MEMORIAL SERVICE HELD FOR CHILDREN KILLED IN SERBIAN SARAJEVO

ISTOČNO NOVO SARAJEVO, MARCH 11 /SRNA/ - The Elementary School Saint Sava in Istočno Novo Sarajevo marked the Day of Remembrance for the children of Srpsko Sarajevo who were killed during the war, including pupils Nataša Učur and Milica Lalović, who were killed by sniper fire on this day in 1995 while playing in front of their building.

A memorial service for the slain children was conducted by priests of the Serbian Orthodox Church, attended by family members of the victims, guests, pupils, and teachers. Wreaths were then laid at the memorial dedicated to the children of Srpsko Sarajevo who were killed between 1992 and 1995, in remembrance of the prematurely taken lives of 118 children, six of whom were pupils of this school. Wreaths and flowers were laid by the families of the slain children, the envoy of the Serb member of the BiH Presidency Boško Tomić, delegations of the city of Istočno Sarajevo and its municipalities, veterans' organizations of the Sarajevo-Romanija Region, the Istočno Sarajevo Police Administration, the Elementary School Saint Sava, and citizens. Pupils of the school performed an appropriate artistic program. The school's principal Željka Topalić said that pupils are constantly taught how valuable human life is, how important it is to be honorable and honest, and how essential it is for every member of society to highly value peace, love for those who live for Republika Srpska and the well-being of the Serb people, and to show compassion for Serb victims. She also emphasized that it is important for them to know that the freedom and dignity of the Serb people represent the Saint Sava covenant. March 11 has been designated as the Day of Remembrance for the children of Serbian Sarajevo who were killed during the war, the day when the girls Nataša Učur /10/ and Milica Lalović /11/ were killed. Their tragic fate became a symbol of the suffering of children in the Sarajevo-Romanija Region. A sniper from the Loris Building, located at what was then Pero Kosorić Square, killed Milica and Nataša while they were playing elastics in Rave Janković Street, in front of building number 59 in a neighborhood that at the time was under Serbian control. According to testimonies from residents of Grbavica at the time, there were no combat activities when the girls were killed, because a ceasefire agreement had been reached that was monitored by French and Russian members of international military forces. Serbian children were killed and seriously wounded not only in Grbavica, but also in other parts of Sarajevo that were under Serb control during the war - Vojkovići, Grlica, and Vraca. During the war, six pupils of the Elementary School Saint Sava were killed, and many others were wounded. The memorial dedicated to the slain children of Srpsko Sarajevo from 1992 to 1995 bears engraved verses from the poem "Sumrak/Twilight" by poet Goran Vračar, written in memory of the slain children. The monument was erected at the initiative of the School Board and the Organization of Families of Captured and Fallen Soldiers and Missing Civilians of Istočno Sarajevo to preserve the memory of the children killed in Srpsko Sarajevo.