On the 31st anniversary of the assault of Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) and Serb paramilitaries on Promina near Zadar, the Documenta NGO said on Friday that the majority of war crimes committed in that part of the Zadar hinterland have not been investigated yet.

In the period from September 1991 to mid-1993, numerous war crimes were committed against the civilian population of the Promina area. Many civilians were tortured and killed in a brutal manner and some were thrown into wells while still alive, according to a press release on the occasion of the 31st anniversary of an artillery attack by the JNA and paramilitary Serb units on Drnis and nearby villages.

At least 44 civilians were killed in the Promina area during the war, three of whom are still missing.

According to some sources, almost 2,000 local inhabitants were expelled from or fled the area, 80 percent of properties and infrastructure were destroyed. Almost all the houses were looted, burned or demolished as were public and religious premises.

Killings were committed by firearms and some of the victims were hung or tortured to death. The NGO recalls that local inhabitants were harassed and that explosive devices were planted near houses or where villagers were known to pass through. For some, the cause of death could not be established.

Women were subjected to special torture, some of whom, although already at an advanced age, were victims of rape, often in front of their family members. Due to severe trauma and humiliation, many women never reported being raped, so the number of these crimes is unknown to this day. Promina remained occupied until 5 August 1995, when it was liberated in Operation Storm.

Although the crimes are being “partially investigated,” Documenta underscored that the majority of crimes are still insufficiently investigated and the families of the missing or those killed justifiably express their dissatisfaction.

The NGO once again called for bilateral cooperation to intensify the exchange of information on missing persons and for better cooperation between the judicial bodies of Croatia, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina in order to bring the perpetrators of war crimes to justice.