The observance of the International Day of Reflection and Remembrance of the Srebrenica Genocide was accompanied by a series of incidents and increased public tension on the territory of Serbia.
While in Bosnia and Herzegovina thousands gathered at the “Srebrenica-Potočari“ Memorial Center to bury the remains of 10 more recently identified victims, clashes on ideological grounds broke out in Republika Srpska.
Official Belgrade and Bosnian Serb leaders continue to categorically refuse to recognize the mass extermination of over 8,000 Bosniak men and boys in July 1995 as an act of genocide, despite the decisions of the International Court in The Hague. In several Serbian cities, nationalist groups organized demonstrations in support of convicted war criminals Ratko Mladic and Radovan Karadzic, which provoked counter-protests by human rights organizations and necessitated the intervention of the police.
In a joint statement on the anniversary, the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaia Kallas and the European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Cos called on political leaders from the Balkans to choose dialogue over conflict and to take responsibility for the historical truth.
Sources: FENA, Serbian Ministry of Interior, EEAS.