BiH Prosecutor's Office Hides Truth Behind Numbers: Siege of Sarajevo Still Without Indictment!

By: A. Čorbo-Zećo

Reports from the Prosecutor's Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina for the period from January 1 to June 30, 2025, are reduced to numerous tables, abbreviations, and statistical data.

Data on KTRZ, KTARZ, and KTNRZ cases, unresolved individuals marked with "A", and the number of cases transferred to other prosecutor's offices fill the report pages.

At first glance, it appears to be systematic and transparent work. The Prosecutor's Office of BiH has filed one indictment, discontinued investigations in three cases, transferred five cases to other prosecutor's offices, while there are still 184 unresolved cases and 2,170 unresolved individuals.

Strategic goals and workshops, meetings with regional prosecutor's offices, victims' associations, and international institutions are all presented as steps towards more efficient prosecution of war crimes. Reactions came from The Hague, teams were formed, which the Prosecutor's Office of BiH does not mention, but it is clear that the work of prosecutors cannot be characterized as work aimed at achieving full justice!

Behind this numerical statistics lies a bitter reality – for the most symbolic and important war crimes case in Bosnia and Herzegovina – the Siege of Sarajevo – no indictment has been filed yet. And how could there be an indictment when, during this period, the 'top brass' of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps of the Army of Republika Srpska are testifying against members of the Army of RBiH. And mostly via video link, because they dare not come to Sarajevo! But they are considered credible.

Although the Prosecutor's Office boasts about improving efficiency and cooperation with the region, the public still does not see concrete steps towards accountability for war crimes committed during the almost four-year siege of the capital.

That is why cases against members of the Army and RMUP are their priority. Their courtrooms are full.

Numbers and abbreviations, workshops and strategic goals, however important they may be for internal records and planning, cannot replace justice for the victims of the Siege of Sarajevo.

While there is talk of 86 KTRZ cases with unavailable individuals and 111 "A" individuals in the Prosecutor's Office of BiH, one question remains: why is the war crime that marked an entire generation of Sarajevo still not being prosecuted?

Public tables and statistics must not become a wall between the Prosecutor's Office and the public – they should be a tool for achieving justice. And justice for the Siege of Sarajevo is still waiting.