Recordings from The Hague played in the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Gagović and Legija agreed on artillery strikes, today he testifies against 'Ganić and others'!

By: A. Čorbo-Zećo

The hearing of Milosav Gagović, a high-ranking JNA officer, a man who already stood in defense of war criminals Mladić and Karadžić in The Hague, continued today at the Court of BiH, and today he is a witness for the BiH Prosecutor's Office in the case of 'Ejup Ganić and others'. Gagović held the position of Assistant Commander of the 4th Corps, after which he became Commander of the Corps on May 11, 1992.

We remind you that in this indictment, the BiH Prosecutor's Office represents the prosecution that Alija Izetbegović was a free man on May 3, 1992, and that the JNA column on May 3 was not a legitimate military target, as determined by the Hague Prosecutor's Office and courts in Vienna and London.

Today's testimony by Gagović confirmed what The Hague determined, and what every Bosnian and Herzegovinian knows - the JNA ceased to exist on April 27, 1992, and continued to operate as the Army of Yugoslavia. This is clear, and Gagović was confronted with this question today during the defense attorney's questioning. What were the JNA or its 'remnants' doing on May 2 and 3, and in the period that followed?

Defense attorney Mirna Avdibegović confronted the witness with a series of recordings of conversations between him and Legija (Milorad Ulemek) in which they can be heard discussing in mid-May where the JNA artillery should operate, which positions and targets.

At one point, Gagović tells Legija that he 'can level it all', and in one of the conversations (certified in The Hague), Legija says: 'Hit it, brother', and Gagović replies: 'Okay'. Gagović stated that he was never interrogated as a suspect for crimes in Sarajevo and the siege of Sarajevo.

The witness confirmed that he did speak with Ratko Mladić and Professor Unković, and that Mladić was at his command post. Then, on the recording, Mladić can be heard ordering Unković that everyone carrying a rifle must be subordinate to the IV Corps, Gagović, and that the 'Šešelj's', 'Arkan's', as well as members of the RS TO must be subordinate to them.

Gagović absolutely confirmed that the JNA ceased to exist on April 27, 1992, and argued that from that moment on they were the remnants of the former JNA, and could not clearly answer who was superior to them. At one point, he said it was the Presidency of BiH, and that he spoke with Fikret Abdić. He even said that Abdić asked him to secure the Waterworks on Mojmilo!

He reiterated that Alija Izetbegović was saved on May 2, and when asked from whom they saved him, Gagović said 'from Ganić and that group'!

Judge Darko Samardžić asked the witness if they had contact with the General Staff in Belgrade, which Gagović confirmed, but also stated that they did not have information from Belgrade that the column could be attacked in Dobrovoljačka. Earlier, witnesses had emphasized such a thing, saying they had information from Belgrade that the column would be attacked.

Given that the witness claimed that the then JNA was actually working to suppress conflicts between the Serb and Muslim Territorial Defense forces, special emphasis was placed on the warehouse in Faletići.

Gagović said that Muslim forces attacked that warehouse, and that the guards responded in a way that did not allow the weapons to be seized, but later the RS TO arrived and took the weapons to Pale.

Judge Samardžić asked why they did not prevent the weapons from being taken to Pale, but Gagović could not give a clear answer. However, when asked who gave the order to leave the barracks with weapons, Gagović said it was an obligation, because they were not prisoners and 'of course soldiers carry their own weapons'.

The defense was also interested in why UNPROFOR existed if the JNA was preventing conflicts, and Gagović said 'what UNPROFOR, they couldn't do anything'.

He confirmed that UNPROFOR was responsible for securing the column that was moving from Bistrik to Lukavica.

The continuation of the trial in this case is scheduled for October 2025.