Analysis – Kuvelja: Shooting and Killing of Live People

Although the conclusion of a plea agreement was announced several times, the presentation of evidence was only completed in November this year, when both the Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Defence of indictee Bozidar Kuvelja had presented their case.

Prosecutor Ibro Bulic demanded 35 years in prison for the indictee for “assisting in the commission of genocide”. Bulic said that the evidence shows that the indictee participated in the forcible transfer of the population from Potocari and the execution of men in the Kravica hangar.

In its closing argument, the Defence requested the acquittal of the indictee, underlining that “the committing this crime is the last thing that Kuvelja would do”. Sentencing is scheduled for 11 January.

Kuvelja, a former member of the Second Company of the First Unit of the Jahorina Training Centre of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republika Spska (MUP RS), is indicted for his alleged involvement in the shooting of men in the Kravica hangar, along with other members of his unit.

He is charged with having participated in the shooting of a group of between 50 and 100 men on July 13, 1995, and then having shot about 100 survivors who were invited to come out of the warehouse in Kravica.

According to the indictment, on July 12, 1995, Kuvelja participated in the search of Bosniak settlements in the Potocari area, with the aim of bringing the population into the “Potocari assembly centre”, as well as having participated in the separation of men and their transfer to the “white house”.

During the evidentiary proceedings, the Prosecution examined ten witnesses and one expert, and also presented parts of testimonies of several witnesses who testified at the Hague Tribunal. Five witnesses testified in favour of the Defence.

Kuvelja, who was arrested on January 18, 2011 in Cajnice, is being held in custody.

Taking by Buses

During the evidentiary proceedings, several witnesses of the State Prosecution spoke about the separation of men from women and children in July 1995, in Potocari, after the fall of Srebrenica. Mile Janjic, a witness of the Prosecution, saw this taking place, and confirmed that on July 12, 1995, men were taken by bus.

“On the first day, the men went in ten buses. About 70 people could be loaded into one bus, which is about 700 people. They were transported to Bratunac,” said Janjic.

Protected Witness KB-116, a former member of the Jahorina Training Center, said that along with indictee Kuvelja, he also saw the separation of men from women.

“It is true that men were separated from women. (…) Did anyone know then that these people will be killed, I do not know, but I am convinced that there is no member of our unit – and therefore Kuvelja – who did not know what the ultimate goal would be”, said KB-116.

Witness KB-115, also a former member of the Training Centre, said that the men, who were separated from women and children in Potocari, were killed in Kravica.

Haso Hasanovic, who was 16 years old in 1995, said that after the fall of Srebrenica he went through the woods towards Tuzla when he was captured and brought to Kravica. He said that there were more detained people in front of the hangar in Kravica.

“I watched the shooting – Serb soldiers took ten people and then shot them”, said Hasanovic.

He managed to escape when he went to pour a bottle of water. “The corpses of those killed stayed there … When I went to get water, there was a slaughtered girl there, who was shaking. (…) I was beginning to lose myself… I threw the bottle and started to flee”, said Hasanovic.

Witness KB-116 said that Kuvelja shot at prisoners on the orders of “commander Nedjo”. According to the witness, prisoners came out from the warehouse upon “the call of Nedjo”.

”Commander Nedjo brought a machine gun and asked for volunteers. When no one answered, he put the rifle in Kuvelja’s hands and ordered him to shoot. Bursts of gunfire lasted about 30 seconds. During this time, all prisoners who were taken out were killed,” said KB-116.

Terrible Shooting

KB-116 testified in favour of the Defence when he also said that the indictee took the machine gun by following “Nedjo’s order”.

KB-117, a Prosecution witness, said that he saw Kuvelja in front of the warehouse in Kravica, who was “checking whether they were some who are still alive, and if so, he shot them”. This witness was also interrogated as a witness of the Defence, and then he said that he remembered the indictee only in front of the hangar, when “he saw him shooting“.

Protected Witness KB-102 is said to have seen, when the day dawned, members of other units who called the detained men to come out of the warehouse. Then, between 80 and 100 men came out from the warehouse and were told to kneel down and turn towards the road.

“There was no specific ‘Shoot’ order, but terrible shooting followed. I think that 95 percent of people were executed within three or four minutes”, described the KB-102.

KB-102 said that indictee Kuvelja stood in the line when a group of 80-100 men were executed in front of the warehouse. The witness emphasised that he did not shoot, and that he does not know whether indictee Kuvelja participated in this execution.

Testifying in favour of the Prosecution, Zoran Eric said that the day after the shooting in Kravica he was ordered to cover the dead bodies under hay, which he did.

”I saw the trucks that drove the corpses. According to the number of loadings and trucks, I think that about thousand corpses were driven away from Kravica”, said Eric.

Several witnesses said that Kuvelja was arrested in Serbia and brought to the Jahorina unit as a deserter.

Muharem Kuvelija, a witness for the Defense, said that the he knew the indictee before the war and that he remembers him as an “honest and fair neighbour”. Witness A similarly spoke of the indictee’s family as “very good neighbours”.

The Prosecution also sought to lodge a transcript of the testimony of witness PW-100, but the Defence objected to this, asking for permission to examine the witness. This witness was not cross-examined.

Prosecutor Bulic said that the indictee “gave a partial confession” during the investigation. The Defence confirmed that the indictee did partially admit to some allegations of the Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but said that it should bear in mind that “he was not a lawyer and he did it because he sympathised with the victims”.

“I express regret because of the victims, but I believe in justice”, said Kuvelja in his closing arguments.