Scorpions (paramilitary)
Encyclopedia
The Scorpions were a Serbian paramilitary
group which actively sought out the extermination of other ethnicities in the wars in Croatia
, Bosnia and Herzegovina
and Kosovo. The unit was formed in 1991 in what was then the breakaway Republic of Serbian Krajina
. The Scorpion leader was Slobodan Medić.
Paramilitary
A paramilitary is a force whose function and organization are similar to those of a professional military, but which is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces....
group which actively sought out the extermination of other ethnicities in the wars in Croatia
Croatian War of Independence
The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between forces loyal to the government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia —and the Serb-controlled Yugoslav People's Army and local Serb forces, with the JNA ending its combat...
, Bosnia and Herzegovina
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...
and Kosovo. The unit was formed in 1991 in what was then the breakaway Republic of Serbian Krajina
Republic of Serbian Krajina
The Republic of Serbian Krajina was a self-proclaimed Serb entity within Croatia. Established in 1991, it was not recognized internationally. It formally existed from 1991 to 1995, having been initiated a year earlier via smaller separatist regions. The name Krajina means "frontier"...
. The Scorpion leader was Slobodan Medić.
Crimes
- Srebrenica massacreSrebrenica massacreThe Srebrenica massacre, also known as the Srebrenica genocide, refers to the July 1995 killing, during the Bosnian War, of more than 8,000 Bosniaks , mainly men and boys, in and around the town of Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina, by units of the Army of Republika Srpska under the command of...
- In 2007 commander Slobodan Medić and three other Scorpions were sentenced in a Serbian court for their involvement in killings in SrebrenicaSrebrenicaSrebrenica is a town and municipality in the east of Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the Bosnian Serb entity of Republika Srpska. Srebrenica is a small mountain town, its main industry being salt mining and a nearby spa. During the Bosnian War, the town was the site of the July 1995 massacre,...
. - Podujevo massacrePodujevo massacreThe Podujevo massacre is the name generally used to refer to the killing of 19 Kosovo Albanian civilians, all women and children, committed by Serbian paramilitary forces in March 1999 during the Kosovo war....
- In March 1999 Scorpions member Saša Cvjetan was charged with his role in killings in PodujevoPodujevoPodujevo or Podujeva is a town and municipality located in the district of Pristina of north-eastern Kosovo.Podujevo is situated in a strategic position due to a regional motorway and railroad passing through it which links surrounding regions. Pristina, the capital of Kosovo, is located some to...
and was sentenced by a Serbian court to a 20 years jail term. In 2009, four more Scorpions were jailed in Serbia for their role in the massacre. Zeljko Djukic, Dragan Medic and Dragan Borojevic received twenty year sentences, while Midrag Solaja received a fifteen year sentence.