Serbian Manifesto 1911 - The First World War TV - Satanic Vatican - How to Start a Revolution TV - John Burns - Novak Djokovic - Slobodan Milosevic - Misha Glenny - The Death of Yugoslavia 1996 - Storyville: The Trial of Ratko Mladic TV - Secret Wars Uncovered TV -
The old Turks of the south have gone. But new enemies come from the north more fierce some and dangerous than the old. They want to take our freedom and our language from us and crush us. Secret Serbian Manifesto 1911
It was in the Balkans that it all began nearly a hundred years ago. The First World War I: To Arms, Channel 4 2003
Serbia wanted the break up of the Empire. She welcomed national unrest particularly in Croatia and Bosnia. ibid.
Serbia had scattered the Austrian army. ibid.
Forced conversion of the Serbs. Satanic Vatican
Srdja and his colleagues formed a new organisation CANVAS to teach the lessons learned during the Serbian revolution. How to Start a Revolution, 2011
In 2010 former Serbian revolutionaries continued training new groups. ibid.
Why four great powers should fight over Serbia no fellow can understand. John Burns
Well, I do feel that I carry the responsibility of representing my country wherever I am, and this responsibility came with the success that I had in the last couple of years, not just myself but the whole group of tennis players that comes from Serbia. And athletes in general are, in this moment, the biggest ambassadors that our country has. Novak Djokovic
It is difficult to say today whether the Battle of Kosovo was a defeat or a victory for the Serbian people, whether thanks to it we fell into slavery or we survived in this slavery. Slobodan Milosevic
During the 1990s, Spasojevic had established a monopoly on the heroin trade in Belgrade so that, according to the local police, ‘He was processing about 100 kilograms of hard drugs monthly – this was bringing in tens of millions of dollars.’ Misha Glenny, McMafia
Spurred by his success in moving heroin, Spasojevic wanted to expand his operations by trading in another drug: cocaine ... Spasojevic soon realised that he had hit a goldmine. Cocaine usage in Europe was rising everywhere, with significant new markets opening up in the former communist countries of the East. Spasojevic quickly understood that he was not alone in wanting to exploit the Balkans’ collapsing infrastructure. Another group of people had begun to monitor it very closely. These people lived far away in Colombia. ibid.
Belgrade, Serbia, 19 November 1988: This is the man whose embrace of nationalism is blamed for all the wars in Yugoslavia today: Slobodan Milosevic. The Death of Yugoslavia I: Enter Nationalism, BBC 1996
He [Milosevic] asked the Yugoslav state council to grant him emergency powers in Kosovo. ibid.
So began a secret operation that would culminate in Croatia’s war of independence from Yugoslavia. The Death of Yugoslavia II: The Road to War
With the collapse of communism, the two major republics – Serbia and Croatia – fell under the sway of rival nationalism. ibid.
The bleak land of southern Croatia was home to large numbers of Serbs. It was here that the fuse was lit that would lead the whole of Yugoslavia to ignite. ibid.
The Yugoslav high command faced the fact that the government of Croatia was equipping itself to form a rival army. ibid.
With a mixed population of Muslims, Serbs and Croats, Bosnia had most to lose if Yugoslavia descended into civil war. ibid.
‘If we grant the Croat people the right to leave Yugoslavia, then they can’t deny others the right to make their own choice.’ The Death of Yugoslavia III: Wars of Independence, Milosevic
Once the army was done, the local Serbs walked in. The Yugoslav flag was raised as the army seized Croat town after Croat town. ibid.
Milosevic’s generals, unimpressed by peace plans, had just begun shelling the ancient walled city of Dubrovnic. ibid.
One by one the other presidents approved the plan and voted for independence. Soon, Serbia would not have another republic to stay federated with. ibid.
Now they controlled one third of Croatia. ibid.
Bosnia, April 1992: Serbia’s president Milosevic has repeatedly said that the conflict in Bosnia was a civil war for which he could not be blamed. But the men in charge of the murder and ethnic cleansing in Bosnia now describe his role. The Death of Yugoslavia IV: The Gates of Hell
‘I warn you. You’ll drag Bosnia down to hell. You Muslims aren’t ready for war – you could face extinction.’ ibid. Radovan Karadzic, leader Bosnian Serbs
Sarajevo, March 1992: For centuries Muslims, Serbs and Croats had lived here together. Now they had to choose a future. ibid.
The streets of the capital fell into the hands of the rival militias. ibid.
In the first months of the war, Srebrenica had become a refuge for thousands of Muslims driven from their homes. The Bosnian Serb army laid siege to the town, attempting to starve its population into submission. In the spring of 1993 they began a final offensive. The Death of Yugoslavia V: A Safe Area
‘Ethnic cleansing: what does that remind you of? And what is our responsibility?’ ibid. The Donahue Show
‘The UN stood by and watched. How ironic.’ ibid. Ejup Ganic, vice-president of Bosnia
In August 1995, three months after the fall of Srebrenica, NATO began a huge bombing campaign against the Bosnian Serbs. ibid.
25 June 1995: Year Four of the Bosnian War: Another village in Bosnia was in ruins: this time Muslims from Srebrenica had launched a raid against the Serbs. The Death of Yugoslavia VI: Pax Americana
Those Muslims who couldn’t face the trek clung to the UN for protection. 25,000 Muslims now overwhelmed the UN base in Srebrenica. ibid.
Croatia had lost a quarter of its territory to rebel Serbs. ibid.
‘A real bombing campaign.’ ibid. Warren Christopher, US Secretary of State
The Bosnian Serb leaders surrendered. ibid.
The conquering armies drove a new wave of Serbian refugees into Serbia and Montenegro. ibid.
The longest siege in modern history was over. ibid.
The Hague, Netherlands, 22 November 2017: A UN tribunal will imminently deliver its long awaited verdict in the war crimes trial of former Serb military commander Ratko Mladic. Storyville: The Trial of Ratko Mladic, news report, BBC 2019
In the 1990s a series of brutal wars raged across the former Yugoslavia. 130,000 people are killed; 4 million were displaced. During the conflicts the United Nations established a court to prosecute war crimes suspects; General Ratko Mladic became their most wanted. ibid. captions
The indictment charged two counts of genocide and five counts of crimes against humanity, namely, persecution, murder, extermination, deportation and inhumane acts of forcible torture. ibid. court judge
President Josip Broz Tito ruled Bosnia and the rest of Yugoslavia for 35 years. His policy of ‘brotherhood and unity’ suppressed ethnic tensions. Following his death in 1980, the country began to fall apart. ibid. captions
Ratko Mladic was in hiding for sixteen years. During that time he suffered a heart attack and two strokes. The Defence will not allow him to testify due to his diminished physical and mental state. ibid.
Peter McCloskey is in charge of the Srebrenica genocide case. General Mladic is accused of murdering over 7,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995. ibid.