By Tuba Nur Sonmez
Turkish Ambassador to Kuwait
2024 marks the twenty-ninth anniversary of the genocide in Srebrenica, in which at least 8,372 lives were lost, thousands were displaced, and families and communities were devastated. Following a vote on May 23, 2024 in the UN General Assembly, it was decided to designate July 11 as the International Day of Reflection and Commemoration of the 1995 Genocide in Srebrenica, to be observed annually. Turkey was one of the co-sponsors of the resolution.
Aggressors were led by war criminals, who were later convicted by the International Court in The Hague (International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia). They systematically murdered the victims after overrunning the peacekeepers who were supposed to be protecting the UN "safe area” of Srebrenica. The Srebrenica Genocide, described by the International Court of Justice as the largest genocide in Europe since the Second World War, left a dark mark on human history.
On this day of mourning, I extend my deepest condolences to the grieving families of our martyrs and all our Bosniak brothers and sisters. As the Turkish Ambassador to Kuwait, I came to visit for solidarity with Bosnian Ambassador to Kuwait Nusret Cancar on this sad day. We never forget the wisdom and painful truth in the words of the late Aliya Izetbegovic: "Whatever you do, do not forget the genocide, because forgotten genocide will be repeated.” To avoid experiencing similar atrocities again, we will never forget and will not let Srebrenica be forgotten.
In the 1990s, all these atrocities happened before the eyes of the international community and the United Nations. In Bosnia-Herzegovina, over more than three years, tens of thousands of people were brutally killed in southeastern Europe, in front of the world. The international community was ineffective in stopping the inhumane massacres, including the Srebrenica genocide. It is quite sad to see today, as it was before, that the international community is unable to stop Zionist monstrous attacks on the defenseless people of Gaza every single day since October 7.
Just as it was in Srebrenica, another shameful genocide is being committed in Gaza. We strongly hope that all perpetrators of genocide will be judged properly and that justice will be served. The names, languages, and identities of those who commit genocide may change, but the victims are always the same: civilians, children, women, elderly people, and all the defenseless. To prevent the repetition of such suffering, it is essential to establish a culture of peace, tolerance, and reconciliation. We should call on all people and the international community to remember Srebrenica, and to raise their voices. and act to stop the ongoing genocide in Gaza. We will never forget.