Prisoners Brought to Petkovci

Zoran Tomanic, former member of the Engineering Company with the Zvornik Brigade of the Republika Srpska Army, was sent, along with two other soldiers as resource persons, to Petkovci, where the Command of the Sixth Battalion of that Brigade was located. He explained that his tasks were related to fortifying trenches above the village.
The witness said that, following the fall of Srebrenica on July 11, 1995, a truck brought prisoners in front of a building in the vicinity of the Command, which was located in the old school building. According to his estimates, about 100 prisoners were in the truck, while “up to seven” soldiers, whom he did not know, were standing around the truck.
 
Tomanic mentioned that, once the prisoners were escorted behind the building, he heard a short burst of bullets, but he did not know what the reason for the shooting was.  

As he said, the witness did not see what happened afterwards until a smaller truck arrived. A group of captives was escorted to the truck, loaded onto it and driven away. As he said, he did not notice any members of the Sixth Battalion Command at that location.
The Prosecution of Bosnia and Herzegovina charges Ostoja Stanisic, former Commander of the Sixth Battalion, and his Deputy Marko Milosevic with having known about the planned execution of captives from Srebrenica and that the captives were escorted to a dam in Petkovic under their command. About 1,000 captives were shot on the dam.
 
Witness Tomanic said that, while walking along the road, he saw another truck next to the new school building, adding that local residents told him that some people had been captured and brought to that school building.  

As he said, when he returned to Petkovci on the following day, he saw two blood stains and some pieces of clothes in front of the new school.
 
The witness told the Court that he heard later on that the captives were taken away to a nearby dam and killed, but he did not know whether members of the Sixth Battalion participated in that.
 
Prosecutor Predrag Tomic presented the witness with a daily order issued to his Company on July 15, indicating that the Company’s machines were used in Petkovci.

“I know nothing about it. I was not present in Petkovci on July 15,” the witness said.
 
During this hearing Omer Cemalovic, court expert in psychiatry, presented his findings and opinion about witness Zivorad Jovanovic’s health condition, considering the fact that he had suffered two strokes.  

The expert determined that Jovanovic was able to testify, but the parties should be careful when posing questions to him, because some of them might disturb him emotionally.  

“I am speaking about tendentiously provocative, humiliating and insulting questions,” he explained, adding that there was a risk that he might suffer from another stroke.

The trial is due to continue on May 22.