Saborsko Massacre
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The Saborsko massacre (, ) was the killing of 29
Croat The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...
residents of the village of Saborsko on 12 November 1991, following the seizure of the village in a
Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (JNA/; Macedonian language, Macedonian, Montenegrin language, Montenegrin and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian language, Croatian and ; , J ...
(''Jugoslovenska Narodna Armija'' – JNA) and Croatian Serb offensive during the
Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...
. The fall of the town occurred as part of a JNA and Croatian Serb operation to capture a Croatian-held
pocket A pocket is a bag- or envelope-like receptacle either fastened to or inserted in an article of clothing to hold small items. Pockets are also attached to luggage, backpacks, and similar items. In older usage, a pocket was a separate small bag o ...
centered on the town of
Slunj Slunj is a town in the mountainous part of Central Croatia, located along the important North-South route to the Adriatic Sea between Karlovac and Plitvice Lakes National Park, on the meeting of the rivers Korana and Slunjčica. Slunj has a popu ...
, southeast of
Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. In the 2021 census, its population was 49,377. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located southwest of Zagreb and northeast of Rijeka, and is connected to them via the ...
. While the bulk of the civilian population fled with the surviving Croatian forces, those who remained in Saborsko were rounded up and either killed or expelled. The bodies of the victims were retrieved from two mass graves and several individual graves in 1995. The capture of Saborsko and the killing and expulsion of its civilian population was included in the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes in the Yugoslav Wars, war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to tr ...
(ICTY) indictments of Milan Babić and
Milan Martić Milan Martić ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Мартић; born 18 December 1954) is a Croatian Serb politician and war criminal who served as the president of the unrecognized Republic of Serbian Krajina, a self-proclaimed state largely populated by Ser ...
, high-ranking officials of the Croatian Serb-declared wartime breakaway region of SAO Krajina. Following the war, the ICTY convicted Babić and Martić for their role in the events. Saborsko was subsequently rebuilt.


Background

In 1990, following the electoral defeat of the government of the
Socialist Republic of Croatia The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), commonly abbreviated as SR Croatia and referred to as simply Croatia, was a ...
, ethnic tensions between Croats and Serbs worsened. The
Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (JNA/; Macedonian language, Macedonian, Montenegrin language, Montenegrin and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian language, Croatian and ; , J ...
(''Jugoslovenska Narodna Armija'' – JNA) confiscated
Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...
's Territorial Defence (''Teritorijalna obrana'' - TO) weapons to minimize resistance. On 17 August, the tensions escalated into an open revolt by Croatian Serbs, centred on the predominantly Serb-populated areas of the
Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...
n hinterland around Knin, parts of the
Lika Lika () is a traditional region of Croatia proper, roughly bound by the Velebit mountain from the southwest and the Plješevica mountain from the northeast. On the north-west end Lika is bounded by Ogulin-Plaški basin, and on the south-east by t ...
,
Kordun The Kordun () region is a part of central Croatia from the bottom of the Petrova Gora (Peter's mountain) mountain range, which extends along the rivers Korana and Slunjčica, and forms part of the border region to Bosnia and Herzegovina. Within ...
, Banovina and
eastern Croatia Slavonia (; ) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Located in the Pannonian Plain and taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Po ...
. This was followed by two unsuccessful attempts by
Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
, supported by
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and Serbia's provinces of
Vojvodina Vojvodina ( ; sr-Cyrl, Војводина, ), officially the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, is an Autonomous administrative division, autonomous province that occupies the northernmost part of Serbia, located in Central Europe. It lies withi ...
and
Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...
to obtain the Yugoslav Presidency's approval for a JNA operation to disarm Croatian security forces in January 1991. After a bloodless skirmish between Serb insurgents and Croatian special police in March, the JNA itself, supported by Serbia and its allies, asked the Federal Presidency to give it wartime authority and declare a state of emergency. The request was denied on 15 March, and the JNA came under the control of Serbian President
Slobodan Milošević Slobodan Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Милошевић, ; 20 August 1941 – 11 March 2006) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who was the President of Serbia between 1989 and 1997 and President of the Federal Republic of Yugos ...
. Milošević publicly threatened to replace the JNA with a Serbian army and declared that he no longer recognized the authority of the Federal Presidency. By the end of the month, the conflict had escalated into the
Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...
. The JNA stepped in, increasingly supporting the Croatian Serb insurgents, and preventing Croatian police from intervening. In early April, the leaders of the Croatian Serb revolt declared their intention to integrate the area under their control, known as SAO Krajina, with Serbia. The
Government of Croatia The Government of Croatia (), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia (), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government (), is the main executive branch of government in Croatia. It is led by the Prime Minister of Croatia, president o ...
viewed this declaration as an attempt to
secede Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal is the c ...
. In May, the Croatian government responded by forming the
Croatian National Guard The Croatian National Guard ( or ZNG) was an armed force established by Croatia in April and May 1991 during the Croatian War of Independence. Although it was established within the framework of the Ministry of the Interior for legal reasons, th ...
(''Zbor narodne garde'' - ZNG), but its development was hampered by a
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(UN)
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introduced in September. On 8 October, Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia, and a month later the ZNG was renamed the
Croatian Army The Croatian Army ( or HKoV) is the land force branch of the Croatian Armed Forces. It is numerically the largest of the three branches of the Croatian Armed Forces. The HKoV is the main force for the defense of the country against external threa ...
(''Hrvatska vojska'' - HV). Late 1991 saw the fiercest fighting of the war, as the Yugoslav campaign in Croatia culminated in the
Siege of Dubrovnik The siege of Dubrovnik ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, opsada Dubrovnika, опсада Дубровника) was a military engagement fought between the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and Croatian forces defending the city of Dubrovnik and its surroundings dur ...
, and the
Battle of Vukovar The Battle of Vukovar was an 87-day siege of Vukovar in eastern Croatia by the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), supported by various paramilitary forces from Serbia, between August and November 1991. Before the Croatian War of Independence the Bar ...
.


Prelude

The Saborsko Independent Company, consisting of approximately 30 personnel, was stationed in the village by the Croatian police the day after the
Plitvice Lakes incident The Plitvice Lakes incident ( or ''Plitvički krvavi Uskrs'', both translating as "Plitvice Bloody Easter") was an armed clash at the beginning of the Croatian War of Independence. It was fought between Croatian police and armed forces from the ...
on 1 April 1991. The tensions worsened in July. That month the JNA distributed 1,000
small arms A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions). The first firearms originate ...
to ethnic Serbs living in
Gorski kotar Gorski Kotar () is the mountainous region in Croatia between Karlovac and Rijeka. Because 63% of its surface is forested it is popularly called ''the green lungs of Croatia'' or ''Croatian Switzerland''. The European route E65, which connects B ...
region, including Plaški. Skirmishes took place near Josipdol and Plaški. In June–August, Saborsko was targeted by artillery and mortars positioned at JNA barracks in Lička Jasenica, and the bulk of its civilian population fled by early August. However, approximately 400 returned to their homes the same month after 20–30 special police troops were deployed from
Duga Resa Duga Resa is a town in Karlovac County, Croatia. It is located about 65 km southwest of Zagreb and 100 km east of Rijeka. Name The earliest reference to Duga Resa is from the year 1380. There are several theories on how the then-villag ...
to Saborsko along with 15–20 regular police drawn from Slunj as reinforcements. On 25 September, 100–200 police reservists arrived to Saborsko from
Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...
. The final Croatian reinforcements arrived in October, consisting of 20–50 police. By October, a
pocket A pocket is a bag- or envelope-like receptacle either fastened to or inserted in an article of clothing to hold small items. Pockets are also attached to luggage, backpacks, and similar items. In older usage, a pocket was a separate small bag o ...
of Croatian-controlled territory formed around the town of
Slunj Slunj is a town in the mountainous part of Central Croatia, located along the important North-South route to the Adriatic Sea between Karlovac and Plitvice Lakes National Park, on the meeting of the rivers Korana and Slunjčica. Slunj has a popu ...
south of
Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. In the 2021 census, its population was 49,377. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located southwest of Zagreb and northeast of Rijeka, and is connected to them via the ...
, on the boundary of the regions of Kordun and Lika, hampering direct communications between SAO Krajina-held areas in the two regions. The pocket was separated from the bulk of the
Croatian Government The Government of Croatia (), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia (), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government (), is the main executive branch of government in Croatia. It is led by the president of the Government (), infor ...
-controlled territory by the SAO Krajina-controlled town of Plaški to the west. In turn, Plaški was inaccessible to the central SAO Krajina authorities as the road to Plaški ran through the village of Saborsko, situated within the Slunj pocket. In early October, the JNA and the SAO Krajina TO launched a joint offensive which was aimed at capturing the peripheral areas of the Slunj pocket. The JNA also planned to airlift 44 truckloads of weapons from Željava Air Base to Gorski kotar and raise a combat brigade there in support of the operation and to extend their control into Gorski kotar. The airlift was cancelled after the
Yugoslav Air Force The Air Force and Air Defence ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Ратно ваздухопловство и противваздушна одбрана, Ratno vazduhoplovstvo i protivvazdušna odbrana ; abbr. sh-Cyrl-Latn, label=none, separator=/, РВ и ПВ ...
refused to follow the orders. That month, the JNA captured the village of Lipovača, east of Saborsko, and turned it over to Serb paramilitaries. Most of the Croat civilians fled, although at least seven civilians were killed and the village looted and torched. Three more Croat civilians were killed in the nearby village of Vukovići. The Croatian police and the ZNG, including the forces based in Saborsko, launched a failed attempt to capture the JNA base in Lička Jasenica on 4–8 November resulting in the deaths of a number of Serb civilians. During an attack on the 7 November, a force commanded by JNA officers and including the 63rd Parachute Battalion troops killed ten more Croat civilians in a
massacre A massacre is an event of killing people who are not engaged in hostilities or are defenseless. It is generally used to describe a targeted killing of civilians Glossary of French words and expressions in English#En masse, en masse by an armed ...
in the villages of Poljanak and Vukovići, near Saborsko on 7 November.


Timeline

In early November, the JNA and the SAO Krajina TO intensified their offensive aimed at capturing Saborsko and the Slunj pocket. The main axes of the advance radiated north and northwest from the
Plitvice Lakes Plitvice or Plitvička jezera can refer to: * Plitvice Lakes National Park Plitvice Lakes National Park (, colloquially ''Plitvice'', ) is one of the oldest and largest national parks in Croatia. In 1979, Plitvice Lakes National Park was inscrib ...
—towards Slunj and Saborsko respectively. The JNA force assigned to the offensive was organised as the Tactical Group 2 (TG-2), under the command of
Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...
Čedomir Bulat. The TG-2, whose bulk consisted of a reinforced motorised battalion detached from the 236th Motorised Brigade and a D-30 howitzer battalion, was supported by the 5th Partisan Brigade, both subordinated to the 13th JNA Corps as well as a police unit and a SAO Krajina TO brigade drawn from Plaški. The attacking force, supported by the Yugoslav Air Force, artillery and tanks, approached the village from three directions on the morning of 12 November, while the main force advancing towards Slunj reached Rakovica. According to SAO Krajina sources, the air strikes commenced at 9 a.m. and lasted for fifteen minutes. They were followed by a 30-minute artillery bombardment before ground forces were ordered to attack. The defences of Saborsko were first breached at noon, and the attacking force reached the centre of the village at 3:30 p.m. According to SAO Krajina sources, resistance was light, with the defending force estimated to consist of only 150 armed troops. The village was secured by 5 p.m. with tanks attached to the attacking force withdrawn by 6 p.m. The assault resulted in the death of 50 Croatian troops, while the attacking forces suffered only four wounded. In the immediate aftermath of the fighting to control Saborsko, the village was looted and many houses were torched. After the attack, the bulk of the civilian population and the remaining Croatian police and troops fled over snow-covered terrain in poor weather to Karlovac,
Ogulin Ogulin () is a town in central Croatia, in Karlovac County. It has a population of 7,389 (2021) (it was 8,216 in 2011), and a total municipal population of 12,251 (2021). Ogulin is known for its historic stone castle, known as Kula, and the nearby ...
, and to the nearby territory of
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...
. Approximately 30–60 civilians, largely elderly people, remained in Saborsko. The JNA and SAO Krajina troops forced those who remained behind to leave the village, killing or abusing the civilians. Between 25 and 32 civilians were murdered by the troops in the immediate aftermath of the capture of Saborsko. Some of the victims were shot, while others were beaten, burned to death, hung or killed with chainsaws.


Aftermath

The destruction of Saborsko continued and both churches in the village were demolished by mid-December. By 1995, the entire village had been completely destroyed except for two Serb-owned houses, which were badly damaged. After its capture, the village was renamed Ravna Gora by the SAO Krajina authorities. Croatian forces subsequently lost control of Slunj on 16 November 1991 and the rest of the pocket fell to the TG-2 when it captured
Cetingrad Cetingrad is a municipality in Karlovac County, Croatia near Croatia's border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia. The population of the village itself is 319, while the total municipality population is 2,027 (2011). The municipality is part of Ko ...
on 29 November. The Saborsko Independent Company, which unsuccessfully defended Saborsko, was subsequently attached to Ogulin Home Guard Battalion, which was in turn amalgamated with other HV units to form the 143rd Home Guard Regiment. In the two months following the recapture of the area by Croatia in 1995 during
Operation Storm Operation Storm ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Operacija Oluja, separator=" / ", Операција Олуја) was the last major battle of the Croatian War of Independence and a major factor in the outcome of the Bosnian War. It was a decisive victory f ...
, the bodies of 27 victims were recovered in two mass graves containing three and fourteen bodies respectively, and in ten individual graves. In its indictment of Milan Babić, leader of the SAO Krajina at the time when the killings in Saborsko took place, the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes in the Yugoslav Wars, war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to tr ...
(ICTY) specified that 29 Croat civilians were killed in Saborsko on 12 November 1991. The killings in the Slunj pocket, including those in Saborsko, were prosecuted by the ICTY. The ICTY charged Babić and
Milan Martić Milan Martić ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Мартић; born 18 December 1954) is a Croatian Serb politician and war criminal who served as the president of the unrecognized Republic of Serbian Krajina, a self-proclaimed state largely populated by Ser ...
, respectively the defence and interior ministers of the SAO Krajina, with persecution, extermination and murder of non-Serb civilians in the area as well as deportations and forcible transfer of the civilian population, intentional plunder and destruction of property. Babić was tried at the ICTY in 2003–05, convicted and sentenced to 13 years in prison. Martić was tried in 2002–08, convicted and sentenced to 35 years in prison. His involvement in the killings, among other charges brought forward by the ICTY, was interpreted by the tribunal as part of a campaign of
ethnic cleansing Ethnic cleansing is the systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial, or religious groups from a given area, with the intent of making the society ethnically homogeneous. Along with direct removal such as deportation or population transfer, it ...
of non-Serbs from SAO Krajina controlled areas. Saborsko was rebuilt after the war with a total of 400 houses constructed, but the refugees returning to the village were mostly elderly due to a lack of employment options elsewhere. The site of one of the mass graves in Saborsko is marked with a monument to the victims. Three different
commemorative plaque A commemorative plaque, or simply plaque, or in other places referred to as a historical marker, historic marker, or historic plaque, is a plate of metal, ceramic, stone, wood, or other material, bearing text or an image in relief, or both, ...
s dedicated to Croatian policemen and troops killed in Saborsko in 1991 were placed at various sites in the village in 2009, but two were stolen on 11 November 2010. The missing commemorative plaques were replaced by November 2011.


Footnotes


References

;Books * * * * * * * ;News reports * * * * * * * * * * * * ;Other sources * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Saborsko Massacre 1991 in Croatia Massacres in 1991 Serbian war crimes in the Croatian War of Independence Massacres in Croatia Republic of Serbian Krajina Conflicts in 1991 November 1991 in Yugoslavia 1991 crimes in Croatia 1991 murders in Europe 1990s murders in Croatia Massacres of Croats Massacres in the Croatian War of Independence