The Liplje camp ( bs, Logor Liplje) was a

concentration camp Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without charges or intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects". Thus, while it can simply ...

operated between 25 May 1992 and 2 June 1992 by

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

in the village Liplje near

Zvornik Zvornik ( sr-cyrl, Зворник, ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in Republika Srpska, on the left bank of the Drina river. In 2013, it had a population of 58,856 inhabitants. The town of Mali Zvornik ("Little Zvornik") lies ...

during the

Bosnian War The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war is commonly seen as having started ...

. It was set up for

Bosniak The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry, cu ...

men, women and children, in an effort to

ethnically cleanse Ethnic cleansing is the systematic forced removal of ethnic, racial, and religious groups from a given area, with the intent of making a region ethnically homogeneous. Along with direct removal, extermination, deportation or population transfe ...

the area of all non-Serb residents. The Liplje concentration camp was liberated after one week of operation; it is known for being the only camp with Bosniak victims to be liberated during the war.

Overview

At the start of the Bosnian War armed Serb peasants from the nearby village of Snagovo overran Liplje on 1 May 1992 and, by 25 May, turned it into a

with the

residents becoming prisoners. Between 420 and 460 people were imprisoned; men, women and children were beaten, raped repeatedly and killed by Serbs. A total of 27 prisoners lost their lives. Escapees organized resistance groups in the towns of

Cerska Cerska ( sr-cyrl, Церска) is a small town in the municipality of Vlasenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina located 12 kilometers from the town of Vlasenica itself and 11 km from the Serbian border. According to the 1991 census, Cerska had a tot ...

and Kamenica. On the night of 1–2 June 1992, about 300 Bosniaks armed with 27 rifles liberated the Liplje concentration camp. It became the only camp with Bosniak prisoners to be liberated in the entirety of the 1992–95 war. None of the camp guards have been prosecuted.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Liplje camp 1992 establishments in Bosnia and Herzegovina 1992 disestablishments in Bosnia and Herzegovina Serbian concentration camps in the Yugoslav Wars Bosnian War internment camps Serbian war crimes in the Bosnian War Wartime sexual violence