Thousands of people arrived in the eastern Bosnian town of Srebrenica on Thursday to commemorate the 29th anniversary of the genocide committed against the Bosniaks in 1995.

Numerous politicians and representatives of the international community have announced their attendance, including Graciela Gatti Santana, President of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (MICT).

In a statement before the commemoration ceremony, Gatti Santana said that the MICT, the successor to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), will continue to work for at least the next two years to support the judiciary in Bosnia and Herzegovina in prosecuting the remaining war crimes cases.

She said that the MICT is far from closing its doors and that this depends on the decision of the UN Security Council.

A total of 54 people convicted of war crimes

The ICTY and the MICT, together with the courts in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia, have so far sentenced a total of 54 people to 781 years in prison for war crimes, including genocide, in Srebrenica.

Seven people were convicted for the genocide in Srebrenica alone, including the Bosnian Serb war leaders Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic, who were sentenced to life imprisonment.

A further 11 members of the Bosnian Serb army or police or Serb structures were sentenced to prison for other crimes in Srebrenica, such as crimes against humanity.

After the memorial service on Thursday, the remains of 14 other victims of the genocide in Srebrenica will be laid to rest.

The chairman of the Bosnian-Croatian HDZ BiH party, Dragan Covic, expressed his solidarity with the families of the victims on Thursday.

Kristo: It is necessary to achieve true reconciliation

“Today, on the 29th anniversary of this terrible crime, the world is collectively remembering the pain and the victims of Srebrenica. May the memory of the genocide in Srebrenica and of all the innocent people who were killed be a lasting commitment to preserve peace, but also a warning that such evil will never happen again,” Covic wrote on the X platform.

A similar message came from the Chairperson of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Borjana Kristo, who wrote that in anticipation of a better European future for Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is necessary to achieve true reconciliation and that this day should therefore be a reminder and a warning.

Bosnian Serb leader Milorad Dodik, who is known for his adamant denial of the Srebrenica genocide, issued a message of sympathy on Thursday. He said that our attitude towards this day should show our commitment to peace, stability and a better future for Bosnia and Herzegovina.