Erdut massacre
Encyclopedia
After the town of Erdut
was forcefully taken over by the rebel Serb forces
and JNA and annexed to the puppet state of Republic of Serbian Krajina
during Croatian War of Independence
, Croats
and other non-Serbs were either expelled or killed, with Serbs repopulating empty villages in the area.
From November 1991 until February 1992, there was a series of murders that took the lives of 37 civilians in total.
Additionally, the Territorial Defence training centre in Erdut, also referred to as "Arkan’s" military base, held approximately fifty-two detainees. The ICTY cites that 2,500 people were deported
from Erdut in 1991.
, Slobodan Milosevic
,, Željko Ražnatović, Jovica Stanisic
and Franko Simatovic
.
In 2003, witness B129, a former secretary of Ražnatović, testified at the Haague, confirming that the paramilitary leader of the Yugoslav Wars
took his orders, and his money, directly from the secret police
run by Slobodan Milosevic, the former Serbian leader. The former secretary described how Ražnatović and his men operated under the direct command of Milosevic's chiefs of state security, or secret police, Jovica Stanisic and Franko Simatovic. She visited the "Tigers" camp in Erdut. The Erdut camp, at different times, had up to 1,000 men. They used two types of uniforms, green in the daytime, black clothes and ski masks at night.
Erdut
Erdut is a village and a municipality in eastern Croatia. It is located in the Osijek-Baranja County, eastern Slavonia, 37 km east of Osijek. The elevation of the village of Erdut is 158 m...
was forcefully taken over by the rebel Serb forces
Serb Volunteer Guard
The Serb Volunteer Guard also known as Arkan's Tigers was a Serbian volunteer paramilitary unit, founded and led by Željko Ražnatović, that fought in Croatia ; Bosnia and Herzegovina and in the Kosovo War ....
and JNA and annexed to the puppet state of Republic of Serbian Krajina
Republic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
during Croatian War of Independence
Croatian War of Independence
The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between forces loyal to the government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia —and the Serb-controlled Yugoslav People's Army and local Serb forces, with the JNA ending its combat...
, Croats
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
and other non-Serbs were either expelled or killed, with Serbs repopulating empty villages in the area.
From November 1991 until February 1992, there was a series of murders that took the lives of 37 civilians in total.
Additionally, the Territorial Defence training centre in Erdut, also referred to as "Arkan’s" military base, held approximately fifty-two detainees. The ICTY cites that 2,500 people were deported
Deportation
Deportation means the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. Today it often refers to the expulsion of foreign nationals whereas the expulsion of nationals is called banishment, exile, or penal transportation...
from Erdut in 1991.
First wave of murders
According to the ICTY, the first incident took place in November 1991:- On 9 November 1991, members of the TO of the SAO SBWS led by Željko RažnatovićŽeljko RažnatovicŽeljko Ražnatović , widely known as Arkan was a Serbian career criminal and later a paramilitary leader who was notable for organizing and leading a paramilitary force in the Yugoslav Wars...
and members of the Militia of the SAO SBWS arrested ethnic Hungarian and Croat civilians in Erdut, Dalj Planina, and Erdut Planina and took them to the training centre of the TO in ErdutErdutErdut is a village and a municipality in eastern Croatia. It is located in the Osijek-Baranja County, eastern Slavonia, 37 km east of Osijek. The elevation of the village of Erdut is 158 m...
where 12 of them were shot dead the following day. Several days after 9 November 1991, members of the Serb National Security (Srpska Nacionalna Bezbednost, SNB) of the SAO SBWS in co-operation with several members of "Arkan’s Tigers" arrested and executed 3 civilians, two of them family members of the original Hungarian victims who had inquired about the fate of their relatives. The bodies of eight of the initial twelve victims were buried in the village of Ćelija and one victim was buried in Daljski Atar. The bodies of the three additional victims were thrown in a well in Borovo. On 3 June 1992, members of the SNB, in co-operation with members of "Arkan’s Tigers", arrested Marija Senasi (born 1937), a female family member of the original Hungarian victims who had continued to make inquiries about the fate of her relatives. This woman was subsequently murdered and her body was thrown into an abandoned well in Dalj Planina.
Second wave of murders
The ICTY states the following:- On 11 November 1991, members of the TO of SAO SBWS, under the command of Željko Ražnatović, arrested seven non-Serb civilians in the village of KlisaKlisaKlisa is a neighborhood of the city of Novi Sad in Serbia.-Name:Its name derived from Latin word "ecclesia", meaning "church place"...
. Two of the detainees who had Serb relatives were released. The remaining 5 civilians were taken to the TO training centre in Erdut. After their interrogation, the victims were killed and buried in a mass grave in the village of Ćelija.
Third wave of murders
The ICTY states the following:- On 10 December 1991, members of the TO of the SAO SBWS led by Željko Ražnatović and members of the Militia of the SAO SBWS arrested 5 non-Serb villagers from Erdut. The victims were taken to the TO training centre in Erdut and subsequently killed. The bodies of three of the victims were later disposed of in a well in Daljski Atar.
Fourth wave of murders
The ICTY states the following:- From 22 December 1991 to 25 December 1991, members of the TO of the SAO SBWS led by Željko Ražnatović and members of the Militia of the SAO SBWS arrested 7 ethnic Hungarian and Croat civilians in Erdut and took them to the TO training centre in Erdut. On 26 December 1991, they were shot and killed. The bodies of six of the victims were buried in Daljski Atar.
Fifth wave of murders
The ICTY states the following:- On 21 February 1992, members of the TO of the SAO SBWS led by Željko Ražnatović and members of the Militia of the SAO SBWS arrested 4 non-Serb civilians in Erdut. All of the victims were interrogated in the Territorial Defence training centre in Erdut and then killed. The bodies of the victims were buried in a mass grave in Daljski Atar.
Legal proceedings
For the crimes in Erdut, including murder, wanton destruction and illegal imprisonment, the ICTY indicted Goran HadžićGoran Hadžic
Goran Hadžić is a former president of the Republic of Serbian Krajina who was in office during the Croatian War of Independence. He is accused of crimes against humanity and of violation of the laws and customs of war by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.The court...
, Slobodan Milosevic
Slobodan Milošević
Slobodan Milošević was President of Serbia and Yugoslavia. He served as the President of Socialist Republic of Serbia and Republic of Serbia from 1989 until 1997 in three terms and as President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from 1997 to 2000...
,, Željko Ražnatović, Jovica Stanisic
Jovica Stanišic
Jovica Stanišić is a former head of the State Security Service now BIA within the Serbian Ministry of the Interior. He is facing trial at the International Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia for his role in the wars in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina...
and Franko Simatovic
Franko Simatovic
Franko "Frenki" Simatović was the head of the Serbian secret police of Slobodan Milošević, the Special Forces of State Security of the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs. He was the founder of the "Special Operations Unit"....
.
In 2003, witness B129, a former secretary of Ražnatović, testified at the Haague, confirming that the paramilitary leader of the Yugoslav Wars
Yugoslav wars
The Yugoslav Wars were a series of wars, fought throughout the former Yugoslavia between 1991 and 1995. The wars were complex: characterized by bitter ethnic conflicts among the peoples of the former Yugoslavia, mostly between Serbs on the one side and Croats and Bosniaks on the other; but also...
took his orders, and his money, directly from the secret police
Secret police
Secret police are a police agency which operates in secrecy and beyond the law to protect the political power of an individual dictator or an authoritarian political regime....
run by Slobodan Milosevic, the former Serbian leader. The former secretary described how Ražnatović and his men operated under the direct command of Milosevic's chiefs of state security, or secret police, Jovica Stanisic and Franko Simatovic. She visited the "Tigers" camp in Erdut. The Erdut camp, at different times, had up to 1,000 men. They used two types of uniforms, green in the daytime, black clothes and ski masks at night.