Exclusive: Photo of Visegrad mosque ablaze

Original caption: [PHOTO]: Mosque ablaze, 8 June 1992. Flames and smoke rise today from a mosque in Visegrad, Bosnia-Herzegovina, 125 miles southwest of Belgrade, Yugoslavia. Serbs have seized two-thirds of Bosnian territory and have pounded Sarajevo with artillery and rocket fire. The surge in fighting began Sunday night. It ebbed before daybreak today, but rapidly escalated during the day. Source: Associated Press

Published in Chicago Sun Times, June 8, 1992.

Image: Visegrad’s Emperor mosque (Careva dzamija) set ablaze by Bosnian Serb soldiers from Visegrad on most probably 7 June 1992. Picture published in Chicago Sun Times on 8 June 1992. All mosques and other buildings of the Islamic Community were set ablaze and bulldozed by Visegrad Serb soldiers. They most probably acted under supervision of the Crisis Committee in the Visegrad Municipality. Throughout Serbian-occupied Bosnia and Herzegovina, mosques and all other Islamic architecture was systematically destroyed. It is believed that around 700 mosques were destroyed during the Bosnian Genocide.

Image: Careva mosque before the genocide.

Image: The Careva mosque re-constructed thanks to funds given by Visegrad’s Bosniak diaspora.

Credit: Melissa & Mirela, Thank you!

Destruction of mosques in Visegrad Municipality

During the aggression on Republic of B&H, all the mosques in the Visegrad Municipality were systematically destroyed by the Bosnian Serb Army(Vojska Republike Srpske).

1.Gazanfer-begova Dzamija (1590.)

Image: The Gazanfer-begova/Gazander Bey’s Mosque also known as  Atik dzamija/Old Mosque  before the war.

Image: The site where the  Gazanfer Bey’s mosque in the center of the town. Destroyed in 1992, today it is a park.

2.Careva/Bikavac Dzamija (1571)

Image: The Bikavac or Careva/Emperor’s mosque in Visegrad. Burn ablaze and bulldozed by Bosnian Serb Army in 1992.

Image: The Careva dzamija/Emperor’s Mosque also known as the Bikavac mosque, was originally built in the sixteenth century and was renovated in 1910 and 1947.

Image: The Emperor’s Mosque set ablaze by Bosnian Serb Army in Visegrad, June 1992.

Image: The site where the Emperor’s mosque stood. Picture taken a few years after the war’s end.

Image: The Careva mosque in the center of Visegrad. Destroyed in 1992 by the Bosnian Serb Army. Reconstructed by the Islamic Community of Bosnia and Herzegovina with funding by Visegrad’s Bosniak diaspora.

3. Drinsko Dzamija (1895.)

Image: Mosque in Drinsko, Visegrad. Built in 1885, burnt down in 1941 by Yugoslav Serb Royalists popularly known as  “Chetniks” led by Draza Mihailovic. After 26 years the Communist regime finally gave permission to restore and reopen the mosque (1967). The mosque was destroyed by Bosnian Serb Army in 1992, rebuilt and reopened a few years ago.

Image: The Drinsko Mosque in 2002.

Image: Mosque in Drinsko. Destroyed in 1992 by Bosnian Serb Army.Reconstructed by the Islamic Community of Bosnia and Herzegovina with funding by Visegrad’s Bosniak diaspora.

4. Barimo

Image: An Islamic school(mekteb) in Barimo. Destroyed by the Bosnian Serb Army in 1992.

5. Holijaci

Image: An Islamic school(mekteb) in Holijaci. Destroyed by the Bosnian Serb Army in 1992.

7. Orahovci (1566.)

Image: Mosque in Orahovci. Destroyed by the Bosnian Serb Army in 1992.

8. Žlijeb (1550.)

Image: A mosque in Zlijeb. Destroyed by the Bosnian Serb Army in 1992.See more on Žlijeb mosque here.

Image: An Imam‘s house in Zlijeb. Destroyed by the Bosnian Serb Army in 1992.

9.Dobrun (1445.)

Image: The Dobrun Mosque, totally destroyed in 1992 by the Bosnian Serb Army. Rebuilt and opened in 2006 by funds from Visegrad’s Bosniak diaspora.

All these buildings were destroyed in a systematic way, by Visegrad Serbs, most of whom were neighbors to their Bosniak victims. All of them, whether they were armed civilians,members of  “para-military” units, or members of the Visegrad Brigade, were members of the Republika Srpska Army or it’s Police force. This was organized and planned by the Visegrad Municipality, i.e. by the Serb Democratic Party Crisis Committee. No one has answered for the destruction of mosques in Visegrad.

Note: Pictures were taken from MIZ Visegrad.

Updated: 1.11.2009

Visegrad-Provocation at burial of 9-month old baby!

Yesterday  at Strziste cemetery in Visegrad was the burial of 4 Bosniak civilians, victims of genocide:

Smaili Memišević, Ibrišimu Memiševiću, Medihi (Memišević) Ahmetspahić and 9-month old Amela Ahmetspahić.

The night before, unknown persons placed a brutally killed dog next to the planned burial place of 9-month old Amela Ahmetspahic. Victims and family members were shocked when they saw a decaying  dog in the cemetery obviously a provocation by the same people who murdered these 4 civilians.

Federal TV footage of the brutally killed dog place next to the planned burial site of 9-month old Amela Ahmetspahic.

This sickening act reminds us of the dehumanization of Bosniaks during the Genocide in 92-95 when Greater Serb ideology and Serb media portrayed Bosniaks as animals, insects etc. For example Bosniaks in Vlasenica were portrayed by Serb media as “lice” and that they as such, should be killed.

The Careva mosque was stoned by unknown persons the night before the burial. Picture taken from mizvisegrad.blogger.ba

Proof that this was a planned action by Serb facists is also the stoning of the Careva mosque in Visegrad(the only reconstructed one, all the mosques in the Visegrad municipality were dynamited). Windows on the mosque were broken by unknown persons the night before the burial. A religious ceremony was planned to take place in the mosque for the victims that day.

NEVER FORGET!