Sarajevo, 11 July 2003 (RFE/RL) -- Today is the eighth anniversary of the massacre of some 8,000 men and boys from Srebrenica, Bosnia-Herzegovina, by Bosnian Serb forces. On this day in 1995, male Bosnians who had sought refuge in Srebrenica -- which at the time was declared by the United Nations to be a "safe area" protected by Dutch soldiers -- were executed in various locations near Srebrenica.
A further 282 identified bodies will be buried at the Potocari Memorial Center today. Up to 20,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony.
AFP reports Dragan Mikerevic is set to become the first Bosnian Serb prime minister to attend a commemoration ceremony for the massacre, which many ethnic Serbs denied even took place. AFP says Mikerevic will head a government delegation from the Republika Srpska -- the Serbian-run part of Bosnia.
A further 282 identified bodies will be buried at the Potocari Memorial Center today. Up to 20,000 people are expected to attend the ceremony.
AFP reports Dragan Mikerevic is set to become the first Bosnian Serb prime minister to attend a commemoration ceremony for the massacre, which many ethnic Serbs denied even took place. AFP says Mikerevic will head a government delegation from the Republika Srpska -- the Serbian-run part of Bosnia.