ZAGREB/THE HAGUE, Dec 11 (Hina) - The Serbian-Montenegrin army attacked Dubrovnik because the town was on their way to Karlobag, that is, the imagined boundary of the so-called Greater Serbia, Dubrovnik war-time mayor Petar Poljanic
said at the war crimes trial of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on Wednesday.
ZAGREB/THE HAGUE, Dec 11 (Hina) - The Serbian-Montenegrin army
attacked Dubrovnik because the town was on their way to Karlobag,
that is, the imagined boundary of the so-called Greater Serbia,
Dubrovnik war-time mayor Petar Poljanic said at the war crimes
trial of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic before the
International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY)
on Wednesday. #L#
The attack on Konavle, Zupa Dubrovacka, Dubrovnik and the Dubrovnik
coastline began on October 1, 1991 from the direction of
Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, from the sea and air, Poljanic
said. In about two weeks all of the said areas with the exception of
Dubrovnik, were occupied. The town was without water and
electricity because of the destroyed infrastructure and
communication transmitters. The town was completely blocked and
turned into "the largest prison in the world", Poljanic added.
The ancient core of the town was shelled from October 23 on. By the
time the shelling ceased more than a thousand shells fell on that
section of the town which was declared a world heritage. The old
part of the town was shelled from the Zarkovica region and Yugoslav
army ships.
Speaking about civilian victims in the town, the ICTY Prosecution
in particular pointed to the case of Dubrovnik fire-fighters who
were killed by shells when they were trying to save refugees from a
burning hotel. Poljanic confirmed the event. He added that there
were no Croatian soldiers in the Old Town.
Answering questions by the prosecution, the former mayor confirmed
the destruction of Croatian villages in the surrounding region,
including Brdat, Cilipi, Dubravka, Gruda, Mocici, Osojnik, Slano,
Molunat, Popovici, Donja Ljuta, Mihanici, Plat, Cepikuce and
Zvekovica.
"More than ten thousand civilians fled from the region. They had to
take refuge due to the shelling, burning, killing. Those who did not
manage to escape were killed or taken to the Bileca prison camp in
Bosnia-Herzegovina and Morinje in Montenegro," Poljanic said. He
added that members of the Serb-Montenegrin army then looted the
entire region.
Responding to questions about the situation in Dubrovnik just prior
to the conflict, Poljanic said that Serbs had not been dismissed
from their jobs because of their national affiliation. He also said
that their houses were not destroyed, except those built without a
permit that had been declared for demolition. This though occurred
to people of all nationalities. He emphasised that he did not know
of not one case where the Croatian armed forces attacked
Montenegro. "There were some quite intensive armed provocation by
the Montenegro from the Kobila hill towards Konavle," Poljanic
said.
He testified that when he attended talks in Herceg Novi and Trebinje
before the beginning of the conflict, he noticed JNA reservists
gathering in the Montenegrin region as well as a large number of
soldiers on the road to Trebinje and in the town itself.
The trial against Slobodan Milosevic and Poljanic's testimony will
continue on Wednesday, December 18.
(hina) sp it sb