Victims and Bosnian authorities hope that a judicial inquiry in Milan into “sniper tourism” will pave the way for holding perpetrators accountable 30 years after the facts.
SARAJEVO — The opening of an investigation in Italy regarding allegations that foreigners paid to shoot at civilians during the siege of Sarajevo three decades ago has revived hope among survivors that those responsible will finally be held accountable, even as it reopens old wounds from a conflict marked by the brutality of snipers.
The Milan prosecutor’s office launched the inquiry after local journalist and novelist Ezio Gavazzeni filed a complaint based on accusations that Italians and other foreign nationals paid members of the Bosnian Serb forces to visit the area and shoot civilians in what some have termed “sniper tourism.” Mr. Gavazzeni stated he was inspired to investigate the case after watching the 2022 documentary Sarajevo Safari by Slovenian director Miran Zupanic.
The siege of Sarajevo, which lasted 46 months between 1992 and 1996, was the longest of a capital city in modern European history. Approximately 11,000 civilians died from shelling and sniper fire from Bosnian Serb army positions in the hills surrounding the city. This Italian investigation focuses on a particularly sinister facet of that suffering.
“In 1993, I learned of the ‘Sarajevo Safari’ case upon receiving a statement for analysis from a captured Serbian soldier, a volunteer from Serbia,” recounted Edin Subasic, a retired intelligence officer of the Bosnian army who appeared in Mr. Zupanic’s documentary. “He testified about the presence of foreigners on the Sarajevo battlefield who, unlike many others, were not soldiers but civilians from Western countries, in this specific case, from Italy.”
Mr. Subasic, speaking to Reuters, detailed that the phenomenon was novel at the time. “It was the first time we discovered the existence of a ‘safari’ of people; specifically, that these individuals coming to shoot at the citizens of Sarajevo were paying for the service of shooting, unlike other mercenaries who received daily allowances and additional benefits for fighting.”
The retired intelligence officer stated that after compiling this information, his unit contacted Italian intelligence services, which were then part of the UNPROFOR peacekeeping force in Sarajevo. “We provided the information and requested an investigation into this case,” he said. “Shortly after, in early 1994, we received a response indicating that a location in Italy had been identified as the origin of the activities, which had been stopped thanks to the intervention of Italian authorities.”
Without providing conclusive evidence, Mr. Gavazzeni claimed that wealthy foreigners paid large sums to participate in these trips. According to his complaint, the Italians typically met in the city of Trieste before traveling to Belgrade, where Bosnian Serb soldiers escorted them to the hills overlooking Sarajevo.
In Italy, the opening of an investigation is a procedural formality when such a complaint is filed, and no suspects have been named so far. The Milan prosecutor’s office has not made public comments on the case.
However, the news has had a significant impact in Sarajevo. Although the principal architects of the siege, Bosnian Serb political leader Radovan Karadzic and his military commander Ratko Mladic, were sentenced to life imprisonment for war crimes and crimes against humanity, many residents feel that justice has not been complete.
Benjamina Karic, who in 2022, as mayor of Sarajevo, filed a judicial complaint regarding the foreign snipers, welcomed the Italian investigation. Ms. Karic, now mayor of the Novo Sarajevo municipality, revealed that Mr. Gavazzeni contacted her in August 2023. “He asked me to present my criminal complaint and other materials to the Milan Prosecutor’s Office through the Italian Embassy, which kindly offered its help, and so I did,” she explained to Reuters.
“I feel a special sentiment toward this matter and sincerely wish to believe that the investigation initiated and the opening of the case in Milan will contribute in some way to the ongoing proceedings at the Prosecutor’s Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” Ms. Karic added. “I have faith in justice and institutions, and I hope that, after 30 years, we can finally hold those responsible accountable.”
Nevertheless, in a statement to Reuters, the Bosnian prosecutor’s office stated it had not been contacted by its Milan counterparts, highlighting potential coordination challenges in a transnational investigation of events from so long ago.
Director Zupanic, whose documentary reignited interest in the case, connects the allegations with previous testimonies. “There was testimony from a former marine, John Jordan, who in 2007 testified in The Hague about these people,” said Mr. Zupanic. “He was a volunteer firefighter during the war in Sarajevo and helped people on both sides. From his description, we can deduce that these individuals he called ‘tourist shooters’ are the same phenomenon.”
Mr. Zupanic also suggested that “sniper tourism” might not have been an isolated event. “This phenomenon not only occurred in Sarajevo during the siege, but had an older history and I believe it occurred in other war zones,” he affirmed.
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