Other recent articles under: Balkans as of May 19, 2011
Topic: Balkans
Osama bin Laden, Serbian Terrorists and Innocent Victims
Now that Bin Laden is dead, Serbian terrorism remains a threat. by Aaaron H. Cohen
(centrist)
Thursday, May 19, 2011
With the death of the world's most wanted terrorist, it is appropriate to remember and honor all victims of terror, regardless of their age, ethnicity or race. It is victims that we should remember and terrorists that we should condemn. It is also appropriate to take time and raise awareness about other vicious terrorists who killed more innocent people than Osama bin Laden.
Among them stand tall two Serb terrorists, Stanislav Galic and Dragomir Milosevic, responsible for killing more than 10,000 and wounding more than 50,000 residents of the besieged Sarajevo. Both Serbs were convicted on terrorism charges and sentenced to lengthy prison terms by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia at the Hague.
What remains documented, albeit not fully investigated by the U.S. Intelligence agencies, is Serbian connection with the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. In August of 1992, Bosnian Serb leadership issued a terrorist threat against the U.S. targets. According to unclassified U.S. diplomatic cables:
"The 'foreign minister' of Radovan Karadzic's 'Serb Republic of B-H' [Bosnia-Herzegovina], Aleksa Buha, has told reporters that the Bosnian Serbs have 'volunteers from friendly countries' standing by, as well as 'kamikaze pilots,' ready to strike targets in western countries -- including nuclear power stations -- if there is western military intervention in Bosnia." (1)
Coincidentally, on February 26, 1993 some 8 months after the threat was issued -- a truck bomb was detonated below the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City and a Serbian terrorist group took responsibility for it.
The initial Associated Press report -- noting that the "caller knew garage level of blast before it was announced to public" -- reported:
"Investigators in the World Trade Center bombing are said to be focusing on the first claim of responsibility received: a call from a Serbian group that knew the site of the blast before the public did... The caller, who said he was a member of a previously unknown group called the Serbian Liberation Front, was the first of dozens to claim responsibility for the blast that rocked the twin towers and killed at least five people." (2)
Serb leader, Radovan Karadzic denied that his people were involved in the 1993 bombing. However, in an open letter to Americans, Karadzic warned the United States not to intervene in the Bosnian war. What sounded as a direct threat to America, Karadzic repeated his warning to American people: The tragic and deplorable terrorist incident at the World Trade Center is fresh testimony to the extraordinary volatility and immediate dangers of direct involvement." (3)
At the time, Serb forces armed with the sophisticated Yugoslav Army weapons were conducting a campaign of ethnic cleansing of 1.9 million Bosniak people throughout the newly independent Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Due to U.N. Imposed arms embargo, Bosniak people were unable to defend themselves and they sought the help from the United States.
Three years later, Karadzic threatened to down U.S. planes over Bosnia if they come to rescue Bosniak people from Serb attacks in a besieged enclave of Gorazde in eastern Bosnia. In his statement to American people, Karadzic said he will shoot down the helicopters or aircraft which protect the Bosnian army. He added: Whoever sides militarily with the Bosniaks must be aware that this would mean a way against the Serbs.(4)
More recently, the international courts have extensively dealt with the problem of Serb terrorism.
In Stanislav Galic's trial judgement, the Hague tribunal concluded that the terror "was the primary purpose of the campaign of attacks" that he led against the civilian population of Sarajevo. Furthermore, "as for the crime of terror as a violation of the laws and customs of war, this is the first time the International Tribunal has had to pronounce on its material and mental elements." (5)
"The gravity of the crime for which General Galic is responsible is determined by the scale, pattern, and reiteration of the attacks, on an almost daily basis, over many months. The civilian population of Sarajevo men and women of all ages, including children were killed in their hundreds and wounded in their thousands, with the intent to terrorize the entirety of the population. The Majority takes into consideration the physical and psychological suffering inflicted on civilians over the two-year span of the Indictment period." (6)
In Dragomir Milosevic's trial judgment, the Hague tribunal found that the accused planned and orderered the crimes of terror, murder and inhumane acts. Accordingly, he "was convicted on five counts of terror, murder and inhumane acts conducted during a campaign of sniping and shelling which resulted in the injury and death of a great number of civilians in the besieged Bosnian capital." (7)
"All of these crimes are very serious... The civilian population in Sarajevo was virtually completely encircled and had only limited possibilities of leaving the city, so as to remove themselves from the hazardous and threatening circumstances. In effect, the civilian population was trapped inside the confrontation lines and the Trial Chamber has, in fact, found that Sarajevo was besieged... The civilians in Sarajevo were subjected to acts of violence that were aimed at depriving
them of any sense of security. The evidence shows that they suffered immensely as a result of the campaign of sniping and shelling." (8)
Former Serb leader Radovan Karadzic was hailed to be Osama bin Laden of Europe by a veteran U.S. diplomat and the architect of the 1995 Bosnia peace plan, Richard Holbrooke. Karadzic is currently standing international trial on charges of genocide, terrorism, and other crimes.(9)
Karadzic's adjutant Ratko Mladic is still on the run. He is charged with unlawfully inflicting terror upon civilians, genocide and crimes against humanity.(10) The United States government is offering $5 million reward for information leading to his capture.(11)
And, for the track record, Serb terrorist Gavrilo Princip's assassination on 28 June 1914 of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo ignited World War I -- costing Europe millions of innocent lives.
References:
1. U.S. Diplomatic Cables, From Embassy in Belgrade to Secretary of State in Washington DC, Aug. 1992, p.2. [link edited for length]
2. Associated Press, "Serbian Group Focus of Trade Center Case", published in Daily Times on 4 March 1993, p.A2
3. Ibid.
4. Associated Press, Serb Chief Threatens to Down Airplanes, published in Daily Times on 19 July 1995, p.5A
5. ICTY Press Release, Judgement in the Case of the Prosecutor v. Stanislav Galic, 5 December 2003. http://www.icty.org/sid/8148
6. Ibid.
7. ICTY, Press Release, Judgement in the case of the Prosecutor v. Dragomir Milosevic, 12 December 2007. http://www.icty.org/sid/8816
8. ICTY Trial Judgement, Prosecutor v. Stanislav Galic, p.991-992. 12 December 2007. [link edited for length]
The views expressed
in this article are those of Aaaron H. Cohen only and
do not represent the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates.
Aaaron H. Cohen is solely responsible for the contents
of this article and is not an employee or otherwise affiliated
with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
Posted By: AndyWilcoxson
Date: August 9, 2011 09:53:45 PM
The 1993 World Trade Center bombing was carried out by Ramzi Yousef, Mohammed Salameh, Mahmud Abouhalima, and El Sayyid Nosair -- all of them Islamic fundamentalists, none of them Serbs. They probably submitted a phoney tip from the "Serbian Liberation Front" themselves to throw authorities off their track and to help their Muslim brethren in Bosnia demagogue the Serbs. If the tipster had inside info about the bombing it means he was a Muslim pretending to a Serb, kind of like a Muslim who pretends to be a Jew named "Aaaron" from "Canana" because he thinks he can more effectively demagogue the Serbs and accuse them of being fascists and terrorists if people think he's Jewish.
Seriously, if you're going to pretend to be an Israeli-born Canadian Jew named "Aaron Cohen" at least learn how to spell words like: "Aaron" and "Canada" correctly. I really like the way your author profile says "my interests include researching Jewish art and sacred texts of Judaism", that's a nice touch in case a name like "Aaron Cohen" wasn't enough to clue people in that you're supposed to be a Jew.
