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30 years on: The Srebrenica genocide explained

July 11, 2025

Thirty years after the Srebrenica genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina, survivors are still seeking closure. What led to Europe's worst massacre since WWII? Who was responsible? And were the perpetrators brought to justice?

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On July 11, 1995, and in the days that followed, more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys were murdered in the town of Srebrenica in what is considered Europe's worst atrocity since World War II. 

They were systematically killed by the army of Republika Srpska led by General Ratko Mladic.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has ruled that the massacre was a genocide.

Thirty years later, approximately 1,000 bodies remain unidentified. Although several perpetrators, including Mladic, have been sentenced for their crimes, the families of the victims are still struggling for recognition and closure. 

Serbia and Republika Srpska — the Serb entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina — have admitted that there was a massacre in Srebrenica, but do not recognize it as genocide. 

How could this genocide have happened under the eyes of UN peacekeepers? Who was held accountable? And what does justice look like today? 

A woman with long brown hair (Lavinia Pitu) smiles at the camera; in the background is a cityscape with buildings, church towers and a river.
Lavinia Pitu Video editor, investigative journalist, TV presenter