Commemoration in Potočari ends, Bećirović warns that Srebrenica is a warning to the world

A commemoration dedicated to the victims of the Srebrenica genocide has concluded at the former Battery Factory, followed by a religious ceremony and burial of ten newly identified Srebrenica victims.

Denis Bećirović, Chairman of the Presidency of BiH and the Bosniak member of the collective head of state, said in his address at the commemoration that Srebrenica is a "planetary warning to the entire world."

"The mass executions were not spontaneous. On the contrary, the genocide was planned and brutally committed. The police from Serbia also participated in the genocide. The court in The Hague determined that Serbia and the regime at the time could have prevented the genocide, but they did not," he said.

He pointed out that the genocide against Bosniaks "was taking place before the eyes of the entire world."

"And after all, many tell us, don't talk about the past, turn to the future. Every time we give in to a bully, the wheel of horror is set in motion. We must not allow that, nor give in to bullies," Bećirović said.

According to him, "Srebrenica is not only a wound for Bosnia and Herzegovina, but a warning that Europe must not remain silent in the face of new threats."

"There is only justice if we fight for it. Let genocide deniers know that we will never give up and that we will forever preserve the truth about Srebrenica," concluded Bećirović.

A message from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was also read at the commemoration, stating that Turkey "worked with its brothers from Bosnia and Herzegovina to have the UN General Assembly declare July 11th as the International Day of Remembrance for the Srebrenica Genocide."

"The crimes in Gaza show that the international community has not learned the lessons of Srebrenica. We will continue our efforts for a more just world while the shameful stain of Srebrenica remains prominent in the history of humanity," Erdogan's message stated, among other things.

In the Srebrenica genocide, according to official data, more than eight thousand Bosniak men and boys were killed, while around thirty thousand women, children and the elderly were deported from that area to the territory of the current Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The International Court of Justice has determined that genocide occurred in Srebrenica, as have the Hague Tribunal and domestic courts in BiH, which have sentenced 54 people to a total of more than 781 years in prison for the crimes in Srebrenica, including five life sentences for genocide.

Wartime RS President Radovan Karadžić and RS Army Commander Ratko Mladić were sentenced to life imprisonment.