6. APRIL - LIBERATION DAY Sarajevo will endure, everything else will pass!

On April 6, 1945, the city of Sarajevo became a symbol of resistance and freedom. That day marks the liberation of the city from fascist occupation during World War II. Sarajevans, Bosnians and Herzegovinians fought for freedom through joint efforts and sacrifices, and April 6 is celebrated today as Sarajevo City Day.

German forces attacked our territories on April 6, 1941. After that, on April 15, the Nazis entered Sarajevo, and on April 17, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia capitulated. Sarajevo became part of the quisling Independent State of Croatia (NDH), where citizens suffered terror, property confiscation, imprisonment, deportations, torture, and murder.

Shortly after the occupation, a resistance movement was organized in Sarajevo. Members of this movement carried out sabotage, collected funds for armed struggle, and organized departures to join the partisans. In February 1945, German forces had no intention of leaving Sarajevo. The Ustaše commander Vjekoslav “Maks” Luburić brutally tried to break the resistance movement. However, the Sarajevo underground fighters did not falter. A bloody massacre occurred, with around 323 people killed in Vjekoslava's villa in Skenderija.

However, at the end of March, it was planned to begin the liberation of Sarajevo, and on April 4, partisan forces began to implement the action. The first liberation units entered the city on April 5, and on April 6, Sarajevo was finally liberated from the fascists.

Aggression against Sarajevo in 1992

Unfortunately, Sarajevo would again face aggression, this time during the war in the nineties. In early April 1992, the city became a victim of aggression and the longest siege of a capital city in modern history. The Siege of Sarajevo lasted 1,425 days, from April 5, 1992, to February 29, 1996. During this period, the city was almost completely cut off from the rest of the country, and residents faced shortages of food, electricity, gas, medicine, and water. Sarajevans were killed by continuous shelling and sniper fire while fetching water, standing in line for bread... The aggressor killed indiscriminately.

The siege resulted in 11,541 deaths, including 1,601 children, and around 50,000 wounded. The city endured continuous shelling half a century after its liberation from German fascists. However, it also survived the Serb-Chetnik occupation.

Today, as we mark Sarajevo Liberation Day, we remember the courage and determination of the people who fought for the freedom and dignity of the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Sarajevo will endure, everything else will pass.

Happy Sarajevo Liberation Day!