Safe Area Goražde: The War in Eastern Bosnia, 1992-1995

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of graphic violence, death, religious discrimination, and rape.

Sacco interviews Rasim, a man from Višegrad. In 1992, the Yugoslav People’s Army guaranteed the safety of the town’s Muslim citizens, but when they left on May 18, the Serbs laid siege to Višegrad and began burning and killing. Rasim saw Serbs take Muslims to the bridge over the Drina and shoot men, women, and children before dropping them into the water. Over the course of three nights, Rasim saw 300 people murdered on the bridge. On June 8, Chetniks began killing people in the streets. Before they left, the Yugoslav People’s Army confiscated the weapons of the local Muslims, making resistance impossible.

One night, Chetniks, all men whom Rasim knew, came to his house, demanding his weapons. They broke his nose and 12 of his teeth and injured his leg. They told him that they were going to murder him at the bridge and put him in the back of a truck. He watched as they robbed a shop and loaded the truck with more Muslims. The Chetniks drank and sang as they did so. A Serb neighbor of Rasim’s came to speak with him and promised to save him.