The Srebrenica Massacre - Nova Srpska Politicka Misao

CHAPTER 1
Introduction
Edward S. Herman
“Srebrenica” has become the symbol of evil, and specifically Serb evil.
It is commonly described as “a horror without parallel in the history of
Europe since the Second World War” in which there was a cold-blooded
execution “of at least 8,000 Muslim men and boys.” 1 The events in question
took place in and near the Bosnian town of Srebrenica between
July 11 and 19, 1995, as the Bosnian Serb Army (BSA) occupied that
town and fought with and killed many Bosnian Muslims, unknown
numbers dying in the fighting and by executions. There is no question
but that Bosnian Serb forces carried out executions, but even though
only rarely discussed there is a major issue of how many, as numerous
bodies found in local grave sites were victims of fighting, hard to differentiate
from victims of execution, and many Bosnian Muslim men
who fled Srebrenica reached Bosnian Muslim and Yugoslav territory
safely. 2 What is more, some bodies exhumed were very possibly those of
Serbs killed in the forays by well-armed Bosnian Muslim forces operating
out of Srebrenica during the 39 months before July 1995.
On April 16, 1993, the UN Security Council designated Srebrenica
a “safe area,” one that should be “free from any armed attack or any
other hostile act.” Forty-eight hours later, the UN Protection Force for
Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNPROFOR) negotiated an agreement between
the BSA and Bosnian Muslim Army (BMA) whereby the BSA
agreed to a ceasefire in exchange for UNPROFOR’S pledge to disarm
the Srebrenica “safe area” population. 3 But Srebrenica remained an
armed camp nonetheless, one from which Bosnian Muslim troops and
paramilitary forces periodically ventured forth and destroyed numerous
Serb villages and killed a total number of Serbs estimated to be well
over 3,000 by the war’s end. 4 The vengeance motive that developed
among Bosnian Serb forces was strong, and they even had lists of “safe
haven”-protected killers, some no doubt captured and summarily executed
in July 1995. But there was also heavy fighting during the period
of the alleged massacre as several thousand Bosnian Muslim troops of
the well-armed 28th division of the BMA retreated from Srebrenica and
its vicinity to Bosnian Muslim lines at Tuzla. Many reached those lines
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