Monument to VRS Commander Who Ordered Executions of Bosniaks in Srebrenica Genocide Unveiled in Šekovići

(Patria) - Šekovići today marked the 33rd anniversary of the formation of the Second Special Police Squad. A memorial service was held, followed by the unveiling of a monument to Milorad Mišo Pelemiš, commander of the infamous 10th Sabotage Squad of the Main Staff of the VRS, which participated in the Srebrenica genocide and the commission of the gravest crimes against Bosniaks.

Pelemiš was never finally convicted, but numerous pieces of evidence and testimonies during trials before international and domestic courts pointed to the role of his unit in the Srebrenica genocide, writes Faktor.ba

Seven former members of the Tenth Sabotage Squad were convicted in The Hague, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Serbia for the murder of Bosniaks at the Branjevo farm, near the village of Pilica in Zvornik. Members of Pelemiš's unit are responsible for the murders of at least 1,200 Bosniaks at the Branjevo farm.

Dražen Erdemović was the first to admit guilt at the Hague Tribunal for his participation in the murders of captured men and boys. He was sentenced to five years in prison. Marko Boškić admitted guilt in the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and was sentenced to ten years in prison.

Long prison sentences were handed down to Franc Kos (received 35 years), Stanko Kojić (received 32 years), and Zoran Goronja (received 30 years), while Vlastimir Golijanin was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Kos, former commander of the First Bijeljina Platoon of the Tenth Sabotage Squad, received the highest sentence to date in the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina for crimes in Srebrenica.

Pelemiš's former soldier, Brano Gojković, was sentenced to ten years in prison in Serbia under a plea agreement. Some of his soldiers admitted to participating in the mass executions of over a thousand prisoners in Srebrenica in 1995.

After the killings at Branjevo, some members of the squad refused to execute prisoners in the warehouse at the Community Center in Pilica, where nearly 500 more people were killed.
Despite the monstrous crimes, Pelemiš denied responsibility, claiming he learned of the crimes later and that his subordinates falsely accused him. However, testimonies from his soldiers clearly indicated that the orders for the executions came directly from him.

Pelemiš was awarded the Miloš Obilić medal during the war by the decision of war criminal and then-President of the RS, Radovan Karadžić.

He died on April 23, 2021, in Belgrade, after a long and serious illness.
Among others, the Minister of Internal Affairs of the RS, Željko Budimir, and the Minister of Labor and War Veterans' Affairs, Radan Ostojić, attended the commemoration in Šekovići today.