Hajrudin Mešić aka Kapetan Hajro (January 1, 1959 – October 30, 1992) was a Bosnian

military commander The commanding officer (CO) or commander, or sometimes, if the incumbent is a general officer, commanding general (CG), is the officer in command of a military unit. The commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually give ...

and brigadier general in the

Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (; ; ARBiH), often referred to as Bosnian Army, was the military force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was established by the government of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina i ...

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 ...

Early life

Hajrudin Mešić was born on

New Year's Day In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, January 1, 1 January. Most solar calendars, such as the Gregorian and Julian calendars, begin the year regularly at or near the December solstice, northern winter ...

1959 in the village of Srednja Trnova, municipality of

Ugljevik Ugljevik ( sr-cyrl, Угљевик) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, the municipality has a population of 15,710 inhabitants, while the town of Ugljevik has a population of 4,155 inhabitants. The ...

. In the Mešić family, in addition to father Meho and mother Zejfa, Hajrudin had a brother and two sisters. He completed eight-year school in Srednja and Donja Trnova. After finishing elementary school, he attended and graduated from the JNA non-commissioned officer school in Sarajevo. During his service in the JNA, he graduated part-time from the JNA military academy in Belgrade and received the rank of captain.

War period

The war in the territory of the former Yugoslavia found him in the rank of captain, in the service of the JNA in

Karlovac, Croatia Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. In the 2021 census, its population was 49,377. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located southwest of Zagreb and northeast of Rijeka, and is connected to them via the ...

. In 1991 he left the JNA and Croatia, bringing his family back to Ugljevik. There, he was named the commander of the Ugljevik militia station. In the Teočak area, he spearheaded the creation of patriotic forces with a smaller faction. At the start of the war, he decided to leave the region because he was the commander of the Ugljevik Militia Station and refused to swear loyalty to the newly formed Serbian municipal government. With a group of like-minded people, he moved to Teocak, where he became the commander of the Territorial Defense of Teočak. On September 16, 1992, with the formation of the 1st Teočan, later the 255th famous mountain brigade, he became its commander.

Death

He died on October 30, 1992, in the village of Nezuk, while trying to break through the corridor towards the besieged Kamenica. After this, the 1st Teočan Brigade was renamed the Hajrudin Mešić Brigade.

Legacy

Captain Mešić is survived by his wife Radenka, and their daughter Lejla, and son Zlatko. A street in

Simin Han Simin Han is a town east of Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It has a school, a mosque, and a youth soccer training centre. Its neighboring towns are Gornja Tuzla and Slavinovići. History During the Bosnia Eyalet of the Ottoman Empire, people wo ...

near Tuzla is named after him (), in Kalesija (), and in Sokolović Kolonija neighborhood in the municipality of

Ilidža Ilidža ( sr-cyrl, Илиџа, ) is a spa town and a municipality located in Sarajevo Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It has a total population of 66,730 with 63,528 in Ilidža itself, and i ...

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...

, as well ().

Awards

He received the highest war awards: the

Order of the Golden Lily The Order of the Golden Lily (), or simply the Golden Lily (), was a military decoration of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Bosnian War. It was given to soldiers and officers who displayed exceptional courage, bravery ...

and the Golden Police Badge. In addition, he was posthumously promoted to the rank of brigadier general, and awarded the

Order of the Hero of the Liberation War The Order of the Hero of the Liberation War () was the highest military decoration of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Bosnian War. Nine members of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina were awarded the ...

of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mešić, Hajrudin 1992 deaths 1959 births Recipients of the Order of the Hero of the Liberation War Recipients of the Order of the Golden Lily Military personnel killed in the Bosnian War