Veritas marks 33 years since attacks on Medak Pocket villages

The documentation center Veritas has marked the 33rd anniversary of the 1993 attacks by Croatian forces on the Serbian villages of Divoselo, Čitluk, and Počitelj. These settlements, located in the so-called Medak Pocket, were under the official protection of United Nations peacekeepers (UNPROFOR) at the time.

Veritas reports that the villages were systematically destroyed using a ‘scorched earth’ tactic, resulting in the deaths of 87 Serbs, including 35 civilians. The center noted that while the destruction was total, legal consequences remained symbolic, with high-ranking officials receiving minimal sentences or being acquitted.

Beyond the historical violence, the center highlighted a contemporary environmental crisis. The demographic vacuum created by the ethnic cleansing has allowed for the establishment of an illegal landfill. Recent investigations by the Croatian Office for the Suppression of Corruption and Organized Crime (USKOK) have confirmed the presence of tens of thousands of tons of hazardous, illegally imported waste in the deserted area of Divoselo.