Children Spoke about Prisoners

Zdravko Lazarevic, who was a member of the Communications Section of the Sixth Battalion of Zvornik Brigade in 1995, said that he was on frontlines in July 1995. After having returned home, he heard stories about detention of Muslims.
 
“I heard stories that Muslims were detained in the Centre and new school building. Those stories were mostly told by children… People mostly kept quiet about that, but, you know what children are like, they talked,” the witness said. 
 
He said that he heard later on that the prisoners were killed and buried on the Crveni Mulj dam.
 
Lazarevic testified at the trial of Ostoja Stanisic and Marko Milosevic, who are charged with having participated in the crimes committed on a dam in Petkovci, near Djulici village, Zvornik municipality, where about 1,000 captives from Srebrenica were shot. 
 
The indictment alleges that Stanisic was Commander of the Sixth Battalion of Zvornik Brigade with the Republika Srpska Army, VRS, whose command was situated in Petkovci, while Milosevic was his Deputy.
 
When asked by Prosecutor Predrag Tomic whether members of the Sixth Battalion guarded the captives, the witness answered negatively. When the Prosecutor read a part of his previous statement, in which he said that they “probably did”, the witness explained that it was his assumption.
 
Lazarevic said that he was at a prominent command location in the vicinity of Petkovci, when the attack happened in July 1995.
 
“The attack was conducted at about 4 or 5 a.m. The attack began from the direction of Nezuk. Muslims, who opened fire towards us, were on the other side. It ended at about 4 p.m. A convoy of people was allowed to pass during a break in the attack,” he said, adding that he did not know the exact date when this happened.
 
While he was on the frontlines, he saw indictees Stanisic and Milosevic. He said that they were Commander and Deputy Commander of the Sixth Battalion.
 
The witness told the Court that, while he was on the frontline, he heard some shooting and thought that it came from the direction of Petkovci.
 
He explained that he did not have information about an operation or fall of Srebrenica when he headed towards the frontline.
 
When asked by the Defence if he heard that Stanisic and Milosevic issued an order to guard the captives or participated in the establishment of groups of people for killing the captives, the witness answered negatively. 
 
The trial is due to continue on December 4.