From the Monitor archives: a 'chilling picture' of Srebrenica massacre
Today, on the 19th anniversary of the genocide, 175 more newly identified victims will be buried. Monitor correspondent David Rohde won a Pulitzer Prize for early reporting of one of the biggest massacres in modern Europe.
Today, on the 19th anniversary of the genocide, 175 more newly identified victims will be buried. Monitor correspondent David Rohde won a Pulitzer Prize for early reporting of one of the biggest massacres in modern Europe.
Nineteen years after the worst massacre in Europe since World War II, 175 newly identified victims of the genocide in Srebrenica will be buried at the聽Potocari聽memorial聽cemetery聽in聽Bosnia and Herzegovina.
During the Bosnian War from 1992-95, the towns of Srebrenica and Zepa were supposed to be United Nations protected areas. Serbian forces overwhelmed the towns and rounded up and killed male Bosnian Muslims. The US government said that, based on satellite photos, it聽believed a large-scale killing had taken place and that it knew where the graves were located, causing Serbian troops to bulldoze and relocate bodies.
Since then 6,066 victims have been identified, often with聽DNA identification聽since many remains were ripped apart in attempts to relocate the bodies. The world's largest聽DNA-assisted identification program, the聽International Commission for Missing Persons (ICMP), is based in Bosnia.聽
"Without DNA, we would have never been able to identify anyone," Kathryne Bomberger, head of ICMP, told the Associated Press. "However, this means that the families have to make the difficult decision on when to bury a person. And many of the women from Srebrenica want to bury their sons, their family members, the way they remember them when they were alive."
The Monitor reports聽
The Monitor's reporter in Bosnia during the conflict, David Rohde, won a Pulitzer Prize for his "persistent on-site reporting聽of the massacre."
Mr. Rohde began interviewing people who had escaped the massacre. A report filed on Aug. 3, 1995 details the chilling experience of those who survived.
Rohde traveled into Serbian rebel-held territory without permission to try and corroborate the evidence presented by the US government that hundreds, or thousands, of Muslims were killed by the Serbs. His reporting from Aug. 18, 1995 found remaining evidence聽in places indicated on the spy photos.
On Aug. 25, 1995 Rohde detailed how he managed to get into a rebel held area.
Rohde published a piece on Oct. 2, 1995 detailing further evidence of what had taken place.
Rohde was detained by Serbian forces on Oct. 29 when he drove into Serbian-held territory without authorization for a second trip to continue his reporting. He was released 10 days later amid mounting international pressure.