War against Gaza: Have we learned nothing from the genocide in Srebrenica?

As the sun sets over the Srebrenica Memorial, a terrible story lies hidden behind this seemingly tranquil resting place. Here lie the remains of Bosnian Muslims brutally murdered in July 1995 by Serb soldiers under the command of now-convicted war criminal General Ratko Mladic.

I stand in the middle of a sea of ​​graves and am filled with a deep silence. In these graves lie the bodies of men and boys who were separated from their female relatives and executed.

In a grotesque attempt to cover up their crimes, the Serbs repeatedly buried the remains and scattered body parts across several mass graves. For this reason, only partial remains can be found in some of the graves at the memorial center.

On July 11, 14 more victims will be buried as part of the Srebrenica genocide commemoration ceremony. Eleven more remains have been identified, but the Institute for Missing Persons in Bosnia and Herzegovina is awaiting permission from families to bury them. Families often hope that more complete remains will be found before laying their loved ones to rest.

Visiting the Srebrenica memorial made a deep impression on me and showed me that the international community is not keeping its promise of “never again”. The Holocaust should have been a stark reminder of the consequences of unbridled hatred, but there have been failures throughout history.

On July 11, survivors, families and citizens from around the world will come together to remember the more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslims killed in Srebrenica. This commemoration is not only a solemn tribute to the victims, but also a powerful reminder of the horrors of ethnic violence and the ongoing need to be vigilant against hatred and intolerance.

The war in Bosnia and Herzegovina was considered the worst in Europe since World War II. Srebrenica is a stain on humanity that enabled a new genocide on European soil. It took years for international courts to bring the perpetrators to justice. The global response was widely criticized as inadequate and belated.

‘Never again’?

For nearly four years, genocide was committed in Bosnia while the international community stood by and did nothing to stop the violence. A commitment to “never again,” a vow to prevent future genocides, often seems like an ambitious goal. I wonder whether this commitment is truly universal or is it only applied selectively.

As we remember the genocide in Srebrenica, more than 2,000 kilometers away in Gaza another tragedy is unfolding, with roots in the historic occupation of Palestine. This fact is often overlooked as Western politicians focus on the events of October 7, when Hamas launched attacks inside Israel.

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The West often blames the Palestinian people, neglecting the historical context of suffering that began with the British Empire’s Balfour Declaration. The disproportionate brutality that Israel is displaying in Gaza is not classified as genocide by Western leaders; they remain silent and complicit.

Under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli forces targeted civilians, including hospital patients, labeling them as members of Hamas rather than recognizing them as civilians and human beings.

The Srebrenica genocide is a shocking reminder of the capacity for human cruelty and the catastrophic consequences of hatred and intolerance.

In his defense against South Africa’s genocide charges before the International Court of Justice, Israeli legal counsel Tal Becker argued that the term “genocide” should not be misused because it was coined to describe the atrocities of the Holocaust. Applying the term to Israel’s actions, he said, would undermine its meaning and the intent behind its creation, which was to prevent atrocities like the Holocaust.

Not surprisingly, Israeli politicians have controversial views on genocides outside the Holocaust. Israel’s ambassador to Serbia, Yahel Vilan, said calling the mass murder in Srebrenica a genocide “diminishes the meaning of the term.”

This perspective reflects a tendency to attribute the term “genocide” exclusively to the Holocaust, thereby potentially undermining recognition of other atrocities. This is despite the fact that the Srebrenica massacre was classified as genocide by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in 2004 and the International Court of Justice found Serbia guilty of failing to prevent genocide in 2007.

Western hypocrisy

The international community’s commitment to “never again” is often seen as a selective application rather than a universal one. This claim is supported by the examination of various mass atrocities over the past decades and the responses – or lack thereof – of the global community.

For example, despite warnings and indications of escalating violence, the international community did not intervene in time to prevent the massacre of some 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus during the Rwandan genocide. This made it clear that the “never again” commitment was not being kept. This gap continues today in the Gaza Strip, where Israel massacres Palestinians and destroys their cultural heritage, making it almost seem as if they never existed on their own land.

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National interests and geopolitical alliances often determine the extent and nature of international interventions. Depending on their strategic interests, countries are more inclined to intervene or remain silent. In the case of Bosnia, a country with a Muslim population, the plight of its citizens was ignored in the 1990s. The partition of Bosnia seemed to be the priority, not stopping the bloodshed. A similar situation is currently developing in Gaza.

While the Holocaust provided a framework for addressing genocide, subsequent atrocities have revealed significant gaps in the application of the “never again” principle. The varied responses illustrate how geopolitical, economic and political factors often overshadow the universal moral imperative to prevent and punish genocide.

The West’s credibility has been shaken in Gaza. Never again will a Western country have the moral authority to denounce human rights abuses in any state, whether failed or not, because they remained silent as the brutality was broadcast live on our television screens. This hypocrisy undermines the very principles of justice and humanity that the West claims to uphold.

The Srebrenica genocide is a harrowing reminder of human cruelty and the catastrophic consequences of hatred and intolerance. As we reflect on the tragedy that occurred in July 1995, it is important to honour the memory of the over 8,000 Bosniak men and boys who lost their lives.

This dark chapter in history underscores the need to be vigilant to protect human rights and prevent such atrocities in the future. By advocating for education, awareness and justice, we can strive to create a world where such horrors are never repeated. The legacy of the Srebrenica genocide must serve as a solemn call to action to create a more compassionate and just world – not one that stands by and watches Gaza being destroyed.

The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.