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1992 JNA Column Ambush in Tuzla
Part of the Bosnian War
Date ~7:00 PM, 15 May, 1992 Location Tuzla, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Result Bosnian victory JNA Column largely destroyed large number of vehicles and ammunition destroyed due to fire
Belligerents
Bosnia and Herzegovina	FR Yugoslavia
Commanders and leaders
Ilija Jurišić	Mile Dubajić
Units involved
Bosnian Army Tuzla Brigade	JNA 92nd Motorised Brigade
Strength
~3,000 soldiers	~215–600 soldiers
Casualties and losses
Unknown	54 killed 44 wounded

The 1992 Yugoslav People's Army column incident in Tuzla, also known as Tuzla column (Serbo-Croatian: Tuzlanska kolona, Тузланска колона) was an attack on the 92nd Motorized Brigade of the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) in the Bosnian city of Tuzla on 15 May 1992. The incident occurred at the road junction of Brčanska Malta. At least 54 soldiers of the JNA were killed and 44 wounded during the attacks. What started off as a peaceful retreat by agreement with local authorities ended in an ambush, when Patriotic League, Green Berets and Bosniaks from local police attacked the column. It was a repeat of a similar incident that occurred in Sarajevo a week prior.

Background

When the Bosnian War broke out in April 1992, there were four types of federal and Serb armed forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina. These were; the Yugoslav people's Army (JNA), volunteer units raised by the JNA, Bosnian Serb Territorial Defense (TO) detachments, and Bosnian Serb Ministry of Internal Affairs Police (MUP). With the withdrawal of the JNA from Slovenia and much of Croatia, by early April 1992 the JNA in western Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina had around 100,000–110,000 troops, equipped with about 500 tanks, 400 medium artillery pieces, 48 multiple rocket launchers, and 350 120 mm mortars. In addition, the JNA had 120 fighter-bombers, 40 light helicopters and 30 transport helicopters. The Bosnian Serb MUP totalled about 15,000, including active, special and reserve police. From March 1991, the leaders of Bosniak-based Party of Democratic Action (SDA) had been developing an armed force called the "Patriotic League of People's" or Patriotic League, and despite an arms embargo, weapons began to be issued in August 1991. By April 1992, the Patriotic League numbered around 40,000 troops, in nine regional commands, one of which was reportedly headquartered in Tuzla.

When the war broke out, the Bosnia and Herzegovina TO was mobilised, but the JNA refused to return its weaponry, which it had confiscated in 1990. Bosniaks and Bosnian Croats had already left the JNA. The priority for the JNA was the security of its bases, as this had proven to be a vulnerability during the Battle of the Barracks in Croatian War of Independence. At the beginning of April, a number of towns in north-eastern Bosnia fell in quick succession to a combination of JNA, Serb volunteer and Bosnian Serb forces. These included Bijeljina, Zvornik, Višegrad, and Foča. On 15 April, Bosnian MUP and TO seized the arms, ammunition and equipment of the Tuzla Regional TO in the towns of Srebrenik, Lukavac and in Tuzla itself. By the end of the month, the Bosnian Government had re-organised the Bosnia and Herzegovina TO, incorporating the troops of the Patriotic League. In total, the new force had around 100,000 men, but only about 40,000–50,000 small arms and virtually no heavy weapons.

Attack

On May 15, 1992, Yugoslav People’s Army forces in Tuzla were pulling out of their barracks in Husinsko Brdo in Tuzla and were heading towards Bijeljina, which was under Serb control since late 1991. There was an exchange of fire with local Territorial Defence and police forces at the Brcanska Malta crossroads. After an attempt to leave at 14:00, the convoy was stopped at a checkpoint by elements of the Bosnia and Herzegovina TO, and was sent back to the barracks. The column left the barracks again at 19:00, heading north-east towards Bijeljina via the Brčko road. The lead vehicle contained the commander of the JNA garrison, Lieutenant Colonel Mile Dubajić, and his vehicle was followed by one containing members of the Bosnia and Herzegovina TO. When the convoy reached the intersection with the road leading east to Simin Han, it came under small arms fire from members of the Bosnia and Herzegovina TO.

According to an indictment issued by the Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor of the Republic of Serbia in the District Court of Belgrade War Crimes Chamber on 9 November 2007, at least 92 members of the JNA were killed in the attack on the convoy, a further 33 were wounded, and a number of military vehicles, including ambulances, were also destroyed. The names of those killed and wounded in the attack were listed in the indictment.

Later developments

Years later, the Serbian War Crimes Prosecutor's Office indicted former head of Tuzla public security, an ethnic Croat Ilija Jurišić, on suspicion that he committed a war crime by allegedly ordering the attack. The case was dismissed before Bosnian courts. He was arrested at the Belgrade Airport in May 2007 and was found guilty of improper battlefield conduct in 2009 and sentenced to 12 years in prison. In October 2010, an appeals court later overturned the sentence. The Belgrade Appeals Court ordered a re-trial and released him from detention. Tuzla citizens have continued to express their support for Ilija Jurišić. Subsequently, Jurišić was welcomed by a large crowd upon his return to Tuzla on 11 October 2010 after his sentence was overturned. The re-trial was held and he was sentenced again to 12 years in prison. On 2 April 2015, an appeal commenced against the result of the re-trial. In March 2016, his conviction was again overturned.

The city of Tuzla celebrates 15 May as "City Liberation Day".

See also

• 25 May 1995 Tuzla shelling
• 1992 Yugoslav People's Army column incident in Sarajevo

References

1. Skokić, Edin (15 May 2013). ""Tuzlanska kolona teška mrlja na obrazu Tuzle"". Nezavisne novine.
2. ^ "Serbia jails Bosnian Croat for 1992 war crimes". Reuters. 28 September 2009.
3. "ZLOČIN BEZ KAZNE Milunović: "Napad na kolonu JNA u Tuzli - pucanj u mir u BiH"".
4. "Daily Report: East Europe. Supplement, Issues 48-60". The Service. 1993. p. 10. The same plan of 3 May on Dobrovoljacka Street was also prepared in Skoj Street in Tuzla on 15 May 1992. The Muslims had also guaranteed the safety of a column of soldiers and officers who were being moved out of their barracks only to..
5. CIA 2002, p. 129.
6. ^ CIA 2002, p. 130.
7. CIA 2002, p. 135.
8. CIA 2002, pp. 136–137.
9. CIA 2002, pp. 135–136.
10. CIA 2002, pp. 137–138.
11. CIA 2002, p. 138.
12. CIA 2002, pp. 138–139.
13. CIA 2002, p. 165.
14. CIA 2002, p. 143.
15. Mackic, Erna (17 July 2018). "Bosnian Policeman's Ten-Year Battle to Prove Innocence". Balkan Insight. p. 1.
16. Ilija Jurišić Indictment.
17. "Jutarnji list - Nakon tri i pol godine iz beogradskog zatvora pušten bosanski Hrvat Ilija Jurišić" (in Croatian). Jutarnji.hr. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
18. "Barašin: "Predmeti 'Tuzlanska kolona' i 'Bradina' i dalje aktivni"". 24 Sata. Archived from the original on 28 July 2011. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
19. ^ Gec, Jovana (12 October 2010). "Sentence for ex-Bosnian officer overturned". Associated Press.
20. ^ "Opet 12 godina za tuzlansku kolonu (Again 12 Years for Tuzla Column)". b92.net. B92. 2 December 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2013.
21. "Protest in Support of Ilija Jurisic". Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. 19 October 2009. Archived from the original on 18 February 2012. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
22. "Jurisic given hero's welcome in BiH". SETimes. 12 October 2010. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
23. "Ilija Jurišić u Beogradu, odbrana traži oslobađanje" [In Belgrade, the defence seeks the release of Jurišić]. E-novine.com. 2 April 2015. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
24. "Serbia Acquits Bosnian Policeman of Yugoslav Army Attack". 7 March 2016.
25. "Republika Srpska's Eighth Report to the UN Security Council" (PDF). valadars.net. p. 32.

Sources

• Balkan Battlegrounds: A Military History of the Yugoslav Conflict. Central Intelligence Agency, Office of Russian and European Analysis. 2002.
• "Indictment Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor v. Ilija Jurišić" (PDF). International Crimes Database. 9 November 2007. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
• "Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor v. Ilija Jurišić". International Crimes Database. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
• Ostojic, Mladen (2014). Between Justice and Stability: The Politics of War Crimes Prosecutions in Post-Milošević Serbia. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 978-1-4094-6742-7.

External links

• Tuzla Column (Pros. v. Ilija Jurišić)
• Novi Reporter: Incomplete Lineup (First indictments for Tuzla convoy)

v t e Bosnian War
Part of the Yugoslav Wars
Belligerents	Bosniak side Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina 1st Corps 2nd Corps 3rd Corps 4th Corps 5th Corps 6th Corps 7th Corps Paramilitary Patriotic League Green Berets Croatian Defence Forces Bosnian mujahideen Croat side Croatian Defence Council 1OZ 2OZ 3OZ 4OZ Paramilitary Croatian Defence Forces Knights Serb side Army of Republika Srpska 1st Krajina Corps 2nd Krajina Corps 3rd Corps East Bosnia Corps Herzegovina Corps Sarajevo-Romanija Corps Drina Corps Paramilitary Wolves of Vučjak White Eagles Serb Volunteer Guard Scorpions Yellow Wasps Western Bosnian side National Defence of the Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia
Prelude	Milošević–Tuđman Karađorđevo meeting Zulfikarpašić–Karadžić agreement RAM Plan Serb Autonomous Regions Bosanska Krajina Herzegovina North-East Bosnia Romanija Establishment of the Croatian Community of Herzeg Bosnia Establishment of Republika Srpska Bosnia and Herzegovina independence referendum Sarajevo wedding attack Declaration of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Battle of Bosanski Brod Sijekovac killings Bijeljina massacre 1992 anti-war protests in Sarajevo
1992	Battle of Kupres Siege of Sarajevo Kazani pit killings Foča ethnic cleansing Bosanski Šamac ethnic cleansing Siege of Srebrenica Zvornik massacre Doboj Snagovo massacre Prijedor ethnic cleansing Sarajevo column incident Siege of Goražde Graz agreement Glogova massacre Lašva Valley ethnic cleansing Tuzla column incident Zaklopača massacre Siege of Doboj Bradina massacre Sarajevo bread line massacre Bijeli Potok massacre Pionirska Street fire Operation Jackal Višegrad massacres Bosanska Jagodina Paklenik Barimo Sjeverin Čemerno massacre Siege of Bihać Ahatovići massacre Croat–Bosniak War Operation Vrbas '92 Operation Corridor 92 Bikavac fire Killings in Bratunac and Srebrenica Agreement on Friendship and Cooperation between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia Korićani Cliffs massacre Mičivode massacre Novoseoci massacre Gornja Jošanica massacre
1993	Kravica attack Duša killings Skelani massacre Štrpci Siege of Mostar Srebrenica shelling Ahmići massacre Trusina massacre Sovići and Doljani killings Zenica massacre Vranica case Dobrinja mortar attack Battle of Žepče Battle of Travnik (1993) Battle of Bugojno Operation Irma Operation Neretva '93 Grabovica massacre Mokronoge massacre Autonomous Province of Western Bosnia Inter-Bosniak conflict in Bosanska Krajina Stupni Do massacre Operation Deny Flight Križančevo Selo killings
1994	Operation Tvigi 94 First Markale massacre Banja Luka incident Washington Agreement Establishment of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Operation Bøllebank Attack on Spin magazine journalists Operation Tiger Operation "Breza '94" Battle of Kupres Operation Amanda Scandinavian Airlines System Flight 347 Operation Spider Operation Winter '94
1995	Operation Vlašić Operation Leap 1 Battle of Orašje Operation Leap 2 Split Agreement Operation Summer '95 Pale air strikes Tuzla shelling Battle of Vrbanja Bridge Srebrenica massacre Kravica Battle of Vozuća Operation Miracle Operation Storm Second Markale massacre NATO bombing campaign Operation Mistral 2 Operation Sana Operation Una Operation Southern Move Exodus of Sarajevo Serbs Dayton Agreement Establishment of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Internment camps	Silos Manjača Liplje Luka Vilina Vlas Omarska Keraterm Trnopolje Sušica Čelebići Musala Batković Dretelj Uzamnica Heliodrom Gabela Vojno Kamenica camp
Aspects	Ethnic cleansing and massacres Bosnian genocide Bosnian genocide denial Internment camps Rape Peace plans NATO intervention Foreign support Foreign fighters
Timeline of the Bosnian War (Timeline of the Croat–Bosniak War) Category Commons

• 1992 in Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Attacks in 1992
• Battles of the Bosnian War
• Road incidents in Bosnia and Herzegovina
• Bosniak war crimes in the Bosnian War
• History of Tuzla
• Controversies in Bosnia and Herzegovina
• May 1992 events in Europe
• Ambushes of the Yugoslav Wars
• Yugoslav People's Army
• 1992 road incidents
• 1992 controversies
• 1990s road incidents in Europe