International Information and Perception Association (B?LAL) and the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the panel was attended by Bosnia and Herzegovina's Ankara Ambassador Adis Alagic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Deputy General Directorate for the Balkans and Central Europe Department Head Fatih Öztürk, B?LAL President Ömer Lütfi Türkmeno?lu and many other guests attended.

Making the opening speech of the panel, Türkmeno?lu emphasized that the genocide in Srebrenica should be understood by everyone, and the atrocities committed not only in Srebrenica but all over the world should be remembered.

Ambassador Alagic reminded that the Srebrenica genocide was committed in an area declared a safe zone by the United Nations (UN), and noted that genocides should not take place anywhere in the world. Head of the Deputy Director General for the Balkans and Central Europe at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Öztürk also shared the message of Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yasin Ekrem Serim.

A film about the Bosnian War was screened and a plaque was presented at the event.

What happened in Srebrenica?

Immediately after the occupation of Srebrenica by the Serbian troops under the command of Ratko Mladic on July 11, 1995, the civilian Bosniaks who took refuge with the Dutch soldiers within the UN were handed over to the Serbs. Allowing women and children to go to the area controlled by Bosniak soldiers, the Serbs killed at least 8,372 Bosniak men in the woods, factories and warehouses, and those who were killed were buried in mass graves.