Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in a message commemorated the 26th anniversary of Srebrenica genocide, describing it as a deep wound in the conscience of humanity.
“Srebrenica genocide is a deep wound in the conscience of the humanity and women and mothers of Srebrenica are still asking for truth and justice,” Zarif said in a message read by Foreign Ministry’s special representative Ebrahim Taherianfard in the ceremony on Sunday.
He also took the opportunity to salute the high spirit of the martyrs who fall victims to the horrific crimes in the city and expressed sympathy and solidarity with the government and people of Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially their bereaved families.
Zarif also stressed in his message that "the Islamic Republic of Iran is proud to have stood by the oppressed people of Bosnia and Herzegovina since the beginning of its independence and never hesitated to offer assistance to the nation and still remains committed to supporting the independence, territorial integrity and peaceful coexistence of all ethnic groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The events of July 1995 are one of the darkest chapters in the contemporary history of humanity, although this incident should not be the source of hatred between nations, but at the same time it should never be forgotten, he added.
The commemoration of this genocide reminds the international community of the need for a commitment to justice, non-violence and a sense of responsibility in defending the oppressed, and calls on the international community, especially the human rights and democracy advocates, to adhere genuinely to genuine human values," the Iranian Foreign Minister said.
Expressing his condolences to the families of the victims of Srebrenica who, he said, have worked tirelessly for twenty-six years to seek justice.
The Srebrenica killings were the bloody crescendo of the war which pitted the country’s three main ethnic factions – Serbs, Croats and Bosniaks – against each other after the break-up of Yugoslavia.
More than 100,000 people were killed in the conflict before a peace deal was brokered in 1995.
Most of the massacre victims were hunted down and summarily executed as they tried to flee into nearby forest after Srebrenica was overrun by Bosnian Serb forces on July 11, 1995, in the waning days of Bosnia’s 1992-95 fratricidal war.
Their bodies were ploughed into hastily dug mass graves and then later excavated with bulldozers and scattered among other burial sites to hide evidence of the crimes.
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