Greek Volunteer Guard
The Greek Volunteer Guard (Serbian: Grčka Dobrovoljačka Garda) was a unit of Greek volunteers, that took part in the Bosnian War on the side of Bosnian Serbs. The Guard numbered around 100 men and was integrated into the Republika Srpska Army. The Greek Volunteers allegedly participated in the Srebrenica Massacre (after the city fell, a Greek flag was hoisted on Ratko Mladić's insistence).[1] In September, 1995, four of the unit's fighters were awarded the Order of the White Eagle by Radovan Karadžić.[2]
One of the members of the Greek Volunteer Guard, Kyriakos Katharios, in the Greek nationalist paper Eleftheri ora does not acknowledge their participation in the massacre. While acknowledging the erection of the Greek flag, he stated that the honors received from Mladić were not linked to the incident.[3]
The issue was forgotten for years until the Greek deputy Andreas Andrianopoulos broached the subject in 2005 and the Minister of Justice Anastasios Papaligouras began an investigation, which is still underway.[4]
The Panhellenic Macedonian Front denied allegations of involvement in the killings and sued writer Takis Michas for libel.[5]
References
- ^ Michas, Takis (2002). Unholy Alliance: Greece and Milosevic's Serbia in the Nineties. Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 158544183X.
- ^ Koknar, Ali M. (14 July 2003). "The Kontraktniki : Russian mercenaries at war in the Balkans". Bosnian Institute.
- ^ Fighting in Bosnia Eleytheri Ora, November 2007
- ^ Smith, Helena (1 August 2005). "Helena Smith@Athens". London: The Guardian.
- ^ "Greece: Suit Against Journalist For Srebrenica Claims to Go Forward". Balkan Investigative Reporting Network. 21 June 2010.