S/1994/674/Add.2 (Vol. V)
28 December 1994
Final report of the United Nations Commission of Experts
established pursuant to
security council resolution 780 (1992)
Annex X
Mass graves
Under the Direction of:
M. Cherif Bassiouni
Chairman and Rapporteur on the Gathering
and Analysis of Facts, Commission of Experts
Established Pursuant to Security Council Resolution 780 (1992)
Principal Legal Analyst:
Georgann M. Grabiec, IHRLI Staff Attorney
Contributors:
Richard R. Danis, Jr., IHRLI Volunteer Analyst
Carolyn Durnik, IHRLI Staff Attorney
Jim Rogan, IHRLI Staff Analyst
and
The Staff of the International Human Rights
Law Institute, DePaul University
It is significant to note that further study of mass graves should be made for three reasons:
This report is divided into two sections. The first section is the summary analysis and the second section consists of factual descriptions of all reported gravesites and analysis by geographic location. The Summary Analysis, in Section II below, discusses the methodology of the report, defines relevant terms, and tracks the following information: total number of graves; number of graves in each geographic region; number of graves by ethnicity of victim and of perpetrator; number of graves containing a given range of bodies; number of graves where information suggests the bodies were victims of mass killings; number of graves near detention facilities, and so forth. In addition, this section will discuss patterns, trends, and commonalities which have manifested themselves in the various reports of mass grave sites.
The Analysis By Geographic Location, in Section II(B) below, describes gravesites by county and is organized alphabetically. The 1991 population and ethnic distribution information is provided for each county, as well as a brief summary of military activity in the region, if available. Many of the counties reported multiple mass graves. The section also contains the following:
For the purposes of this report, «grave» is defined as any site which: 1) is intended as a place of permanent interment and 2) has physical characteristics which prevent the bodies from being moved by the natural elements. Accordingly, rivers do not fall within the definition of mass graves for this report, nor do groups of bodies left to decompose on forest floors. «Mass» is defined as any group of two or more persons sharing the common place of interment. «County» is defined as a region known as an «opstina». An opstina is larger than a municipality or town, and includes smaller villages and hamlets which surround the larger cities. «Ethnicity of perpetrator» is defined as the ethnicity or religious affiliation of the party responsible for the deaths that led to the creation of a mass grave. In many instances, the party responsible for the killing is not the party directly involved in creating the mass grave. This would occur in a situation where civilians were killed and their neighbors had no choice but to bury them in mass graves, due to time, sanitary, or safety considerations.
Reports of mass graves are entered into the IHRLI database. The database generates a separate screen for each reported mass grave and tracks all relevant information available about each site.
When a report of a mass grave is received by the database, it is cross-checked against any factual information already on hand to avoid duplication. If the report contains data on a gravesite previously identified in the database, any new data is incorporated into the active file in the database. If the report concerns a new mass grave, a file is opened for that grave. The purpose of the files is to develop and organize information for analysis and track corroborative accounts of mass graves.
This report is based on over 10,000 pages of source information received and database incidents developed by IHRLI. This information is submitted by a variety of sources, including UN organizations, member states, governments of the warring factions, intergovernmental organizations, and non-governmental organizations. *8 The substance of the information received varies from general reports of patterns of activity in the former Yugoslavia to detailed witness accounts, which describe specific incidents at length.
Based on the available information, there are four general types of mass graves which exist in the territory of the former Yugoslavia. The first type is a gravesite where the bodies were victims of a mass killing but the method and manner of burial were proper. *9 The second type is a gravesite where the bodies were those of civilian casualties or soldiers killed in combat, and therefore not unlawful killings, but the method and manner of burial were improper. The third type includes gravesites where the bodies were victims of a mass killing and the method and manner of burial were improper. Finally, the fourth type includes gravesites where neither the circumstances surrounding the deaths of the victims nor the manner and method of burial were improper.
The number of mass graves reported to exist is as follows:
The number of bodies said to be contained in the graves are as follows:
The ethnicity of the victims buried in reported mass graves are as follows:
The ethnicity of perpetrators responsible for killing persons buried in mass graves are as follows:
Of the reported sites, 54 of the reported sites are at or near detention facilities. This comports with the data that suggests many of the victims buried in mass graves were prisoners who died or were killed at detention facilities run by an adversarial ethnic group.
Over half (99) of the alleged gravesites appear to contain victims of mass killings. In these instances, the source information clearly detailed the circumstances of the killing *14 or provided witness testimony about the deaths of the victims.
There are several trends which appear throughout the report of mass graves in both BiH and Croatia, including Serb-inhabited areas of Croatia, such as Krajina and Eastern and Western Slavonia. The first is the coexistence of mass graves and detention facilities. Mass graves are frequently reported in areas where numerous identified detention facilities were located and where many individuals were reportedly killed. This coexistence suggests that mass graves were and are deliberately being used as a means of secretly disposing of the bodies of those persons unlawfully killed. *15 Some of these persons may have been killed in detention, while others were killed in the course of «ethnic cleansing». *16 This is particularly true in the counties of Brcko, Foca, Pakrac, and Prijedor.
A second trend concerns the manner in which the graves are created. After a mass killing, the occupying troops or detention camp guards will often select a handful of civilians or prisoners to assist with loading dead bodies onto trucks to transport them to a burial site. Other prisoners are forced to actually dig the grave in which the dead are to be buried, usually with their bare hands or shovels. After the transport or excavation is completed, the prisoners or civilians are also killed and thrown into the grave with the dead bodies, presumably to eliminate any potential witnesses to the killings and subsequent burials. Lack of available witnesses also accounts for the poor quality of information about many of the gravesites.
A third trend appearing from the data concerns a blatant disregard for the rites of a proper burial. Most of the dead in mass graves are neither placed in coffins nor wrapped in any sort of protective material. In many cases, the victims are not identified by name, or registered as dead before burial. *17 These actions deny the dead a dignified burial and effectively prevent the families of those killed in the conflict from ever tracing their whereabouts.
A fourth trend suggested by the data concerns the burial site itself. There is a pattern whereby perpetrators dispose of bodies in pre-existing but nontraditional sites, which provide a ready-made place for body disposal without the use of mechanical diggers or excavators. Dead bodies are frequently thrown in mineshafts, canals, quarries, landfills, caves and the like. In addition, these are the types of sites where bodies are said to be buried in large numbers as opposed to small numbers, possibly because it is easier to effectuate the burial of many people if the need for actual excavation is eliminated.
A fifth pattern appearing from the data is the delay or denial of burial by the occupying forces. In many instances, dead bodies will be left on streets, lawns or forests for days or weeks, forcing the surviving civilian population to view the devastation. When villagers attempt to bury the bodies themselves, they are often prevented by the opposing faction or must risk their own lives to do so.
A sixth trend is the circumvention of interment altogether. Victims' bodies have been disposed of in a variety of ways which do not embrace actual interment in a grave, be it real or makeshift. The most common non-burial method of disposal is the dumping of bodies into rivers. The Danube, Sava, Sana, and Drina Rivers have all been reported to contain the bodies of killed persons. Some victims have allegedly had their stomachs slit and filled with sand so the bodies remain submerged once in the river. Also, many persons were reportedly burned in ovens or gathered into homes and set ablaze.
Many of the methods of burial or disposal of bodies are designed to instill fear and intimidate the civilian population still living in contested areas. This is particularly true in the case of bodies dumped in rivers, where the population downstream is forced to witness masses of bodies floating in the water. When bodies are buried, they are often placed in very shallow graves or merely covered with a layer of dirt, so that body parts often surface during inclement weather. Another example of a burial designed to provoke fear is in Blagaj, located in Prijedor county, where bodies were buried only from the waist down, so that passers-by were forced to view a line of decomposing persons. *18
Many of the attacks which led to the creation of mass graves in BiH occurred in late April, May and June of 1992. This is particularly true in the south-east quarter of BiH, which includes Foca, Gacko, Rogatica and Vlasenica; the north-east quarter of BiH, including Brcko and Zvornik; and the north-west quarter of BiH, which includes Prijedor, Sanski Most, and Kotor Varos.
Mass graves in many regions appear to be the final phase in an «ethnic cleansing» process. *19 Mass graves are usually found in sectors where forces have followed a distinct pattern of expulsion: the county is attacked by artillery; infantry troops enter the villages and force villagers from their homes, during which time many are killed. Once the houses are emptied, they are looted and burned. Those villagers who are still alive are rounded up and the men are separated from the women, children and elderly. These villagers are either killed, deported or detained; in any event, they rarely return to the village from which they came. The bodies of those killed during the initial expulsion, subsequent detention, or expulsion after release are often deposited in mass graves in and around the area where they were killed or died from torture or other wise. *20
Bijeljina county represents the north-eastern-most corner of BiH. The county of Bijeljina is situated 40 kilometres east- south-east of Brcko, and 10 kilometres east of the Drina River. The 1991 census calculated the population of Bijeljina at 96,796 persons, comprising 59.4 per cent Serbs, 31.3 per cent Muslims, 4.4 per cent Yugoslavs, and 4.9 per cent «other». *22
Serb forces, including Arkan's men, entered Bijeljina on 1 April 1992, and gave residing Muslims until 7 April to surrender any weapons they had, assuring them that nothing would happen to them. *23 After midnight on 8 April Serbs began to enter selected Muslim houses. By the first week of May half of the non-Serb population of Bijeljina had fled; however, on 7 May Serb authorities forbade anyone from leaving the city. *24 As of 11 May, the Serb forces still had not destroyed the city. *25
Bijeljina: Someone from Bijeljina reported that random killings took place during the first week of Serb aggression against the town of Bijeljina. *26 She said that people killed by automatic weapons (and not shells) were lying in the street, and were picked up by the garbage collection service to be carried to the Drina River. *27 She further related how families had been killed in their homes, which prompted people to begin burying their relatives or others they knew in their own gardens. Bodies were also taken off the street for burial. *28
Novo Selo - Animal Disposal Site: *29 Novo Selo is a town located approximately 10 kilometres to the south of Bijeljina and is .5 kilometres east of the Drina River, with an estuary, the Janja River, bisecting the centre of town. According to one report, Arkan's units and local Serbian soldiers killed an estimated 1,000 Muslims. They threw some of the bodies into the Drina River and buried an unknown number in an animal disposal site north-west of Novo Selo. *30
Hills of Brijesnica: The hills of Brijesnica are located near the village of Brijesnica, which is approximately three kilometres east of Bijeljina. One account states that following the initial raid on Bijeljina, which took place during the first week of April 1992, Serbs would take the mutilated bodies of those they had killed to the low, forested hills of Brijesnica. There, they threw the corpses into open pits and covered them with dirt. Other corpses were taken by truck at night and dumped into the Drina River. *31
Batkovic Prison Camp - Cow Stable: *32 The town of Batkovic is located 10 kilometres north of Bijeljina, where a prison camp reportedly existed at the dead end of a road approximately one kilometre north of the town. Most deaths would occur at night and corpses were normally wrapped in sheets and then removed by a military truck every morning. *33
A witness stated that there was a mass grave located next to the Batkovic prison camp. At least 15 bodies were buried next to a cow stable that stood approximately 200 metres south-west of the camp's nine buildings. The cow stable was 50 metres long and 10 metres wide, and was constructed of stone on the bottom half and wood on the upper half. The prisoners at Batkovic neither knew the identity of those buried at the stable nor the circumstances of their deaths. *34
Bosanski Brod is in northern BiH. The Sava River constitutes its northern border, with Slavonski Brod on the opposite side in Croatia. The county contains 33,962 persons, 41 per cent of which were Croatian, 33.8 per cent were Serbian, 12.2 per cent were Muslim, 10.6 were Yugoslav and 2.4 per cent were «other».
Military activity in Bosanski Brod began on 18 April 1992, when ZNG units crossed the Sava River from Croatia. *36 Villagers fled to the forest surrounding the towns which had not yet been attacked. Those who did not escape were killed or taken by the Croatian forces to detention facilities, including the football stadium at Bosanski Brod.
There is only one report of a mass grave in this county. A resident of Bosanski Brod was imprisoned and detained at the football stadium, along with a relative. The witness learned from other detainees that the relative was killed during detention. The witness alleged that those who were killed «in this way» were buried in the garden of Luka Krkac, near an enbankment along the Sava River. *37
The county of Bosanska Dubica is located in north-western BiH, on the border with Croatia. According to the 1991 census, the county had a population of 31,577 persons, of whom 69.1 per cent were Serbian, 20.5 per cent were Muslim, 5.8 per cent were Yugoslav, and 4.6 per cent were «other».
Hrvatska Dubica is the site of an alleged mass grave. It is unclear whether this village is actually located in Bosanska Dubica, but the county is referred to in the report.
On 15 September 1991, Serbs reportedly killed 85 people, mostly elderly, at a location called «Bacina». The bodies were then thrown into an old mine situated on Zelina hill. *38 The murders were allegedly ordered by a high ranking public official. *39
Bosanski Novi is located in north-western BiH, just west of Prijedor county. According to the 1991 census, Bosanski Novi contained 41,541 persons, of whom 60.4 per cent were Serbian, 33.9 per cent were Muslim, 3.7 per cent were Yugoslav and 2 per cent were «other». There are several reports of mass graves in this county.
Blagaj: Blagaj is situated in the Japra valley, in a strategic location between Prijedor and Bosanski Novi, and is almost exclusively Muslim. It appears that the village was attacked and occupied by Serb forces in late April or early May of 1992. Eventually, the town became a sort of refugee centre for as many as 7,000 Muslims, despite the fact that the city continued to be attacked and under blockade. *40
There are two separate reports regarding mass graves in Blagaj. The numbers of those buried are identical, as is the place of burial. However, the dates of the burials in the reports are different, as is the manner of burial. Thus, the two accounts will be discussed separately.
According to a State Department report, Serb soldiers read 200 names from a list of men in Blagaj whose relatives had joined the fighting against Serb forces. These men were gathered together, taken to an open field next to the Alici school building, and shot with automatic weapons. *41 Another group of persons was then given shovels and ordered to dig two parallel trenches, two metres apart, in the field. Each was 100 metres long, one metre deep and 50 centimetres wide. The prisoners were then told to bury the corpses upright and only from the waist down, so that the upper half of the bodies would still be visible. The bodies remained this way for 10 days, and the stench from decomposition was so bad that the Bosnian Serb forces pulled out to the high ground surrounding the village. On 12 May 1992, they moved back into the village and, using heavy machinery, buried the bodies in a mass grave at an unspecified location. *42
Helsinki Watch interviewed another man who was involved in the events in Blagaj. This man noted that in mid-June, Serb soldiers came out with a list of 250 Muslims who were to be deported from Blagaj to Svodna, a nearby Serb village. The remaining people were separated by gender and put on cattle cars. During this operation, 200 people were killed. The source did not observe the killing but said his relative observed four to five corpses on the road back to Blagaj. The following morning, she saw soldiers digging trenches with bulldozers near the school and loading corpses onto tractors. There were two large trenches near the school, each 10 to 20 metres long. It is possible that the trenches that the source's relative observed were those dug by the Bosnian Serbs after they returned to the village. However, the first account says that burial took place in mid- May, not June, as the source's sister believed. *43
Agici: There is an alleged mass grave in Agici, which is situated four kilometres from the Japra River in Prijedor County. According to a witness, a group of 50 Serbians from the village forced all the Muslim civilians from their homes on 22 June 1992. The Muslims were taken to a graveyard which was one kilometre from the village, in the direction of the Japra valley. The men were separated from the women, and the Serbs began beating some of the men. Around midnight, two farm tractors came to the graveyard and transported the women and children to Bosanski Novi. The 25 men who remained at the graveyard, along with the two Muslim drivers of the farm tractors, were never seen again. A Serbian backhoe operator later told the women villagers that he had been sent to the graveyard to bury the bodies of the men, who were killed after being forced to dig their own graves. *44
Bosanski Petrovac is in north-western BiH, only 20 miles from the western border between BiH and Croatia. According to the 1991 census, the county claimed a total of 15,552 persons, of whom 75.2 per cent were Serbian, 21.1 per cent were Muslim, and 3.7 per cent were «other».
Bosanski Petrovac came under the control of Serb forces in the spring of 1992. Many of the Muslim men in the village were sent to one of two places: a makeshift camp in the «Kozile» woods or to Drvar. *46 Most of the detainees were released or exchanged in the summer of 1992. Bosanski Petrovac is near Kljuc, Sanski Most, Prijedor, and Banja Luka, sites where numerous Serb-run detention facilities allegedly have operated during the late spring and summer of 1992.
In September of 1992, Muslims killed 15 Serbian troops in Bihac, north-west of Bosanski Petrovac. This reportedly sparked a wave of mass killings of Muslims in Banja Luka and Bosanski Petrovac. After these mass killings, a Muslim leader appealed to the local Serbs in control of Bosanski Petrovac and requested permission to evacuate 2,500 Muslims to Travnik. The leader of the SDS agreed, and the evacuation took place on 24 September. The county's proximity, both to detention facilities where thousands of persons were allegedly killed, as well as to the city of Bihac, may have been the reason mass graves were created there.
Didovici: This mass killing was carried out on 21 September 1992, when approximately 100 Muslims were shot to death. Some of the bodies were buried in the town's only cemetery, *47 but most were buried in a mass grave in the town's Didovici section. The refugee who provided information regarding the mass killing did not know the grave's exact location. *48
Bosanski Petrovac Cave: A cave in Bosanski Petrovac county, approximately 10 kilometres from the town proper, on the road to Kljuc and near Bravsko, was allegedly used as a burial site. A number of Bosnian refugees informed the US State Department about this site. According to the refugees, the site was used to bury Bosnian Muslims killed in Prijedor, Kljuc, Sanica, and Bosanski Petrovac. The number of bodies contained at this site was not known. *49
The county of Brcko is located in north-eastern BiH. The Sava River borders Brcko on the north and east, and Croatia sits on the opposite side of the Sava. According to the 1991 census, Brcko county had a population of 87,332 persons, 44.4 per cent of whom were Muslim, 25.4 per cent were Croatian, 20.8 per cent were Serbian and 6.4 per cent of the inhabitants identified themselves as «Yugoslavs». *51
Military activity in Brcko began on 30 April 1992, when Serb forces blew up a bridge across the Sava River as a group of Muslim refugees was attempting to cross. *52 A number of refugees were killed. Fighting in Brcko itself commenced the following day, as Serb reservists from Bijeljina launched artillery fire into the Muslim parts of the city. Concurrent with the artillery attacks, local Serbs began arresting their Muslim and Croatian neighbors. «Arkan's» men would transport the prisoners to various detention facilities around the city. *53 On 8 May 1992, many of the prisoners were taken to a warehouse complex in the old «Luka» port, which was reportedly where thousands of Muslim and Croatian prisoners were beaten, tortured and/or killed during 1992. *54
Along with other persons killed during the attacks on Brcko, these prisoners were disposed of in a variety of ways, including burial in at least seven mass gravesites. None of the sites seem to be sites of legitimate burial. The method and manner of the burials suggest impropriety, as do the circumstances causing the deaths of the victims. *55 All of the gravesites appear to be within a few kilometres of the city of Brcko itself, as opposed to the small, surrounding villages.
Brcko City Dump: The Brcko City Dump is located three kilometres outside of the city of Brcko, off the road to Bijeljina. Many individuals who were killed on the streets of Brcko, as well as those who were killed during detention, are said to be buried at this facility. *56
Brcko Brick Factory: The brick factory is two kilometres from Brcko, along the road to Loncari. Victims of the killings in Brcko are said to buried at this site as well. *57
Brcko Town Cemetery: One report estimates that 3,000 men, women, and children were killed while imprisoned at Luka Camp. The report notes that corpses were taken away from the camp in refrigerator trucks to the town cemetery and buried in shallow graves. Specific information as to the number of bodies buried there, or the location of the cemetery was not provided. *58
Bimex Agricultural Complex: The Bimex complex is located about three kilometres east of Brcko. *59 According to a witness, there were 32 Muslims and six Croats performing forced labour there. *60 Approximately 200 metres from the farm, a pit was dug. It was three to four metres wide, 30 metres long and two metres deep. The gravesite can be reached by driving east from Brcko for 1.5 kilometres, a bridge sits across a brook. The grave sits alongside the brook, 70 metres from the right-hand side of the bridge. The witness noted that corpses of men, women, and children were brought to the pit in two refrigerator trucks. The bodies were thrown into the pit and covered with a white substance which smelled like chlorine. *61 When the unloading was complete, the truck drivers would clean the trucks at the fire hydrant. Once the pit was full, the Serbs brought a front-end loader to the site and covered it with dirt, then with the ruins of the Brcko mosque and another layer of dirt. The grave was then rolled flat and grass was planted. Witness estimated that there were 200 or more bodies at this location.
A second witness said that he often passed three large pits, each at least 15 metres long, at the site to which bodies were taken by a truck. The truck had license number BC519-15. *62 A former prisoner of Luka camp said that as many as 1,000 killings took place between 2 and 22 May 1992, after which the bodies were buried at Bimex. *63
A textile worker from Brcko provided further detail regarding the grave in the Bimex area. He claimed that many of the people who were killed at Luka, as well as Muslims and Croatians buried at two other Serb-run detention facilities in the area, were buried in a series of four mass graves off of the road between Brcko and Brezovo Polje. The sites sit in a wooded area which is between the road and the Sava River. *64 It cannot be determined whether this site and the site described as being 200 metres from Bimex are the same. However, if the road on which Bimex is situated is 500 metres from the Sava, and the gravesite is between the road and the river, it would seem, then, that the site would be approximately 200 metres from the Bimex complex. *65
Luka Camp Garbage Dump: Many of those killed at Luka Camp were transported to the camp garbage dump or to an area just behind their living quarters. *66 Detainees were recruited by camp personnel to take the bodies from the site at which they were killed to one of these two places. While this was occurring, those prisoners who had «volunteered» to carry the bodies were often shot themselves. Some of the victims may have still been alive when placed in the dump.
Serbian Police Station: The Serbian police station in Brcko, located on Majevicka Brigada street, was another site where prisoners from the Luka Camp were sent to dump bodies of those killed during detention. It is unclear whether an actual burial site exists at this location, as no other information about the site was provided. *67
Although many of those killed in Brcko during 1992 were put in actual burial sites, the bodies of thousands of others were disposed of in less traditional and, arguably, more brutal ways. During the initial weeks that the Luka Camp was operating, those killed during detention were thrown into the Sava River. Others were thrown into a well, which emptied into the Sava. When bodies began resurfacing in other locations, camp personnel began making slits in the corpses and filling them with sand so as to keep them submerged. *68
After May, *69 bodies were transported to the «Kafilerija» factories. A witness stated that trucks drove bodies into one of the factory buildings, in which three industrial-sized cooking vats with furnaces were housed. The bodies were dumped inside the building, and the «Cetniks» would remove jewelry as well as gold or silver fillings from the bodies. Fingers would be cut off if it was difficult to remove rings from them. Three of Seselj's men guarded the facility. Later, the bodies were reportedly dumped in the furnaces and burnt, after which they were put through a process which ground the bodies into cattle feed. *70
The witness stated that three trucks were involved in the transport to Kafilerija. They left every morning at 4:00 a.m.. One was a civilian refrigerator truck which contained the dead bodies. The second carried 10 to 12 other prisoners, who assisted in the loading and unloading. The third contained Cetnik guards. Once these three trucks arrived at Kafilerija, other trucks would proceed there throughout the day, each carrying approximately 20 bodies. *71 Another report noted that the influx of bodies to the farm was so great that eventually bodies were buried in mass graves or compressed by garbage trucks and taken to dumpsites. *72
In addition, other prisoners, particularly Muslims, were reportedly taken to the dog pound in Brcko, where they were cremated. *73 One report says this began occurring after 16 May. The dog pound is located on the road from Brcko to the Interplet factory. No details regarding the number of victims were provided. *74
Doboj county is located in north-eastern BiH. Its northernmost area is the county of Bosanski Brod, which sits on the border with Croatia. According to the 1991 census, Doboj contained 102,546 persons, of whom 40.2 per cent were Muslim, 39 per cent were Serb, 13 per cent were Croatian, 5.5 per cent were «Yugoslav» and 2.3 per cent were «other».
Serb forces occupied the county of Doboj in May of 1992, and shelling of the villages began. *76 Initially civilians were allowed to leave the county, but many remained. On 10 May 1992, the Serbs forced all remaining villagers to leave their homes and to turn over their weapons. Houses were looted and burned. When everyone had been expelled, the Serb soldiers separated the men from the women and children. The women and children were taken away on buses, while the men were left behind. *77 According to one report, the village of Sjenina, north-east of Doboj proper, was turned into a detention camp, where draft-age men were kept and movement across village lines was not allowed. *78
Sjenina & Grapska Cemetery: Civilians from the two villages of Sjenina and Grapska fled into the forest when the occupation of Doboj began. When they attempted to return to their homes, they were rounded up by Serb irregulars. *79 They were told that they would be taken to Doboj by bus, but were forced to march there instead. *80 Forty-five individuals, however, were kept aside and not made part of the convoy. These 45 persons, both male and female, were taken to the cemetery near the mosque and forced to dig graves. When the graves were completed, the people were shot with automatic weapons and pushed into the grave. Afterwards, the grave was filled in and leveled with earthmoving equipment. *81
Jabocic Polje, Pridjel and Cevarlije: Mass graves are reported to exist in the villages of Jabocic Polje, Pridjel, and Cevarlije. No details regarding the precise locations of these gravesites were provided in the report. *82
The county of Foca is located in south-eastern BiH on the Drina River. According to the 1991 census, the population of Foca was 40,513 persons, of which 51.6 per cent was Muslim, 45.3 per cent Serbian, and 3.1 per cent was classified as «other».
Foca was seized by Serb forces in the early April 1992 Serb offensive. *84 On 8 April 1992, unidentified Bosnian Serb units attacked Foca and took many facilities. *85 At 10:30 a.m. on 8 April, an unknown number of uniformed Serbian male and female citizens of Foca expelled both Serbian and non-Serbian residents of the town from their homes. *86 After being taken to initial screening stations, the Muslims were taken to two warehouses in the industrial sector of Foca and the Serbs were told to move to outlying villages, where they would be safe from any future combat. *87 After two weeks, Muslims were sent to detention centres. *88 Then, after an interval varying from a few weeks to two months, armed men in uniforms, either police reserves, militiamen, or other paramilitary forces, combed the villages conducting house-to-house «interrogations». *89 The men were often sent to camps, while the women were forced to stay in or around Foca and were frequently raped. A witness reported that Serbs attacked her village of Trosanj on 3 June, and about 50 people, mostly women, were taken in trucks to a workers' barracks called Buk Bijela. *90 Many people were allegedly killed and many alleged mass graves have been reported in the county of Foca. *91
Tito Sign: The «Tito» sign is a sign commemorating the late Marsal Tito, located on a hill overlooking Foca. *92 A woman reported that she saw a group of persons, a number of whom were members of the Muslim Democratic Action Party (SDA), being driven up to the sign in a yellow mini-van. *93 She saw the Serbs make the group strip, take their money and identification cards, and then saw them kill the Muslims with knives. *94 The woman saw the mini- van bringing other people to the same site where they were killed in a similar fashion over a four to five day period and she believes there is a mass grave under the «Tito» sign.
Outdoor Stadium: *95 The same witness who reported the mass grave under the «Tito» sign reported that there are two to three mass graves near the outdoor stadium in Foca. *96 No details regarding how many people are buried there were provided.
Potato Field: On 4 May 1992, eight Muslims were lined up and shot by unidentified Bosnian Serb soldiers in Jelec. *97 The bodies were buried in a potato field, south-west of the only house in the area, by the individual who found the survivor of the shooting and another person. The nearby house was located approximately one kilometre west of Jelec, in an area called Luka, and was 1.3 kilometres east of Drace. It was used as a vacation home and was the only structure on the southern side of a creek, about 50 metres south of a small bridge. *98
Creek Bank *99 : On 4 May 1992, a group of Bosnian Serb soldiers shot a group of eight Muslims in Jelec. *100 One Muslim survived the shooting. *101 The bodies were buried at the base of a creek bank, on the northern side of the creek, approximately 300 metres south-west of the mass grave in the potato field near the vacation house discussed above. *102
Aharine, Muslim Cemetery: Muslims living in the town of Aharine, a small town approximately 1.5 kilometres south-west of Foca, reported that a mass grave had been dug with a bulldozer in a Muslim cemetery and over 20 bodies had been interred there by unidentified uniformed Serbs from Foca in the summer of 1992. *103 The grave is on the right side of the road leading north to Foca and is approximately 500 kilometres north-east of Aharine. *104
Foca Hospital: On 20 April, several Muslims *105 were taken behind the hospital, executed, after being found guilty of possessing weapons, and buried in a grass field behind the hospital. *106 Muslim Foca residents believe that because the field had an unbroken grass surface before hostilities, and afterward it was full of overturned sod, the soldiers were using the area to bury numerous bodies. *107
Forest near Mesaje: It was reported that on 3 July 1992, the same day the Serbs looted and burned down all the houses in Mesaje, 30 to 40 people who were killed in the forest were buried with bulldozers in one grave in the forest near Mesaje. *108 It is not clear whether those killed were from the village of Mesaje.
Miljevina Cemetery: It was alleged that six unidentified bodies, three male and three female, were buried in a common grave in the Miljevina Cemetery. *109 No details of the circumstances of their deaths were provided.
Gorazdanska Jabuka *110 : About 200 civilians are reported to have been killed during Serb attacks and a mass grave was allegedly found in Gorazdanska Jabuka. *111 This information was corroborated in a witness statement. *112
The county of Gacko is located in south-eastern BiH. Before the war began, the population totaled 10,844 people, of whom 62.4 per cent were Serbian and 35.3 per cent were Muslim.
Serbian military activity in the Gacko area occurred during the period of April 1992 until June 1992. The reports vary as to the particular events. A witness reported that Seselj's men attacked Gacko in April. During the attack, the Serbs allegedly killed 150 Muslims and arrested approximately 60 to 70 Muslims between the ages of 16 and 45 and detained them in the lobby of the Elektroprivrede hotel. *114 At a later time, the Serbs took the detained men to a camp in Bileca or other unknown facilities. *115 The witness stated that after the attack, the Serbs set the town on fire and completely destroyed it. *116
Another witness' account of the attack on Gacko alleged that «ethnic cleansing» began on 1 June 1992. *117 After Serbs attacked the town, they imprisoned approximately 120 Muslims, age 14 and older, or used them for forced labour. The Serbs also attacked 13 surrounding villages (the «Kula» villages) which were 100 per cent Muslim. The inhabitants that did not manage to escape were tortured and killed. The witness stated that the Serbs gave some of the Muslims certificates to travel to Macedonia. However, the «White Eagles» were reportedly waiting for them at the Motel Kosuta, five or six kilometres from Gacko, where the Serbs stopped the cars and beat the men. The Serbian leader, whose name is not disclosed for confidentiality and prosecutorial reasons, reportedly stated that the women and children would be sent home and the men taken to a prison.
The World War II Partisan Cemetery: The basement of the hotel Rudnik and the Gacko powerplant served as Serb prisons, where interrogations, beatings, and deaths reportedly occurred. The Serbs buried the killed Muslim prisoners in a mass grave either in or near the World War II Partisan Cemetery in Gacko. There are differing witness accounts of the exact location of the grave.
An ECMM submission reports that a witness noticed that an unspecified number of prisoners began to disappear from the prison. The witness related that the Serbs killed the prisoners and threw them into an unmarked mass grave located behind the Partisan cemetery in Gacko. *118 The witness stated that an excavating machine covered the mass grave afterwards. *119 The report did not state when the killings and subsequent burial occurred.
A US Department of State report, containing the testimony of a witness, differs slightly. The witness related that the Serb infantry forces captured 15 Muslims in Mostar and transported them to the hotel basement prison in Gacko. *120 The 15 prisoners joined 100 Muslims from the village who were reportedly prominent figures such as teachers, business men and leaders of the community. *121 The witness stated that about 15 prisoners disappeared after the Serbs allegedly interrogated and beat them. *122 The witness learned through conversation among the prisoners that the Serbs killed the 15 Muslims and buried them in a mass grave in Gacko's World War II Partisan Cemetery.
In yet another eyewitness account, a Serb killed an elderly Gacko man in a church courtyard. *123 The witness stated that several hours later, a forklift picked up the body and took the remains to a mass grave in the Gatacko field between the World War II Partisan Cemetery and the Bilecanka textile factory. *124
Outskirts of Gacko: There is a possibility that another mass grave exists in or near the town of Gacko. A witness to an attack by Serbs in April 1992 stated that the Serbs killed 150 Muslims and buried them in a mass grave near the outskirts of Gacko. *125 The witness did not provide additional information as to the location of the grave or the circumstances surrounding its excavation. The witness may or may not be referring to the mass grave in or near the World War II Partisan Cemetery.
The county of Gospic is located in western Croatia. It is one of the larger counties in Croatia in terms of area, and enjoys a long shoreline on the Adriatic Sea. According to the 1991 census, Gospic had a population of 28,732 persons, of whom 64.3 per cent were Croatian, 31.3 per cent were Serbian, and 4.4 per cent were «other».
The «Serb Krajina» area, south of Gospic, has been the site of hotly contested battles between Croatian and Serbian forces. In September of 1993, Croats seized 11 villages on the edge of the Krajina region, in an area called the «Medak pocket». Afterwards, a cease-fire was reached between the two parties, and Croatian forces began to withdraw from the area. While executing their withdrawal, they razed up to 11 villages in the region. All houses in the villages were destroyed, and many civilians were killed. *126 UN peacekeepers in the area said that evidence in the various villages, such as the use of bulldozers and the discovery of surgical gloves, suggested the destruction was well- planned, and mass graves may have been excavated. *127 In Krajinovici, a small hamlet in the Medak pocket, two severly burned bodies were found. *128
Later, UN officers concluded that no substantial evidence of mass graves was present in the 11 destroyed villages, despite earlier suspicions. *129 However, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) conducted a medicolegal investigation of the Medak pocket in late October 1993. PHR reviewed the postmortem examinations conducted on the bodies and assessed their reliability. Reports on at least two of the bodies autopsied suggested that extrajudicial executions had taken place in the Medak pocket; however, the issue of mass graves was not addressed in the PHR document. *130
The county of Kljuc is located in north-western BiH and the Sana River passes through it. According to the 1991 census, the population of Kljuc was 37,233, of which 47.6 per cent was Muslim, 49.5 per cent Serb and 2.9 per cent were classified as «other». *132
Many different Serbian military and paramilitary formations implemented a program of «ethnic cleansing» of all non-Serb residents in towns and villages situated in the district of Kljuc. *133 The Serbs began attacks on many different villages in the Kljuc area from late May until early June 1992. *134 By this time, the Muslim population of Kljuc's southernmost district along the Sana River was expelled. *135
By approximately 15 June, Serbian paramilitary forces were present throughout the Kljuc region but were not in complete control. They were prevented from taking full control by about 1,700 Muslim fighters who roamed the region's forests and controlled the area at night. Serbian forces attacked Muslims who could not or would not hide in the woods, and almost all Muslim villages in the region suffered casualties. Single households or groups of villagers would be marched behind their houses and executed by machine-gun. As a result of these Serbian attacks, many people were killed and there are several allegations of mass graves in the area. *136
Prhovo: An unnamed *137 witness described a mass killing in Prhovo *138 and provided the location of a mass grave in that village. At approximately 2 p.m. on either 1 or 3 June, Serbian forces entered the village *139 and had a woman, S.M., use a megaphone to call all residents to the centre of the town. *140 The Serbs then opened fire on the villagers, killing approximately 200 men, women, and children. *141 The victims were thrown into a mass grave in a wooded area approximately 200 metres from the village centre. *142 The witness also provided a list of those killed and the alleged perpetrators. *143
A Muslim man who had escaped to the woods when the shooting started in Prhovo went to the District Secretariat for Internal Affairs (SUP) building in Kljuc and told the Serb officials that the dead were still lying in the streets and that the decaying corpses represented a health risk. *144 He asked for permission to bury them. Eventually, the Serbs agreed to allow him to return to Prhovo and select a gravesite. *145
At about 7:00 a.m. on 9 June, the Muslim man and three others selected a gravesite in an approximately 30 to 40 metres wide area of low land between the third and fourth houses in the village (counting from the southernmost house). This area was on the west side of the road, and was bordered by a fence. *146 A digging machine and three busloads of soldiers arrived by 11:00 a.m. and began digging. *147 When the grave was finished, it was about three metres by four metres and 2.5 metres deep. *148 The four men then threw the bodies of the Prhovo victims into the hole and the machine covered the grave with earth. *149
Velagici: Velagici *150 is located five kilometres north-west of Kljuc. According to the US Department of State, the population of this village was 8,000 people, of which 75 per cent were Muslim, 24 per cent Serb and 1 per cent Croat. *151 In June 1992, several men *152 reportedly organized, oversaw, and executed a mass killing, in which 282 Muslim men were killed in front of a school near Velagici and then buried in a mass grave. *153 The school was a brick structure measuring 20 metres long by 30 metres wide and was painted white. *154 It was situated in a field approximately 50 metres south of highway number five which led from Kljuc to Bosanski Petrovac, opposite the point at which the highway forked off to Gornja Sanica to the north. *155 On the day of the killing, Serbian soldiers dug a large hole in the field between the school and highway number five using heavy machinery. *156
Muslims were ordered to line up along the edge of the hole facing the school, while the women and children were brought in to watch. *157 Then, the person in charge ordered the execution of all of the men. Though most of the men were shot to death, some were stabbed with knives. The commander personally killed several of the men by stabbing them. After the killing, the Serbs tried to wash blood stains from the walls of the school. When this was unsuccessful, the school was plowed into the hole to fill in the mass grave. *158
Biljani Village Hall: *159 Biljani is located about three kilometres south-east of Sanica, which is 18 kilometres north- west of Kljuc. A villager reported seeing a bulldozer, painted in Yugoslav National Army colours, dig a mass grave behind the village meeting hall *160 in Biljani. *161 The villager saw the bulldozer dump 300 to 400 bodies into the mass grave. The meeting hall is located approximately at the centre of Biljani and slightly behind the row of houses lining the road to Sanica.
It was also reported that in July 1992, Bosnian Serbian soldiers from the Sanski Corps captured villagers from Biljani and Gornja Sanica and took them to the school in Jabukovac. *162 About 200 to 300 males and females were killed and many females were raped before they were killed. The bodies were then buried in a mass grave behind the school in Biljani, *163 which also served as the village meeting place. *164
Laniste Cave: Laniste is located three kilometres from Velagici along the road to Bosanski Petrovac. At about the time of the mass killing in Prhovo discussed above, *165 male Muslims from the villages of Hasici, Nezici, Vojici, Hadzici and Castovici were taken to Velagici and temporarily housed in the local school. *166 About 250 of these individuals were killed and transported, along with the rest of the prisoners, to Laniste. The bodies of the 250 prisoners killed were taken down a very lightly traveled path, which formed a right turn off the Laniste- Petrovac road, at approximately the last house in Laniste. *167 After about one kilometre, the path led to a small hunting lodge and a natural depression, or cave, locally referred to as Radojkina Lokva, where the bodies were thrown.
Bijana: *168 According to one witness, over 120 people were killed in the village of Bijana. *169 The exact number could not be confirmed because the bodies of those killed were continually found in the woods. A mass killing *170 began at 3:30 a.m. and was completed by 5:30 a.m. *171 It began at Sefet Domidzeta's house, where she was killed with her sons. Many families were burned to death in their houses. *172 The witness could not confirm the existence of mass graves in the area, but believed some could be found along the slopes of Gologlav Mountain.
Konjic is situated in south-central BiH. According to the 1991 census, Konjic had a population of 43,636 persons, of whom 54.5 per cent was Muslim, 26 per cent Croat, 15.2 per cent Serb and 4.3 per cent was «other». Bradina *174 , a village of 750 inhabitants, is the largest Serbian village in the county. It is from Bradina that two reports of mass graves in the county arise.
Bradina was attacked on 25-26 May 1992 *175 by a combination of Croatian Armed Forces soldiers, 800 «Green Berets», and Muslims from 16 nearby villages. *176 Houses were burned and inhabitants were killed. Other Serbs who survived were captured and taken to various detention facilities. *177 Reports vary as to the total number killed during the attack, but it ranges from 44 to 57 persons. *178
Some, if not all, of these individuals were buried in a mass grave located at the Bradina Orthodox Church, often referred to as «Sv. Spas» Orthodox Church. The grave was reportedly excavated by Muslims using a bulldozer. Two reports allege that 23 of those killed in the Bradina attack were buried at this site, and a third report contains allegations that 57 Serbian refugees are buried there. *179 After the 13 July attack, most Serbs were expelled to Donje Selo and Cerice. *180
Kotor Varos county is located in the north-central part of BiH. According to the 1991 census, the population was 36,670 persons, 38.1 per cent of whom were Serbian, 30.4 per cent were Muslim, 29 per cent were Croat and 2.5 per cent were described as «other».
Kotor Varos was laid siege to by units from Knin and Banja Luka, with help from local Serbians, in early June 1992. For the most part, the besieging army wore the insignia of the JOS (Yugoslav armed forces), «sometimes with a tricolour without a star». *182 On 11 June 1992, these units forced their way into town. Local Muslims and Croats were captured, and about 80 were taken to the sawmills. The next day, artillery destroyed the villages of Hrvacani and Bilice. Over 500 people were killed in just a few days and their bodies thrown into mass graves.
Kotor Varos: A witness from Kotor Varos, who was arrested by Serbs and held in several locations, reported a mass grave in Kotor Varos. *183 The witness stated that on 11 June alone, 300 to 400 corpses lay in the street. He and several other prisoners had to put the corpses into black nylon body bags which were then carried by bulldozer to a nearby mass grave. *184 He said that he personally put over 70 bodies into bags that day and estimated that at least 1,000 people were buried in this grave. *185
Kukavica: In the settlement of Kukavica on 25 June 1992, the corpses of six men killed with logs were buried in the Muslim cemetery, situated at the centre opposite the shop Krais A G, Basel. *186 No other details regarding this site were provided in the report.
Donja Varos Old Cemetery: In the area of the local hospital in Donja Varos, about 30 civilians from the village of Kukavica were crushed to death with a loading truck. The corpses remained at the place of execution for some time, *187 but were finally buried at the old cemetery near the mosque in Donja Varos. *188 This grave was also mentioned by a Croatian witness, who reported that a mechanical digger was used to bury the dead. *189
Vrbanci: The same witness reported the existence of a mass grave in Vrbanci next to the road. *190 Reportedly, a mechanical digger was used to bury the dead. *191
Vrbanci Mosque: One report noted that a man was killed by a «Cetnik» after he was forced to dig a crypt for 45 persons killed in the mosque. No other details about the site were provided. *192
The county of Kupres is located in west-central BiH. It is one of the smaller counties in terms of population, holding only 9,663 persons according to the 1991 census. Serbians constituted the majority in Kupres, comprising 50.7 per cent of the population, while 39.6 per cent was Croatian, 8.4 per cent was Muslim, and 1.3 per cent «other».
Fighting between Serbs and Croats began in April of 1992, when Croatian armed forces entered the villages of Gornji and Donji Malovan. *194 Other divisions took strongholds in the suburbs of Kupres proper, and attacked the city centre, which was mainly inhabited by Serbs. While most of the population had previously fled the county, some remained and hid in their cellars during the attack. Kupres is one of a handful of counties in which Croatian forces are said to be responsible for killings, which led to the creation of mass graves.
There are three separate reports concerning mass graves in this county. However, it is possible that the reports may refer to the same incident and resultant grave.
According to one report, 52 Serbians were killed in the beginning of April 1992 by Croatian forces. The report goes on to state that a «nondefined» number of Serbs killed in Gornji Malovan, a village near Kupres, were buried in a common grave at Borova Glava, and their corpses are yet to be found. The Serbian government is in possession of photo and television documentation about the crime. *195
A French government report alleges that on or about 14 April 1992, two mass graves were created in Kupres, which contain the bodies of 54 Serbs killed by Croatian units. No other details about the site were provided. Because the number of bodies reported is similar to that at Borova Glava, it is possible that this report and the report from the Serbian Government are referring to the same site. *196
A third report noted that seven pits containing a total of 28 mutilated bodies were discovered by the JNA when they entered Kupres. The dead were Serbians from the villages of Gornji and Donji Malovan. *197
The first two reports are common in that they allege that a similar number of persons were killed. However, it is not clear from the first report that the 52 Serbians mentioned were the same Serbians mentioned in the mass grave. In addition, the second report does not identify the site of the grave as being at Borova Glava. The first and third reports are similar in that they both refer to the villages of Gornji and Donji Malovan. The first report does not identify the victims as being from those locations, nor does the third report specify the villages as being the exact site of the mass grave. Thus, it is possible that anywhere from 28 to over 100 bodies may be buried in Kupres.
Kupres Field: In April of 1992, the villages of Osmanlije, Olovo, Zlosela, and Kukavice were occupied and more than 30 Croatian civilians were reportedly killed. At the time of the report, their graves had not been located, but they were believed to be buried in Kupres Field. *198
Modrica is located in north-eastern BiH, near Bosanski Brod and Odzak. According to the 1991 census, the population of Modrica totalled 35,413 persons. The ethnic distribution of the county was fairly even with 35.3 per cent Serb, 29.5 per cent Muslim, 27.3 per cent Croat, and 7.9 per cent «other».
Military activity in Modrica began on or about 15 May 1992, when the county began being shelled by Serb forces. *200 An unidentified Serb mechanized unit, accompanied by tanks, entered Modrica on 15 May and proved to be too powerful for the 102nd Voluntary Brigade, made up of Muslims and Croatians, which retreated toward Odzak. *201 While many killings allegedly took place once the Serbs occupied the county, there is only one report of a mass grave, presumably because the Serbs would not permit the burial of any bodies lying dead in the streets. *202
Cement Pit: The Serbs captured 10 members of the voluntary brigade and 40 policemen (who were mostly Muslim). The policemen were detained in the basement of the police station. The soldiers, however, were reportedly tortured and sunk up to their chests in a cement pit. Most of them were unconscious as their ears, noses and tongues were cut off. The Serbs then rounded up the families of the brigade members, beat them, threw them onto a pile of wood, and set them on fire. *203
A soldier of the BiH Army corroborated the account of cement pits used as a means of disposal for those killed in Modrica. He related that on 15 June 1992, the battle for the liberation of Modrica began. He and others observed civilians who had been bound with wire and had their throats slit. They also found burned bodies. Once the «liberation» was complete, the soldiers said they found three babies in a small electric cement mixer, the oldest of whom was two years-old. *204
In late May 1992, the Serbs reduced their presence in the area and the voluntary brigade was able to retake Modrica for about 12 days. During this time, they released everyone from detention and buried the dead. *205 Most of the freed Muslim civilians fled towards Odzak and Slavonski Brod. Serbs recaptured Modrica on 7 June 1992.
The county of Mostar is located in the Neretva River valley in southern BiH. According to the 1991 census, the population of Mostar was 126,067 and comprised of 34.8 per cent Muslims, 33.8 per cent Croats, 19 per cent Serbs, 10 per cent Yugoslavs and 2.4 per cent «other».
Immediately following the Bosnian Muslim and Croat declarations to secede from the Serb-dominated Yugoslav Republic, Serbian forces launched an offensive against the central BiH government and, specifically, Mostar in April 1992. For more than a year, Muslims constituted about half of the HVO and together with Croats, they fought successfully to free the city from the Serb bombardment. This military cooperation soon ended, however. *207
Hostilities between Croats and Muslims began on 9 May, when Croatian forces stormed the local headquarters of the BiH Army and began expelling thousands of Muslims from their homes on the west bank of the Neretva River, forcing them into the old Muslim quarter on the eastern side. *208 Bosnian Muslims launched a counter- attack on 30 June. *209
Sutine Landfill: Sutine landfill is located several kilometres north of Zalik, which is on the northern edge of Mostar, alongside a Muslim cemetery. According to a witness, a mass killing of approximately 28 Bosnian Muslim and Croatian men took place on 13 June 1992 and resulted in a mass burial at the landfill. *210
On 13 June, about 200 Bosnian Muslim and Croatian men, women, and children from Mostar were rounded up by Bosnian Serb forces and taken to Zalik. *211 The males were separated from the women and children and taken to the Sjeverni Logor casern nearby. *212 The men were registered on a roster and placed on trucks, which later departed for Sutine, several kilometres north of Zalik. *213
Upon arriving at Sutine, the prisoners were taken to a building which belonged to a cemetery and was near the Sutine landfill. Part of the building was being used to interrogate and reportedly torture the prisoners. *214 Prisoners were taken, one by one, for their interrogations *215 and beatings, and afterwards, were taken outside and killed by either a pistol shot to the head or by automatic rifle fire. *216
Two of the prisoners were taken outside the building and instructed to throw the bodies of three prisoners into the Sutine landfill. *217 When they returned, four more prisoners were killed and their bodies were also thrown into the landfill by the two men. *218 Guards then fired on the two prisoners, and one of them was killed instantly. The other was hit in the arm and stomach. *219 Both men fell down an enbankment and landed at the bottom of the slope. *220
The witness related that bodies of other prisoners continued to be dumped into the landfill for the next 90 minutes, at a rate of about one body every five minutes. *221 The next day, the Bosnian Serbs used a bulldozer to push trash and earth over the bodies in an attempt to conceal them. *222 The witness remained in hiding for the following 11 days, and on 24 June was taken to Mostar hospital. Several days later, the landfill was unearthed and the bodies of 28 *223 persons were found. *224
It should be noted that the Special Rapporteur Mazowiecki has reported that the number of bodies found at the Sutine landfill totalled 150, not 28. *225 Mazowiecki's report also stated that a local pathologist had examined the exhumed bodies, and almost all of the dead had been shot at close range with automatic weapons. *226 It is unclear why the discrepancy in numbers of bodies is so great.
Another report notes that an individual observed 100 bodies in a shallow grave in Sutina during August 1992. *227 This suggests that there may be another gravesite in the area, since the landfill site was exhumed around the end of June 1992; however, no other details regarding the site were provided in the report. *228
Vrapcici - Uborak Landfill: Vrapcici is a village located four kilometres north-north-east of Mostar. According to a witness from the area, Vrapcici and a neighboring town, Potoci, came under Serb attack in May 1992. *229 On 18 May, Muslims and Croats from both towns were rounded up by Serbs. Many of the men were taken to a detention camp in the Vrapcici stadium, but were exchanged in Bilec on 7 June. On 12 June, 88 Bosnian Muslim and Croatian residents of Vrapcici, including elderly men and women, were rounded up and taken to the stadium.
Over the next few days, all of the prisoners at the stadium were killed and their bodies were thrown into the Uborak landfill at the north-east end of Vrapcici. On 20 August 1992, the 88 bodies were unearthed from the landfill and were removed for identification and proper burial. *230 All victims had been shot in the head with automatic weapons.
There are many commonalities of fact between the Sutina and Uborak sites. Both are north of Mostar proper. The killings at both locations also took place on the same day. Because of the difference in the number of bodies buried at each site, it seems that Sutina and Uborak are indeed two different sites. *231 However, many of the reports which refer to gravesites at Sutina may have actually been referring to Uborak. These reports refer to between 100 and 200 bodies being buried at the gravesite. While these figures are much larger than 88, the discrepancy is not as large as with Sutina, which according to a witness, only contains 26 to 28 bodies.
Public Park: According to Newsweek, the public park in Mostar has been turned into a cemetery, containing «75 fresh graves». *232
Bijelo Polje: Three common graves are reportedly located at Bijelo Polje, which is near the main road between Mostar and Sarajevo. No other details about the site were provided. *233
Balinovac Muslim Cemetery: According to a witness who took part in «work detail», Muslim detainees buried bodies of executed Muslims in shallow, unmarked graves at Balinovac. *234 The cemetery had already been filled with victims of the war's earlier phase with the Bosnian Serbs. On 15 or 16 July 1992, the witness said that he and others buried 13 bodies. *235 Of them, 12 were men in HVO uniforms and one was a woman. The witness was told by those directing the digging that «even hundreds of graves will not be enough».
Another released detainee detailed two other mass burials of executed victims at the Muslim cemetery. On 6 July, the detainee buried three women and a one year-old infant, and on 16 July, the witness helped bury 16 men in civilian clothes.
Unspecified Locations: An 9 October 1993 news article reported that the BiH army had discovered three mass graves near Mostar, which contained the bodies of 575 civilians. *236 Most of the victims were Muslim. *237 Bosnian Croatian officials denied the BiH Army allegations. *238 The report did not identify the precise location of the gravesite.
In the summer of 1992, a news photographer documented Serb POWs exhuming dozens of corpses from a mass grave in Mostar. *239 Their Muslim captors said that those buried in the grave had been killed by Serbs. *240 An Italian film crew and British journalist showed up a few days later and also documented the site. *241
Another report notes that a source told of three graves in Mostar containing 99, 100, and 110 bodies, respectively. Victims were generally elderly men, women, and children, who had been shot in the back of their heads or had their throats slit. *242
Nova Gradiska is located in north-eastern Croatia on the border of Croatia and BiH. The southern border of Nova Gradiska is the Sava river. According to the 1991 census, the population was 60,461 persons, 70.7 per cent of whom were Croatian, 20.8 per cent were Serbian, 3 per cent were referred to as Yugoslav and 4.5 per cent as «other».
The former Yugoslav Army, paramilitary units, and Serbs from the Banja Luka Corps were in the area starting in September of 1991. *244 The soldiers of the former Yugoslav Army moved from Bosanska Gradiska into the prison compound and started maltreating the villagers from villages around Gradiska. *245 While the Serbs forced them out of their villages, some villagers managed to escape by tractors, and some were killed in their houses. *246 There are reportedly two mass graves in Nova Gradiska.
Stara Gradiska Camp: The village of Stara Gradiska is located directly on the Sava River. It is reported that 50 to 60 corpses were thrown into a well at the Stara Gradiska camp. *247
Stara Gradiska: A witness provided testimony concerning a mass grave in Stara Gradiska. *248 Serbs forced the witness' relative to go from house to house asking owners to hand in any weapons. When they did not find any, the Serbs brought him back to his house, *249 beat and tortured him, then forced him and other villagers to dig their own grave. *250 Seven of the villagers were killed and thrown into the grave at the back of the woman's house. *251
Masicka Sagovina: According to news reports, the village of Masicka Sagovina was burned and pillaged by Croatian forces in December 1991. *252 On 19 December, Croatian forces arrested civilians and Serb soldiers of the territorial defence force, who had attempted to defend the village, but surrendered. *253 Ten men were immediately killed by a member of the «Croatian Death Squad». *254 In all, at least 21 persons were killed. Most of the victims were shoved into a mass grave by a bulldozer. *255 The report does not specify whether the grave was dug by Croatian forces. *256
Odzak county is located in north-eastern BiH, and sits along the Sava River, with Croatia on the opposite side. According to the 1991 census, Odzak's population was 30,651 persons, 54.2 per cent of whom were Croatian, 20.3 per cent were Muslim, 19.8 per cent were Serbian, and 5.7 per cent were «other».
There is only one reported mass grave in Odzak. It is located near the hospital in Odzak proper. According to various reports from the Serbian government, the former military depot in the village of Rabici was holding 300 Serbs. *258 Serbs who were detained both in Rabici and in the village of Poljari *259 were reported to have been killed and buried with bulldozers near the hospital. A known perpetrator's name is not disclosed for confidentiality and prosecutorial reasons. *260
Ogulin is located in western Croatia. According to the 1991 census, Ogulin had a population of 28,904 persons, of whom 59.9 per cent were Croatian, 35.3 per cent were Serbian, and 4.8 per cent were «other». Ogulin has one reported mass grave within its borders.
The enclave of Gorski Kotar in Ogulin is near the border of the Serbian Krajina area. It extends from Velika Kapela Mountain to the River of Kupa. In this area, there are 178 villages and settlements inhabited by approxmiately 6,000 Serbs. In August 1991, Croatian authorities and Serbs in the enclave agreed to preserve the status quo of the area pending the «global political solution of ex-Yugoslavia». By the terms of that agreement, Croatian authorities agreed to keep their armed troops out of Serb villages, as well as to refrain from setting up new police outposts in the area. They also promised not to force Serbs in Gorski Kotar to serve in the Croatian armed forces.
On 24 September 1991, however, the Croatian local authorities completely destroyed five villages on the outskirts of the Gorski Kotar enclave. The villages were Brlog, Staro Selo, Tupljaci, Rapajin Do/Rapajin Klanac, and Drenov Klanac. Two thousand of the inhabitants fled to neighboring Krajina. Those who remained in the burning villages were killed and buried in garbage dumps, to be discovered by relatives who later returned to the area. *262 Another report said the dead villagers were «thrown into pits and covered with manure». *263
The county of Osijek is located in eastern Croatia, just north of Vukovar and Vinkovci counties. According to the 1991 census, Osijek had a population of 164,577 persons, of whom 66.6 per cent were Croatian, 20 per cent were Serbian, 8.4 per cent were «other» and 5 per cent were Yugoslav.
Osijek fell victim to fighting between Croatians and Serbs in 1991, around the same time that the fighting in Vukovar began. There are three reported mass graves in this county.
Dalj Cemetery: The village of Dalj had a 33 per cent Croat and 52 per cent Serb population before the war. Military activity began in Dalj on 1 August 1991, when it was attacked by JNA and Serb paramilitary forces from the directions of Bijelo Brdo and Borovo Selo. *265 The paramilitary groups attempted to take over the police station, but the officers inside called for the JNA to intervene. When the JNA arrived, they told the police to surrender. The police refused and fired at the JNA. The JNA engaged the police, stormed the police station, and 80 policemen were killed. *266 Local Croatians and Hungarians tried to flee, but many were killed by paramilitary sniper fire. *267 The paramilitaries then went through the village, reportedly killing anyone who was wounded. *268
One witness, along with eight others, was forced to move bodies from the police station and primary school to the Catholic Cemetery. The work party picked up 24 policemen from the station, three civilians killed in their homes, and eight persons from the primary school. Of the eight, five were Croat guards who were naked and had been shot at close range; the other three were policemen. Those victims who hailed from Dalj were buried by the local gravedigger. Other bodies were transferred to Osijek Hospital. *269 On 4 August, this witness returned to the cemetery, where he observed a large hole dug by a military bulldozer. Local Croatians were forced by Serb paramilitaries to throw the dead bodies of those killed at the police station into the hole. Ten persons were in the hole when it was covered with earth, and hands were seen protruding from the pit. *270
Ernestinovo Park: During the attack on Ernestinovo, several inhabitants were killed and later buried in mass graves in the park. *271 The park is along Glavna Ulica (Street) *272 and the site consists of three pits situated between the gallery and the monument.
The Osijek Red Cross provided detailed information about those buried in two of the three mass graves. No data was available about the bodies buried in the first pit. The second pit is believed to contain six bodies and some cattle. *273 The third grave contains eight young persons, some of whom were wearing Croat Army or MUP uniforms, while others were naked. The bodies were all buried one metre beneath the ground. There were other individual graves scattered throughout the village. *274
These graves were reported to UNCIVPOL on 17 November 1992, *275 and Special Rapporteur Ndiaye and forensic expert Morris Tidball Binz visited the site in December of that year. Binz observed three areas of adjacent earth with no identifying marks. The mounds were low and irregular, with irregular perimeters of no more than 15 metres. No evidence was present which would contradict allegations of mass graves in the area. Binz recommended that the area be cleared of mines, surveyed, and probed. He also noted that available information suggested that the graves were sanitary and that the buried bodies were civilian casualties of war or military personnel killed in combat, not war crimes. *276
Vladislavci, Obnova Factory: Eighteen Serbian civilians and one Hungarian from the village of Pavlin Dvor are allegedly buried in a mass grave in Vladislavci. The grave is said to be situated near the Obnova Factory, where cattle were previously buried. *277 The killings occurred on 11 and 12 December 1991. After the Croatian Army began occupying houses in November, most of the population of this small village sought refuge in «House No. 51» and «House No. 40». On the night of 11 December, two or three bursts and screams were heard from one of the houses. Later, a truck drove by, turned off its engine, and after 30 to 40 minutes left the house.
Neighbors woke the next morning and observed blood inside one of the houses. This blood spread right to the «bridge». *278 Later, on 12 December, «House No. 51» was blown up and completely destroyed. One of the bodies was found near the hayloft of House No. 51. *279 Villagers believe the other bodies were taken to Pavlin Dvor and buried there. An alleged perpetrator of the killing was named. *280
The county of Pakrac is located in Croatia, in Sector West The county consists of the town of Pakrac and 68 small villages and hamlets. The 1991 census listed the population of Pakrac as 27,288 persons, of whom 46.4 per cent were Serbian, 36 per cent were Croatian, 12.8 per cent were «other», and 4.8 per cent of the population identified themselves as Yugoslavs.
Throughout October 1991, members of the Croatian Army reportedly began arbitrarily arresting ethnic Serbs in the counties of Pakrac, Garesnica, Kutina, Bjelovar, and Zagreb. *282 These persons were taken to several small camps in the region, including «Ribarska Koliba» (fisherman's cottage) in Marino Selo and «Stara Ciglana» in Pakracka Poljana. *283 Both of these camps are near the Ilova River. *284 Later, control of the detention facilities was turned over to the National Guard of Croatia. According to witness statements and reports, prisoners were beaten and tortured; and up to 2,500 were allegedly killed near the campsites. *285 These activities continued until March of 1992.
Based on two statements of former prisoners of Marino Selo, a minimum of three separate mass graves were reportedly excavated at Marino Selo, as a means of disposing of the bodies of those killed at the camps in Marino Selo and Pakracka Poljana. The graves at Marino Selo are said to contain the bodies of as many as 800 Serbs. In Pakracka Poljana, villagers and subsequent UNCIVPOL investigations suggested there existed as many as 26 mass graves holding the bodies of 700 Serbs. One report noted that many of those buried in the graves were not former detainees of these camps, but were from other settlements in Western Slavonia where Serbs were killed in late 1991. Their bodies were then transported to the sites, which were in the vicinity of the Ilova River. *286 Serb sources, however, allege that that Croatian authorities reopened some of the gravesites and took the bodies elsewhere as a means of hiding any evidence of mass killings. This activity was reportedly taken in response to publication of information about the camps and mass graves in the region. *287
Marino Selo Fish Pond: An ethnic Serb who was detained at the Ribarska Koliba camp in Marino Selo has alleged that he was involved in the burial of bodies in mass graves. *288 The witness was arrested on 15 November 1991 and taken to Ribarska Koliba, along with other Serbian men and a few women. He related that he and many of the other prisoners were subjected to severe beatings, mutilation, and torture. On 19 November, four of the prisoners were removed from detention and taken out towards the Ilova River. *289 He then heard gunfire. The following morning, the witness and two other men *290 were taken out and discovered the bodies of the men. The Croatian guards made the three prisoners bury the dead. Three of the dead prisoners *291 were buried in a part of a fish pond, near the Ilova River, from which water had been removed. *292 This grave was not marked. *293
Marino Selo Bridge: Two witnesses *294 were again put on burial detail on the afternoon of 20 November. At that point, three more men were buried in a common grave, without coffins, 150 metres downstream from the bridge. *295 One of the witnesses noted that the grave was only «two shovels deep» because «they wouldn't allow any greater depth». Branches and grass were strewn over the grave, and one of the witnesses found a one-liter bottle nearby, which he also placed on top of the grave so that it could later be identified.
Marino Selo Garbage Dump: According to a forensic report based on investigations conducted in 1992, allegations surfaced of a third mass grave in the area, situated in a garbage pit behind an abandoned motel. *296 The grave was reported to contain the remains of up to 12 people, and lies about five metres from a stream which drains the reservoirs of a fish farm. The pit is three metres long by two metres wide, and is 1.5 metres deep. Two-thirds of the pit is filled with water. *297
UNCIVPOL Daruvar Station was notified of the allegations of mass graves in Marino Selo in September of 1992. Sgt. Jone Blikra and Cst. Dan Parchomchuk spoke with the witnesses who provided depositions to the Serbian Council Information Centre. *298 Based on their conversations, the UNCIVPOL officers drew a sketch showing the graves in Marino Selo. *299 A few days later, the two officers went to Marino Selo in an attempt to locate the graves. Following the sketch, they found what they believed to be the gravesites. *300
In December of 1992, Mr. Morris Tidball Binz, a forensic expert commissioned by UNCHR, visited Marino Selo and other sites in Croatia said to contain mass graves. *301 Binz carried out a rapid surface exploration of two locations in Marino Selo. The first site was the garbage pit behind the abandoned hotel, discussed above. Binz observed old garbage around the site, but found no human remains upon surface exploration. It did, however, show signs of recent disturbance (within the last two months), as evidenced by earth and garbage which had been removed from the pit and scattered around. The pit was explored with a metal probe, but Binz discovered nothing, including odors, which would suggest the presence of decomposing human remains.
Binz also visited another site, 150 metres downstream from the garbage pit, on the same side of the stream bank. He explored the area for signs of excavation, but found nothing. *302
The Commission of Experts, in conjunction with a War Crimes Investigation Team provided by the Government of Canada, conducted investigations and excavations in the Pakrac county, but limited its focus to the alleged sites in Pakracka Poljana. No investigation of the sites at Marino Selo was conducted due to lack of time and resources. *303
Allegations of mass graves in Pakracka Poljana came to the attention of UNPROFOR in December of 1992. At that time, a Croatian woman from Pakrac registered a complaint with UNCIVPOL Pakrac, stating that her husband had been arrested by Croatian soldiers in September of 1991, along with seven other men, none of whom had since been seen. *304 She also reported that a mass grave was rumoured to exist between the villages of Poljana Pakracka and Gaj, wherein 200 bodies of Serbian men and women were buried.
A few weeks later, a source independent of the Croatian woman corroborated the existence of the mass grave and provided additional details as to its location and possible perpetrators. *305 UNCIVPOL Officer Nicholson, another monitor, and the source visited three possible gravesites on 9 February 1993. For purposes of identification, Nicholson identified these sites as A, B and C. In October and November of 1993, the Commission of Experts organized a mission to investigate the sites. The description of each site, and the results of the mission, are discussed separately below. *306
Site A: This site allegedly contained five bodies. Nicholson's initial visit to this site revealed remnants of bodies scattered around the location; namely, clothing, boots, a crutch, and skeletal remains. *307 It was described as being the smallest of the sites. *308 The bodies seemed to have been transported from a previous burial site because of heavy plastic material found at the scene. However, the site was reportedly cleared on 15 March 1993, and the bodies were moved to an unknown location. *309 The WCIT attempted to examine the site anyway on two separate occasions, but found it inaccessible because of mud- blocked roads. *310
Site B: Site B was situated less than two kilometres from Site A, and was reported to consist of two pits, each five feet by six feet, with an unknown number of bodies. *311 The pits were situated approximately 19.5 metres from a hunting cabin and were 15 feet apart from one another. Site B was cleared by unknown parties between 8 and 15 May 1993. Subsequent inspection by Nicholson revealed that trees had been planted as an «obvious ruse for fresh digging». *312
Site C: Site C was situated less that five kilometres from Site A. When Nicholson first visited the site, he observed two elongated trenches filled with earth. Each trench was four metres by 20 metres, and no observable signs of human remains were present. According to Nicholson's source, each trench contained 100 bodies. Nicholson also observed approximately eight independent and smaller graves bordering the two trenches. *313
Nicholson revisited the site on 4 May 1993, at which time he believed there were 17 elongated trenches, not two as he had originally thought. Since his source had told him that each trench contained up to 100 bodies, Nicholson extrapolated in a UNCIVPOL report that Site C could contain as many as 1,700 bodies. *314
The War Crimes Investigation Team (WCIT) and Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) arrived at Site C on 20 October 1993 to begin investigation. After preparing the site for security and excavation purposes, it was observed that the trenches Nicholson observed totalled 20. The team excavated test trenches on several of the trenches and dug the remainder with a backhoe. *315 The tenth trench (or «feature» as called by the WCIT) revealed the remains of two humans. *316 Each of the other trenches was empty, and the team concluded that the «features» were excavated for use as military defensive trenches, not mass graves. *317 A smaller disturbance of earth near the first feature was also found to contain the remains of one human. *318
WCIT explored another area in Site C which abutted the upper bank of a nearby stream. *319 Further investigation revealed six adjacent but independent graves, containing a total of 14 bodies, and a seventh grave nearby, containing two bodies. *320
In all, the remains of 19 individuals, 16 males and three females, were found in nine separate graves in the field south of Pakracka Poljana. *321 All of the graves appeared to have been dug by hand and were meant to be clandestine. WCIT concluded that the area around the graves was used as an execution site. Spent rounds were found in the area, and five of the bodies had their hands tied together with rope. Fifteen of the bodies evidenced gunshot wounds to the head, two had blunt head trauma; one had multiple gunshot wounds to the body, and one had massive head trauma. Based on these findings, WCIT believed that Officer Nicholson's original estimate, that 1,700 bodies were buried at the site, was erroneous. *322
PHR reports that the graves exhumed at Pakracka Poljana may be connected to a soccer clubhouse near the site. According to PHR, witness statements suggest that the clubhouse may have been used as a secret detention centre by the Croatian military and police from August 1991 to March 1992. This time period corresponds with the likely time of burial for all or most of the exhumed bodies. *323 Reported survivors of the detention facility related that many of the prisoners were executed near the clubhouse. *324
Petrinja is a county in Croatia situated on the Kupa River, approximately 50 kilometres south-east of Zagreb, and 60 kilometres north-west of Prijedor. According to the 1991 census, Petrinja had a population of 35,622 persons. The population of Petrinja is broken down as follows: 44.9 per cent were Serb, 44.2 per cent were Croatian, 5.1 per cent were Yugoslav, and 5.8 per cent «other».
Serbs attacked Petrinja on two separate occasions; the second occurring on 16 September 1991. *326 During the second attack, some Croatian forces were reportedly forced to retreat. During the withdrawal, some soldiers were captured, taken to detention camps, and/or killed.
Gavrilovic Villa and Vineyards: According to witness testimony, the witness and a number of Croatians, who had been mobilized by the Croatian Army, began retreating to Zupic and Nebojan. Upon their arrival in the Gavrilovic Villa, located alongside the Gavrilovic vineyards, *327 they were surrounded by «Cetniks». The Serbs encircled the Croatians, ordered them to remove their uniforms, and proceeded to line them up for execution. The witness was among the first to be called and was placed with two other Croats, with their backs to the firing squad. On hearing the gunshots and feeling the other two men fall, the witness fell into nearby bushes, where he realized that he had been shot in the arm and chest.
The witness stated that after falling to the ground, he remained conscious and heard the Serbs shooting «other people». *328 As night fell the Serbs left everyone as presumably dead, at which point those survivors who could walk left. *329 The witness remained at the site, apparently unable to move, and stated that «the Cetniks» returned in the morning to search the corpses for valuables and found him and another survivor. As the Serbs moved to a neighboring «weekend cottage», the witness «stood up and moved along the hill towards Petrinja». He reached a house whose owners recognized him and they drove him to the ambulatory of the Croatian Army. *330
In a separate account submitted to the US State Department, a witness testified that during the same Serb offensive against Petrinja, 31 Croatians were captured by JNA forces while attempting to escape to Sisak, a town located approximately 10 kilometres north-east of Petrinja. *331 All of the captives were taken to the Petrinja internment camp *332 located in the former Yugoslav Army casern known as «Vasil Gacesa». *333 The prisoners were held for one day, and the next morning all but five of the prisoners were released.
While interned at the Petrinja camp, prisoners participated in burial details involving «mass graves». On one such occasion 18 Croat soldiers were buried in an open area on a small hill, approximately 100 metres east of Gavrilovic Villa and near a vacant house. According to the report, the bodies of the soldiers were piled in a 10 metres square area. *334
The gravesite referred to in the State Department account may be the site of the killings mentioned in the first report discussed. The «vacant house» may be the «weekend cottage» as described in the first report, and the hill along which the grave is found may also be the same hill along which the first witness escaped. Furthermore, the coincidence of date, 16 September, on which the killing took place according to the first report, and on which the second witness was captured and interned, strongly suggests that the 18 bodies found may be the corpses of the Croatian soldiers killed as reported by the first witness. *335
Vasil Gacesa: The witness from the State Department report, discussed above, participated in a mass burial within the Vasil Gacesa casern where 40 bodies of civilians from Petrinja, mostly Croats, were interred. *336
Taboriste: A detainee testified that there was a concentration camp holding Serbs in the settlement of Taboriste, in Brijest near Petrinja. There, he claimed that among the 500 prisoners were 80 women and 40 children. He said that male prisoners «are being killed and buried in pits». *337 There was no information provided regarding the site of the burials or «pits», or if the interments constitute one mass grave.
Podravska Slatina is in north-eastern Croatia, on the border with Hungary. The county contained 31,155 persons in 1991, 57.2 per cent of whom were Croatian, 35.8 per cent were Serbian, 3.5 per cent were «Yugoslav» and 3.5 per cent were «other».
Vocin, a village in Podravska Slatina, was the site of military action between Croatian and Serbian forces in December 1991. *339 Members of Serbian paramilitary formations reportedly killed a total of 43 villagers in Vocin, Hum, and Kraskovic. Vocin is also the site of a reported mass grave.
According to Ms. Renilde Steeghs, a member of a European observers team, 24 people were found in a mass grave in Vocin. There is also speculation that the ruined church in that village contains more victims. *340 Furthermore, 150 Croatians remain missing from Vocin.
Prijedor straddles a corridor connecting the Serbs' two- thirds share of BiH with their one-third share of Croatia. Prijedor's pre-war population was 112,000 persons. Muslims were the majority with 44 per cent of the population, while Serbs accounted for 42 per cent. The remainder of the population was comprised of 5.7 per cent Yugoslavs, 5.6 per cent Croats, and 2.2 per cent «other».
After Bosnia's Muslims and Croats unanimously voted to secede from Yugoslavia in March of 1992, Radovan Karadzic announced that the Serbs would form their own state. *342 On 30 April, Prijedor Serbs arrested leading Muslim officials and replaced them with Serbs. All Muslim employees were fired by Serbs shortly thereafter.
Nine days later, officials demanded that Muslims sign loyalty oaths to the Bosnian Serb state or be considered terrorists. On 14 May, Serbs raised roadblocks around Kozarac and cut off telephone service. On 24 May, Serbian tanks, mortars and artillery attacked the village. This attack lasted for three days, during which an estimated 2,000 villagers were killed. Afterwards, many civilians were allegedly taken to detention facilities, with rich Muslims, political officials, and policemen as particular targets.
The process of displacement, military attacks, and detention of civilians took place on a wide scale throughout the county of Prijedor. Most villages fell in the same fashion as Prijedor and Kozarac. As civilians were killed in their towns or in detention facilities, a need arose for large-scale body disposal. As a result, there are reports of 60 mass graves in Prijedor county alone, more than in any other county in the territory of the former Yugoslavia. From the available information, it appears that many of these gravesites were designed to conceal evidence of mass killings.
This section will describe gravesites in Prijedor proper, Trnopolje, and other small villages in the area, the Omarska and Ljubija mining complexes, graves in the Japra river valley, and those near the border with Sanski Most.
While most of the alleged mass burials in the county took place in the surrounding villages, some mass graves did surface in Prijedor proper.
Prijedor City Dump: Several persons, including one individual who loaded bodies for burial, allege that there is a mass grave at the Prijedor garbage dump. It can be reached by taking the road from Hambarine to Ljubija and going up a hill. The sources state that a large number of bodies were picked up in villages near Prijedor, transported to the dump in July 1992, and bulldozed. *343
One of the reports, which discusses the July killing at Keraterm Camp, *344 lists a place called «Kurovo» as one of the possible sites where the victims may be buried. The report then says Kurovo is the city dump. It is unclear if this is the same site as discussed above. *345
Pasinac Cemetery: Pasinac is a district of Prijedor town, and sits three kilometres north of the city, near a small airport. Seventeen prisoners from Keraterm Camp, including Safet Maric, were buried in a mass grave at this cemetery. Maric had reportedly been beaten, his throat slit, and a cross carved into his head. *346
Baltine Bare: There is a general report that 2,000 people are buried by the River Sana in Baltine Bare, near Prijedor. No other details about the site were provided. *347
Europa Inn: The road leading to Prijedor, which is near the Gaj woodland and the Europa Inn, is the reported site of a mass grave holding 700 bodies. Local villagers may have been responsible for digging the grave, but it is unclear whether they did so of their own volition or were forced by the Serb authorities. *348
Bajer Factory: Most reports note that those prisoners killed at Keraterm Camp were taken to the mines at Omarska, Tomasica, or Ljubija. *349 Another report, however, alleges that those internees who died from beatings or torture were taken to «Bajer», *350 where clay was excavated for the local brick factory. *351 Another report states that the grave was covered by construction material from the destroyed Old Town. Some individuals were buried alive under the rubble. *352
Biscani is a Muslim village of 1,000 persons, just west of Prijedor proper. It was bombarded with artillery on 20 July 1992. The following day, the infantry moved in. *353 Soon the soldiers occupied every home in the village. Most of the male residents were killed in or outside their homes. Women and children were rounded up and kept in a few houses. One witness observed seven deaths by shooting. Because of its proximity to Prijedor town, reports of gravesites in Biscani are included here.
Biscani Cemetery: A 22 year-old Bosnian Muslim said that from 20 to 27 July, surviving residents buried victims' bodies in the local cemetery. The 40 survivors were then forced to walk to the entrance of the Prijedor city, where a bus transported them to Trnopolje Camp. *354
Left Bank of Sana: Several tens of people were allegedly killed and buried near the left bank of the Sana River in Biscani. *355
Tukove: This small village near Biscani contains a joint grave, where a woman witness' brother and five others are buried. No other details regarding the site were provided. *356
Tukove Trash Heap: A witness interviewed by the Croatian Information Centre related that she and three other women had to put the bodies of 20 Biscani villagers, who had been killed on the way to a detention camp, into the trash heap. The following day, they tried to bury the bodies properly, but Serb soldiers stopped them, saying the bodies were going to be taken away. *357
Jubovci: Allegedly 120 people were killed in Jugovic and Biscani and buried in Jubovci. No other details regarding the site were provided. *358
Trnopolje is a small village of 5,000 people, nine kilometres east of Prijedor. It sits on the north side of Lake Ribnjak, and is halfway between Omarska and Prijedor. Before the war, the village consisted of 950, families of which 704 were Muslim, 102 were Croat and the rest Serbs, Ukrainian, Albanians and others.
Trnopolje was attacked on the same day as Prijedor, 23 May 1992, and the village was occupied without any shots fired. The local villagers were ordered to turn over their weapons, and the Serbs began a campaign of harassment against the population. They fired shots at Muslim houses, and the wealthy and intellectuals disappeared. Many villagers were killed in their homes.
The school centre in the main part of the village was thereafter turned into a detention facility, holding as many as 4,000 to 5,000 people. *359 Women and children were kept in the culture hall, which was part of the school; the men were kept separately, often being forced to sleep outside.
The Serb attack on Trnopolje and subsequent detention of many civilians had severe consequences. Hundreds, perhaps thousands, of villagers were reportedly killed and buried in mass graves. Some of these graves seem to have been created as a necessity of war; others may have been a way of concealing evidence of mass killings, In Trnopolje itself, there are reports of eight separate mass grave sites. There are also three additional villages in the immediate vicinity of Trnopolje, Sivci, Manicani and Kamicani which are also said to contain mass graves.
Ribnjak Lake & Fish Hatchery: As mentioned above, the village of Trnopolje borders Lake Ribnjak. This lake appears to have been the location of a fish pond and hatchery which is just a few hundred yards from the village. This lake was not only the site of several reported mass graves, it is also where Muslims were disposed of by burning.
Many of the victims buried at Ribnjak lake were prisoners of the Trnopolje and Trnjani camps. *360 According to one detainee of Trnopolje, drunk Serb soldiers would enter the camp at Trnopolje every night and take two or three girls outside and rape them. *361 Some of the women were returned to the camp, and others were taken to Prijedor hospital. Still others were killed, and people from the camp were required to bury them near Ribnjak. When the men would return from burial detail, they told the other prisoners that the dead had been beaten to death, and many appeared to have been tortured. *362 A named guard was said to often select prisoners to dig graves for dead prisoners. Frequently, those assigned to this task never returned. *363
Another former prisoner corroborated these stories of torture, mutilation and mass graves in Ribnjak. On an unspecified date in July, four to five soldiers came to Trnopolje and took six men away from the camp. All were from Kamicani village and all had the surname Foric. The following day, guards selected seven prisoners to dig a mass grave for the men next to Ribnjak. According to the gravediggers, the seven men had been cut with knives, crosses were carved into their chests, knives were pushed through their chins and tongues, through which wires were then inserted. *364
At least two Bosnian Muslims were killed in the Sanicani Ribnjak area of Trnopolje. Sources heard from friends in the village that their bodies were either thrown in the fish hatchery or into the Gomcanica River. *365
Some prisoners, however, were never buried. It is reported that many Muslims who had been detained in the Trnjani and Trnopolje camps, and had died from beatings, starvation or were killed, were taken to Ribnjak. *366 At that point, their bodies were reportedly doused with gasoline and they were set on fire. *367
Soccer Field: Trnopolje Camp's setting in the school centre provided an array of facilities in which to house prisoners, including a soccer field 200 metres from the school. A Bosnian refugee reported that in June of 1992, the bodies of eight Muslim prisoners were buried next to the soccer field, under a large oak tree. *368
Mezari: Mezari is a neighborhood within Trnopolje village. A large number of bodies of prisoners who were killed by Serb guards at Trnopolje camp were disposed of at the Mosque in Mezari. The individual who reported this incident was unsure whether the bodies were buried there or if they had been burned. *369
Trnopolje Park: According to a witness statement, there is a park one kilometre north of the Trnopolje camp. This witness alleged that many of the prisoners killed at the camp were buried on park grounds. No other details about the site were provided. *370
Trnopolje Mill: Helsinki Watch interviewed a man who was assigned to dig graves while detained at Trnopolje camp. The witness went on several burial trips during his detention. Among the sites he was aware of was the mill, where 60 to 100 people are said to have been buried. *371 A second man that Helsinki Watch spoke with corroborated the existence of this site, saying there are «many graves» near the mill, and a bulldozer was used to cover them. *372
Trnopolje Meadow: The gravedigger who spoke of burials at the mill actually participated in the burial of persons in a meadow near the camp. *373 This meadow was 400 metres from the camp, at the end of a fence which runs along the left side of a road near the railway station. At least three bodies were buried there, two of whom were identified as Ante and his son Zoran. All three bodies had the backs of their heads missing, and one was shot through the eye. *374
Trnopolje Fields: According to at least one former prisoner, some of the dead from Trnopolje camp were buried in numerous fields in the vicinity of the camp. *375 It is possible that the meadow referred to by the gravedigger mentioned above was just one of the fields in which bodies were buried. *376
Residential Houses: During the occupation of Trnopolje, many villagers were killed in their homes and yards. Often, Serbs would bring prisoners away from camps in the area and kill them in the village citizens who were not yet in detention. There are reports of numerous mass graves in the yards of Trnopolje's residents. *377 Most were buried where they died.
As an example, two individuals related the execution and burial of 11 to 13 persons in front of the Redzic *378 house in Trnopolje. *379 On 9 July 1992, seven Serbs and others arrived in the village in APCs and military trucks, and began rounding up Muslim men from their homes. Eventually the group numbered between 40 and 50, and they were gathered in front of Mevla Redzic's house, along with Mevla and her daughter-in-law. Eleven men and two women were asked to step forward. *380 They were taken across the road and killed by machine-gun fire. They were buried behind Mevla's house. *381
Manicani Village: One witness who was detained at Trnopolje for over four months had to bury Muslim bodies three times. The Muslimd had been dead for three weeks, and were buried in the village of Manicani, seven kilometres from the camp. *382
Sivci Cemetery: The village of Sivci is two kilometres from Trnopolje camp. It was shelled sometime after 14 June, and between 45 to 120 people were killed during the Serb attack. *383 Moreover, its proximity to Trnopolje made it a prime site for mass burials.
The cemetery in Sivci *384 appears to have initially been the primary site for burials of those killed at Trnopolje Camp. A Bosnian refugee, who was assigned to bury the dead at this location, noted that there was not enough space to bury all those killed, which forced burials to the fields around Trnopolje. *385
Sivci Unpaved Village Road: One of the gravediggers interviewed by Helsinki Watch noted that 50 people were killed at one time in Sivci on 26 or 27 June. He also said that men are buried along a small road which is just to the left of the unpaved village road in Sivci. *386
Kamicani Mosque: Three former prisoners of Trnopolje Camp are buried near the mosque in Kamicani, a small village near Trnopolje. According to a gravedigger, three men *387 received permission to scavenge food from the camp guards. When the guards who escorted them went away for a few moments, the police reportedly stopped the three men. The guards returned to find the three men missing. They were later found near the mosque. One's throat was slit, one was shot in the head, and the third had his foot severed. The three were buried where they died. *388
Omarska is situated approximately 16 kilometres east of Prijedor proper. In the early part of 1992, it was the site of a Serb-run detention camp, where thousands of local villagers, primarily Muslim males, were detained. Many of the prisoners were subjected to beatings, torture, mutilation, and execution. In nearby Prijedor, another camp was established at the «Keraterm» ceramics plant, where prisoners withstood treatment similar to the prisoners at Omarska. Indeed, many prisoners were shuttled among among the Omarska, Keraterm, Trnopolje, and Manjaca camps from the period of May through October 1992.
This region contains several mining operations scattered throughout the landscape. These mines, particularly those in Omarska, Tomasica, and Ljubija, which reportedly contain a great number of victims of the fighting in Prijedor county, as well as those killed during detention. The deep pits and shafts created by previous mining operations provided an easy way to carry out large-scale burials; evidence of which could be readily hidden from local villagers and the international community. Indeed, the Serbs regularly recruited local villagers and camp inmates to assist in disposing of the bodies and then killed them as well so as to eliminate any potential witnesses.
The lack of witnesses explains why the descriptions of most of the mass grave sites in this area are sketchy and almost always consist of hearsay. The names of various gravesites are described in a variety of ways, making it difficult to ascertain a precise number of locations in the area. In the village of Omarska, there are reports of 12 mass graves.
Omarska Mining Complex: The village of Omarska contains a vast mining complex for the excavation of iron ore. This complex was comprised of several different pits, most of which were used to bury the bodies of those killed in the Omarska and Keraterm camps, as well as those killed in villages which were attacked by Serb forces.
Many villagers from Prijedor and former camp inmates refer to the «Omarska mines» as burial sites. More often than not, the precise location in which persons are buried is not provided. Six mining locations, however, have been identified as those constituting mass graves: *389 the «Jezero» open pit, the «Ruvac» open mine, the lake near Medjedja dam *390 , the excavations at «Mamuze», Maricke mine shaft, and Gradina Brana mine shaft. According to the witness who identified the first three sites, 10 to 20 people were killed every day during the three month existence of the Omarska camp and buried at these sites, as well as at Tomasica. *391 The Jezero and Mamuze sites were closed in January 1992, and area residents say the sites now contain a number of Muslims. The Jezero pit, according to one report, contained the bodies of 59 injured and nine killed civilians from Keraterm Camp. *392
Many of the witness reports identify specific numbers of people buried at the Omarska mines. A former inmate personally observed between 40 to 50 bodies taken away from Omarska camp and deposited in «a nearby mine». *393 On 24-25 July, 180 Omarska prisoners from Carakovo were killed at the camp, on the open ground between Bijela Kuca (white house) and Klaonica (slaughter house). A prisoner witnessed a mechanical digger putting the bodies onto two large trucks, which then left «in the direction of the mine shafts». *394
According to several interviews with refugees, a specific incident which took place at Keraterm camp resulted in a huge mass burial, most likely at one of the Omarska/Tomasica mine sites. The numbers of persons involved varies from report to report, but the general sequence of events surrounding the incident do coincide. On one night in mid-July *395 of 1992, a large number of men were killed or wounded in Room 3 of Keraterm Camp. Two Serb guards reportedly opened fire on a number of prisoners housed in Room 3. Hundreds of men were killed *396 and still others were wounded. *397
The following morning, the guards enlisted several prisoners to load the bodies of both the dead and wounded onto trucks for disposal. *398 Once the loading was complete, the trucks traveled to one of the various mine locations, where the bodies of the wounded, dead, and those who assisted in loading the trucks (who were likely killed on-site) were thrown into the mine. *399
Of the six individual accounts of the incident, three mention Omarska as one of the likely mine locations where these bodies were taken. Four specify the Tomasica site as a possible location, and one identifies the «Ribnjak» or «Ljubija» mine as the site. *400 If, as one of the accounts suggests, Tomasica is part of the mining complex at Omarska, then the likelihood that these victims are buried at or near Omarska is highly probable. However, the mine locations in Omarska are not the only potential sites of mass graves.
Omarska Lime Pit: One former prisoner of Omarska Camp alleged that each morning about 10 people were taken away to a nearby lime pit. One local villager found his brother's body in the lime pit. Other villagers found severed body parts, but could not identify any relatives. *401
Manmade Swamp: According to one witness, a former Omarska inmate, there was a rumour of a mass grave situated about 600 metres south of the camp. It consisted of a .5 kilometres long, manmade swamp, which was part of the mineworks and contained acid. The witness suggested that the swamp was being used to dispose of many of the victims killed at the camp. *402
Sites at Omarska Camp: Several reports mention the existence of mass graves, which may be located at the Omarska Camp itself. A former inmate stated that most of the killings at Omarska took place in the machine hall. Prisoners would be called away, shots would be heard, and the prisoners never returned. The inmate alleged that these victims were ultimately buried in a mass grave near the machine hall. *403 The camp garbage heap was also a site mentioned as a place where bodies were dumped. *404
Another inmate related that every night, two prisoners were selected to bury the dead. One night the witness was chosen, and he buried 11 corpses crosswise in a «pit». *405 The location of the pit was not specified.
Busnovi and Gruben: The Busnovi and Gruben regions are also alleged to be gravesites. No other details regarding these sites were provided. *406
Tomasica: *407 As discussed earlier, the Tomasica mine may very well be a part of the whole Omarska mining complex, where scores of former prisoners are buried, particularly the victims of the July killing at Keraterm's Room 3. One account, which related the Keraterm incident, was specific about the burial site and did not refer to the mine itself. This witness speculated that the bodies were taken to an area in Tomasica known as «Depunija». Someone he knew saw a truck unload many dead bodies into a deep pit there. *408
However, the mines at Tomasica may not have held only prisoners of the various Prijedor camps, but other victims as well. According to one witness, 18 Muslims were killed in the yard of a residential home in Prijedor during late July 1992. *409 These men, along with the bodies of 40 to 50 men killed on Partizanska Ulica, were transported in a truck, which was followed by a bulldozer. The vehicles turned onto the road which led to the Tomasica mines. The witness only saw the loading of the bodies, not the burial, but mentioned that the road travelled led only to the mines and to no other road or location. *410 The witness also noted that he observed a truck designated as belonging to the Tomasica mine pass him on the road. As it turned, blood spilled out of the truck and he saw arms and legs hanging.
Ljeskare: There is a horizontal mine shaft in the village of Ljeskare. Prisoners at Omarska Camp heard rumours that 500 women, children, and elderly from the village of Hambarine were being held in the mine shaft. They were suffocated when the entrance to the shaft was destroyed by explosives. *411
Ljubija is 10 kilometres south of Prijedor. Like Omarska and Tomasica, Ljubija is a mining community, and served as an additional location where prisoners and villagers were taken for burial.
Strip Mines: In the middle of May 1992, Serb soldiers from an unidentified unit took control of the Ljubija strip mine. Guards posts were established, the location was armed, and barbed wire was erected. *412 Because of the frequency with which witnesses to the mass burials in Prijedor were killed, the precise locations of the sites are often not provided. Accounts refer to the «Ljubija» mine, strip mine, open pit iron mine, and the like. Six locations, however, have been identified with more specificity:
Surkovac: Surkovac is a village 2.5 kilometres north of Ljubija. Within the village is a hamlet called Volaric, entirely populated by gypsies. According to a refugee, 12 unidentified bodies were unloaded off a truck on the left side of the Ljubija- Miska Glava Road. Eleven Gypsies were forced to bury the victims who may have been from Rizvanovici. *424 As the Gypsies were digging the mass grave, a delivery truck, which was supplying food to the Serb Army, passed by and the Gypsies were fired upon, instantly killing nine of them. The witness identified the gravesites on a topographic map. *425
Tomeks Plant: A large number of bodies are reportedly buried in a mass grave near the Tomeks plant in Ljubija. No other details regarding the site were provided. *426
Ljubica Dizdarevic Residence: This house is situated near the west side of the intersection of Stara Cesta road and the new road 3.5 kilometres south of Ljubija. A group of 20 Muslim prisoners, some from the village of Carakovo, were transported to this site by bus and taken to a pear tree. Their hands were tied behind their backs and 10 armed guards escorted them. The prisoners were forced to dig a pit. The guards then beat and shot the prisoners and pushed them into the pit, which was then covered with dirt. The witness heard of the killing from his aunt, who was an eyewitness. During the last half of August, human hands and feet could be seen protruding from the pit. *427
Raljas: There is a general report that 19 persons were killed and buried in five graves in Raljas. *428 No other details regarding the site were provided. *429
Stara Rijeka is approximately three kilometres south-east of Ljubija and sits on the border with Sanski Most county. It nearly forms one village with its neighbor, Brisevo. Because of the specificity with which graves in both villages are described, they will be discussed separately.
Stara Rijeka Cemetery: On 25 July 1992, soldiers from the Bosnian Serb 6th Light Infantry Mountain Brigade, the Fifth Kozara Brigade and local mobilized Serbs converged on both Stara Rijeka and Brisevo. All Muslim and Croat males were apprehended. During the roundups, 85 residents, including 17 women, were killed. *430 Most were slain with knives. Serbs in Stara Rijeka allowed survivors of the attack to bury the dead; those in Brisevo did not. *431 In August of 1992, nine bodies were buried in two graves in the Stara Rijeka Croatian «Grosica» Cemetery.
Two Bosnian refugees gave detailed descriptions of the burial sites and identified the victims. *432 The cemetery is four kilometres south of Stara Rijeka, on the east side of the highway to Stari Madjan. It is surrounded by a wrought iron fence and has only one means of ingress and egress: a small bridge which spans a two metre canal separating the cemetery from the highway. The first grave is to the left of the cemetery entrance and covers a six square metre area. Two Bosnian Croatian married couples *433 from the villages of Brisevo and Stara Rijeka are buried there. *434
The second grave is to the right of the cemetery entrance and is four metres by 2.5 metres. Nine members of the same family, *435 who were Bosnian Croatians from Stara Rijeka, are buried there: three brothers, four sons of two of the brothers, a nephew of the brothers, and a cousin from Brisevo.
When the bodies were found, all the throats had been slit, the backs of their knees had been cut, and all body hair had been burned off. One victim's head had been scalped and his eyes were removed. One other victim had skin removed from his left elbow, and another's spine was broken. It appears from the report that the bodies were discovered by a villager, and he was granted permission to bury them. *436
In addition, there is a general, unconfirmed report that 43 people were killed in Stara Rijeka and buried in two graves. *437
Brisevo: A 30 year-old Bosnian Croatian witness from Brisevo *438 has provided testimony of mass grave locations, names of some victims, and details of how they were killed. *439 The first attack on Brisevo was on 27 May 1992. By the dawn of 24 July 1992, the area was entirely encircled. On about 24 August, the area was under mortar attack. After the mortar attack, troops moved from village to village, indiscriminately seeking out and killing inhabitants. *440 Meeting little or no resistance, these forces moved through each town and forced out the remaining inhabitants. *441 Most people were hiding from the shelling in their basements, where the soldiers killed them. About 70 bodies were buried, all of which had suffered multiple bullet wounds. *442 The Sixth Krajina Brigade and members of the Fifth Kozara Brigade were reportedly responsible for these mass killings. Most of the victims were killed by the Sixth Krajina Brigade. *443 The witness also provided the names of some perpetrators. *444
Some of the information provided included individual graves located near mass graves. *445 These individuals also may be the victims of mass killings. All of the graves were dug by civilians from the village of Brisevo, including the witness, except for the first grave listed later, which was dug by the victims themselves. All are over one metre deep and all are marked with a cross and surrounded by wooden fences, again with the exception of the first grave listed. Some bodies were wrapped in sheets and blankets and then buried. *446 The following is a list of those graves in the Brisevo area. *447
In mid-August, a bus arrived from Ljubija with about 20 Muslim prisoners. They were predominantly young men (in their early twenties) from the village of Carakovo. They were removed from the bus with their hands tied with wire behind their necks and escorted by about 10 guards with assault weapons. After their hands were freed, they were forced to dig a pit. The guards beat and shot them and then pushed their bodies into the pit. Before leaving, the guards covered the bodies with dirt. During the last half of August, the witness could see hands and feet protruding from the grave. *448
The badly burned bodies of an 80 year-old man, a 55 year-old woman, and a 67 year-old man are buried near a witness' house. This grave is located in Pimaci. *449
Above a witness' house in Mlinari, six people are buried. *450
About 10 metres from the well near Marko Buzuk's house, a 65 year-old woman, a 60 year-old man and a 30 year-old man are buried. *451 In the same immediate area, about 400 metres west of Mlinari toward Groarac, *452 a grave contains four male bodies with multiple bullet wounds. *453
At the location called Jezerce (Little Lake), four people are buried.
There are two graves 200 metres from the road south of Lisina, near a witness' house. *454 The two graves are about 70 metres apart. *455 An entire family of six individuals is buried there.
Four women and four men were brought and killed near Ivo Zunic's house and later buried there. *456
The graves of two 16 year-old males are located on the Zunica Ravana road, north-west of Buzuci. *457 One boy was buried on the south side of the stream, and the other was buried on the north side. Their bodies bore identification stating that they were from Rizvanovici.
The witness also provided detailed information on how a number of the victims listed above were killed. Many were tortured and all were beaten. Some were killed by picks, shovels, and stakes, while others were mutilated. *458
Rogatica is located in eastern BiH, near Srebrenica and Visegrad. According to the 1991 census, Rogatica had a population of 21,812 persons, 60.4 per cent of whom were Muslim and 39.6 per cent were Serbian.
Dobrun/Okrugla: A witness from Visegrad related that Serb Muslim relations grew tense upon the arrival of the Uzice corps on 14 April 1992. *460 The Uzice corps left a month later, and Serb irregular forces came in. Muslims began being subjected to curfews and dismissed from their jobs. Those Muslims who belonged to the SDA were often taken for interrogation. At one point, the commander of the Serb Territorial Defence Forces ordered all Muslim men over the age of 15 to report to headquarters. Upon arrival, they were told to be out of the village by noon; thereafter many Muslims fled.
The witness joined a convoy of four buses carrying refugees from Titovo Uzice towards Skopje. The convoy was stopped by Cetniks between Pobrun and Okrugle. Nineteen men were taken away from the convoy, and the witness later heard that the men had been killed and their bodies buried in a common grave.
Zepa: UN monitoring organizations (UNMO) received a report of a possible mass grave in Zepa. A local civilian met with UNMOs who said that there was a mass grave near his house, and related that most victims were killed in 1992, in Visegrad and its surroundings by «Cetniks», not local Serbs. The bodies were then thrown into the Drina River and resurfaced in Slap. *461 All of the victims were Muslim. The witness has a list of 85 persons who were buried in the mass grave. Another man secretly buried the personal property of the dead in another location in Zepa. UNMO patrols visited the alleged site and confirmed that there is a mass grave at the location, as well as some individual graves. The report notes that a total of 185 persons may be buried in the area. *462
The county of Sanski Most is located in north-western BiH, just south of Prijedor and west of Banja Luka. According to the 1991 census, Sanski Most had a population of 60,119 persons, 47 per cent of whom were Muslim, 42.2 per cent were Serbian, 7.1 per cent were Croatian, and 3.7 per cent were «other».
Military activity in Sanski Most began in late May 1992. On 27 May, roads across the Sana River were blocked local Serbian police and, possibly, the JNA. Mortars and artillery were brought into position the next day, and the county began being shelled that evening. The Serbs asked the citizens to surrender and report to the main soccer field in Sanski Most. Most citizens left their homes to comply, and Serb forces began «cleansing» the towns. Houses were looted and burned. If villagers remained inside, grenades were thrown in to kill the occupants. *464 At a later date, villagers were taken to detention facilities somewhere in Kljuc and/or Sanski Most, including «Krings» camp. *465 From information available to IHRLI, most of the mass graves in the Sanski Most county surfaced in the surrounding villages, and not in Sanski Most proper.
Kljuc-Sanski Most Road: A Muslim villager from Sanski Most county was one of those transported to detention facilities in the Kljuc and Sanski Most area. While he was on board a bus between the two counties, he saw a pile of 40 to 50 bodies lying in a meadow approximately five metres from the road. At the foot of a hill, a bulldozer was digging, what the villager presumed to be, a mass grave. *466
Vrhpolje: Vrhpolje is a small village 12 kilometres south of Sanski Most. On an unidentified date, the village was looted, burned and destroyed, and 3,500 of its inhabitants were killed and then buried in mass graves. The graves are reportedly located between Highway 15 and the Sanica River, next to a gravel road that crosses a wooden bridge. The bridge is situated just south of where the Sanica River joins the Sana River. The graves were dug by bulldozers for four days. A Serbian guard at the Krings Camp told a Bosnian refugee about the site. Gypsies may have assisted with the burial of the bodies. *467
Klijevci: Klijevci is a village situated eight kilometres south of Sanski Most. According to reports, the entire Muslim male population of the village, aged 14 and older, were killed and buried in mass graves. The order to kill the Muslims was reportedly given by a Serb commander. This information was given to a Bosnian refugee by a man who was one of a group of 20 men who were taken to be killed but escaped. *468
Hrustovo: Like Klijevci and Vrhpolje, Hrustovo is south of Sanski Most by 13 kilometres. This Muslim village was also completely destroyed, and all inhabitants who had not fled the region earlier were killed. The victims were buried in mass graves, but the precise location was not provided in the report. *469
Otis: A source interviewed by the United Kingdom noted that he had heard rumours that all Croats living in Otis *470 were killed and 5,020 of them were buried in a mass grave. No other details about the site were provided. *471
Skrljevita: G.S., a Croat civilian from Skrljevita, outside of Sanski Most proper, was reportedly ambushed by Serbs on 2 November 1992. He and five other individuals were taken to a location near the Glamosnica forest, lined up in a row, and shot at with machine-gun fire. G.S. survived the shooting and later escaped. He noted that on the same day, a group of three other Croatian civilians were killed in a similar fashion, as they were returning from Sanski Most. Another Croatian was killed, reportedly because the Serbs feared that he knew of the murders of the three civilians. The Serb authorities gave an ultimatum to the villagers of Skrljevita to bury all of these victims before 3:00 p.m. on 4 November 1992. The villagers received the bodies of the nine individuals on 3 November, which they buried in the common grave in the Skrljevita cemetery. *472
Sarajevo is located in southern BiH. The county consists of several districts, including Hadzici, Ilijas, Ilidza, and Vogosca. Sarajevo's population in 1991 was 525,890 persons, 49.3 per cent of whom were Muslim, 29.9 per cent were Serbian, 10.7 per cent were «Yugoslav», 6.6 per cent were Croatian, and 3.5 per cent were «other».
Tarcin: The village of Tarcin is situated in Hadzici district, 20 kilometres north-east of Konjic proper. The self- styled «Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia» informed the ECMM office that a mass grave exists on the outskirts of Tarcin, near a meat factory. According to a map, the gravesite appears to be located between the factory and the river, just north of an east- west railway line. The factory sits north of the intersection of the road to Kresevo and the road between Konjic and Sarajevo.
It is believed that there are 30 Croats from Konjic in the grave, as well as three Serbians. *474 Five of the victims are said to be children. The perpetrators are known, but not named for confidentiality and prosecutorial reasons. Although ECMM was called upon to investigate, *475 as of 22 November 1993, the HVO denied access to the routes to Tarcin. *476
Sarajevo City: A woman resident of Sarajevo informed a German journalist of a possible mass grave in the city of Sarajevo. The grave sits in the Muslim controlled centre of town, between the burned library building and the Miljacka River. *477
Rajlovac: A captured Serb soldier related details regarding the site of a mass grave in Rajlovac. According to the soldier, Seselj's troops were in the village of «Ahatovici» *478 burning houses and killing its inhabitants. The soldier's mission in the village was to «kill and destroy». Seselj's troops captured 150 men, women, and children and ushered them into a hole, near a stationed machine-gun. All of the persons were then shot by the machine-gun and automatic rifle fire. Later, two Yugoslav People's Army trucks arrived on the scene, and two other prisoners had to load the dead bodies onto the trucks. *479
The trucks traveled to Rajlovac, and stopped at a hole which was 10 metres deep and five metres wide. The prisoners, some still alive, were thrown into the hole, *480 where some of Seselj's men continued to shoot at the bodies. A dredger then poured dirt over the hole. *481
Ilijas: The soldier noted in his interrogation that 30 Muslims who had been detained in a school in «upper Bihac» were taken to «Ilijas», where they were killed and thrown into a «pec» [stove]. *482
Ljesevo: Ljesevo is a small village in the Ilijas district. On 4 June 1992, the village was attacked with artillery fire from Serb forces. The following day, four busloads of soldiers surrounded the Muslim part of the village and ordered the Muslims to gather in the centre of town. During the occupation, many of the civilians in the village were killed. Some of the corpses remained unburied for 18 days, but were later interred in a «mass churchyard». The report lists 20 identified victims, but is not clear as to whether all 20 persons were buried in the churchyard. *483
Zuc: Zuc is a mountain in the Sarajevo area. A Serbian soldier witnessed the mass killing of 20 to 30 Muslims and the burial of those bodies at the same location. No further details were provided in the report. *484
Slavonska Pozega is located in the region of Croatia called «western Slavonia», with Slavonski Brod and Nova Gradiska forming its southern border. According to the 1991 census, Slavonska Pozega had a population of 71,299 persons, 79.4 per cent of whom were Croatian, 14 per cent were Serbian and 6.6 per cent were «other».
On 19 October 1992, Croatian authorities issued an order to many Serb villages in several counties, including Slavonska Pozega. *485 The order stated that the ethnic Serb population from each named village was to leave within 48 hours. The depopulated Serbs would then have the choice of moving to villages with Croatian majorities, or going to refugee camps. The villagers of Jeminovac and Snjegavic did not comply with the order, because they did not know where to go. *486
On 10 November 1991, members of the Croatian National Guard entered all villages which had not complied with the depopulation order, including Jeminovac and Snjegavic. ZNG forces threw flammable substances and hand grenades into the homes. Most of the houses were burned down, and residents were killed, either by gunfire, having their throats slit, or burning to death inside their homes. Several tens of inhabitants were killed and buried in a mass grave. *487 No details regarding the precise location of the grave were provided.
Sokolac is in south-eastern BiH, near the counties of Olovo and Rogatica. According to the 1991 census, Sokolac had a population of 14,833 persons, 68.6 per cent of whom were Muslim, 30.2 per cent were Serbian, and 1.2 per cent were «other».
Sokolac may be the site of one mass grave, perhaps near the village of Sokolovici. A former citizen of Visegrad provided testimony about the location. On an unidentified date, Serbs suggested to the civilians of Visegrad that they should flee the county and 400 refugees boarded six buses to Olovo. On the Isarevo Hill, near Olovo, the convoy was stopped by Cetniks. The elderly and handicapped, women, and children were made to walk towards Olovo, while the men went toward Sokolac.
The following day, the refugees learned the convoy would travel to Han Pijesak and they would be exchanged. However, the buses went to Sokolovici, Kalimanovici and Zakomo, and stopped at the sugar factory. The Cetniks took all the jewelry, money and identification papers from the refugees. Soon, a man *488 arrived and the Cetniks began beating one of the refugees. The others tried to escape, but they too were captured. Some were beaten and harassed.
Later, the bus of prisoners traveled a short while, then stopped. The prisoners were forced 150 to 200 metres uphill along a muddy road. Ten of the men were separated from the group, and two of them were shot by Cetniks armed with submachine- guns. The men «disappeared», according to the witness. The witness then saw that a pit had been dug in the area, and concluded that all of the prisoners would be shot and thrown into the pit. More killings commenced, and the witness began to run away. The Cetniks fired bursts at him, but he managed to escape. In all, the witness estimated that 49 persons were killed at the pit. *489
Srebrenica is located in eastern BiH, on the Serbian border. According to the 1991 census, the population of Srebrenica was 37,211 persons, of whom 74.8 per cent were Muslim and 25.2 per cent were Serbian.
There is a report of one mass grave in Srebrenica. Serbs report that the Bosnian Muslims killed a number of Serbs in this county, and that there is a mass grave in the village of Tomanice.
The county of Titova Korenica is located in southern Croatia, on the border with Bihac pocket. According to the 1991 census, 75.8 per cent of its 11,307 persons were Serbian, 16.8 per cent were Croatian, 3.9 per cent were «other», and 3.5 per cent were «Yugoslav».
There are two mass graves reported in this county. The victims in both reports appear to be soldiers of Croatian ethnicity.
Debelo Brdo School: In August 1991, the Howitzer Battalion of the 3rd Yugoslav People's Army Corps received orders to travel to Croatia. *491 Upon arriving in Croatia, the battalion was told that they were «no longer members of the JNA», but were local volunteer Serbs who were part of the Sixth Licki Division of the Army of the Serbian Krajina. They traveled for several months around the vicinity of Debelo Brdo and Petrovo Selo, near Plitvicka Jezera National Park. From their various positions, they fired upon Croatian villages with artillery.
Their mission, according to a Bosnian Croatian refugee, was to «destroy all Croatian villages and kill all Croatians and Muslims». The refugee explained that this mission prompted the battalion's executive officer, a Macedonian, and all non-Serbs of the unit to desert.
When the unit arrived at Debelo Brdo, it found the bodies of 24 Croatians who had their throats slit and their heads smashed with blunt instruments. Some had their genitals removed. Members of the «battalion» collected the bodies and buried them in a mass grave 300 metres from the school in Debelo Brdo. *492 The refugee recognized some of the victims as former JNA troops of Croatian ethnicity. He also heard from other soldiers that the victims had been killed by Serbs. The report does not state whether the Croatians were members of the JNA during a time when it was given orders to destroy Croatian villages.
Canak: This village was looted and burned on 10 December 1991. *493 During the attack, 60 civilians and Croatian soldiers were killed, and 11 members of the Croatian Army's 128th Rijecka Brigade were missing. There is a report that two «graveyards» are present in the village, one of which was the site of executions. JNA forces as well as Serb militias and paramilitary groups, are said to be responsible for the killings. No other details about the site were provided.
Tomislavgrad is in the south-western part of BiH, and borders Croatia. Of the 29,261 inhabitants of Tomislavgrad, 86.6 per cent were Croatian, 10.8 per cent were Muslim, and 2.6 per cent were «other».
There is one report of a possible mass grave in this county. On 22 September 1993, ECMM met with General Pasalic *494 who informed them that an «improvised» mass grave had been discovered at «Rastani». *495 The grave may contain more than 20 bodies. According to Pasalic, the grave had not yet been exhumed at the time of the meeting with ECMM. *496
The county of Travnik, on the Lasva River, is located approximately 70 kilometres west-north-west from Sarajevo, and 20 kilometres west of Zenica. Travnik had 70,402 persons in 1991, 45.3 per cent of whom were Muslim, 36.9 per cent were Croatian, 11 per cent were Serbian and 6.8 per cent were «other». According to the Deputy Mayor of Travnik, B. Kadric, the population swelled to 100,000 in September 1993. *498 It now serves as the main transit centre for Muslim refugees and displaced persons from Serb controlled areas. *499
Vlasic Mountain - Koricanska Stijena: The Vlasic mountain range is just north of Travnik, and in 1992, the area served as a passage out of Serbian-held territory. *500 The village of Koricanska Stijena is situated at the edge of the Ilomska River, which sits in a canyon below Vlasic Mountain. *501 The village of Petrovo Polje is also nearby, and this small region is alleged to be the site of the largest mass grave in BiH. *502 More specifically, it is where up to 250 men were shot and killed during a convoy operation from the Prijedor area to Travnik. *503
On 21 August 1992, *504 it was announced that some prisoners would be released from Trnopolje. *505 No specific manner of selecting prisoners for release was apparent. *506 According to one witness, four buses of prisoners were loaded at Trnopolje, including 250 men and 150 women and children. *507 The convoy then moved toward Prijedor, where two buses and six trailer trucks, containing mostly women and children, were added to the convoy. *508
The convoy proceeded towards Travnik, crossed a bridge over the Ilomska River and then stopped. *509 All the males from each of the buses and trucks, totalling approximately 250, were gathered together and placed on the second and third buses from the front. *510 The women and children who had been on those vehicles were put into others. *511 The buses and trucks transporting the women and children passed the two buses carrying the men, so that the men's buses were in the rear of the convoy. *512 The entire convoy traveled a small distance, *513 and then the buses carrying the men stopped. The remainder of the buses continued on the road towards Travnik. *514
Ten soldiers, wearing blue camouflage and red berets, took the male prisoners off the second bus one by one. *515 The men were lined up in two rows, facing west. *516 On the west side of the mountain, there was a 20 metre cliff, which ended in a slope that descended 300 metres to the Ilomska River. *517 The men were then told to proceed to the edge of the cliff in the row formation and kneel. *518 Automatic weapons fire was heard for five minutes, and the bodies of the men fell into the gorge. *519 The men in the first bus were taken out in groups of three for execution. *520
Three men were taken to the back of the second bus, *521 and they saw two large pools of blood 10 metres behind the rear of the bus. They also observed prisoners standing at the edge of the precipice, then falling over the edge as they were shot. *522 Many of the prisoners, including several of the survivors, jumped over the cliff voluntarily to avoid being shot. *523 The entire incident lasted about 15 minutes. *524
The guards left, but an hour later, the entire convoy of buses returned empty. *525 A few guards got out of the buses and sprayed the bodies at the base of the cliff with automatic weapons fire and threw hand grenades at them. *526 B.J., one of the survivors interviewed by Helsinki Watch, related that he saw many corpses after he jumped over the cliff and that the executions continued. *527 He said that many of the corpses were old, and that there were probably «fewer than 200». *528
Vinkovci is a county in eastern Croatia which borders Osijek and Vukovar. The county is populated by a Croatian majority, with small groups of Serbs. *529 According to the 1991 census, Vinkovci claimed a population of 98,484 persons, 80 per cent of whom were Croatian, 13 per cent were Serbian and 7 per cent were other.
Fighting in the area began in October of 1991. The village of Tordinci was captured by the JNA and Serb paramilitary forces on 25 October 1992. *530
There are four reports of mass graves in the county. Information regarding these graves is very limited.
Tordinci Catholic Church: A mass grave was said to exist at the Tordinci Roman Catholic Church. The victims were reportedly tortured before death. *531 According to television and radio reports, as well as the report of a JNA captain, 208 corpses were buried at this site, along with dead animal corpses. However, Osijek police could not locate any witnesses to the burial. On 25 August 1992, police gave a document to UNCIVPOL that described the grave as being in front of the Catholic Church, stretching from the cross to the nearest house.
Four days later, UNCIVPOL visited the site. The official observed a pile of dirt in front of the church, which measured 75 to 100 feet in length. It appeared that a trench was dug quite some time before the officer's visit, due to the undisturbed tall weeds along the pile. *532 In early December 1992, ECMM notified the Vinkovci police of the mass grave, who were interested in pursuing an exchange of bodies. *533
Special Rapporteur, Waly Bacre Ndiaye and forensic expert, Morris Tidball Binz, briefly visited the site on 18 December 1992. Binz observed a trench 30 metres long, four metres wide and between .5 and one metres high. The mound seemed to have been deposited within the last two years of his visit, but no later than the summer of 1992, judging from the vegetation growing on the site. The mound bore no visible signs or indications, and sat parallel to and on the side of the main road in front of a church. Contrary to other reports, Binz's report stated that the available information suggested that the bodies were not victims of atrocities or other war crimes. However, Binz stated that nothing was inconsistent with the allegations of a mass grave at the site. He recommended clearing the area of mines, as well as probing the trench with rods to obtain more conclusive information. *534
Another report stated that UN forces discovered a mass grave in Tordinci, which contained the bodies of over 100 Croat soldiers and civilians. It was not stated whether this was the site located at the Catholic Church. *535
Antin, Matanovic Summer House: UNCIVPOL was notified of a mass grave in Antin on 23 June 1992 by the Osijek police. The police had information that a mass grave existed in an identified location. The house was situated near the railway station. According to police, two young men from Antin were interviewed on 2 July 1992 and stated that a large hole had been dug behind the house several years ago for a swimming pool. They believed bodies were buried in the hole during the fighting in Vinkovci.
UNCIVPOL visited the area on 21 August 1992. The officials spoke with a female refugee who was living in the house and inspected the backyard. They observed a hole which was 20 metres by 10 metres by three metres. It appeared to have been open for some time, as small trees grew along the sides and edge. The officials noted that it clearly had not been dug up in the spring or summer of 1992, based on the vegetation growing around it. While people were reported missing from Antin, UNCIVPOL concluded there were clearly no bodies buried in this location. They did note, however, that witnesses heard shooting near the railway station and there may be a mass grave in that area. *536
Antin, Cave Near Railway Station: According to one report, a mass grave was discovered in a cave dug close to the Markusica *537 railway station. There were no details regarding the circumstances of the grave's creation or the number of bodies. *538
The county of Vlasenica is in eastern BiH, only 10 to 20 kilometres from the Serbian border. It is situated 50 kilometres south-west of Zvornik, along Highway 19 to Sarajevo. *540 According to the 1991 census, the population of the county was 33,817 persons, of which 55.3 per cent were Muslim, 42.5 per cent were Serb and 2.2 per cent were «other». *541
On 17 April 1992, Serbian troops entered Vlasenica. Other Serb forces that had occupied Novi Sad joined the effort in Vlasenica on 2 May 1992, as well as Bosnian Serb forces from Sekovici located 15 kilometres north of Vlasenica. *542 Over the next five weeks, villagers were reportedly captured, taken to the village police station, and beaten. Those Muslims who were believed to be «extremists» were detained at the police station.
On 24 June 1992, Serbs evacuated approximately 50 families who lived on Zarka Vukovica street. The Serbs told the civilians that they were looking for a specific «dangerous» Muslim. After the evacuation, five of the houses on that street were set afire, and the villagers were forced to walk to a prison camp in the Susica River Valley. The «Susica Camp» was located a few hundred metres from the town's main street. *543 This camp was reportedly the site of many beatings perpetrated by camp officials. *544 There were also alleged killings at the camp, which may have led to the creation of three mass graves in the vicinity of the camp. *545
Mracnica Quarry: Mracnica is a quarry which is situated in a valley on Viselac Mountain. The site is two kilometres from Vlasenica on the road to Han Pijesak. According to one report, most of the killings at Susica Camp took place at the quarry, and bodies were also buried there. No one has yet confirmed the existence of the grave because after an unspecified date, people were no longer allowed to travel to the area. *546
Alpro Aluminum Factory: The source who provided information regarding burials at Mracnica, also stated that other burials may have taken place on the wasteland at the Alpro Aluminum Factory. No other details regarding the site were provided in the report. *547
Dirt Road: Another report regarding the Susica Camp identified another mass grave in the vicinity of the detention facility. At 1:00 a.m. on 26 June, two of the camp guards *548 forced four of the prisoners outside; four gunshots and screaming were heard. An hour later, guards entered the warehouse where prisoners were being held and told them to close the windows, as four prisoners had tried to escape. After sunrise, two prisoners were forced to bury the corpses of the four dead prisoners. The two turned left on the dirt access road that ran next to the camp, crossed a concrete bridge, then turned right onto another dirt road that led to the villages of Luke and Zalakavlje. The two men buried the bodies among some evergreen trees 200 metres from the start of the road, and 10 metres off to the left, in the direction of Luke. *549
The county of Vukovar is the easternmost county in Croatia. The Danube River forms the county's eastern border, and Vukovar city enjoys a riverside setting. Vinkovci county is to the south- west and Osijek is to the north-west. According to the 1991 census, the population of Vukovar was 84,024 persons, of whom 43.7 per cent were Croatian, 37.4 per cent were Serbian, 11.6 per cent were «other» and 7.4 per cent were Yugoslav.
In May 1991, JNA, Cetnik and Serb Territorial Defence Forces, with the assistance of local Serbs, began attacking Vukovar. *551 Daily artillery attacks continued on Borovo Naselje and the periphery of Vukovar's city limits. Many civilians fled, but returned in August to resume their daily lives. Still, the population had been numerically emaciated: 50,000 persons resided there before the war, and by 25 August 1991, only 15,000 persons were left. Up to this point, casualties were buried in the new cemetery of Vukovar, but burials at this site became increasingly difficult due to the war. *552
Fighting continued until 14 September 1991, when the JNA attacked again and gained control of the south-west part of Vukovar from the direction of Negoslavci. Civilians began retreating to the centre of the city. *553 About 18-19 November, the Croatian defences succumbed to the siege. In the first few weeks of military conquest, JNA forces and Serb paramilitary troops allegedly abducted, tortured, and/or killed hundreds of Croat civilians, police, and soldiers. *554 Residents living in Vukovar's suburbs also fell victim to the activities of the Serb forces, as they converged on Vukovar from a variety of directions.
There are reports of huge numbers of mass graves throughout the county of Vukovar. These numbers are paralleled only in the Prijedor county in BiH. Most contain Croatian victims; a few contain Serbs. The available information suggests that some of the sites, which originally seemed to be illegitimate were indeed sanitary graves and contained civilian casualties of war or military personnel killed in combat. A man on burial detail for the Serb forces reported that the JNA dug up many sites around Vukovar and took the bodies away for proper identification and autopsy. *555 Other sites in Vukovar do suggest evidence of mass killings and improper burials. In all, there are 19 alleged mass grave sites in Vukovar county, of which nine are in the city of Vukovar, and 10 are in its suburbs.
New Cemetery: The new cemetery is between the «Center» and «Sajmiste» sections of Vukovar city, and is near the Supanic primary school. The Croatian Government and Red Cross *556 both reported that 1,200 victims are buried at the site, but the Croatian Government does not list it as a site where mass killings took place. Dr. Vesna Bosanac, director of the Vukovar Hospital, indicated that this was the burial site for those killed in Vukovar only until 26 August 1991. After that date, the cemetery became «unapproachable». *557 A gravedigger on burial detail for the Serbs alleged that 378 bodies, who remain unidentified, were buried at the new cemetery. *558
Old German Catholic Cemetery: The old German Catholic Cemetery is near the Vukovar hospital and the landmark Count Eltz chapel. This is the site to which bodies were taken after 26 August 1991, when the new cemetery could no longer be reached. Dr. Bosanac said that one grave at this cemetery contains 300 persons, the largest such site in Vukovar. *559
Available information suggests, however, that the cemetery may have been the site of two mass killings of Serbians. One account states that a reported ZNG member killed 15 Serb inmates at an identified location after forcing them to dig their own grave. *560 A second account alleges that Croatian officers and paramilitaries reportedly took 15 Serbs out of the ZNG military prison and brought them to an identified location. The Serbs were lined up on the edge of a grave and shot in the back with automatic rifle fire. The bodies then fell into the mass grave. *561
While both of these accounts allege that 15 Serbs from the ZNG prison were killed, each identifies different perpetrators. Thus, as many as 30 Serbians may be buried at this site.
Sports Stadium «Sloga»: This stadium is situated near the old railway station in Vukovar. There are a variety of reports regarding this site, which call into question earlier suspicions that it was an «illegitimate» gravesite.
The Croatian Red Cross alleges that 120 unidentified victims are buried at Sloga. *562 No other details about the site were provided. However, two independent accounts allege that 70 bodies in coffins were located at the stadium and a nearby field. One of the reports stated that the coffins remained unburied *563 and that bodies were taken there after burial at the new and old cemeteries ended. A submission from the Croatian Government alleged that 1,300 persons were buried at the site, but did not list the location as a place of mass killing. *564
Finally, a man who was enlisted for burial detail by Serb forces told the Red Cross that people had been buried in pits in Luzac, which is near the stadium and next to the school, but that the pits were now empty, as the bodies had been dug up for proper identification and autopsy. It is unclear whether this site is the Sloga Stadium. *565
Brickyard at Sajmiste: The Vukovar brickyard was located in the «Sajmiste» area of town. It was near railroad tracks and sat behind the «Velepromet» warehouse, a reported detention facility in which thousands of Croatian civilians were housed during the late months of 1991. The details regarding this site vary widely from account to account, but it appears that this was one site used by Serb paramilitaries *566 to bury individuals who were killed during detention at Velepromet. *567
Two accounts place the number of corpses at the brickyard graves at 1,000. *568 A former prisoner of Velepromet was taken to the brickyard graves by four Velepromet guards to look for her husband's corpse. She saw a number of holes in the area, containing about 1,000 corpses of men, women and children. *569 It is not clear whether all of the bodies were killed at Velepromet, or if the bodies were found elsewhere and brought to the site. *570
In a different report, the Croatian Red Cross alleged that 250 corpses were buried at the brickyard, but were later transported to Grabovo fish pool. *571 This was also suggested by the gravedigger interviewed by the Red Cross, who said many bodies were transported from the city to surrounding areas for burial, including Grabovo. *572 The large number of those reportedly killed, coupled with the transient nature of the burial system, makes it difficult to establish a firm number of the bodies buried at this site, if bodies remain buried there at all. *573
Vukovar Forest: UN Commissioner Torkel Opsahl interviewed Ivica Kuletic, who is in Zagreb prison and is accused of war crimes. According to Opsahl's report, Kuletic allegedly took part in the killing of the sick and wounded from Vukovar Hospital. In addition, he confessed that in a forest near Vukovar, approximately 1,500 civilians were killed, an incident in which he participated. A large pit had been previously dug, to which detained civilians were brought by lorry every three to four hours. Five groups of civilians were brought to the site, with 250 to 300 persons in each group. Kuletic admitted that he and other persons killed a total of 1,500 people with machine-guns. In his conversation with Opsahl, however, he alleged that his confessions were made under duress and that he did not participate in the killings. *574
Kivi Shop on Svetozara Markovica Street: Two reports, hailing from the Red Cross and the Government of Croatia, note that a mass grave was located on Svetozara Markovica Street, near the «Kivi» shop, and contains 360 bodies. *575
JNA Barracks: Marijan Karaula, a resident of Vukovar, stated that 72 corpses were buried at the JNA barracks. Reportedly, this site was later plowed over with a bulldozer. *576
Home for Elderly/Harbor Headquarters: Both of these sites are near the Vukovar hospital, and Dr. Vesna Bosanac related that when the Vukovar Office of Burials ran out of coffins, bodies were disposed of at the home for the elderly. At the time of Dr. Bosanac's report, 50 bodies remained unburied there, as did 50 bodies in the backyard of the Harbor Headquarters. The bodies do, however, all have serial numbers for identification purposes. *577
Residential Houses: A report detailing the siege of Vukovar noted that many JNA soldiers killed during the Vukovar fighting were buried in common graves in the yards of Vukovar's private residences. *578 However, a gravedigger working for the JNA noted that the Army handled burials of its own soldiers, often taking the bodies to Negoslavci, or beyond to Serbia. *579
Petrova Gora, Gelesova Dol: Petrova Gora is an area of Vukovar. At Gelesova Dol, 50 to 75 Croatian soldiers were allegedly shot and their corpses burned. *580
Petrova Gora, Svetozara Markovica Street: A resident of Vukovar was captured by Serbs and forced to work on burial detail in the region. One gravesite at which he worked was at the end of Svetozara Markovica street, near the new fairgrounds. The site is on the right side of the street, near Misir's vineyard and 100 metres from the Vesela Dolina Inn. Witness and eight or nine other persons dug graves at this site. Witness estimated that 20 to 30 holes were dug very close together, with each pit holding three to four men. Those buried in the grave were Croatians, mostly men aged 18 to 30, in civilian clothing. The witness observed no women. He related that those he buried were killed in a variety of ways, but most did not seem to be traditional war casualties: the majority were shot in the head or had their throats slit. *581
Petrova Gora, Stevo Kokot Property: The aforementioned witness described the location of another grave in Petrova Gora. He did not participate in burials at this site, but two of his comrades did. The gravesite is on the property of Stevo Kokot, near the pond on the exit from Vukovar. To reach the site, one would take the road from Vukovar to Petrovci, near the new fairgounds, for about 200 to 300 metres. On the left side is a 500 metre long black slag road. On the right side, 150 metres along this road is a group of trees and the house of the Brac brothers. The mass grave is located between these two landmarks. Witness alleged that the JNA brought corpses there. *582
Ovcara: The evacuation of Vukovar Hospital in November 1991 and the alleged mass grave at Ovcara have previously been the subject of reports prepared by the Commission. *583 Accordingly, this section will discuss new information obtained since the date of the last report. *584
Plans and arrangements were made throughout 1993 to conduct a second site exploration of the Ovcara gravesite. The goals of the second site exploration would be to exhume the bodies at the site, collect physical evidence, perform autopsies on all bodies at a selected morgue facility, and secure any available testimonial evidence not yet collected.
Once the resources and personnel were secured, the teams were dispatched to Sector East on 19 October to begin the investigation. The teams consisted of a contingent from Physicians for Human Rights (PHR); a Canadian War Crimes Investigation Team (WCIT), consisting of two military lawyers and three police investigators; and one UN Support Detachment Deploy from the Netherlands.
Upon their arrival in Sector East, the teams were told by UNPROFOR that a meeting with Republic of Serb Krajina officials, including Colonel Milanovic, was required before the excavation could begin. Milanovic was not available until 22 October, so the various teams went to the Ovcara site on 20 and 21 October to conduct a survey which would not involve excavation.
During the site survey, the area was cleaned and cleared of mines. Physical evidence, including spent cartridges were recovered. The arrangement of these cartridges confirmed earlier findings that the a mass execution had taken place at the site. *585 Topographic mapping and metal detection sweeps were completed. On 23 October, Commissioner Fenrick advised that the Republic of Serb Krajina Parliament had made a decision to postpone activity at Ovcara until the political situation in the former Yugoslavia was resolved. Accordingly, all personnel ceased operations at Ovcara and withdrew from the site. Attempts were made to salvage the exploration, but with no success. The area remains under UNPROFOR protection. *586
Lovas: Lovas is situated south-east of the city of Vukovar. Military activity in the village began on or about 10 October, when Serb forces fired grenades from their positions in the graveyard. *587 The «White Eagles» arrived, and the movement of all villagers was restricted. The village surrendered, and arrests and killings of civilians began. *588 Many villagers were subjected to forced labour, which included burial detail.
The alleged mass grave(s) in Lovas appeared to be located in the Catholic cemetery. Witness accounts spoke of one or two long canals or trenches, into which dead bodies were thrown. One witness was forced to drive those killed in the village to the graveyard, beginning on 14 October. One person identified the dead while five or six other Croatians loaded the corpses onto the truck. *589 Nine people were killed on 15 October, and their bodies were also taken to the Catholic community grave. At the site, a canal was dug by a military excavator which was 25 metres by 80-100 centimetres wide by two metres. On the opposite side was a shorter canal, 10 to 12 metres long. However, witness never buried bodies in the smaller canal. A minimum of five persons were buried in the canal on the first day. When a row of bodies was complete, they would be covered with dirt and a new row was started. *590
Another Lovas villager saw 26 people brought from a lorry to the site of two trenches, each 25 metres long and one metre wide. The trenches were not properly covered, and thus, parts of bodies were visible. This witness said that a total of 80 people were buried there. *591 However, the Red Cross noted that the mass grave at the cemetery extended for 100 metres, from the cemetery entrance to the chapel, and that 140 villagers who had been executed were buried there. *592
UNCIVPOL visited this site on 28 August 1992, after receiving word of the gravesite from the Osijek police. The UNCIVPOL official observed evidence of heavy equipment in the area and saw a mound of earth two metres by 50 metres. The official noted that the most «glaring proof» that a mass grave was situated at the site was the fact that it was visited by friends and family on a regular basis. The site was being maintained by them, as weeds had been removed and flowers planted at different points along the mound. *593
On the basis of UNCIVPOL's findings, Special Rapporteur Ndiaye and forensic expert Morris Tidball Binz did a brief investigation of this site on 18 December 1992. Binz noted that the area consisted of a 30 metres long, two metres wide and slightly elevated mound of disturbed earth, and it appeared the trench had been refilled with earth. He observed that the middle part of the mound had been cleared of vegetation, and funerary ornaments had been placed on the top. He found no evidence which was inconsistent with allegations of a mass grave at the site. *594
Binz's report suggested that the victims buried in this grave were victims of war crimes, and that the names of the dead were registered and can be traced. *595 Thus, it would appear that the burial site itself is legitimate, but forensic information may reveal that the persons buried there were civilian victims of mass killings.
Jakobovac: Reportedly 300 imprisoned civilians and soldiers were executed and put in mass graves in November 1991. These graves were allegedly situated on the Vukovar-Sotin Road, towards Jakobovac. *596 UNCIVPOL visited the area, but found no indication of a grave.
Kakobovac: A woman interviewed by the State Department was told by other Croatians that a sheep farm in the Serbian town of Kakobovac was turned into a jail, where a large number of Croatian POWs captured in Vukovar were killed. Afterwards, they were buried in a canal between the two buildings of the sheep farm. The canal had been used as a runoff for manure from the sheep and was lightly covered with dirt. When strong rains came, body parts could be seen protruding from the canal. The bodies were then moved to a ditch, .5 kilometres away where they were reburied. Barbed wire surrounds the gravesite. *597
Berak: Hostilities in this small village outside of Vukovar began as early as 17 May 1992, when seven villagers were expelled by Serb paramilitaries. A mass grave was said to exist in the Sarvas Valley, between Berak and Svinjarevci. A villager from Berak was informed by unnamed witnesses that a relative of the villager had been allegedly killed by a named «Cetnik». According to the eyewitness, the perpetrator told JNA soldiers that he killed the person and threw the body into a pit in which all 32 killed villagers of Berak were buried. Those villagers had been abducted from Berak between 2 and 14 October 1991. *598
Bogdanovci: Bogdanovci is a small village in Vukovar, just north-east of Vinkovci. There was a general report that Vinkovci Police had knowledge of a mass grave near the village, containing an unknown number of bodies. According to the Croatian Red Cross, JNA and Serb paramilitaries performed summary executions of captured civilians and soldiers who attempted to escape Vukovar after the conquest. At the time of the report, 300 persons from the area were missing. *599 However, the report did not speculate that all 300 persons were buried at this site.
Petrovci: The forest near Petrovci may be a mass burial site for Croatian soldiers. According to the Red Cross, Serb paramilitaries and JNA forces captured 16 Croatian soldiers retreating from Vukovar, and executed and buried them at this location. Two villagers were forced to bury the bodies of the dead soldiers. *600
Tovarnik: Of this village's 3,000 inhabitants, 75 per cent were Croatian, and the rest Serbs. Once Vukovar was attacked, JNA forces and Cetniks transported troops and weapons through the village on a daily basis. Civilians were captured and killed in the village beginning in late September of 1991. There were reports that four mass graves, holding the bodies of 250 villagers, exist in Tovarnik. *601 One was located in the Catholic Cemetery, two were located in the vicinity of the Catholic Church, and the fourth was on the outskirts of the village. *602
In late September, members of the irregular forces forced a Tovarnik villager to dig out a mass grave for killed civilians, along with six other Croatian men. Twenty-four residents of Tovarnik were buried there in a single day. *603 During October, this same villager and two others buried three Croatians. *604
Another witness related the burial of the parish priest. On 2 October 1991, the priest was allegedly shot in the back in the rectory. A witness discovered the body, he wrapped it in a blanket, placed it in a plastic bag, and then buried it in the mass grave in the cemetery. *605
The county of Zenica is located in central BiH between Travnik and Kakanj. According to a 1991 census of the area, the population totaled 145,577, of whom 55.2 per cent were Muslim, 15.6 per cent were Croat, 15.5 per cent were Serb, 10.8 per cent were Yugoslavian, and 2.9 per cent were listed as «other».
The BiH Army and the Croat HVO forces began to fight in the area of Zenica around April 1993. *606 Specifically, the III Corps of the BiH Army, accompanied by Mujaheddins, attacked the villages on 8 June 1993. *607 During the attack on the village of Maljina, the Mujaheddins allegedly killed approximately 25 Croats who were then buried in mass graves in Maljina. *608 After the attack, members of the III Corps of the BiH Army or the military police prevented Croats from leaving the area without permission. *609 Officials would grant exchanges of Muslims and Croats at an average cost of 250 DM per Croat. *610
Maljina: On 23 September 1993, a UN official attempted to visit the mass grave sites in Maljina. *611 The Deputy Commander of III Corps of the BiH Army, D. Merdan, refused to allow an investigation. *612 The mass grave sites contained the remains of at least 25 Croats who were allegedly massacred by Mujaheddins on 8 June 1993. *613 Merdan stated that after an attack, a process of «assanation» occurred, meaning human corpses were buried and animals were burned. *614 Merdan also stated that there were two mass graves in the vicinity of Maljina in which 25 to 30 bodies were buried. *615 However, Merdan claimed that he did not know how many of the dead were civilians.
The UN official also interviewed a Catholic priest from Zenica, who corroborated the allegation that two mass graves existed in Maljina. *616 The priest also received information that a third smaller grave existed. *617
The UN official finally received permission to visit the sites from the Chairman of the Exchange Commission, Mr. Slavko Beba. *618 The UN official went directly to Bikosi, a small hamlet located 1.5 or two kilometres from Maljina. *619 The UN official chose Bikosi based on an eyewitness account of the alleged killing of Croats. *620 The UN official found the situation to be exactly as the witness related, that the Croats were allegedly lined up against a wall and shot. *621 The UN official saw that the wall was freshly patched and was certain that at least 25 Croats were killed. *622
Near the wall, the UN official found two piles of freshly dug earth, which corresponded to the Zenica priest's description. *623 However, the Chairman of the Exchange Commission stated that the graves were located two kilometres from the spot. *624 The UN official's report never indicated whether the piles of earth were in fact the mass graves alleged to exist in Maljina.
A later ECMM report indicated that the UNPROFOR British Battalion confirmed the existence of the mass graves. *625 However, the report did not contain specific details as to the location of the graves. The report also stated that 50 people were killed in the incident and that the BiH Army tampered with the graves. *626 The ECMM did not indicate the source of this information.
Bilusa: EC monitors reported that a mass grave was discovered in the village of Bilusa in the Zenica area. *627 The HVO information office reported that 32 bodies of Croat victims, most likely from Zenica, had been exhumed as of 5 August 1993. *628 No other details regarding the location of the grave or the circumstances surrounding its excavation were given.
The county of Zvornik is located in north-eastern BiH, bordered by the Drina River on the eastern side. The county consists of the town of Zvornik and 66 smaller villages and hamlets. According to the 1991 census, the population of Zvornik was 81,111 persons, of which 59.4 per cent were Muslim, 38 per cent were Serbian and 2.6 per cent were classified as «other». *630
Serbian military activity in Zvornik began in April of 1992. Serbian civilians of the county began evacuating themselves from the village. *631 Artillery and mortar fire commenced on 8 April, and JNA forces, Arkan's and Seselj's units *632 and local Cetniks occupied the village the following day. *633 Seselj's units demanded that Muslim residents surrender all of their weapons, and then forced them from their homes. This operation was reportedly organized by senior police officers. Two hundred Muslim houses were burned, and 76 people were killed. Young male residents who had gathered outside of their homes were told to either join the Serbian forces, leave, or be shot. *634 In the «Kula» section of Zvornik, men had gathered in the hospital basement. They were pressured by Cetniks to provide information on «resistors». Those who refused were taken away, possibly to the detention facility at Karakaj. *635 According to one report, 2,500 men were killed on 9 and 10 April. *636 From mid-April to August of 1992, mass graves *637 were allegedly excavated at various locations in Zvornik proper and its surrounding villages. *638
Kazambasic Cemetery: The Kazambasic *639 Cemetery is just outside of Zvornik proper, approximately two kilometres north- east of the city. *640 The site is on the north-west side of the road that branches off west to Tuzla and north-east to Belgrade. *641 It is believed to be a Muslim cemetery. *642 In mid-April 1992, Serbian forces began using a bulldozer in the cemetary to dig large pits. The dimensions indeterminable. After the pits were excavated, buses and trucks arrived at the site up to three times per day. On some days, no bodies were dumped, but a bulldozer operator was always on site. *643
The excavation and burial at the cemetery was witnessed by several people. *644 Residents of Little Zvornik (on the Serbian side of the Drina River) observed the digging of the graves and bodies being dumped into them as early as April. *645 Another report noted that 600 Muslims, who had been detained at the Celopek and Divic camps, were killed, loaded onto trucks by Muslim and Croatian prisoners, and taken to the cemetery for burial. *646 On 26 May, seven boys, who were detained in the Karakaj district, were walking past the cemetery with a «Cetnik». *647 On that date, they observed approximately 600 bodies being dumped into the pits from trucks. *648 The boys described the gravesites as being on both sides of a road that ran north-west through the cemetery and about 100 metres from the main road. *649
A 35 year-old resident of Zvornik viewed holes being dug «in a Muslim graveyard». She noted that the digger worked all day for seven days, and in the afternoons, locals who had been taken from their homes and killed were buried in the holes. She estimated that there were at least 100 people in each of several holes, but could not provide approximate dimensions of the gravesite. *650
Ravnaje Stone Quarry: The Ravnaje rock quarry is located three kilometres east of Zvornik, near the Hotel Drina, in Serbia. *651 Muslims from Zvornik reported seeing a convoy of refrigerator trucks driving on a road which lead to Ravnaje. The trucks had been loaded with the bodies of 60 prisoners, who had been shot and killed at the loading dock of the Karakaj camp slaughterhouse. *652 A prisoner who had been one of those shot survived, watched the loading of the trucks, and was able to escape to Bosnian Muslim held territory. He joined the Muslim Defence Forces and viewed the convoy of trucks during his service with the organization. *653 Another resident of Zvornik, who is now a refugee, also stated that she had heard of burials occurring in the gravel pits below the Drina River from Celopek. *654
Vidakova Njiva Suburb: Vidakova Njiva, a suburb, is just south of Zvornik proper. The alleged gravesite is located on a 1.5 kilometres stretch of land along the west side of the Drina River. A former captain with the Yugoslav Territorial Defence stated that from 9 June to 5 August 1992, between two and seven dump trucks came at night to this location and dumped corpses in trenches that had been excavated by a bulldozer during the day. It was estimated that at least 2,000 to 3,000 bodies were buried in this area. *655
Meterizi Cemetery: Meterizi Cemetery is approximately 700 metres south of the Karakaj industrial complex. Muslim Defence Force personnel serving in the county witnessed earth-moving machines digging a large pit in the cemetery. The witness speculated that the pit was to be used as a mass grave, but no other details about the site were provided. *656
Snagovo, «Crni Ves»: Snagovo is a village in Zvornik county, eight kilometres from Zvornik proper. It is situated along the road that leads from Zvornik to Pale and Sarajevo. A former captain with the Yugoslav Territorial Defence stated that in April and May 1992, at least 500 people were buried in a mass grave at Crni Ves, which is near the village of Snagovo. No other details about the site were provided. *657
Snagovo: On 1 May 1992, Serb troops in the village of Snagovo killed 42 civilians, including a pregnant woman and a two year-old child. The bodies were transported to a truck garage, placed inside, and the building was set on fire. The remains were taken to bulldozers and taken to an unidentified mass grave. *658
Grbavci Cemetery: Grbavci is located two kilometres from Zvornik. On 18 May 1992, Serb militiamen surrounded the village and began shooting. Residents began to flee. Many of the male villagers were rounded up, put into a line, and upon an order to «kill the Ustasa», were shot at with automatic weapons. At least 56 men were killed. Three days later, some of the villagers returned from their hiding places and buried the victims on the edge of the cemetery, between two rows of houses, near the spot where they died. *659
Other Graves: There are general reports of other mass graves in Zvornik county. These include: a) Ramin grob, in the village of Glumina *660 ; b) Sljunkara, near Karakaj and c) Amajici, on the Serb side of the Drina River. *661