An investigation has been launched in Italy over claims that wealthy people paid “large” amounts of money to shoot civilians during the Bosnian War.
Multiple reports, including this one from The Guardian's Angela Giuffrida and Kim Willsher, say that the public prosecutor’s office in Milan has opened an investigation into the allegations, which center on so-called groups of “sniper tourists” who took part in the violence in the 1990s.
“My investigation has led to the opening of a criminal case at the Milan Prosecutor's Office, assigned to Prosecutor Alessandro Gobbis, and the press is covering it,” Ezio Gavazzeni, a writer and journalist based in Milan, wrote in a recent Facebook post.
“Sarajevo Safari was the starting point,” Gavazzeni told Guardian reporters, referencing a 2022 documentary. “I began a correspondence with the director and from there expanded my investigation until I collected enough material to present to the Milan prosecutors.”
According to Gavazzeni, wealthy people from “all western countries” took part in the alleged operation, which saw them paying “large sums of money” in an exchange for a trip to the region “to shoot civilians” for fun amid the devastating conflict.
Money culled from the operation is alleged to have been paid to soldiers in Radovan Karadžić’s army. In 2016, the former Bosnian Serb leader was convicted of genocide and other charges, leading to a 40-year sentence. Karadžić later appealed the decision.
Nicola Brigida, a lawyer credited with assisting in the creation of the complaint presented to prosecutors, has expressed confidence in identifying “at least some” of the people who took part in the alleged operation. In comments reported by MercoPress, Brigida pointed to documented “clues” he believes should be looked into further as the case progresses.
The photo above is not a depiction of these alleged “sniper tourists.” Instead, it shows a Bosnian special forces soldier returning fire in Sarajevo in 1992 while surrounded by civilians, who were being fired upon by Serbian snipers at the time.
