31st Anniversary of the Killing of Eight Sarajevans in Isevića Sokak Street Marked

(Patria) - By laying flowers and paying tribute to the families of the victims, representatives of cantonal, municipal and city authorities, as well as associations, marked the 31st anniversary of the killing of eight Sarajevans in Isevića Sokak street at number 23.

At that spot, 31 years ago, a 100mm tank shell was fired from the aggressor positions of the Republika Srpska Army on Borije, killing eight people and lightly or seriously wounding 19 others who were waiting in line for water.

The victims were: Ahmet Ahmetspahić, Jasmina Kajanija, Asim Lačević, Azra Lačević, Senad Lagumdžija, Bajro Pinjo, Aferdita Sadikaj and Jasna Šarić.

On behalf of the Sarajevo Canton, flowers were laid at the memorial by the Minister of Education of the Sarajevo Canton, Naida Hota-Muminović, and representatives in the Sarajevo Canton Assembly, Jasmin Šaljić and Elvis Vreto.

As Minister Hota-Muminović stated from the site of the massacre, it is important for the past, present and future to mark the anniversaries of the suffering of children and other civilians, so that the horrors of the aggression against Sarajevo and Bosnia and Herzegovina are not forgotten.

"Therefore, I remind you of the thousand-day siege of Sarajevo, during which its citizens were subjected to great suffering, when they were hungry, thirsty, and frostbitten. The aggressor, through constant shelling and sniper fire, killed more than 12,000 citizens of Sarajevo, including 1,601 children. I divide people only into good and bad, but here I feel the need to emphasize that the enemy artillery did not discriminate based on age, gender, or religious and ethnic affiliation. Everyone in Sarajevo was a living target for the Republika Srpska Army," said Minister Hota-Muminović.

She added that regardless of the past, our future must be built on the equality of all peoples and citizens.

"We must persevere with the ideas on which Bosnia and Herzegovina can and must survive, and these are the ideas of coexistence, mutual respect and tolerance. For that to happen, justice must be served and the perpetrators of these terrible crimes, including the one we are marking today, must be adequately punished," said Minister Hota-Muminović.