Rasim Delić
Encyclopedia
Rasim Delić was the Chief of Staff of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
. He was a career officer in the Yugoslav National Army but left the army when Yugoslavia dissolved.
(JNA) on 1 October 1967 at the Military Academy for land forces, where he completed his studies there on 31 July 1971. From 1971 to 1985 he served in an artillery division of the JNA based in Sarajevo
and from October 1980 to September 1984 as its commander. From September 1984 to August 1985, Rasim served as Chief of Staff and Deputy Commander of a joint artillery regiment. Between August 1985 and July 1990, except for an interruption of about 11 months in 1988/89 when he attended Command Staff School, Rasim was commander of a joint artillery regiment. On 22 December 1987 he was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel.
. He officially requested to leave the JNA on 13 April 1992.
Shortly after 13 April, Rasim was appointed as Head of the Training and Operations Organ of the Territorial Defence of RBiH.
On 16 April 1992, he was ordered to leave Sarajevo and on 19 April he arrived in Visoko
, where he worked with a group of TO officers on the formation of units in central Bosnia. Eventually the Visoko
Tactical Group was formed, headed by Rasim Delić. By 12 May he also became a member of the Main Staff and on that date was tasked officially with organizing and commanding armed combat activities in various municipalities in central Bosnia.
On 20 May 1992, the TO forces became the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
. On 17 October 1992, Sefer Halilović
, then Chief of the Main Staff, appointed Rasim Delić as Acting Head of the Department of Operations Planning and Training in the Main Staff. June 3, 1992 this group was named the Operation Command Visoko.
In autumn 1992, the Visoko
group was officially named Staff of the Supreme Command – Visoko Department, thus going over the head of the command of the General Staff and Defense Ministry and directly answering to the Presidency and the President.
On 27 April 1993, Sefer appointed Rasim as one of the four officers representing the ARBiH in the joint command of the ARBiH and the Croatian Defence Council (HVO).
On 8 June 1993, the Bosnian Presidency issued the reconstruction of the ARBiH Supreme Command Headquarters to include establishing the post Commander of the ARBiH Main Staff, with Rasim Delić being appointed to that post, thus assuming all control of the ARBiH and becoming a member of the extended RBiH Presidency.
Delic's greatest achievement was to prevent the collapse of the government army in the second half of 1993. That provided breathing space for negotiations, orchestrated by the US administration, which ended the conflict with the Bosnian Croats in March 1994.
He enrolled in Sarajevo University in December 2004. He finished with the theses „Nastanak, razvoj i uloga Armije RBiH u odbrani Bosne i Hercegovine“ (Creation, expansion, and role of the army of RBiH in the defense of Bosnia and Herzegovina).
He was also involved in some non-profit organizations. He is also the co-founder of Udruženja za zaštitu tekovina borbe za Bosnu i Hercegovinu
, and given a three year jail sentence. He was sentenced by the Trial Chamber for failure to prevent or punish the cruel treatment of twelve captured Serb soldiers in the village of Livade and in the Kamenica camp near Zavidovići in July and August 1995 at the hands of the Mujahideen. At the time the general was remanded to the Detention Unit until the end of the appellate proceedings.
(Bosniak
) coreligionists to fight against "enemies of Islam" during the Bosnian war
. Mostly they came from North Africa
, the Near East
and the Middle East
. On 13 August 1993, the Bosnian Army officially organized foreign volunteers into the detachment known as "El Mujahid" (El Mudžahid) in order to impose control and order.
However, the ICTY Appeals Chamber in Kubura and Hadžihasanović case noted that the relationship between the 3rd Corps of the Bosnian Army headed by Hadžihasanović and the El Mujahedin detachment was not one of subordination but was instead close to overt hostility since the only way to control the detachment was to attack them as if they were a distinct enemy force.
Soldiers of the "El Mujahid" units, committed various war crimes and inhumane dealings with Serb
and Croat
soldiers, mainly prisoners, the following among others:
It was alleged that Delić knew that the Mujahideen and other soldiers of his army intended to commit those crimes and knew that Kamenica Camp was the place those crimes were likely to happen but he did nothing to prevent those crimes.
On 3 March 2005, Delić surrendered voluntarily to International Court. He pleaded not guilty on all accounts.
– he was accused of having talked about his case with him, but he claimed he only talked about friends and family.
The prosecutors requested 15 years of jail, while the defence requested his release for his guilt had not been proven. The defence claimed that in critical time he did not have control over Mujahideen so that he had not been in a position to have stopped them or for that matter to have punished them.
The court, however, concluded that Delić was not guilty for crimes over Croatian soldiers in Maline for he had been appointed commander of the headquarters on the same day. He was also found not guilty of cruelty and murder in village Kesten and Kamenica Camp, where Mujahideen were alleged to have killed one old man and 52 Serbian soldiers as well as having tortured another 10. He was found guilty only for one charge for failure to prevent or punish the cruel treatment of twelve captured Serb soldiers in the village of Livade and in the Kamenica camp (three incidents between 1993 and 1995) and he was found not guilty for other accounts.
Although the Mujahideen and Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina soldiers crimes were proven, and it was agreed by the court that he had effective control over that unit during that time, the judges concluded that Delić could not have known about those murders at the time so he could not have stopped them.
Delić was sentenced to three years in prison, with the 448 days already spent in detention counted as part of that sentence.
. He is survived by his wife Suada, as well as his two sons and four grandchildren.
Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was the military force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina established by the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992 following the outbreak of the Bosnian War...
. He was a career officer in the Yugoslav National Army but left the army when Yugoslavia dissolved.
Yugoslavian National Army
Rasim Delić began his military career in the Yugoslav People's ArmyYugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army , also referred to as the Yugoslav National Army , was the military of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.-Origins:The origins of the JNA can...
(JNA) on 1 October 1967 at the Military Academy for land forces, where he completed his studies there on 31 July 1971. From 1971 to 1985 he served in an artillery division of the JNA based in Sarajevo
Sarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
and from October 1980 to September 1984 as its commander. From September 1984 to August 1985, Rasim served as Chief of Staff and Deputy Commander of a joint artillery regiment. Between August 1985 and July 1990, except for an interruption of about 11 months in 1988/89 when he attended Command Staff School, Rasim was commander of a joint artillery regiment. On 22 December 1987 he was promoted to Lieutenant-Colonel.
- Commander of an artillery division (15 October 1980 – 20 September 1984)
- Chief of staff and deputy commander of a mixed artillery regiment (21 September 1984 – 27 August 1985)
- Commander of a mixed artillery regiment (28 August 1985 – 31 August 1988 and 1 August 1989 – 15 July 1990). On 22 December 1987, was made colonel.
- Chief of Operations in the 4th Corps of the JNA in Sarajevo (16 July 1990 – 13 April 1992)
Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
From 16 July 1990 to 13 April 1992, Rasim Delić was Assistant Chief of the Department for Operational and Training Services in the command of the JNA 4th Corps in SarajevoSarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
. He officially requested to leave the JNA on 13 April 1992.
Shortly after 13 April, Rasim was appointed as Head of the Training and Operations Organ of the Territorial Defence of RBiH.
On 16 April 1992, he was ordered to leave Sarajevo and on 19 April he arrived in Visoko
Visoko
Visoko is a city and municipality in central Bosnia and Herzegovina of rich historical heritage. It was an early centre of the Bosnian medieval state, and the site where the first Bosnian king Tvrtko I was crowned. Located between Zenica and Sarajevo, Visoko lies on the Bosna river where the...
, where he worked with a group of TO officers on the formation of units in central Bosnia. Eventually the Visoko
Visoko
Visoko is a city and municipality in central Bosnia and Herzegovina of rich historical heritage. It was an early centre of the Bosnian medieval state, and the site where the first Bosnian king Tvrtko I was crowned. Located between Zenica and Sarajevo, Visoko lies on the Bosna river where the...
Tactical Group was formed, headed by Rasim Delić. By 12 May he also became a member of the Main Staff and on that date was tasked officially with organizing and commanding armed combat activities in various municipalities in central Bosnia.
On 20 May 1992, the TO forces became the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was the military force of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina established by the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992 following the outbreak of the Bosnian War...
. On 17 October 1992, Sefer Halilović
Sefer Halilovic
Sefer Halilović is a former general and commanding officer of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In 2001, he was indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and eventually acquitted...
, then Chief of the Main Staff, appointed Rasim Delić as Acting Head of the Department of Operations Planning and Training in the Main Staff. June 3, 1992 this group was named the Operation Command Visoko.
In autumn 1992, the Visoko
Visoko
Visoko is a city and municipality in central Bosnia and Herzegovina of rich historical heritage. It was an early centre of the Bosnian medieval state, and the site where the first Bosnian king Tvrtko I was crowned. Located between Zenica and Sarajevo, Visoko lies on the Bosna river where the...
group was officially named Staff of the Supreme Command – Visoko Department, thus going over the head of the command of the General Staff and Defense Ministry and directly answering to the Presidency and the President.
On 27 April 1993, Sefer appointed Rasim as one of the four officers representing the ARBiH in the joint command of the ARBiH and the Croatian Defence Council (HVO).
On 8 June 1993, the Bosnian Presidency issued the reconstruction of the ARBiH Supreme Command Headquarters to include establishing the post Commander of the ARBiH Main Staff, with Rasim Delić being appointed to that post, thus assuming all control of the ARBiH and becoming a member of the extended RBiH Presidency.
Delic's greatest achievement was to prevent the collapse of the government army in the second half of 1993. That provided breathing space for negotiations, orchestrated by the US administration, which ended the conflict with the Bosnian Croats in March 1994.
Post military and retirement
Delić became the commander of the federation army until his retirement in 2000.He enrolled in Sarajevo University in December 2004. He finished with the theses „Nastanak, razvoj i uloga Armije RBiH u odbrani Bosne i Hercegovine“ (Creation, expansion, and role of the army of RBiH in the defense of Bosnia and Herzegovina).
He was also involved in some non-profit organizations. He is also the co-founder of Udruženja za zaštitu tekovina borbe za Bosnu i Hercegovinu
War crimes indictment
He was charged with war crimes by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former YugoslaviaInternational Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
The International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia since 1991, more commonly referred to as the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia or ICTY, is a...
, and given a three year jail sentence. He was sentenced by the Trial Chamber for failure to prevent or punish the cruel treatment of twelve captured Serb soldiers in the village of Livade and in the Kamenica camp near Zavidovići in July and August 1995 at the hands of the Mujahideen. At the time the general was remanded to the Detention Unit until the end of the appellate proceedings.
History and the charge
Foreign mujahideen arrived in central Bosnia in the second half of 1992 with the aim of helping their Bosnian MuslimMuslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
(Bosniak
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks or Bosniacs are a South Slavic ethnic group, living mainly in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a smaller minority also present in other lands of the Balkan Peninsula especially in Serbia, Montenegro and Croatia...
) coreligionists to fight against "enemies of Islam" during the Bosnian war
Bosnian War
The Bosnian War or the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between April 1992 and December 1995. The war involved several sides...
. Mostly they came from North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
, the Near East
Near East
The Near East is a geographical term that covers different countries for geographers, archeologists, and historians, on the one hand, and for political scientists, economists, and journalists, on the other...
and the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. On 13 August 1993, the Bosnian Army officially organized foreign volunteers into the detachment known as "El Mujahid" (El Mudžahid) in order to impose control and order.
However, the ICTY Appeals Chamber in Kubura and Hadžihasanović case noted that the relationship between the 3rd Corps of the Bosnian Army headed by Hadžihasanović and the El Mujahedin detachment was not one of subordination but was instead close to overt hostility since the only way to control the detachment was to attack them as if they were a distinct enemy force.
Soldiers of the "El Mujahid" units, committed various war crimes and inhumane dealings with Serb
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
and Croat
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
soldiers, mainly prisoners, the following among others:
- According to the indictment, on 8 June 1993, the same day Delić was appointed commander of the Headquarters, the Bosnian Army imprisoned 200 Croatian soldiers who surrendered after battles in and around the village of Maline. The captured soldiers were ordered by the Military Police of the ABiH 306th Mountain Brigade to march towards the nearby settlement of Mehurići, several miles from Maline. Near the village of Poljanice they met a group of around 10 Mujahideen who took a group of around 20 Croat soldiers and one woman and ordered them to come with them back to Maline. They were all ordered to stand in line after which they were murdered. According to the international prosecutor's indictment Delić was informed about these crimes but did nothing to prevent them or punish the criminals.
- On 21 June 1995, two soldiers of the Army of Republika SrpskaArmy of Republika SrpskaThe Army of Republika Srpska ; Serbian, Bosnian, Croatian Vojska Republike Srpske ) also referred to as the Bosnian Serb Army, was the military of today's Republika Srpska which was then the "Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina", a self-proclaimed state within the internationally recognized...
were arrested and soon afterwards beheaded by soldiers of Army of BiH. The indictment states other prisoners arrested on the same day were tortured and then taken to Kamenica Camp. Another Serbian soldier, Gojko Vujičić, was alleged to have been beheaded on 24 July 1995. Other prisoners were forced to kiss the head which was on display in the room they were held in. Various types of torture were practiced in Kamenica Camp, including by electric shock, or causing horrible pain to the subjects by having rubber pipes inserted into their legs and then pumping the tubing up with increasingly higher air pressure.
- On 11 September 1995 around 60 Serbian soldiers were arrested together with 3 women who were all then transferred to Kamenica Camp. All of the soldiers were never seen again and it is presumed they are dead. It is alleged that 3 women were raped and later freed, on 10 November 1995. However, on 26 February 2008, Delić was acquitted on charges of rape under the Rule 98 bis of the Rules of Procedure and Evidence. According to presiding judge Bakone Moloto, in the course of its case, the prosecution did not lead any evidence on count three related to the rape.
- Another group of 10 Serbian soldiers was arrested on 10 September 1995. They were all subjected to torture for a period of 12 days.
It was alleged that Delić knew that the Mujahideen and other soldiers of his army intended to commit those crimes and knew that Kamenica Camp was the place those crimes were likely to happen but he did nothing to prevent those crimes.
On 3 March 2005, Delić surrendered voluntarily to International Court. He pleaded not guilty on all accounts.
Trial and verdict
On 15 September 2008, after around 11 months of trial, the court passed the judgment in case of Delić. He was two times temporarily released to Bosnia, the first time in May 2005 and the second time during new year break on 11 December 2007. The prosecutors did not have remarks on these decisions. While on his second release, Delić was held in home detention for a while because he spoke with Haris SilajdžićHaris Silajdžic
Haris Silajdžić is a Bosnian politician and academic. In the 2006 elections, Silajdžić was elected as the Bosniak member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina for four years in the rotating presidency.He was born in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Yugoslavia.- Political career:From 1990...
– he was accused of having talked about his case with him, but he claimed he only talked about friends and family.
The prosecutors requested 15 years of jail, while the defence requested his release for his guilt had not been proven. The defence claimed that in critical time he did not have control over Mujahideen so that he had not been in a position to have stopped them or for that matter to have punished them.
The court, however, concluded that Delić was not guilty for crimes over Croatian soldiers in Maline for he had been appointed commander of the headquarters on the same day. He was also found not guilty of cruelty and murder in village Kesten and Kamenica Camp, where Mujahideen were alleged to have killed one old man and 52 Serbian soldiers as well as having tortured another 10. He was found guilty only for one charge for failure to prevent or punish the cruel treatment of twelve captured Serb soldiers in the village of Livade and in the Kamenica camp (three incidents between 1993 and 1995) and he was found not guilty for other accounts.
Although the Mujahideen and Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina soldiers crimes were proven, and it was agreed by the court that he had effective control over that unit during that time, the judges concluded that Delić could not have known about those murders at the time so he could not have stopped them.
Delić was sentenced to three years in prison, with the 448 days already spent in detention counted as part of that sentence.
Death
Delic died on 16 April 2010 in his apartment in SarajevoSarajevo
Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....
. He is survived by his wife Suada, as well as his two sons and four grandchildren.
Publications
- Čast je braniti Bosnu (2002)
- Armija Republike Bosne i Hercegovine – nastanak, razvoj i odbrana zemlje (2007)
- 101 ratna priča (2010)