The 505th Knightly Motorised Brigade (''505. Bužimska brigada'') was part of the
5th Corps of the
Bosnian Army under the command of Brigadier General
Izet Nanić. The 505th Knightly Motorized brigade was honored by the late president of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Alija Izetbegović
Alija Izetbegović (; 8 August 1925 – 19 October 2003) was a Bosnian politician, Islamic philosophy, Islamic philosopher and author, who in 1992 became the first Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, president of the Presidency ...
, as the most elite brigade during the
Bosnian War
The Bosnian War ( / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. Following several earlier violent incid ...
.
The 505th Knightly Motorized brigade was commanded by
Izet Nanić from its creation to his death in 1995. Throughout the Bosnian war the 505th brigade liberated about 300 km
2 of Bosnian territory from the
Republika Srpska
Republika Srpska ( sr-Cyrl, Република Српска, ; also referred to as the Republic of Srpska or Serb Republic) is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other bein ...
entity.
History
The brigade was formed on 15 August 1992 and was initially known as the "105 Bužim Krajina Infantry Brigade." However, it was renamed on 1 April to the 505th Brigade. On the day of the formation, the brigade had 97 officers, 140 non-commissioned officers, and 1,452 soldiers, with one-third of them being armed with infantry or hunting weapons. On 14 December, by decision of the presidency, the brigade was given the title "Knightly".
The first war experience of the brigade was on 21 April 1992, where soldiers from the
Army of Republika Srpska
The Army of Republika Srpska (; ВРС/VRS), commonly referred to in English as the Bosnian Serb Army, was the military of Republika Srpska, the self-proclaimed Serb secessionist republic, a territory within the newly independent Bosnia and Herz ...
attacked
Bosanska Krupa
Bosanska Krupa ( sr-cyrl, Босанска Крупа) is a city located in the Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 29,659 inhabitants.
It is situat ...
to seize it. They did not complete their objective. Still, the lack of weapons and ammunition forced the units to cross to the left bank of the
Una River where positions were consolidated and established, and RS forces' advance in the direction of
Cazin
Cazin ( sr-cyrl, Цазин) is a city located in Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in northwest Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Bosanska Krajina region, near the border ...
and
Bužim
Bužim ( sr-cyrl, Бужим) is a town and municipality located in the Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in the Bosanska Krajina in the most northwestern part of Bosni ...
was stopped. The first major victory of the brigade was in
Munja '93, where 360 poorly armed fighters from the brigade fought against a well fortified and well armed brigade from the Army of Republika Srpska and won. Serb soldiers were killed in the battle and several hundred were wounded, while only 18 from the 505th Brigade were killed.
The commander of the brigade,
Izet Nanić, was killed in the
Siege of Bihać during
Operation Storm
Operation Storm ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Operacija Oluja, separator=" / ", Операција Олуја) was the last major battle of the Croatian War of Independence and a major factor in the outcome of the Bosnian War. It was a decisive victory f ...
on 5 August 1995. He was posthumously awarded the
Order of the Golden Lily, and the Order of Hero of the Liberation War.
Losses
The 505th Buzim Brigade had 462 killed, 2,514 wounded and 189 missing / captured fighters and elders.
Reorganized Units
The brigade was reorganized, and these units were added:
*1. Detachment TO Bužim
*2. Detachment TO Bužim
*3. Detachment TO Bužim
*Special Forces Unit "Hamze"
*Special Forces Unit "Gazije"
*Independent Units from the Detachment TO Bužim
References
Sources
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:505th Buzim Brigade
Brigades of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina