 |
Investigators Opening Largest Mass Grave of Srebrenica Victims
American soldiers watch for angry local residents who
His team of forensic and archaeological specialists and eight Serb workers began digging test trenches to define the limits of the grave believed to hold some two hundred bodies. "It's not a nice way to earn a living," said one Serb who did not wish to be identified. "I just hope they don't find anything." But Haglund told reporters gathered at a small field 30 km west of Srebrenica: "We know there are bodies here."
"We've already found a shoe protruding above the ground with a body attached and we found bodies on a previous trip when we dug a test trench." Earlier this month, investigators found six contorted corpses at the site, two with their hands bound behind their backs, one with a crushed skull, and at least two with small bullet-sized holes in their heads.
The United Nations believes up to 4,000 unarmed Muslim prisoners were slaughtered by the Bosnian Serb Army after it captured the besieged U.N. safe area of Srebrenica last July. A number of grave sites have been opened recently and scores of bodies unearthed in preliminary digging.
Serb refugees who have moved into wrecked homes around the gravesite say they know the diggers will unearth bodies, but they insist all the dead are Serb fighters. "The fighting was heavy here" said one refugee from Sarajevo, "but, as far as I know, the bodies there are of our soldiers whom the Muslims killed."
Around the Nova Kasaba site, spent shell casings littered the roadside along the busy main route that winds through steep mountains in eastern Bosnia to Sarajevo. The investigators and the U.S. troops assigned to protect them were concerned about local antagonism to their work.
At Cerska, investigators dug up 154 corpses where they expected only 50. Haglund said his team had to scrounge what equipment they could, including picks and shovels. "We managed to acquire an unused South African-built UN armoured vehicle to help us shift equipment around. It's not ideal but, under the circumstances and with the money we have, it's the best we can do," he said. |
NOVA KASABA, July 22 (Reuters) - War crimes investigators on Monday opened the largest suspected grave of Muslims killed when the enclave of Srebrenica fell a year ago, chief investigator William Haglund said.
The Americans posted an anti-sniper unit around the field and Bradley armoured vehicles along the busy road. One soldier said they were under orders "not to get caught" by angry local residents who hurled abuse at the team the last time they worked here. Haglund said he had no idea how many bodies would be in the field although he believes it could be the largest grave so far located. "At the last site (at Cerska nearby) the numbers we were told to expect were out by about 300% on the numbers we actually found." he said.
Berserkistan, July 18 · Bosnian Serb Official Confronts the Dead at Cerska
SREBRENICA
Berserkistan, July 3 · Mladic Promised Safety to Srebrenica Muslims
Berserkistan, May 29 · Documentary Claims Serbia Provided Srebrenica Arms
Berserkistan, Massacre Hill Jim Bartlett in Bosnia's Killing Fields
Berserkistan, Ghosts in the Woods Team Berserkistan Investigates a Srebrenica Massacre Site
Serbs Massacre Muslims in "Safe Area" of Srebrenica
International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia United Nations
Coalition for International Justice
Reports concerning human rights abuses in Bosnia Intac Access
Major War Criminals/Suspects CalTech's Bosnia Site
Reports on War Crimes in the Former Yugoslavia CalTech's Bosnia Site
Berserkistan is a world news service of
Michael Linder Productions, Inc.
©1996-2014 All Rights Reserved