NUŽDIĆ: CORRIDOR - MILITARY OPERATION AND MATTER OF SERB PEOPLE’S SURVIVAL

BANJA LUKA, JUNE 14 /SRNA/ - Corridor Operation was not just a military operation, but a matter of either survival or disappearance for the Serb people west of the Drina River. It brought forth some of the greatest military commanders, including the legendary Momir Talić, Novica Simić, Boško Kelečević, and Slavko Lisica, Viktor Nuždić, acting director of the Republila Srpska Research Centre of War, War Crimes and Tracing Missing Civilians, cited in SRNA statement.

"That is why it is no coincidence that our people called this operation the 'Corridor of Life'. That phrase best reflects its essence, as it truly meant survival, hope, and life for us," Nuždić emphasized. He has recalled that life for Serbs in both Krajinas in 1992 became nearly impossible, as they were completely surrounded, isolated, and cut off from motherland Serbia. He has noted that the cost of the Corridor breakthrough was extremely high. According to data collected by the Republic Centre as part of a multi-year project to document the victims of the Defensive-Patzriotic War, from the initial battles on June 8 until the conclusion of the operation and the liberation of Brod on October 6, 1992, at least 898 soldiers from Republika Srpska and Republika Srpska Krajina lost their lives. "According to current data on wounded soldiers, which is still being recorded, more than 2,000 sustained minor or severe injuries during the breakthrough," Nuždić stressed. According to him, Corridor Operation also produced some of the greatest military commanders in the region - legendary figures such as Momir Talić, Novica Simić, Boško Kelečević, Slavko Lisica, and many others - and saw the fighting of famous battles and victories that are still retold today as examples of courage and heroism. He mentioned the lasting memory of the order given by Veljko Milanković, commander of the Wolves of Vučijak, who instructed his soldiers to fight hand-to-hand. He also recalled the sacrifice of Trivo Vujić, commander of the 327th Motorized Brigade, who demonstrated what Serb military honour and loyalty must be through his own example. "We must not forget our brothers from Republika Srpska Krajina who, during the operation, were examples of courage and self-sacrifice in the Serb people's fight for freedom, whose sacrifices we sometimes, unfortunately, forget, but should not," Nuždić emphasized. The Corridor 92 military operation took place between June 14 and 28 in the Posavina region and connected enabled the connection of the western parts of Republika Srpska and Republika Srpska Krajina with the rest of Republika Srpska and Serbia. This operation, prompted directly by the deaths of 12 babies in the Banja Luka maternity hospital due to a lack of oxygen, ended a 42-day-long land and air blockade of the western part of Republika Srpska and Republika Srpska Krajina.