Shocking new allegations have emerged about wealthy foreigners allegedly paying to shoot civilians during the 1992–1995 siege of Sarajevo. The claims, long circulated in war-time reports, are now under scrutiny as Italian magistrates investigate suspected participants from Italy.
Eyewitness accounts paint a chilling picture. Aleksandar Licanin, 63, a former volunteer with a Bosnian Serb tank unit, told The Times he saw well-dressed foreigners, including Britons, Italians, and Germans, taking sniper positions in the Jewish cemetery of Sarajevo. According to Licanin, these visitors targeted women, children, and the elderly, paying up to £88,000 for the privilege, with higher fees reportedly charged to shoot children or pregnant women.
After the killings, Licanin said the foreigners celebrated into the early hours, feasting on roast pork, lamb, and drinking alcohol. “They were celebrating killing people. I can’t imagine how you can live with killing a child,” he recalled.
The alleged operation was coordinated by Slavko Aleksic, head of the Novosarajevo Chetnik Detachment. Licanin claims that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, then a young journalist, acted as a translator for these foreign snipers—a claim Vucic has denied. Croatian investigative journalist Domagoj Margetic has presented documents allegedly showing Vucic’s involvement, though the authenticity of these materials remains contested.
Corroboration from former officials adds weight to Licanin’s testimony. Zlatko Miletic, former Sarajevo police chief, recalled a Romanian woman sniper who killed more than ten people and stated that foreign snipers were “deeply dug into concrete trenches and difficult to neutralize.” Former Bosnian intelligence officer Edin Subasic also reported encountering five Italian snipers, adding that Italian intelligence reportedly intervened to halt visits in early 1994.
Historical context underscores the scale of the alleged crimes. Over 11,500 civilians were killed during the four-year siege of Sarajevo, and claims of “sniper tourism” or “Sarajevo safari” have long circulated but were largely ignored until now. Witnesses report that shootings often increased on weekends, coinciding with visits by foreigners from across Europe and even North America.
Critically, these allegations raise serious questions about foreign complicity in war crimes and the moral responsibility of those who reportedly paid to kill civilians. While investigations are ongoing, the disturbing claims highlight the exploitation of a besieged city for profit and sadistic entertainment.
Aleksandar Licanin, who has lived with the trauma of war ever since, said he hopes the Italian investigation will finally reveal the truth about the human “safari” in Sarajevo.
