Bosnia's Foreign Minister Elmedin Konakovic delivered an address at the meeting of foreign ministers of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), held on the sidelines of the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. The meeting centred on the theme: “Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict: Solidarity with the Palestinian People.”

In his remarks, Minister Konakovic stated:

“Most of you, fortunately, know these concepts only in theory. I will briefly present real-life experiences that empower me, and other representatives of my country, Bosnia and Herzegovina, to call upon the world to act more responsibly, ensuring that the phrase ‘never again’ genuinely means never again for anyone, anywhere.”

He proceeded to recall the atrocities suffered by civilians across Bosnia and Herzegovina, including the numerous massacres and mass graves. He highlighted that the culmination of years of aggression and genocidal acts was the genocide in Srebrenica.

“Not only did the world fail to protect us, but it permitted Serb forces to massacre nearly 8,400 civilians in a city that had been declared a UN safe zone. We were attacked by heavily armed Serb forces while the UN enforced an arms embargo, preventing us from acquiring the means to defend our homes, our families, and our country. In many parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, victims are still forced to live alongside individuals who tortured them. Although this constitutes a criminal offence, the glorification of convicted war criminals is widespread, and even some elected officials engage in this practice,” the BiH Foreign Minister noted.

Minister Konakovic further stressed that neighbouring Serbia continues to harbour convicted war criminals who fled Bosnia and Herzegovina to evade serving their sentences. Among them is Novak Djukic, convicted of war crimes against civilians, specifically for orchestrating the massacre in Tuzla, which claimed 71 lives, with an average age of just 24 years. The youngest victim, Sandro Kalesic, was a two-year-old child who died in his father’s arms from his wounds.

“The list of crimes and horrors our people have endured is endless. However, I can proudly say that throughout it all, we abided by the rules of war and international law, even as we defended ourselves against a heavily armed enemy. Isolated and abandoned by the world, we never justified the killing of an innocent person,” Konakovic affirmed.

He concluded by underscoring Bosnia and Herzegovina's moral obligation to call for an immediate cessation of the violent killing of civilians in Gaza, particularly children, women, and the elderly.

“More than 41,000 people have been killed. The vast majority of them are women and children. Schools are not legitimate military targets, refugee camps are not legitimate military targets, markets are not legitimate military targets, children playing are not legitimate military targets, hospitals are not legitimate military targets, and journalists are not legitimate military targets. Human rights, the rule of law, and international law must apply equally to all. These lessons were learned painfully in Srebrenica 30 years ago. Do not repeat the same mistakes,” Minister Konakovic urged in his closing remarks at the United Nations.