Bosnia Police Dismantle Veterans’ Blockade in Tuzla
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Protesting veterans in Tuzla on Friday. Photo: Anadolu. |
Two people were slightly injured and eight were briefly detained in a police operation on Saturday, when police in Bosnia’s northern Tuzla Canton, supported by special police from Bosnia’s Federation entity, dismantled a blockade that war veterans had erected at the Sicki brod junction near Tuzla.
The protesting veterans, who served with the Bosnian Army and Croatian Defence Council (HVO) during wartime, put up several such blockades across Bosnia and Herzegovina on February 28, blocking key cities like Sarajevo, Tuzla and Zenica as well as key roads.
They are demanding more rights, including better social benefits and the establishment of a unified war veterans’ registry that will purge the list of thousands of alleged fakes, who are believed to have entered the system illegally for their own benefit.
Tuzla police spokesman Izudin Saric said police took down the blockade at around 6am mainly peacefully and using “minimum force” against a few individuals who were under the influence of alcohol.
“Two persons sought medical assistance and were transported to Tuzla hospital,” Saric said.
Some of the veterans claimed that the police used excessive force but other accounts contradicted these allegations, and the information could not be independently verified.
Video footage from the scene showed that the war veterans left the area peacefully.
Saric said that eight people were brought in for questioning, several of whom were too young to be war veterans. Others were from other parts of the country.
This information partially corroborated statements from some officials and media who suggested that political parties orchestrated some of those who participated in the blockades as a part of the pre-election campaign, as Bosnia prepares for October general elections.
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