ZAGREB, 18 Nov 2021- Respects were paid to Vukovar and Škabrnja victims at NATO headquarters in Brussels, and that gesture sends a strong message that the truth about the events of Croatia's Homeland War has crossed Croatian borders, said Defence Minister Mario Banožić, the Ministry of Defence reported on Thursday.

On the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the fall of Vukovar, Remembrance Day for Homeland War Victims, and Vukovar and Škabrnja Remembrance Day, the Croatian flag was flown at half-mast to commemorate all Vukovar and Škabrnja victims.

Minister Banožić said that the gesture sent a strong message that the truth about the events of the Homeland War had crossed the borders of our country, which was an additional motive for continuing to promote the truth about the Homeland War, especially among young people.

"Today we are reminded of the importance of collective security and how much easier it would have been for us to oppose threats to our territorial integrity during the Homeland War if we had been a member of NATO then. Today, the Republic of Croatia and the Croatia Armed Forces are appreciated among their allies and partners, which show how much we have done in the past 30 years and that with will, effort and perseverance there are no impossible goals," said Defence Minister Mario Banožić.

He underscored that Croatia was a responsible ally that contributed to international missions, global peace, and security, the ministry said.

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ZAGREB, 18 Nov 2021 - Several thousand people from all over Croatia and neighboring Bosnia and Herzegovina on Thursday participated in a commemorative march in Škabrnja marking the 30th anniversary of the massacre that occurred in the town in Zadar's hinterland.

A government delegation comprising ministers Ivan Malenica, Marija Vučković, Vili Beroš, Nina Obuljen Koržinek, and Oleg Butković attended the commemoration.

Minister Butković said that he comes to Škabrnja every year because he is emotionally connected to that area through family ties. 

He added that everyone today feels pride and gratitude to all the victims.

Thirty years have passed. Time goes quickly but the wounds do not heal. I hope that we will altogether build a better Croatia and do everything so that we can live better but also for something like this to never occur again, said Butković.

He thanked everyone who participated in the march given "the epidemiological conditions." "I see a lot of people and it is nice to see that we will remember and pay homage to the victims of Škabrnja together," he said.

He added that he believes that the prosecutorial authorities will do everything for all those who committed this horrific massacre to be brought to justice. "There is no alternative to that so I believe that this area will have its turn before Croatian institutions for which Croatia defenders died and which we believe are functioning," said Minister Butković.

Culture Minister Nina Obuljen Koržinek said that "remembering all the victims of Vukovar and Škabrnja today and their huge sacrifice, we all have to build a better, happier and more successful society with great respect and responsibility."

Zadar Archbishop Želimir Puljić celebrated Mass for the Homeland in Škabrnja and recalled the war victims of the town but also of Vukovar and called on the faithful to not allow their future to be left to lackadaisical mood and hopelessness.

"Defenders fell for the Homeland's freedom so that we can duly and honestly build it," underscored Puljić.

"May the Croatian people grow and progress in peace, harmony mutual tolerance, and love. May their hearts not burn out and may their cradles not be empty. May everyone in the homeland have sufficient work and bread, justice, peace, and happiness," said Puljić.

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ZAGREB, 18 Nov 2021 - The 30th anniversary of the massacre committed in Škabrnja by the former Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and Serb paramilitary forces on 18 November 1991 began at 10 am on Thursday morning with a memorial procession.

The procession headed towards the monument built on the site of a mass grave where the victims of the massacre were buried.

Ministers Oleg Butković, Ivan Malenica, Marija Vučković, Vili Beroš, and Nina Obuljen Koržinek are attending this year's commemoration on behalf of the government. Also present are Deputy Parliament Speaker Ante Sanader, representing the Sabor, and the president's special envoy Dragan Lozančić.

Škabrnja fell into the hands of occupying Serb forces on 18 November 1991 following air and artillery bombardments by the Yugoslav People's Army under the command of Ratko Mladić. The village, located 25 kilometers east of the coastal city of Zadar, was completely destroyed in the attack, and 48 Croatian civilians and 15 soldiers were killed on that day.

During its subsequent occupation and until its liberation in the August 1995 Operation Storm, the number of Skabrnja victims rose to 86. Another six villagers were killed by leftover mines after the war. Two thousand people were forced to leave their homes during the occupation.

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