The leader of the main Bosnian Croat party, Dragan Covic, laid a wreath and lit a candle on Thursday at a monument in Bleiburg, Austria, erected for the civilians and soldiers of the defeated pro-Nazi Independent State of Croatia who were killed in the aftermath of World War II.

Covic heads the Croat Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HDZ BH) and presides over an organisation of Croat parties in the country, the Croatian National Assembly (HNS).

“The Bleiburg tragedy is one of the biggest in the history of the Croat people and that is why the Croat National Assembly in Bosnia and Herzegovina is always actively commemorating that tragedy,” he said.

The 74th commemoration event will take place at the Bleiburg field on Sunday, May 18. It is organised by Croatia’s Parliament, together with the HNS in Bosnia.