Croatia marks historical anniversaries in Split and Kostrena

In Split, commemorations began for the 85th anniversary of the shooting of fighters from the First Split and First Solin partisan detachments in Rudoš on August 26, 1941. During the ceremony, Ranko Britvić, president of the Association of Anti-Fascist Fighters and Anti-Fascists of the City of Split, addressed the recent burial of 500 Croatian victims of World War II whose remains were exhumed from mass graves in Slovenia.

Britvić emphasized that while the victims deserve respect and a dignified burial, he opposed the political framing of the event. He specifically criticized the use of the modern Croatian flag to cover the remains of defeated World War II armies, stating that an enemy army should not be covered by the flag used to achieve freedom during the Homeland War.

Meanwhile, in Kostrena, a ceremony marked the 35th anniversary of the formation of the A Battalion of the 111th Brigade of the National Guard. The event honored the first professional military unit in the Rijeka area during the Homeland War. The commemoration included wreath-laying and candle lighting to honor the 19 members of the unit who died in combat and the 59 who were wounded.