Prosecution witness Ilija Nikolic recalls the events of July 13, 1995, when he saw murders committed in Kravica Agricultural Cooperative warehouse.
“Everything looked strange that morning. After we got up, my friend Milo and me went to Bratunac by car to visit our relatives in Milici village. On our way, as we were passing by Sandici village, a police patrol stopped us. They were armed and dressed in camouflage uniforms,” the witness said.
After having been stopped in Sandici, Nikolic saw men dressed in civilian clothes on the meadow. The men were guarded by armed people in camouflage overalls. He said during the course of his testimony that there were about 200 of them.
As they did not get permission to continue to Milici, Nikolic and his “friend Milo” went back to Bratunac.
“On our return, I was furious, because I did not know who the people in overalls were and why they did not let us pass. I decided to stop by in Kravica, as my brother Jovan Nikolic was the Manager,” the witness said.
Continuing with his testimony, Nikolic said that, on his arrival at the Agricultural Cooperative, he saw a group of civilians and armed policemen taking them to the warehouse, adding that, at that moment, “an incident happened”.
“I was standing by the administration building together with my brother. We stood close to the warehouse, so I saw a column of people approaching us. Policemen guarded them with their rifles pointed at them. One of the civilians tried to take a rifle from one of the policemen. At that moment the chaos started,” the witness said, adding that armed policemen then formed a semi-circle and started shooting in the direction of the warehouse to which the civilians had been taken.
The State Prosecution charges Zeljko Ivanovic, as a member of the Second Special Police Squad from Sekovici, with having participated in the murder of more than 1,000 men in the Kravica Agricultural Cooperative warehouses on July 13, 1995.
The indictment alleges that, after having detained the prisoners, he and other members of the Second Squad formed a semi-circle and started shooting at the prisoners in the warehouse.
It further alleges that Ivanovic participated in escorting a convoy consisting of several thousands Bosniaks from Sandici to Kravica Agricultural Cooperative warehouse.
During his testimony Ilic mentioned that the shooting lasted for the next 15 minutes. After that he and his friend Milo went back to Bratunac.
He said that, a few days later, on July 17, 1995, on his way to Kravica he saw a hole which had been dug and he “guessed” the civilians who had been killed in the warehouse were to be buried in it.
During cross-examination Nikolic said he did not know indictee Ivanovic, adding he did not see him in Kravica on July 13, 1995.
The trial is due to continue on November 20, when the Prosecution will examine two more witnesses.