Srebrenica Genocide: What Happened and What’s Still Happening
On July 11, 1995, Bosnian Serb soldiers attacked the town of Srebrenica, where more than 40,000 Muslims were staying. At that time, it was supposed to be a safe zone protected by the United Nations, but that protection did not work.
The Bosnian Serb army, led by General Ratko Mladic, killed thousands of Muslim men and boys. Many of them were buried in mass graves—large places where bodies are buried together.
Over the years, around 7,000 victims have been identified and buried properly. But about 1,000 people are still missing. New mass graves are now rarely found. The last one was discovered in 2021, far from Srebrenica.
In 2025, during the yearly memorial on July 11, the remains of seven victims will be buried. These include two 19-year-old men and a 67-year-old woman.
A Daughter’s Pain
One woman, Mirzeta Karic, said she is burying her father, but only one bone was found—his lower jaw. She said her mother is very sick, so they decided not to wait for more remains.
Her father tried to escape through the forest with thousands of others, but he didn’t make it. Her brother, three uncles, and their four sons were also killed.
She has already buried 49 close family members in the same cemetery. Her brother’s funeral was held in 2003.
“I’ve been through a lot,” she said, “but this funeral will be the hardest. Just one bone. The pain is impossible to describe.”
Justice and Denial
The international court has sentenced both Ratko Mladic (now 83) and Radovan Karadzic (now 80) to life in prison for war crimes and genocide. But many political leaders in Bosnia still refuse to accept what happened.
In Republika Srpska, the Serb part of Bosnia, many leaders say the massacre was not genocide. One of the loudest voices is Milorad Dodik, the president of Republika Srpska. In 2024, he was mentioned 42 times in the media for denying or downplaying the genocide, according to a report.
Despite protests from Serbia and Republika Srpska, the United Nations has now made July 11 an international day to remember the Srebrenica genocide.
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