The Zenica massacre happened on 19 April 1993, approximately about noon. Several shells fired from the Croatian Defence Council HVO's positions located in Putićevo village, about 16 km (9.9 mi) west of Zenica, killed 16 and injured over 50 civilians amid large crowd gathered.[1][2]
Attack
At the time (19 April 1993), there was significant commercial activity in the center of the city, with about two to three thousand men, women and children in the area ultimately hit by shells.
The exact number of shells fired at the center of Zenica is not known yet though estimates place the number at nine shells shot from howitzer.[3][4][5][6] A total of six shells hit the target, three series of two. The first attack began at about 12:10 local time, the second one with two shells at 12:24, and the following two rounds with two shells total at 12:29.[7]
Aftermath
ICTY charged HVO's general Tihomir Blaškić for the crime. There are two different claims about source of the fire: charge in the Blaškić process claims there were HVO's positions in Putićevo,[8] while defence claimed that shelling perpetrator were Serbian forces from mountain Vlašić.[8]
The Trial Chamber acquitted general Blaškić of all accusations on counts of the charge by which he was accused for the crime.[8]
Memorial park
Part of the memorial monument with inscribed names of the victims
In order to remember the people killed after the crime of 19 April 1993, city square in Zenica became known as Stone Sleeper [bs] (translation of Kameni spavač, name of Mak Dizdar's work); it is a memorial park with large curved memorial sculpture with names of killed Zenicans, one fountain and memorial plate referring to Dizdar.
Also, the date of massacre is commemorated as a civilian victims' day of Bosnian War in Zenica.[9][10][11]
