SELAK: SUFFERING IN OPERATION STORM OBLIGES US TO PERSEVERE IN PURSUIT OF JUSTICE

BANJA LUKA, AUGUST 1 /SRNA/ – Republika Srpska Minister of Justice Goran Selak told SRNA that the suffering of innocent Serb people during the criminal Operation Storm obliges all competent institutions to persevere in seeking justice, the truth, and the prosecution of those responsible for the crimes committed.

"The primary Republika Srpska institutions’ objective is the institutional protection of historical facts, providing support to the families of the missing, and preserving the identity and rights of our people, regardless of where they live. The remembrance of the victims of entire Krajina is a guiding principle of our unity and survival," Selak said. He assessed that the upcoming central commemoration of the Day of Remembrance for all Serbs killed and expelled during Operation Storm, which will be held this year in Mrkonjić Grad, carries profound and lasting symbolism for the Serb people in egenral. He called on all citizens to attend the republic-level event with dignity and pay tribute to the victims. According to Selak, the primary institutional, moral, and human duty of the Serb people is to gather every year, especially on August 4, and express their deepest respect for the innocent victims and all those who suffered. "Gathering in Mrkonjić Grad carries profound symbolism for the Serb people in general. It is a day when, united in grief but also with pride, we will pay tribute to the innocent victims and remind the world of the largest ethnic cleansing in Europe since the Second World War. More than 250,000 of our compatriots from Republika Srpska Krajina were expelled from their ancestral homes. Three decades later, no one has been held adequately accountable for this horrific crime, which remains a lasting stain and injustice," Selak recalled. He also stressed the historical importance of preserving the culture of remembrance and paying tribute to the victims with dignity. Selak said that the joint organisation of the Day of Remembrance by the governments of Republika Srpska and Serbia demonstrates their shared institutional commitment to preserving the memory of the 1995 exodus, thereby building the future on the foundations of truth, justice, and respect for human rights. "Srpska and Serbia are sending a strong message together that the Serb people will never be divided when it comes to protecting our vital national interests. Our shared remembrance of the tragic victims of Mrkonjić Grad and the entire Krajina region remains an eternal guide to our unity, strength, and survival on our ancestral lands," Selak concluded. The criminal military and police Operation Storm began on August 4, 1995, with an offensive by Croatian Army and police forces, along with units of the Croatian Defence Council /HVO/, in the regions of Banija, Lika, Kordun, and northern Dalmatia, during which more than 220,000 Krajina Serbs were expelled from their ancestral homes. According to the updated records of Veritas, 1,904 Serbs were killed or remain missing during and after the operation, including 1,250 civilians, around three-quarters of whom were over the age of 60. The victims also included ten children under the age of 14 and 566 women, about four-fifths of whom were older than 60. The International Court of Justice, in its February 2015 ruling, characterized Operation Storm as ethnic cleansing but not genocide, although experts in the field around the world claim that the operation had all the characteristics of genocide.