Avdo Palić

Infobox Military Person
name=Avdo Palić
lived=4 April 1958 – 1995
placeofbirth=Krivača, Han Pijesak, Bosnia and Herzegovina
placeofdeath=Bosnia and Herzegovina


caption=Avdo Palić in July 1995.
allegiance=flagicon|Bosnia and Herzegovina|1992Bosnia and Herzegovina
serviceyears=1992 – 1995
rank=Colonel
commands=Commander in Žepa
unit=285th Light Mountain Brigade
battles=Bosnian War, Siege of Srebrenica and Žepa
awards=
laterwork=

Avdo Palić (April 4, 1958 - 1995fn|1) was a colonel in the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina who commanded Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina forces in the Žepa enclave during the 1992-1995 Bosnian War. He gained notoriety for commanding an ill equipped force which defended the enclave in the face of overwhelming odds. On July 27, 1995 Avdo Palić was taken prisoner after he went to a meeting with UNPROFOR and Army of Republika Srpska officers led by Ratko Mladic. He was last confirmed alive in a prison in Bijeljina in August 1995, but he has not been seen nor heard from since.

Pre War Life

Avdo Palić was born in the village of Krivača in the municipality of Han Pijesak in north-eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina to a Bosniak family. Prior to the war he served in the Yugoslav National Army as a reserve artillery officer. Palić was a graduate of the Yugoslav military academy. He made his living as an engineer and high school in the city of Vlasenica. Avdo Palić was married to Esma Palić and the couple had two daughters (both of whom were born during the war). His wife and daughters currently live in Sarajevo.

War

Avdo Palić and Esma Palić came to Žepa, his wife's hometown on March 29, 1992 to visit her relatives, but stayed behind when he realized that the people needed a leader to help organize them to resist the impending aggression. In any case they would have been unable to leave because the town was blockaded. In early April he became the commander of the Žepa T.O. ("Territorial Defence") and subsequently the commander of the Bosnian government forces in the area which became known as the "285th Light Mountain Brigade."

On June 4, 1992, a 40-vehicle convoy of Yugoslav National Army troops was sent from Pale to occupy Žepa. As it passed through a canyon on the way to the town it was ambushed by Palić and his men. The defenders of Žepa didn't have many weapons with which to stop the convoy so they also dislodged boulders and rolled logs down into the canyon in effort to stop the attack. 45 JNA soldiers were killed and another 31 wounded and captured. All of the captured Serb soldiers were later exchanged for food. Following that unsuccessful attempt to occupy Žepa the Serbs laid siege for the next three years.

The Žepa enclave was in a remote, mountainous and heavily forested area and was completely surrounded by the Serbian army which regularly shelled the enclave indiscriminately. Žepa was entirely dependent on outside supplies of food and medicine which were supposed to be delivered by the UNPROFOR peacekeepers, but the deliveries were consistently obstructed by the Serbs.

Nevertheless the defenders of Žepa were able to hold out in spite of a severe lack of weapons and ammunition. Nearly all of their weapons were captured from the enemy or were smuggled in on foot or by helicopter from the Bosnian government controlled areas.

On April 17, 1993 the Žepa enclave was demilitarized and turned into a "safe area" by a United Nations Security Council Resolution . A contingent of UNPROFOR troops from the Ukraine was stationed there. Their job was to protect the civilian population and ensure the safe delivery of humanitarian aid. This mission was laid out in [http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u930416a.htm UN Security Council Resolution 819] and [http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u930604a.htm 836] However the resolutions didn't change the dire humanitarian situation and the shelling as well as other offensive actions against Žepa continued.In early 1995 the Serbs stepped up military operations against the eastern Bosnian enclaves of Srebrenica and Žepa. In March 1995, Radovan Karadžić, President of Republika Srpska in spite of the international community pressure to end the war and the ongoing efforts to negotiate a peace agreement, issued a directive to the VRS concerning the long-term strategy of the VRS forces in the enclave. The directive, known as “Directive 7”, specified that the VRS was to: "Complete the physical separation of Srebrenica from Žepa as soon as possible, preventing even communication between individuals in the two enclaves. By planned and well-thought out combat operations, create an unbearable situation of total insecurity with no hope of further survival or life for the inhabitants of Srebrenica."

Between July 6-11, 1995 the Serbs overran the enclave of Srebrenica and committed the notorious Srebrenica massacre. Following that they turned their sights on Žepa. Knowing that his men were outnumbered, outgunned and low on ammunition, Col. Palić sought to negotiate a withdrawal and spare the 3,000 people in Žepa the fate of the massacre victims in Srebrenica. He first escorted his family to safety and returned to Žepa to secure safe passage for everybody else.

While he negotiated his men hid in the forests around Zepa and began to make their way to areas such as Tuzla, Goražde and other Bosnian government controlled areas.

By engaging in negotiation he was able to give the people of Žepa time to escape and another massacre was avoided. During his meetings with Serb officers he was supposedly under the protection of the UN. On July 27, 1995 he went to a meeting with senior Serb and UN officials, among who was Ratko Mladić who subsequently admitted that Palić was seized and later said Palić had been killed (only one source reports Mladić saying that Palić had been killed).

Abdurahman Malkić and Sado Ramić, two Bosniak prisoners from Srebrenica confirm that they were held at the same prison as Avdo Palić in Bijeljina, until late August 1995. However the two men were transferred to another prison and eventually released after the signing of the Dayton Accords. Avdo Palić was never seen alive after the pair were transferred. It is most likely he was eventually murdered and buried in an unmarked grave.

Post War Developments

Leading the fight to uncover the truth about the disappearance of Col. Palić, and recover his remains, is his wife, Esma. She has worked tirelessly to get justice for her husband. In recent times, Esma Palić has filed lawsuits in the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the European Court of Human Rights in Strassburg, France. She has also petitioned the Office of the High Representative in Sarajevo.

Amnesty International and other human rights groups have also made efforts to get justice for Col. Palić.

The Serb government is reluctant to admit to killing Col. Palić since it is against the Geneva Convention to torture and murder POWs. Admitting responsibility would leave government and military authorities open for charges of murder. However, the government of Republika Srpska has paid her 65,000 KM in compensation, and has led unsuccessful searches for his remains. For now, the case of Avdo Palić is the same as the case of the 17,000 people still missing since the war.

Notes

fnb| Avdo Palić has not been confirmed to be dead. However, since so much time has passed since he was last seen alive it is reasonable to infer that he was killed by his captors. His remains have not been found and no admission of guilt has been rendered.

ee also

* Srebrenica massacre

External links

* [http://www.ex-yupress.com/dani/dani79.html Dani article about Palić]
* [http://www.bhdani.com/arhiva/240/t24011.shtml Bosnian version of the same article]
* [http://www.geocities.com/pvlwright/ Info about Col. Palić and other details.]
* [http://www.amnestyusa.org/writeathon/pdf/Palic.pdf Amnesty International report on Palić]
* [http://www.ohr.int/ohr-dept/presso/pressr/default.asp?content_id=37042 RS Palic Commission Report Received]