THE SACRIFICE OF SERB SOLDIERS AND PEOPLE OF SARAJEVO REGION MUST NOT BE IN VAIN

EAST SARAJEVO, AUGUST 4 /SRNA/ – Neither the sacrifice of Serb soldiers nor of the people of the Sarajevo region, who left their centuries-old homes, must be in vain, Republika Srpska must be preserved, it was emphasized today in Vojkovići during a commemoration of the 33rd anniversary of the defense of Vojkovići, Grlica, and Krupac.

A memorial service was held in the Church of Saint Hieromartyr Petar of Dabar-Bosnia in Vojkovići to mark the anniversary of the defence of these areas during the Defensive-Patriotic War, when seven members of the Second Sarajevo Brigade of the Republika Srpska Army were killed repelling an attack by the so-called Army of BiH. Head of the Republika Srpska War Veterans Organisation Radan Ostojić praised the courage, heroism, and sacrifice of the Serb people of Sarajevo and greater Sarajevo, particularly during the Dayton Peace Agreement signing in 1995. "For a vast number of Serbs, peace and freedom arrived then and they returned to their homes and families. But for the Serbs of this city and region, a new suffering began, as they had to leave their ancestral lands for the sake of Republika Srpska, freedom, and national dignity," Ostojić said. He emphasized that the wartime path was thorny but marked by victory, suffering, heroism, and bravery. He stated that people should pray to God for peace and freedom to last forever, emphasizing that there can be no peace or freedom without Republika Srpska, which was left as a legacy by those who laid down their lives during the Defensive-Patriotic War as its foundation. The Chair of the Presidency of the War Veterans Organisation "Ilidžanski Borac" /Ilidža Fighter/ Saša Škobo reminded that in the early morning hours, an attack was launched from the slopes of Mount Igman by the so-called Army of BiH, which was successfully repelled by members of the Second Sarajevo Brigade together with a special police unit. "The then units of the so-called Army of BiH entered the village, literally reaching the first houses and forming a line of attack. However, through the operation of the special unit and our soldiers, the attack was successfully repelled," Škobo said. The head of East Ilidža Municipality Marinko Božović emphasized the bravery of the members of the Second Light Sarajevo Infantry Brigade of the Republika Srpska Army and the Ministry of Interior /MoI/, who defended Vojkovići, Grlica, and Krupac on August 4, 1992. "What is certain is that the sacrifice of the Republika Srpska Army and the MoI was not in vain, and the death of 1,080 soldiers shows that the then Serb Ilidža gave a significant pledge to the foundation of Republika Srpska. This only shows that no one should play with Republika Srpska, even in these difficult and challenging times," Božović stressed. In the defence of Vojkovići, Grlica, and Krupac from the attack of the so-called Army of BiH on August 4, 1992, seven the Republic of Srpska were killed, while 14 were wounded. The attack on Vojkovići, Grlica, and Krupac began in the early morning hours of August 4, 1992, and only thanks to the heroic struggle of the residents of these settlements was the intention of the members of the so-called Army of BiH to occupy Ilidža and advance toward Pale prevented. By defending this territory, the entire Sarajevo-Romanija region was preserved, as well as Republika Srpska, since Ilinjača had a strategic position from which the front line of Ilidža's defence was controlled and protected.