The Tenja killings was the mass murder of Croat civilians by Serb forces between July and November 1991, in the village of

Tenja Tenja ( sr-cyr, Тења, hu, Tenye, german: Tenne) is a city in eastern Slavonia, Croatia, located just southeast of Osijek. It is home for many popular movie stars. It is also place for rich and wealthy such as Andrej Plenković and Veliki Tat ...

Background

During the Croatian War of Independence, Tenja was under the control of Serb rebel forces. It was a part of the

self-proclaimed Self-proclaimed describes a legal title that is recognized by the declaring person but not necessarily by any recognized legal authority. It can be the status of a noble title or the status of a nation. The term is used informally for anyone declari ...

SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia (1991–1992),

Republic of Serbian Krajina The Republic of Serbian Krajina or Serb Republic of Krajina ( sh, Република Српска Крајина, italics=no / or РСК / ''RSK'', ), known as the Serbian Krajina ( / ) or simply Krajina, was a self-proclaimed Serb proto-state, ...

(1992-1995) and

United Nations protectorate This is a list of territories which are directly administered, or once were, by the United Nations (UN). These are not to be confused with UN trust territories, which were run by a single country under a UN mandate. List Current Former Se ...

Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia may refer to: * SAO Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia (1991–1992) * Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Syrmia (1995–98) See also * United Nations Transitional Administration for Easte ...

(1995-1998).

Killings

From 7 July until November 1991, Serb forces, including JNA and TO forces (belonging to the

Novi Sad Novi Sad ( sr-Cyrl, Нови Сад, ; hu, Újvidék, ; german: Neusatz; see below for other names) is the second largest city in Serbia and the capital of the autonomous province of Vojvodina. It is located in the southern portion of the Pan ...

Corps), members of the Serbian Volunteer Guard, under the command of

Željko Ražnatović Željko Ražnatović (, ; 17 April 1952 – 15 January 2000), better known as Arkan (), was a Serbian mobster, politician, sports administrator, paramilitary commander and head of the Serb paramilitary force called the Serb Volunteer Guard du ...

"Arkan", and local Serb rebels and police, abused and killed Croat civilians, as part of a campaign to intimidate the non-Serb population into leaving the village. Croat and other non-Serb civilians were illegally detained in basements in their homes, makeshift prisons and other buildings in the village, where they were kept in unsanitary conditions, brutally beaten, robbed of their valuables, forced to conduct forced labour and were routinely denied food and medication. A number of civilians died under these conditions. On 7 July 1991, Serb TO forces abducted eleven (mostly elderly) Croat civilians, drove them to the nearby village of Bobota and executed them there. In July or August 1991, Serb forces detained and murdered seven Croat civilians; their bodies were found in February 1998 in the area of Betin Dvor. In October 1991, JNA forces imprisoned, interrogated and executed four Croat prisoners. The Belgrade-based

Humanitarian Law Center Humanitarian Law Center (HLC) ( sr-Latn, Fond za Humanitarno pravo, sq, Fondi për të Drejtën Humanitare) is a non-governmental organisation with offices in Belgrade, Serbia, and Pristina, Kosovo.

(HLC) stated that at least 29 Croat and other non-Serb civilians were killed by Serb forces between July and November 1991, dozens more had been illegally detained and abused, in addition to some 3,000 residents who were displaced from the village during the occupation. The bodies of 13 killed persons have not yet been found.

Aftermath

In 2011, the HLC filed a criminal complaint with the Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor of the Republic of Serbia, against 30 individuals for crimes committed in Tenja. The Tenja case was transferred from

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

on the basis of an agreement on cooperation and prosecution of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide signed between the prosecution offices of the two countries signed on October 13 in 2006. Serbian prosecutors charged Božo Vidaković and Žarko Čubrilo, both member of Serb territorial defence units, for committing war crimes, including the killings of 18 civilians and one POW. In 2015, Čubrilo was acquitted in a ruling that was criticized by the HLC. In 2010, Darko Radivoje was sentenced by a Belgrade court to 10 years imprisonment for war crimes committed in Tenja.

References

{{coord missing, Croatia 1991 crimes in Croatia Massacres in 1991 September 1991 events in Europe Serbian war crimes in the Croatian War of Independence Massacres in Croatia Massacres of Croats 1991 murders in Europe Massacres in the Croatian War of Independence