Serbia Apologizes for 1995 Massacre

Serbia’s Parliament voted early on Wednesday to issue an apology for the 1995 killing of thousands of Bosnian Muslims in Srebrenica, but the debate and voting also highlighted how deeply polarized Serbia remains about its wartime past.

The resolution expressed sympathy to the victims and apologized for not doing enough to prevent the massacre, but it also stopped short of calling the killings genocide.

The ruling coalition of pro-Western Democrats and Socialists hopes to win favor with the European Union and Western investors with the measure, which was adopted after a debate that lasted nearly 13 hours and was broadcast on live television.

“We are taking a civilized step of politically responsible people, based on political conviction, for the war crime that happened in Srebrenica,” said Branko Ruzic of the Socialist Party.

Bosnian Serb forces killed about 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys after taking over the enclave in Srebrenica, which had been under the protection of the United Nations. The massacre was Europe’s worst atrocity since World War II.