Rasim Delić describes Sefer Halilović: Dissatisfied, vain, ambitious, and a coward

The best description of Sefer Halilović's character was given by Rasim Delić in his book “The Face and the Other Side of War“.  When he was summoned to Sarajevo in the spring of 1993, some of the highest officers informed him that he was going to the position of Commander of the Main Staff of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, writes the Patria agency.

As he was preparing to travel to Sarajevo, Rasim Delić thought that “problems could arise due to human vanity, and even certain obstructions, which could negatively affect our struggle“.

Delić immediately went to the Main Staff to see Sefer Halilović, who had been his commander until then: “I told him that I had come by order of President Izetbegović, for which Stjepan Šiber had given me his consent.“

“You have come to become commander“, Halilović said angrily.... After a brief conversation, in a rather tense atmosphere, I left the Main Staff. I became aware that Sefer would not accept the change and that there would be problems even if he remained in the position of Chief of Staff. A dissatisfied, vain, and extremely ambitious man like Sefer Halilović, who had been at the head of the Army for a year, could cause many problems, especially during the war“.

Delić recalls: “In the morning of June 8, I received a call to report to Izetbegović's office. When I arrived at the Presidency, Sefer Halilović was already there.... Izetbegović informed us that a session of the Presidency of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina would be held that day, at which a decision would be made on my appointment to the position of Commander of the Main Staff, while Sefer would remain in the position of Chief of Staff.

All the while, Delić felt a burden and inner turmoil, and probably influenced by what he had experienced from Sefer, he unexpectedly stepped forward: “I tried once more to convince Izetbegović to change his decision, and that Halilović should remain at the head of the Army, and I would take any position where I could contribute to our struggle“.

“When Halilović took the floor, I saw that such a decision had disappointed him. He attacked the intention to appoint me as commander of the Army, denying any of my previous contributions and work. He did not choose words to humiliate me and my previous engagement in the Army. I was surprised. All this time I had protected the authority of his position, although he knew well his and my previous reputation among officers, especially artillery personnel. I don't know who knew him in a professional sense, while I led units that received numerous awards before the war. I became aware of Halilović's anger and vanity, but I could not agree with his attacks on me. Since this was happening in the office of the President of the BiH Presidency, I responded with carefully chosen words. Halilović obviously considered this my weakness. Izetbegović interrupted further discussion, ordering us to come to the session of the BiH Presidency that same day. From that moment on, I became aware that I would have an opponent in Sefer Halilović, not a collaborator“...

After the session began, Delić realized that Halilović had not changed his stance. When Izetbegović proposed Delić's appointment as Commander of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina before the Presidency, everything was repeated: “Sefer Halilović, in a heated outburst, expressed his opposition, again speaking of me as a man who did not deserve that position. I felt uncomfortable, and at the same time, it was strange how someone could lie so much and pour out so much bile on someone who did not deserve it... However, Halilović's performance did not please the members of the Presidency either...

Without much discussion, the Presidency accepted the appointment of Rasim Delić and, at the same time, elected Bakir Alispahić as Minister of Internal Affairs. Due to the evident tensions, a Commission was appointed for Delić to take over the duty from Halilović: Fikret Muslimović, Jovan Divjak, and Abdulah Konjicija.

However, Divjak, Muslimović, Konjicija, and Commander Delić experienced a shock when they arrived at Sefer's office: “In the hallway in front of the office was Ramiz Delalić Ćelo with several of his soldiers. They were all in full combat readiness, with rifles in their hands and a threatening appearance. When they saw us, they started shouting. I entered Sefer's office, and my escorts later said that they were threatened that they would not leave the building alive“.

When brutal threats did not help, Sefer asked for all members of the Main Staff of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina to gather. The commission agreed, and the members of the Staff began to arrive: Meho Karišik, Rifat Bilajac, Zićro Suljević, Sulejman Vranj, Mustafa Hajrulahović Talijan, and several other high-ranking officers of the Army were there. Everything seemed unnatural and tense, and when it was stated that Delić's appointment was a decision of the BiH Presidency, there were no more dilemmas, and all discussions ceased, and the tensions disappeared.

“Although Halilović attacked the Presidency's decision, it became apparent that his plan to misuse the members of the Main Staff had failed. Halilović, realizing that he did not have the support of the Staff members either, threatened that he would not accept the position of Chief of Staff, that he would submit a written resignation to the Presidency, and that he would go to some unit to fight as a soldier. All who knew him knew that at least the latter, that he would fight as a soldier in the trenches, was an empty story. As one of the reasons for his removal from the position of the first man of the Army, Izetbegović, in addition to unsuccessful command of the army, mentioned cowardice, which should not be a characteristic of a professional officer“, wrote Delić in his memoirs.                                 

Delić replaced Sefer Halilović as Commander of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina after 14 months of war and remained in that position until the end of the war, which is twice as long - 28 months. After Delić's arrival as commander, the Army was cleared of paramilitary units and commanders by the end of 1993, then militarized, organized, and disciplined. Hierarchical order prevailed, and there were no longer any internal disturbances or conflicts, however small. Offensives followed in which a huge territory and several cities were liberated, and then the war was stopped by the international community.