Operation Storm 333302 225944141 2008-07-16T03:34:04Z OettingerCroat 332078 {{POV-check|date=April 2008}} {{Refimprove|date=April 2008}} : ''This article is about a 1995 Croatian army operation. For a Polish Second World War partisan operation, see [[Operation Tempest]].'' {{Infobox Military Conflict| |conflict=Operation Storm |image=[[Image:Operation storm map.jpg|200px]] |caption=Map of Operation Storm |partof=the [[Croatian War of Independence]]<br>[[Bosnian War]] |place=[[Croatia]] |date=[[August 4]] – [[August 7]], [[1995]] |result=Total [[Croatia]]n victory<br>Decisive [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnian]] victory<br>End of [[Republic of Serbian Krajina|Serb Republic of Krajina]]<br>End of [[Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia|Republic of Western Bosnia]]<br>End of [[Croatian War of Independence]] |combatant1={{flag|Croatia}} ([[Croatian ground army|HV]])<br>{{flag|Bosnia and Herzegovina|1992}} ([[ABiH]]) |combatant2={{flag|Serbian Krajina|name=Republic of Serbian Krajina}} ([[VSK]])<br>{{flag|Republika Srpska}} ([[Army of Republika Srpska|VRS]]) |commander1=[[Zvonimir Červenko]] (HV)<br>[[Atif Dudakovic]] (ABiH) |commander2=[[Mile Mrkšić]] (VSK) |strength1=175,000 soldiers,<br> 375 tanks,<br> 500 artillery pieces,<br> 50 rocket launchers,<br> 50 aircraft and helicopters |strength2=40,000 soldiers,<br> 150 tanks,<br> 350 artillery pieces,<br> 20 rocket launchers,<br> 10 helicopters |casualties1=174 soldiers killed,<br> 1,430 wounded |casualties2=(1) 700 soldiers and 677 civilians killed, 5,000 [[POW]], 90,000 refugees (Croatian sources) <br>(2) 742 soldiers killed,<br> at least 1,196 civilians killed (Serbian sources)<br>250,000 refugees }} {{Campaignbox Croatian War of Independence}} {{Campaignbox Bosnian War}} '''Operation Storm''' ([[Croatian language|Croatian]]: ''Operacija Oluja'', [[Serbian language|Serbian Cyrillic]]: Oпeрaциja Oлуja) was the [[code name]] given to a large-scale military operation carried out by [[Military of Croatia|Croatian Armed Forces]], in conjunction with the [[Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina]], to retake the Krajina region, which had been controlled by separatist Serbs since early 1991. <ref name=HRW>{{citation | journal = Human Rights Watch | date = August 1996 | volume = 8 | issue= 13 (D) | title = Croatia: Impunity for Abuses Committed during "OPERATION STORM" and the denial of the Right of Refugees to return to the Krajinka | url =http://www.hrw.org/reports/1996/Croatia.htm}}</ref>.For continuation of this military operation in [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] see [[Operation Mistral]]. The operation, which took 36 hours, was documented as the largest European land offensive since World War II,<ref name=Sisk1995-08-05>{{citation | last = Sisk | first = Robert | date = 1995-08-05 | url = http://www.fortunecity.com/meltingpot/greenside/761/168krajina95.html | title = Two Navy Planes Fire on Serb Missile Sites | journal = New York Daily News | accessdate = 2008-04-13}}</ref> It began shortly before dawn on August 4, 1995 and ended with a complete victory for the Croatian forces four days later. These forces had been trained by a U.S.-based firm, [[Military Professional Resources|Military Professional Resources Incorporated (MPRI)]], which provides both training and senior staff services.<ref name=Adams1999>{{citation | title = The New Mercenaries and the Privatization of Conflict | first = Thomas K. | last = Adams | journal = Parameters | date = Summer 1999 | pages = 103-16 | publisher = [[United States Army War College]] | url = http://www.carlisle.army.mil/usawc/parameters/99summer/adams.htm}}</ref> Its engagement was approved by the U.S. government.<ref name=Smith2002>{{citation | last = Smith | first = Eugene B. | date = Winter, 2002 | url = http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0IBR/is_4_32/ai_95447364/pg_5 | title = The new condottieri and US policy: The Privatization of Conflict and its implications” | journal = Parameters | publisher = [[United States Army War College]] | pages = 5-6 | accessdate = 2008-04-13}}</ref> Former President [[Bill Clinton]] wrote in his memoirs that he believed the Serbs could only be brought to the negotiating table if they sustained major losses on the ground.<ref name=VOA-BillClinton >{{citation | author = Bill Clinton | url = http://voanews.com/croatian/archive/2004-06/a-2004-06-22-11-1.cfm?renderforprint=1&textonly=1&&TEXTMODE=1&CFID=41216627&CFTOKEN=92342436 | page = | title = Voice of America Croatian}}</ref> The negotiations produced the [[Dayton Peace Agreement]] which ended the war in the [[Balkans]]. Former US peace negotiator [[Richard Holbrooke]] said "he realised how much the Croatian offensive in the Krajina profoundly changed the nature of the Balkan game and thus this diplomatic offensive."..<ref name=Richard Holbrooke,To End a War>{{citation | author = Richard Holbrooke | url = http://www.amazon.ca/End-War-Richard-Holbrooke/dp/0375753605 | title = Richard Holbrooke's book To End a War}}</ref> Retired four-star General [[Wesley Clark]], Director, Strategic Plans and Policy (J5) for the U.S. [[Joint Chiefs of Staff]] and later [[Supreme Allied Commander Europe]] simply called it a turning point.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} After the [[Srebrenica Genocide]], there were concerns over the reoccurance of the massacre in the [[Bihac]] pocket area, where the population of [[Bosniaks]] was four times larger then in Srebrenica and which was surrounded and under attack by Bosnian Serb and Croatian Serb forces. Approximately 150,000 to 200,000<ref> ref name=Case No. T-01-45-I>{{citation | author = International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia | date = 2008-05-13 | url = http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/got-ii010608e.htm}}</ref> Serbs fled approaching Croat forces to Serb-held parts of Bosnia and Serbia. The [[European Union]] Special Envoy to the Former Yugoslavia [[Carl Bildt]] called it on Aug. 7, 1995, "the most efficient ethnic cleansing we've seen in the Balkans."<ref name=Pearl2002>{{citation | last = Pearl | first = Daniel | year = 2002 | url = http://books.google.com/books?id=BInS_EkHIUsC&printsec=frontcover | title = At Home in the World: Collected Writings from The Wall Street Journal | publisher = Simon and Schuster | page = 224 | ISBN = 074324415X | accessdate=2008-04-13}}</ref> The Croatian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Bildt's assessment was "unfounded."<ref>" DISPUTE WITH EU NEGOTIATOR; Bildt has lost credibility as peace mediator - Foreign Ministry" BBC Summary of World Broadcasts August 7, 1995</ref> German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel released a statement expressing "regret" about the offensive but added, "We can't forget that the years of Serb aggression ... have sorely tried Croatia's patience."<ref>Fedarko, Kevin, et all. "The Guns of August." Time Magazine August 14, 1995: 44.URL = http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,983292,00.html [accessed May 18, 2008]</ref> The United States government called for "restraint," but said the military operation had been "provoked initially by a Krajina Serb attack on the Muslim enclave of Bihać."<ref>ibid: ibid</ref> Three Croatian generals, [[Ante Gotovina]], [[Ivan Čermak]] and [[Mladen Markač]], alleged to have been involved in the planning and execution of Operation Storm, were indicted by the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]] and are on trial in the Hague on charges of operating a joint criminal enterprise for the purpose of permanently removing the Serb population from the Krajina by force and of crimes against humanity <ref name=ICTY-IT-06-90>{{citation | author = International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia | date = 2008-03-12 | url = http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/got-coramdjoind080312e.pdf | title = Amended Joinder Indictment, Gotovina, Čermak and Markač | id = Case Number IT-06-90 | accessdate = 2008-04-14}}</ref> The Croatian government maintained the operation was justified on the grounds that a sovereign state has the right to be in control of its own territory. The government also insisted that Croatian Serbs not involved in "war crimes" would be able to return to the area.<ref>Tanner, Marcus, "Croatia: A Nation Forged In War," New Haven: Yale Nota Bene; p.298</ref> In Croatia, [[August 5]] is celebrated as a national holiday, [[Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day]]. ==Background== {{main|Croatian War of Independence}} <!--date of declaration?--> The [[Log Revolution|1990 revolt]] of the Croatian Serbs was centered on the predominantly Serb-populated Krajina region and eastern Croatia where Croats were in a relative majority.<ref name=ICTY census UNPA Sector East>{{citation |url = http://www.un.org/icty/indictment/english/mil-ii011008e.htm | title = ICTY census UNPA Sector East|}}</ref><ref name=Human Rights Watch Croatia>{{citation |url = http://www.hrw.org/reports/1997/croatia/Croatia-02.htm | title = Human Rights Watch Croatia|}}</ref> The Serbs declared their illegal separation from Croatia by proclaiming a [[Republic of Serbian Krajina]], which remained internationally unrecognized, and initiated an armed conflict, supported by the [[Yugoslav People's Army]], against Croatian police and civilians. A campaign of [[ethnic cleansing]] was then started by Serb forces against Croatian civilians in the areas under their control and most non-Serbs were expelled by early 1993.As of November 1993, less than 400 ethnic Croats still resided in UNPA Sector South <ref name=>{{citation |url = http://www.hri.org/docs/USSD-Rights/93/Croatia93.html | title = CROATIA HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1993; Section 2, part d. |author= U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE | date = JANUARY 31, 1994}}</ref> , and between 1,500 and 2,000 remained in UNPA Sector North.<ref name=UNCHR>{{citation |url = http://www.unhchr.ch/Huridocda/Huridoca.nsf/2848af408d01ec0ac1256609004e770b/5793c2d636a30ac9802566710057034c?OpenDocument | title = SITUATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE TERRITORY OF THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA, Section J, Points 147 and 150 |author= United Nations Economic and Social Council Commission on Human Rights}}</ref> In January [[1992]], a ceasefire agreement was signed by Presidents [[Franjo Tuđman]] of Croatia and [[Slobodan Milošević]] of Serbia to suspend fighting between the two sides. During the next three years, Croatian military operations in the Krajina were mostly limited to small attacks while Serbs military operations concentrated on shelling nearby Croatian towns<ref name=UNCHR-Huridoca>{{citation |url = http://www.unhchr.ch/Huridocda/Huridoca.nsf/2848af408d01ec0ac1256609004e770b/5793c2d636a30ac9802566710057034c?OpenDocument | title = SITUATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE TERRITORY OF THE FORMER YUGOSLAVIA, Section K, Point 161 |author= United Nations Economic and Social Council}}</ref> of which the most internationally notable was the [[Zagreb rocket attack]] during May, 1995<ref name=IWPR>{{citation | url = http://www.iwpr.net/?p=tri&s=f&o=259864&apc_state=henitri2006 | title = Milosevic Allegedly Angered by Zagreb Shelling | author = Institute For War and Peace Reporting}}</ref><ref name=ICTY-1996-03-08>{{citation | url = http://www.un.org/icty/pressreal/p042-e.htm | title = Press release: THE TRIBUNAL ISSUES AN INTERNATIONAL ARREST WARRANT AGAINST MILAN MARTIC | date= 8 March 1996}}</REF>. One notable Croatian military operation druing this time was [[Operation Medak Pocket]] of September [[1993]], during which Croatian forces overran a small area in the mountainous region of [[Lika]] but caused an international incident in the process when Croatian forces allegedly committed [[war crimes]] against local Serb civilians. The HV (''Hrvatska vojska'') played a more active role in western [[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia]], acting in concert with the Bosnian Croat [[Croatian Defense Council|HVO]] to combat Bosnian Serb forces. This had several advantages for the Croatians: it helped to prop up the Bosnian Croat statelet, it gave Croatian army commanders valuable combat experience and it put the Croatians in a good strategic position to threaten the Croatian Serbs' supply lines in Bosnia. == Timeline == === Build-up to Operation Storm === [[Image:Krajina Army Territorial Division.JPG|300px|right|thumb|Map of the territorial division of the [[Srpske vojske Krajine]] (SVK), 1995.]] [[Image:Operation storm map.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Map of Operation Storm]] After Operation Flash in May 1995 Serbian president Slobodan Milošević had made the decision to help Krajina with material, General Milan Mrkšić from Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, and the people of military age who were born in the Krajina. <ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE6DF1F39F936A25754C0A963958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2 Frustrated Croats Are Openly Preparing a Major Assault on a Serbian Enclave]</ref>A proposed peace plan, called [[Z-4 plan]] which would give Serbs autonomy inside Croatia, which was not accepted.<!--Not accepted by whom? Why? More than a reference to a proposal from one side is needed for clarity.--><ref Serb Leaders and Proposals for Autonomy>{{citation |url = http://www.ecmi.de/jemie/download/Focus3-2003_Caspersen.pdf | title = Serb Leaders Proposals for Autonomy|}}</ref> <ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE6DB143AF932A05752C0A963958260&scp=6&sq=Knin&st=nyt Croatian Serbs Won't Even Look At Plan for Limited Autonomy]</ref> ====Serbs in Krajina==== Although a military action was expected [[Milan Martić]], the Krajina Serbian leader, and his staff refused the Z-4 plan in hopes of uniting with the Bosnian Serbs(lead by [[Radovan Karadžić]] and [[Ratko Mladić]]) and Serbia.<ref ICTY against Milan Martic>{{citation |url = http://www.un.org/icty/transe54/030626IT.htm| title = ICTY against Milan Martic|}}</ref> After Croatian victory in Operation Summer '95 during July of that year the Serbs in Krajina had logistical problems because the most important road which has connected capitals of Croatian and Bosnian Serbs had been taken. Morale had fallen to all time low and market was closed under Krajina government orders <ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE7D9123AF932A05754C0A963958260&scp=14&sq=Krajina&st=nyt CROATS CONFIDENT AS BATTLE LOOMS OVER SERBIAN AREA]</ref> They were also seriously undermined by internal political conflicts <ref>[http://www.scc.rutgers.edu/serbian_digest/180/t180-3.htm Vreme News Digest of 13 March 1995]</ref> ====Serbs in Croatia==== The Croatian Serb army, the VSK, was also significantly undermanned. Their front extended 600 km and their area of control extended 100 km to the rear, along the [[Bihać]] pocket in Bosnia. It had 55,000 soldiers to cover this front and defend the rear. 16,000 of the VSK's troops were stationed in eastern [[Slavonia]], leaving only a theoretical maximum 39,000 to defend the main part of the RSK. ====Forces opposed to Serbs==== In contrast, the Croatian and Bosnian armies (the [[Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina]]) had greatly strengthened their forces. They had re-equipped with modern weaponry — despite the arms embargoes that were in force — and had obtained military training with the support of the [[United States]]. They also had strategic advantages, with much shorter lines of communication than their enemies. These advantages were demonstrated in [[Western Slavonia]] in May 1995, when the Croatian Army rapidly overran a Serb-held area in [[Operation Flash]]. Serb forces retaliated by [[Zagreb rocket attack|attacking the capital Zagreb]] with ''Orkan'' missiles from the Krajina; killing 7 and wounding over 150 civilians. ====Operations in July-August 1995==== In July 1995, the Croatian and Bosnian armies jointly captured the crucial western Bosnian towns of [[Glamoč]], and [[Bosansko Grahovo]], along with [[Livno]]'s western villages. This cut vital Croatian Serb supply lines and effectively meant that the Croatian Serb capital of [[Knin]] was surrounded on three sides. The Krajina Serbs joined the Bosnian Serbs (aided by [[Fikret Abdić]]'s [[Bosniaks|Bosniak]] rebels) in an offensive aimed at eliminating the [[Bihać]] pocket which had been surrounded since 1992 and held over 40,000 Bosnian refugees. The international community feared a repeat of a [[Srebrenica Genocide]] there. During the last week of July and the first few days of August 1995, the Croatian Army undertook a massive military build-up along the front lines in the Krajina and western Slavonia. ====Effect of NATO Actions==== Another important and perhaps not as widely recognized issue was the role of NATO in the operation.{{Clarifyme|date=April 2008}}<!--U.S. exclusively, or NATO?--> Prior to the Operation, they were actively involved in tracking General Gotovina's movements and that of his army. NATO forces assisted in clearing Serb blockades and with logistical and communications issues. This occurred as a result of their wish to push the Serbs to the negotiating table, in Dayton, Ohio. See a discussion of [[intelligence cycle management#CCIRM|NATO and United States operational problems]]. ====Negotiations==== Before the beginning of the operation, both sides were present at peace talks in Switzerland on August 3rd, 1995. Croatia's stance was for the Serbs to agree to reintegration into Croatia, which they refused, even though military action was expected. In a special proclamation, the president of Croatia, Franjo Tuđman called for the Serb population which had not taken part in the war to remain in their homes and that their rights would be respected.[http://www.croatianhistory.net/etf/storm.html][http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE6DA133FF936A15753C1A963958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all] Croatian Army representatives also declared that they would leave corridors open for civilians wishing to flee to Bosnia. Throughout the Operation, the Army held regular [[news conference]]s, displaying maps of operations on the ground. ===August 4, 1995=== {{Citations missing|date=April 2008}} At 0500 on August 4, around 150,000 Croatian Army troops attacked at along a 300 km front.The Croatian 4th and 7th Guards Brigades broke through the lines of the Serb forces and advanced deep toward capital. Much of the Krajina Serb leadership had already left for Serbia and Bosnia. ====Main attacks==== The main part of the operation was conducted by Croatian Guard Brigades which had attacked at many different points in order to effectively split the RSK in few separate areas. For the opening phase of the operation, other units simply held the front, but would later surround and force surrender of remaining pockets of resistance. In the main operation, the First Croatian Guard Brigade attacked toward [[Saborsko]] and [[Plitvice Lakes]], with its objective being a linkup with [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] troops who had attacked Krajina from the [[Bihać]] pocket. Simultaneously, the Second Croatian Guard Brigade attacked with the primary objective of capturing [[Glina]] and [[Petrinja]], followed by a linkup with troops in the Žirovac area. During first day of fighting around Petrinja Croatian forces had been defeated and the commander of Second Croatian Guard Brigade had been sacked and changed with [[Petar Stipetić]]. The Fourth and Seventh Croatian Guard Brigades attacked from Bosnia and Herzegovina territory toward the capital [[Knin]] of Krajina. The bulk of the Ninth Croatian Guard Brigade attacked toward Ljubovo and [[Udbina]], but a smaller part attacked from Velebit mountain toward Sveti Rok (taken on August 4) and [[Gračac]]. During the first day of fighting, a significant event was the cutting of the road Knin-Slunj, which blocked by the 21 Kordun Corps from supporting Krajina forces in Lika or Knin. Initially, resistance was strong - especially in the [[Kordun]], [[Petrinja]] and [[Lika]] regions - but following the first day resistance collapsed and the bulk of the RSK army retreated. [[Image:Martic-order1995.jpg|200px|thumb|right|August 4th order by the RSK Supreme Defence Council ordering evacuation of civilians from towns along the front line in the Knin area.]] ====Decision to evacuate civilians from towns along the front line in the Knin area==== The Krajina Serb Supreme Defence Council met under president [[Milan Martić]] to discuss the situation. A decision was reached at 16:45 to "start evacuating the population unfit for military service from from the municipalities of [[Knin]], [[Benkovac]], [[Obrovac]], [[Drniš]] and [[Gračac]]." These towns were along the front line in the southern tip of the RSK. The order futher stated the evacuation was "to be carried out according to the plan towards direction of Knin and furthermore via Otrić, and towards [[Srb]] and [[Lapac]]", towns in the interior of the RSK near the Una River which marks the boundary with [[Bosnia-Herzegovina]]. <ref name=Human Rights Watch>{{citation | url = http://www.hrw.org/reports/1996/Croatia.htm | title = CROATIA: IMPUNITY FOR ABUSES COMMITTED DURING "OPERATION STORM" AND THE DENIAL OF THE RIGHT OF REFUGEES TO RETURN TO THE KRAJINA | author = Human Rights Watch | date = August 1996 }}</ref> ====Suppression of air defense by NATO==== <!--please explain significance of these actions to the battle. Was there subsequent bombing of areas that no longer had air defense? Otherwise, this seems a fairly standard action in enforcing a no-fly zone. Most rules of engagement allow immediate attack on fire control radars that lock onto aircraft--> On the same day, "Two U. S. Navy [[EA-6B]]s and two U. S. Navy [[F/A-18C]]s", patrolling Croatian and Bosnian airspace as part of [[Operation Deny Flight]] to enforce [[no-fly zones]], attacked two Serb surface-to-air missile radar sites near Knin and Udbina. The attack, using [[AGM-88 HARM]] [[anti-radiation missile]]s, were "in self-defence after the aircraft electronic warning devices indicated they were being targeted by anti-aircraft missiles." <ref name=NATO-SEAD>{{citation | url = http://www.afsouth.nato.int/operations/denyflight/DenyFlight | title = Operation Deny Flight | author = NATO Regional Headquarters, Allied Forces Southern Europe}}</ref> <!-- Unsourced image removed: [[Image:CroatartyKnin311.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Croatian artillery shelling Serb positions]] --> <!-- Unsourced image removed: [[Image:M-84x2.jpg|thumb|200px|thumb|right|Croatian M-84 tanks advancing towards the Knin area]] --> ===August 5, 1995=== On August 5th, Knin and most of the [[Dalmatia]]n hinterland were captured by Croatian forces, with only sporadic resistance encountered from the VSK. The 5th Corps of the [[Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina]] started a counteroffensive, attacking the VSK from the rear and crossing the border in multiple places from north-western Bosnia and linking up with the Croatian Army near the [[Plitvice Lakes]], well inside Croatia. Large refugee columns formed in many parts of Croatian Serb territory, so virtually the entire Serb population fled into Bosnia along the evacuation corridors established by the Croatian military under a cease-fire agreement brokered by the United Nations which are knowing even then that they will be accused of contributing to ethnic cleansing<ref>{{cite web |url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=990CE4DB143FF933A2575BC0A963958260&scp=7&sq=serbs%2C+croatia&st=nyt |title='Frightened and Jeered At, Serbs Flee From Croatia' |accessdate=2008-05-17 |date=[[1995-08-10]] |work= |publisher=NYT}}</ref> <!-- Unsourced image removed: [[Image:7457131pb1.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Croatian military police guarding an area in Knin]] --> <!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Croatsadvancing.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Croatian forces advancing]] --> ===August 6, 1995=== On [[August 6]], the Croatian [[1st Guard Brigade (Croatia)|1st Guards Brigade]] and allied units of the Bosnian Army's 5th Corps continued to advance into Krajina Serb territory near [[Slunj]] (north of [[Plitvice]]) and reached the border with [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]]. The towns of [[Petrinja]], [[Kostajnica]], [[Obrovac, Croatia|Obrovac]], [[Korenica]], [[Slunj]], [[Bruvno]], [[Vrhovine]], [[Plaški]], [[Cetingrad]], [[Plitvice]] and [[Glina]] were all captured during the course of the day. Strong resistance was only encountered in the town of Glina (south of [[Sisak]]). The Croatian-held town of [[Karlovac]] was subjected to retaliatory shelling by the VSK, and Bosnian Serb aircraft attacked a chemical plant in the town of [[Kutina]]. President Tuđman staged a triumphal entry into [[Knin]], where the Croatian flag was raised above the fortress that dominates the old town. <!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:Croatinf.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Croatian soldiers resting and waiting for orders]] --> ===August 7, 1995=== Fighting continued on [[August 7]] but at a much lower intensity than on the previous days. Two Serb aircraft were shot down near [[Daruvar]] and [[Pakrac]], and the towns of [[Turanj]] and [[Dvor|Dvor na Uni]] were captured. Croatian and Bosnian army units linked up at [[Zirovać]], to the east of the Bihać pocket. The Bosnian town of [[Velika Kladuša]], which had been the "capital" of the self-proclaimed breakaway [[Republic of Western Bosnia]] (Bosniak forces of [[Fikret Abdić]]), was captured by Bosnian forces. In the evening, Croatian Defence Minister [[Gojko Šušak]] declared the end to major combat operations, as most of the border with Bosnia was controlled by the Croatian Army and only mopping-up actions remained to be completed.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} <!-- Deleted image removed: [[Image:PolozajizaorkanUM.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Croat UAV picture showing the destruction and bombardment against serbian armed lines]] --> ===August 8, 1995 onwards=== The last mopping-up actions took place on [[August 8]] with the unopposed capture of [[Gornji Lapac]], [[Donji Lapac]] and [[Vojnić]]. On [[August 9]], the surrounded VSK's 21st Corps ([[Kordun]]) surrendered ''en masse'' to the Croatian Army near [[Vojnić]] [http://www.scc.rutgers.edu/serbian_digest/202/t202-3.htm] [http://public.carnet.hr/mvp_news/hna/Kolovoz95/0809952.hna.html]. By this time, virtually the entire Serb population of the Krajina was on the move, crossing into Serb-controlled territory in Bosnia. The exodus was complicated by the presence of armed Krajina Serb soldiers among the civilian refugees. A large refugee column that was moving on the [[Glina]]-[[Dvor]] road during August 1995 suffered casualties on two occasions: one report mentions Croatian army shelling of the column, and another mentions tanks of the Serbian 2nd Tank Brigade making their way through the road without regard to civilians. <!-- Image with unknown copyright status removed: [[Image:Serb refugees.jpg|thumb|left|Serb refugees]] --> The Croatian government claimed that around 90,000 Serb civilians had fled: {{quotation|Upon instructions from my Government I have the honour to address you concerning a letter circulated as a document of the Sub-Commission on Prevention of Discrimination and Protection of Minorities|E/CN.4/Sub.2/1995/45, dated 11 August 1995<ref name="unhchr1995">{{cite web |date=15 August 1995|url = http://www.unhchr.ch/Huridocda/Huridoca.nsf/0/d0cd11bdf1350357802566d60046e3b7?Opendocument |title = "Letter from the Chargé d'affaires, a.i. of the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Croatia | id= E/CN.4/Sub.2/1995/48"|format = HTML |publisher = United Nations High Commissioner on Human Rights| accessdate = 2007-09-11 | last=Neven Madey }}</ref>}} Serbian sources claimed that there were as many as 250,000 refugees. The [[United Nations]] put the figure at 150,000-200,000. The [[BBC]] reports the number to be 200,000 ([http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4747379.stm] and [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4125640.stm]) On [[August 21]], Croatian Army reported that 174 Croatian soldiers had been killed in the offensive and 1,430 wounded while Serbian loses were 700 soldiers killed. Although after [[Operation Flash]] it has become clear that the Krajina army was known to be less capable than the Croatian Army, its lack of serious resistance has been surprise. The Croatian Army had reportedly expected at least a week's fighting. However, other than the fighting around Glina, the Krajina Serb military response proved little more than symbolic in most places. The VSK largely collapsed, many of its soldiers deserting and joining the civilian exodus and others carrying their weapons into Bosnia. Around 5,000 were said to have surrendered and handed in their weapons to Croatian and UN forces. Operation Storm did not target the Serb-inhabited area of [[Eastern Slavonia]], along the border with Serbia, which was the easternmost end of the self-proclaimed Republic of Serbian Krajina (though geographically disconnected from the other Serb-held areas of Croatia). Although there were fears of a direct military confrontation between Croatia and Serbia in Eastern Slavonia, large-scale armed conflict was not resumed in that region. <!-- Unsourced image removed: [[Image:Oluja h03.jpg|thumb|Croat forces giving food and supplies to fleeing refugees]] --> ==Aftermath== ===Military and political=== In the days immediately following Operation Storm, Croatian Army and Ministry of the Interior (MUP) units conducted a series of follow-up operations in the Krajina region. The majority of the Croatian Army forces withdrew from the area in August 1995. After the operation, joint Croatian and Bosnian forces would continue the offensive in western Bosnia, advancing towards Bosnian Serb capital [[Banja Luka]]. Operation Storm lifted the siege of [[Bihać]]. Bosnian general [[Atif Dudaković]] (commander of the Bihać 5th Corps) said that Operation Storm was an answer to the [[Split]] agreement signed by presidents Tudjman and [[Izetbegovic]] that pledged aid to the besieged pocket.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bosnia.org.uk/news/news_body.cfm?newsid=2225 |title='We needed Operation Storm as much as Croatia did' |accessdate=2007-06-12 |date=[[2006-09-11]] |work=interview with General Atif Dudakovic |publisher=[[Bosnian Institute]]}}</ref> Neither Serbian President Slobodan Milošević nor the Serb-dominated Yugoslav Army came to the aid of the Krajina Serbs during the offensive. Although Milošević condemned the Croatian military assault, the Serbian government-controlled press also attacked the Krajina Serb leaders, claiming they were unfit to hold office.<ref>{{cite news | last = Michael | title = Serbia Demands International Action | publisher = [[The Independent]] | date = [[1995-09-05]] | accessdate = 2007-06-12}}</ref> Operation Storm was seen as a total reversal of the military balance of power in the region. Along with NATO's bombing campaign in Bosnia ([[Operation Deliberate Force]]), Operation Storm and its follow-up offensives in western Bosnia were seen as vital contributing factors to peace talks resuming, that would result with the [[Dayton Agreement]] a few months later. In a highly publicized event, Croatia organized a ''Freedom Train''; running from [[Zagreb]] to Knin as a symbol of a free and unified Croatia, since until Operations Flash and Storm, the country was effectively split into 2 segments with little or no land communication. In 2005, Prime Minister of Croatia [[Ivo Sanader]] said, "Storm is a brilliant historical military and police operation that we can be proud of, the operation which liberated central parts of the occupied Croatia." Furthermore, he stated that if a sovereign country is occupied, it has the right to liberate its territory. ===War crimes=== {{Refimprovesect|date=April 2008}} Croatian forces also conducted widespread actions against Serb civilians and property which were later condemned by prosecutors at the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia]] (ICTY).{{Fact|date=April 2008}} It was reported that Croatian forces undertook an extensive campaign of looting and destroying Krajina Serb property.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} According to the Croatian Helsinki Committee,{{Clarifyme|date=April 2008}} 677 Serb civilians were killed in the operation. Serbian sources put the number at 2500.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} The ICTY Chief Prosecutor alleges that the Croatian forces operated in "'arson squads' using inflammable fuels, incendiary bullets and explosives… [leaving] some towns and numerous villages completely destroyed." {{Fact|date=April 2008}} The intention of this campaign, according to the Prosecutor, was to make it impossible for the Krajina Serb population to return. Further, the prosecution charged that hundreds of Krajina Serbs were murdered or disappeared in the wake of Operation Storm. A few notable cases included the killing of five (possibly six) Serb civilians in the hamlet of Grubori in the Plavno valley north of Knin on August 25, and the killings of 18 Serb civilians in the villages of Varivode, Gosici and two other hamlets in the former Sector South in the September of 1995. There were also numerous individual killings or killings of several people from the same household. By November 1995 the UN peacekeeping force in Croatia, [[UNCRO]], published its estimates of 128 confirmed civilians killed in the operation and destruction of over 73% of all objects in Knin's region{{Fact|date=May 2008}}. Across the entire region, Serbs were displaced ''en masse''. In Knin, the Croatian Army rounded up and detained all the male inhabitants of fighting age, releasing them after a week.<ref>[[Ratko Gajica]] of [[Independent Democratic Serbian Party|SDSS]] on ''[[Nedjeljom u dva]]'', in 2005.</ref> In the town of [[Obrovac, Croatia|Obrovac]], on the other hand, the entire population had already left during the first day of the operation.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} When [[Croatian Radiotelevision]] reporters entered the town soon afterwards they found a single old man. Many of those people packed whatever they could and went on the road together with their families. Out of the 122 Serbian [[Orthodox churches]] in the area, 17 were damaged, but only one was completely destroyed. {{Fact|date=April 2008}}According to a claim in the September 1995 communiqué from the Permanent Mission of Croatia to the U.N., most of the damage to the Orthodox churches occurred prior to the Serbian retreat.<ref name="Anatomy of Deceit">{{cite book | last=Blaskovich | first=Jerry |title=Anatomy of deceit: an American physician's first-hand encounter with the realities of the war in Croatia | publisher=Dunhill Publishing | location=New York | year=1997 | isbn=0-935016-24-4}}</ref>{{Verify credibility|date=April 2008}} In the years following Operation Storm, Croatian authorities have uncovered over 3,000 bodies, presumed by the authorities to be murdered Croatians, in mass graves in the former Krajina territory, buried since the Serb ethnic cleansing campaign in 1991.<ref>[http://www.croatianworld.net/CROWNframes.htm?http://www.croatianworld.net/Letters/60.htm Crown Home Page<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>{{Failed verification|date=April 2008}} In June 2008, during the prosecution of Ante Gotovina at the Hague, Canadian general [[Andrew Leslie]] claimed between 10,000 and 25,000 civilians died in the operation.<ref>http://www.jutarnji.hr/dogadjaji_dana/clanak/art-2008,6,6,sudjenje_generali,122257.jl</ref> ===Refugees=== Most Serbs fleeing the Krajina region went to Banja Luka or to Serbia proper. The majority of them were resettled in the Serbian province of [[Vojvodina]], and a smaller number were in predominantly Albanian-populated [[Kosovo]] in southern Serbia. In the first days after the offensive, Serbia accepted arriving refugees, but, starting between August 12 and 13, the authorities conscripted able-bodied men who had recently arrived from the Krajina area and sent them to Serb-controlled territory in Bosnia and eastern Slavonia, assigned to Serbian armed forces there.<ref>{{cite news | last = Judah | first = Tim | title = Able-Bodied Refugees Are Forced Back to the Fight | publisher = [[The Daily Telegraph]] | date = [[1995-09-18]]}}</ref> On August 12th, Serbia also announced that men of military age would no longer be allowed to cross from Bosnian Serb-controlled territory into Serbia proper, claiming that it had accepted 107,000 refugees from Krajina since August 4. Some of the RSK refugees were declared illegal migrants by FRY authorities and many were deported. Some were reportedly turned over by the police to paramilitary units of [[Željko Ražnatović]], a.k.a. Arkan, in the latter's base in the village of Erdut in eastern Slavonia and reported being mistreated by Arkan's men. Reportedly, conscripted refugees taken to eastern Slavonia had been beaten and humiliated in public because they "surrendered Krajina to the enemy."<ref>{{cite news | title = Spotlight Report No. 20: Violations of Refugees Rights in Serbia and Montenegro | publisher = Humanitarian Law Center/Humanitarian Law Fund | year = 1995 | month = October | page = 11}}</ref> The large influx of refugees raised local tensions and Vojvodina's sizable Croatian minority was harassed. Liberal opposition leaders in Vojvodina and Croatian government representatives in Belgrade, asserted that between 800 and 1,000 Croats left Vojvodina during August 1995 due to eviction and intimidations from Krajina refugees and local extremists.<ref name=HRW-1995-09-11>{{citation | journal =Human Rights Watch | title = Helsinki interview with Ivo Kujundzic, Counsellor for Humanitarian Affairs, and Davor Vidis, Spokesperson, Office of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, Belgrade, Serbia | date = September 11, 1995}}</ref>{{Clarifyme|date=April 2008}}<!--need URL---> <ref name=HRW-1995-08-31>{{citation | journal = Human Rights Watch | title = Helsinki interview with Nenad Canak, President of the Social Democratic League of Vojvodina, Novi Sad, Vojvodina, Serbia | date = August 31, 1995}}</ref>{{Clarifyme|date=April 2008}}<!--need URL---> In [[The Guardian]], [[Johathan Steele]] wrote: ''"I remember being stunned at how quickly victims can turn into villains. In the town of Gibarac just inside the border of Serbia, I watched newly arrived Serb refugees being helped to find shelter by local relatives who went into homes and evicted Croatian families."''<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/1999/jun/14/balkans11 | title = Break the cycle of abuse | last = Steele | first = Jonathan | publisher = The Guardian | date = [[1999-06-14]]}}</ref> Approximately 50,000 refugees remained in Bosnian Serb territory (largely in the Banja Luka area). In retaliation for their displacement, some refugees - with the assistance of Serbian paramilitary groups - forcibly evicted Croats and Muslims from their homes in the area. Other abuses - including execution and disappearance of non-Serbs - also intensified in the Bosanska Krajina area after the August 1995 offensive in Croatia. Local and regional Bosnian Serb authorities encouraged the expulsion of Croats and Muslims from the region, particularly in September and October 1995.<ref>[[Human Rights Watch]]/Helsinki, "Northwestern Bosnia: Human Rights Abuses during a Cease-Fire and Peace Negotiations," (A Human Rights Watch Short Report, vol. 8, no. 1, February 1996)</ref> Government of [[Republika Srpska]] has on other side ordered the expulsion of all Croats and Muslims from the Banja Luka region. Only exception are Croat and Muslim males of military age. <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.b-info.com/places/Bulgaria/news/95-08/aug15.omri |title="Sinister" development in Banja Luka exodus |accessdate=2009-05-09 |author=Patrick Moore |date=[[1995-08-15]] |publisher=OMRI Daily Digest}}</ref> Croatia claims that in the weeks following the operation, over 1,000 Bosnian Croat families were expelled and many were tortured and killed as revenge.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.unhchr.ch/Huridocda/Huridoca.nsf/0/d0cd11bdf1350357802566d60046e3b7?Opendocument |title=Letter from Croatian Government Chargé d'affaires |accessdate=2007-06-12 |author=Neven Madey |date=[[1995-08-14]] |publisher=Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights}}</ref>. Killings of non-Serbs took place in Bosnia ([[Banja Luka]], [[Prijedor]], [[Bosanski Novi]], and [[Bosanska Dubica]]) in September and October, in part to make room for Serb refugees who fled after Operation Storm. Croats reportedly were particular targets for revenge. U.N. and other international observers collected numerous accounts of killings and other atrocities. Only about 3,000 Croats remained in Banja Luka after the war out of 29,000 that had lived there.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iwpr.net/?p=bcr&s=f&o=156849&apc_state=henibcr2003 |title=Bosnia: Papal Boost for Banja Luka |accessdate=2007-06-12 |author=Gordana Katana |date=[[2003-06-20]] |publisher=[[Institute for War and Peace Reporting]]}}</ref> Approximately 300,000 Croatian Serbs were displaced during the entire war, only a third of which (or about 117,000) are officially registered as having returned [[as of 2005]]. According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, 200,000 Croatian refugees, mostly Croatian Serbs, are still displaced in neighbouring countries and elsewhere. Many Croatian Serbs cannot return because they have lost their tenancy rights and under threats of intimidation. Croatian Serbs continue to be the victim of discrimination in access to employment and with regard to other economic and social rights. Some cases of violence and harassment against Croatian Serbs continue to be reported.<ref>[[Amnesty International]]. (2005-08-04) [http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engeur640022005 Croatia: Operation "Storm" - still no justice ten years on]. Retrieved on 2007-06-12.</ref> Some of the Croatian Serbs will not return out of fear of being charged for war crimes, as the Croatian police has secret war crime suspect lists; Croatia passed an [[Amnesty]] law for anyone who had not taken an active part in the war, but many do not know if they are on amnesty list or not because amnesty rules are not clear enough.[http://www.hrw.org/worldreport99/europe/croatia.html] [http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/1996/19960522.sc6222.html] The return of refugees is further complicated by the fact that many Croats and Bosniaks (some expelled from Bosnia) have taken residence in their vacated houses. Another reason for the non-return of refugees is the fact that areas that were under Croatian Serb control during the 1991-95 period were economically ruined (unemployment in RSK was 92%). Since that time, Croatia has started a series of projects aimed at rebuilding these areas and jump-starting the economy (including special tax exemptions), but unemployment is still high. The primary Serb political party in Croatia, [[Independent Democratic Serbian Party|SDSS]] supports the current Croatian government and has made speeding up the return of refugees its main priority. The Croatian government has passed a number of laws aimed at enabling easier return to refugees. ==Later events== {{Citations missing|date=April 2008}} Following the death of President Tuđman in [[1999]], the Croatian authorities began to undertake investigations of the activities of Croatian forces in the wake of Operation Storm. According to Croatia's Ministry of Justice, state prosecutors filed around 3,000 lawsuits against a total of 811 people for crimes allegedly committed during and after the operation.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} Several dozen people were convicted to jail sentences (up to 20 years according to Croatian law). [[Amnesty International]] has criticized the Croatian courts for inadequately investigating the war crimes allegations and failing to protect evidence as well as encouraging impunity for human rights violations.{{Fact|date=April 2008}} The ICTY issued indictments against three senior Croatian commanders, Colonel General [[Ivan Čermak]], Colonel General [[Mladen Markač]] and Brigadier (later General) [[Ante Gotovina]]. The three indictees were said to have had personal and command responsibility for [[war crimes]] carried out against Krajina Serb civilians. It was later disclosed by the ICTY prosecutor, [[Louise Arbour]], that had he not died when he did, Croatia's President Tuđman would probably also have been indicted. Čermak and Markač were handed over to the ICTY, but Gotovina fled. He was widely believed to be at liberty in Croatia or the Croat-inhabited parts of Bosnia, where many view him as a hero, and his continued freedom was attributed to covert help from — or at least a "blind eye" turned by — the Croatian authorities; which proved to be false. The US Government offered a $5 million reward for the capture of Ante Gotovina and he became one of the ICTY's most wanted men. The issue was a major stumbling block for Croatia's international relations. Its application to join the European Union was rebuffed in March 2005 due to the Croatian government's perceived complicity in Gotovina's continued evasion of the ICTY. On [[December 8]], [[2005]], Gotovina was captured by [[Spain|Spanish]] police in a hotel on [[Tenerife]] in the [[Canary Islands]]. His passport revealed he had been hiding all over the world, including [[Haiti]] and [[Russia]].{{Fact|date=April 2008}} He was transferred to [[Madrid]] for court proceedings before extradition to the ICTY at [[The Hague]]. The ICTY later joined the proceedings against the three generals into a single case, which is due to start in [[2007]].{{Updateneed}} ==Battle figures== According to a Croatian source<!-- link is not working. fix or remove [http://www.kakarigi.net/croatia/news/dossier/eng/komentar.html] -->:{{Fact|date=April 2008}}{{Who|date=April 2008}} ===Croatian forces and allies=== '''[[Croatian Army]] (HV):''' * 150,000 strong ** 80,000 soldiers in brigades, 70,000 in home guard regiments (''domobranske pukovnije'') ** 2nd echelon, 50,000 ** 3rd echelon, 25 brigades * 280 [[T-55]] and 80 [[M-84]] tanks * 800 heavy artillery pieces * 45-50 rocket launchers * 18 [[MiG-21]] "Fishbed" fighter jets * 5 [[Mi-8]] "Hip" transport helicopters * 12 [[Mi-24]]D "Hind" attack helicopters '''[[Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina]] (ABiH):''' * 5th Corps ([[Bihać]] pocket forces - five [[Mountain]] [[Infantry]] brigades) * 25,000 soldiers est. * 15 [[T-55]] tanks * 80 heavy artillery pieces ===Serbian forces and allies=== '''[[Army of the Republic of Serbian Krajina]] (VRSK)''' * 40,000 strong ** 20,000 1st echelon ** 10,000 2nd echelon ** 10,000 3rd echelon * 30 [[M-84]] and 2 [[T-72]] MBT's * 200? [[T-55]] + some [[T-34/85]] tanks * 160 [[APC]]'s and [[IFV]]'s (M-60P, [[BMP M-80|M-80A]], [[BTR-50]], [[BRDM-2]] and [[BOV APC]]) * 560 artillery pieces * 28 Multi-rocket launchers ([[M-63 Plamen]], [[M-77 Oganj]] and [[M-87 Orkan]]) * 18 [[Aérospatiale Gazelle|Soko Gazelle]] and [[Mi-8]] helicopters * 360 air defence weapons ([[SA-2]], [[SA-7]], [[SA-9]], [[ZSU-57-2]], [[BOV APC|BOV-3]], [[Bofors L/70]]) * 22 aircraft ([[G-2 Galeb]], [[J-21 Jastreb]], [[Soko J-20 Kraguj|J-20 Kraguj]] and [[Utva|Utva 66]]) '''Army of the [[Western Bosnia|Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia]]''' * 10,000 strong (?) ==See also== * [[Bosanska Posavina]] * [[Operation Flash]] * [[Operation Summer '95]] * [[Operation Tiger]]: Attack on Western Bosnia by loyalist forces. * [[Operation Mistral]] * [[Operation Deliberate Force]] == Notes == {{reflist|2}} == References == {{refbegin}} * RSK, Vrhovni savjet odbrane, Knin, 4. avgust 1995., 16.45 časova, Broj 2-3113-1/95. The faximile of this document was published in: Rade Bulat "Srbi nepoželjni u Hrvatskoj", ''Naš glas'' (Zagreb), br. 8.-9., septembar 1995., p. 90.-96. (the faximile is on the page 93.). <!-- This order is given from the rebel Serb top authority on the day of Operation Storm. 4. August 1995. --> *: Vrhovni savjet odbrane RSK (The Supreme Council of Defense of Republic of Serb Krajina) brought a decision 4. August 1995 in 16.45. This decision was signed by Milan Martić and later verified in Glavni štab SVK (Headquarters of Republic of Serb Krajina Army) in 17.20. * RSK, Republički štab Civilne zaštite, Broj: Pov. 01-82/95., Knin, 02.08.1995., HDA, Dokumentacija RSK, kut. 265 *: This is the document of Republic headquarters of Civil Protection of RSK. In this document it was ordered to all subordinated headquarters of RSK to immediately give all reports about preparations for the evacuation, sheltering and taking care of evacuated civilians ("evakuacija, sklanjanje i zbrinjavanje") (the deadline for the report was 3. August 1995 in 19 h). <!-- This order was given <u>two days before</u> the Operation Storm, 02. August 1995. --> * RSK, Republički štab Civilne zaštite, Broj: Pov. 01-83/95., Knin, 02.08.1995., Pripreme za evakuaciju materijalnih, kulturnih i drugih dobara (The preparations for the evacuation of material, cultural and other goods), HDA, Dokumentacija RSK, kut. 265 *: This was the next order from the Republican HQ of Civil Protection. *: It was referred to all Municipal Headquarters of Civil Protection. In that document was ordered to all subordinated HQ's to implement the preparation of evacuation of all material and all mobile cultural goods, archives, evidentions and materials that are highly confidential/top secret, money, lists of valuable stuff (?)("vrednosni popisi") and referring documentations. <!-- This order was given <u>two days before</u> the Operation Storm, 02. August 1995. --> * Drago Kovačević, '' "Kavez - Krajina u dogovorenom ratu" '', Beograd 2003. , p. 93.-94. <!-- Note: Drago Kovačević was during the existence of so-called RSK the minister of informing and the mayor of Knin (the capitol of self-proclaimed state) --> * Milisav Sekulić, '' "Knin je pao u Beogradu" '', Bad Vilbel 2001., p. 171.-246., p. 179. <!-- Note: Milisav Sekulić was a high military officer of "Srpska vojska Krajine" (Republic of Serb Krajina Army). --> * Marko Vrcelj, '' "Rat za Srpsku Krajinu 1991-95" '', Beograd 2002., p. 212.-222. <!-- Note: Marko Vrcelj was a military officer of JNA (later named: Vojska Jugoslavije - Army of FR Yugoslavia). During the wartime 1991-95, he was on the various military functions in "Srpska vojska Krajine" (Republic of Serb Krajina Army). --> {{refend}} ==External links== *"Former Yugoslavia: Can video play a part in truth, justice and reconciliation?" 6 November 2006, Gavin Simpson [http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/2006/11/06/former-yugoslavia-can-video-play-a-part-in-truth-justice-and-reconciliation/] * [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4747379.stm BBC: Evicted Serbs remember Storm] * [http://www.crowc.org/english/news/article.asp?id=2 NGO Organization, Member of United Nations: US Officials aided and abetted Croatian General Ante Gotovina] * [http://public.carnet.hr/svjedoci/news/dossier/eng/index.html Dossier "Storm"] * [http://www.hrt.hr/arhiv/oluja/indexeng.html Croatian Radio Television: News from operation Storm '95] * [http://www.gov.yu/cwc/engleski/7-IZ-EKR.html Yugoslav Report on Croatian army and police crimes in Krajina in 1995] * [http://web.amnesty.org/library/index/engeur640022005 Amnesty international article about Operation Storm] * [http://www.unimondo.org/progettocolomba/Tempesta.htm Chronology of Operation Storm] * [http://www.birn.eu.com/en/17/10/731/?ILStart=40 Operation Storm Destroyed "Greater Serbia",] Balkan Insight 20 January 2006 * [http://www.slobodan-milosevic.org/documents/oluja.rm Video taken during abuse of captured Serb soldiers and civilians. First killing is committed by the members of ABiH (Bosniaks) and second is the search for disguised Serbian soldiers by the members of HV (Croatian Army), where no killings are recorded. Download 33 MB RealMedia File] {{Yugoslav wars}} [[Category:Conflicts in 1995]] [[Category:Battles involving Croatia|Storm]] [[Category:Bosnian War]] [[Category:Croatian War of Independence]] [[Category:War crimes in former Yugoslavia]] {{Link FA|hr}} <!-- interwiki --> [[bs:Operacija Oluja]] [[bg:Операция Буря]] [[ca:Operació Tempesta]] [[cs:Operace Bouře]] [[de:Militäroperation Oluja]] [[es:Operación Tormenta]] [[fr:Opération Tempête]] [[hr:Operacija Oluja]] [[ka:ოპერაცია შტორმი]] [[nl:Operatie Storm]] [[no:Operasjon Storm]] [[ru:Операция «Буря»]] [[sl:Operacija Nevihta]] [[sr:Операција Олуја]] [[sh:Operacija Oluja]] [[fi:Operaatio Myrsky]] [[sv:Operation Storm]]