Witnesses confirmed: Naser Orić was wounded and had no beard during the attack on Zalazje

Today, the trial of Naser Orić and Sabahudin Muhić, accused of alleged crimes in the Srebrenica municipality, continued before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, writes the Patria news agency.

Today, Mehmed Efendić and Suljo Čakanović gave their statements. As defense witnesses, they presented the facts and circumstances in which they were at the time of the attack on the village of Zalazje in the summer of 1992.

Efendić, who is now employed by the Ministry of Interior of the Tuzla Canton, was a 20-year-old young man in Gornji Potočari at the start of the war and joined an unorganized formation in the village commanded by Meho Efendić.

- My first war experience was in Zalazje. Meho called us and announced that Zalazje must be liberated, because a large number of shells were coming precisely from that place, causing massive civilian casualties. Early in the morning, while it was still night, we set off towards Likari. When we came out of the forest to Zalazje, where we saw the first houses, which were 150 meters away from us, it was already dawn. We arrived via the road of Old Zalazje. We positioned ourselves at the edge of the forest. I was scared when the action started. There was shooting, and I, probably due to my age at the time, was afraid. I stood behind a tree and couldn't move. Bullets and shrapnel were hitting the trunk – says Efendić.

He added that fierce resistance was offered from the direction of the houses where the Serbian soldiers were.

- While I was there at the scene, there was not even a theoretical chance for any member of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina to enter Zalazje. Around 1:00 PM, based on the behavior of Meho Efendić, I saw that something was happening. I went to him and he told me that Naser Orić was wounded. I took the chance to escape then. I joined the evacuation of Orić. I am now ashamed to say it, but I was scared then and immediately, to escape, I started helping Orić. We led him towards Likari and descended towards Pećišta, where we found a Kedi vehicle that didn't even have one door – Efendić pointed out.

When asked by Naser Orić's lawyer, Lejla Čović, what Orić looked like then and when they arrived at the clinic, Efendić says:

- It took us an hour and a half to get to the clinic. Naser was the same as now, a little more handsome. He didn't have a beard and was athletically built – the witness pointed out.

This witness also spoke about his later engagement and that he was a police officer in Srebrenica and, with international forces, visited Zalazje and other villages on several occasions and was not aware of a mass grave at the cemetery. Also, he said that he knows Ibran Mustafić and remembers that during the war in Srebrenica, he mocked police officers because of their uniforms and falsely reported Orić for hiding some weapons, and that inspectors determined it was a false report.

The second witness, Suljo Čakanović, is a medical technician who first provided medical assistance to the wounded Orić at the clinic in Donji Potočari.

- I was informed by a courier the day before the action on Zalazje started and to be closer, I was at the Donji Potočari clinic that day. There were many wounded that day, including my mother, so I remember everything very well. My mother was wounded around 2:00 PM, and maybe forty minutes or an hour later, they brought Orić. He entered the clinic visibly pale and exhausted. He was holding onto a young man and hopping on one leg, the other was in the air. He had injuries from a grenade's shrapnel in both legs.

- His left leg was more injured, so he hopped on his right. I laid him on the bed, he was crying. I asked him why he was crying, and said he must be brave, because he is a fighter. Orić told me he wasn't crying because of his wounds, but because Feho (Fehim Salihović, editor's note) had been killed. My late brother was friends with Feho and I wanted to see him one last time. I told the guys who brought Orić to undress him, and I went outside. I saw the Kedi without doors. On Arkan's lap lay Feho. I turned him over and looked – Čakanović recounted.

Lawyer Čović asked: "Who is Arkan?"

- Amir Salihović, they called him Arkan. He was the cousin of the late Feta – Čakanović explained.

This medical technician then continued with the story of treating Orić.

- Naser had severe pain in the abdomen and testicles, and I feared internal bleeding, so I kept him in the clinic. I gave him the last infusion to recover a bit. In the meantime, two civilians arrived. A little girl and a woman who later died of her wounds. They were more urgent, so I left Orić lying – said Čakanović.

The witness pointed out that they had to leave the clinic before dark because there was no source of electricity.

- Orić left the clinic at dusk, between seven and eight o'clock. He had a camouflage uniform that we destroyed with scissors to treat the wounds. He was pale, very... which led me to believe he had internal bleeding. He didn't have a beard, because if he did, I wouldn't have been able to notice such paleness – Čakanović pointed out.

Prosecutor Miroslav Janjić asked Čakanović who Orić came with. After thinking, the witness said:

- He came with Mehmed Efendić, the model, that's what we called him – added Čakanović.

The next hearing will be held on January 24, 2017, when two new defense witnesses will appear before the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.