ZAGREB, Aug 3 (Hina) - On Monday, Croatia celebrates Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day in memory of the 5th of August 1995 when Croatia's military and police forces liberated the town of Knin, which had been the stronghold of the
ethnic Serb rebels since the early 1990s.
ZAGREB, Aug 3 (Hina) - On Monday, Croatia celebrates Victory and
Homeland Thanksgiving Day in memory of the 5th of August 1995 when
Croatia's military and police forces liberated the town of Knin,
which had been the stronghold of the ethnic Serb rebels since the
early 1990s. #L#
This year, this national holiday will for the first time be
celebrated also as Victory Day after the Croatian parliament last
November decided to proclaim it as Victory and Homeland
Thanksgiving Day.
During the 1995 operation known as "Storm", which commenced in
early hours of 4 August, Croatia's forces liberated 11,000 square
kilometres of the territory within 84 hours. The liberated areas
had been under control of Serb insurgents for over four year.
The liberation of Knin was seen as the climax of this swift
operation. Exactly at noon of the 5th of August, Croatia's huge flag
was lifted at the medieval citadel overlooking the town.
On the same day, the then President Franjo Tudjman arrived in the
town and said its liberation had created a condition for the
country's stability in the coming centuries.
On Monday, 7 August, the then Defence Minister, Gojko Susak,
announced that the operation had been completed and that Croatia
restored its constitutional and legal system in the former UN north
and south sectors.
In the entire operation, which involved over 200,000 troops, 174
soldiers lost their lives while 1,430 were wounded.
(hina) ms