NATIONAL MONUMENT Graffiti drawn on the Latin Bridge, police found and arrested them

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - During the previous night, the most severe form of vandalism was committed against the national monument Latin Bridge, with graffiti written on both sides of the bridge.

The First Police Station - PS Stari Grad confirmed that the perpetrators were apprehended last night and taken in for questioning, and a regular procedure is underway.

The Municipality of Stari Grad has also contacted the City Administration of Sarajevo, which is responsible for these matters, where it was confirmed that they have urgently engaged a company for cleaning and removing graffiti from the Latin Bridge in order to restore this national monument to its original state.

The Municipality of Stari Grad Sarajevo expresses its gratitude to the First Police Station - PS Stari Grad for their timely reaction and apprehension of the perpetrators on the spot. Such a swift reaction should serve as a warning to all vandals and lawbreakers that their behavior will not be tolerated here and that they will be held accountable for their actions. Through the joint action of local self-government and law enforcement agencies, coordination, and presence on the ground, we will prevent the destruction of our cultural heritage, national monuments, as well as other forms of legal violations.

We remind you that, according to the Decision on offenses against public order and peace of the Municipality of Stari Grad Sarajevo, writing graffiti is defined as an offense, for which a fine is prescribed. Anyone who writes graffiti on facades and entrances of buildings, public transport, monuments, retaining walls, billboards, and the like can be sanctioned with a fine in the amount of 150 - 450 KM. However, in case of vandalism against our cultural heritage, we will advocate for stricter sanctions.

The Commission for the Preservation of National Monuments of BiH, at its session held from August 30 to September 2, 2004, made a Decision declaring the historical building - the Latin Bridge in Sarajevo a national monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The Latin Bridge is one of the oldest bridges in Sarajevo, which has changed over time, from an original wooden bridge to the stone bridge that spans the Miljacka today. This bridge was first mentioned in a census from 1541, which states that the bridge was built by a certain Husein, son of Širmedov, a saddler.

From a later document, it can be concluded that it was a wooden bridge, which was soon destroyed, and in its place, Sarajevo's dignitary Ali Ajni-Beg built a stone bridge.

That stone bridge was washed away by a great flood in 1791, after which, in 1798, the Latin Bridge was built in its current form using funds bequeathed for charitable purposes by the prominent Sarajevo merchant Abdulah Briga.

The Latin Bridge got its name from Latinluk, a neighborhood on the left bank of the Miljacka, inhabited by Sarajevo Catholics.

From 1918 to 1993, the Latin Bridge was called Principov Most (Princip's Bridge), after Gavrilo Princip, who, a few meters from this bridge, assassinated the Austro-Hungarian heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie. That event, known as the Sarajevo Assassination, is considered the cause for the start of World War I.

The old name – Latin Bridge – was restored in 1992. Damaged during the siege, the Latin Bridge was reconstructed in 2003/2004.