MILJANOVIĆ: LET THERE BE NO REPEAT OF SERB MARTYRS

BIJELJINA, JUNE 6 /SRNA/ – By paying tribute to 150 fallen soldiers of the Second Semberija Light Infantry Brigade, Bijeljina today marked the 34th anniversary of the formation of this Republika Srpska Army unit, known as a people’s brigade, whose 4,200 members participated in the defence of the Serb people.

One of the wartime commanders, Zoran Miljanović, a war invalid decorated with the Gold Medal for Bravery, said he was proud of the brigade composed of workers, farmers, and intellectuals, all united by a single goal – to defend the Serb people, who were threatened with extermination in the territory of the former BiH. “Let there be no repeat of Jasenovac and Jadovno, Dobrovoljačka and Sijekovac, all those Serb execution site,” Miljanović said. He told the press the brigade primarily held the front on the Brčko battlefield, but its wartime path stretched from Goražde to Knin and Herzegovina, embedding the blood of heroes in the foundations of Republika Srpska. Head of the municipal Department for Veterans and led Persons Protection, Jelena Aleksić, who is also a child of a fallen soldier, said the 34th anniversary of the brigade’s formation is being marked with deep respect and gratitude, honouring those who showed courage, determination, and love for their people and homeland in the most difficult times. “Today we remember all the soldiers who stood in defence of their people, their homeland, their homes, their faith, and their right to freedom,” Aleksić said. Head of the Bijeljina municipal War Veterans Organisation, Miodrag Stevanović, who was himself a member of the Second Semberija Brigade, expressed pride in its contribution to the preservation of the Serb people and Republika Srpska, as well as in preserving the traditions of the Patriotic War. A memorial service was held for the fallen soldiers at the Church of Saint George, and wreaths and flowers were laid at the central monument to the liberators in Bijeljina downtown. Comrades also laid flowers this morning at the monument of the brigade’s first commander, Blagoje Gavrilović, at the Pučile City Cemetery.