here - Humanitarian Law Center/Fond za humanitarno pravo

Tovarnik, including the armed group Dusan the Great which formed a part of it – also
participate in the attack alongside the 2nd Proletarian Guard Mechanized Brigade of the JNA,
with the purpose of “cleansing the village of the Croatian National Guard (ZNG) and Croatian
MUP members”, as well from its “hostile residents”. The howitzer battery of the 2nd Proletarian
Guard Mechanized Brigade of the JNA also took part in the attack on Lovas on 10 October 1991,
firing some ten shells. As a result of the artillery fire, one civilian was killed and another
wounded. 125 During the “cleansing” of the village, carried out by the “supporting forces”, 20
civilians died – all villagers of Croatian nationality, who were taken from their homes and killed
on the street or in their yards. The trial chamber established beyond doubt that no members of the
ZNG or the Croatian MUP had been present in the village of Lovas at the time. Furthermore,
except for sporadic resistance, there was no organized defense in the village.
The chamber reached the conclusion that “the command of the Second Proletarian Guard
Mechanized Brigade of the JNA was to be held primarily responsible for the attack on Lovas, the
manner it was carried out and everything that had happened during the said attack, despite the
fact that none of its members was indicted for it.”
The court also found that the accused Željko Krnjajić took part in the attack on the village of
Lovas on 10 October 1991 as commander of the Tovarnik police station, in command of an
armed group, composed of some twenty officers from the police station in Tovarnik and a certain
number of Lovas villagers and volunteers. The group controlled several streets in Lovas. During
the assault, Krnjajić ordered members of the group to shoot at houses in a random and
indiscriminate manner, while he himself did the same thing. He also allowed them to throw hand
grenades at civilian facilities, which resulted in the houses of six Croatian villagers being burned.
The court found that there was no evidence as to when, how and who set fire to the house of Ilija
Baketa. The court also established that the accused, Krnjajić, during the attack on the village of
Lovas, together with members of his group, forced civilians from their homes, took them to the
Agricultural Cooperative, and threatened to murder some of them. Krnjajić was found
responsible for the murder of seven civilians 126 who were taken from their homes and killed in
their yards or the streets, by members of his group who had control over the said streets. 127
The chamber found that a new local government had been established following the occupation
of Lovas. Ljuban Devetak was appointed commander of the village and manager of the
Agricultural Cooperative with broad powers in military and civil matters. He had the strongest de
facto power in the village. The accused Milan Radojčić was appointed commander of the TO in
Lovas and the accused Milan Devčić commander of the police station. The Lovas militia and TO
included local Serbs and volunteers from the armed group Dusan the Great, who took part in the
attack on the village or arrived later. During the events, the village was secured by reserve forces
of the JNA from Serbia, one company of the Ljig TO and the Lajkovac TO, as well as a tank
125 Serb Milan Latas was killed and Croat Marija Vidić was wounded.
126 Mirko Grgić, Danijel Badanjak, Cecilija Badanjak, Josip Poljak, Vid Krizmanić, Ivan Ostrun and Pavo Đaković.
127 Petra Preradovića Street, Marka Oreškovića (now Vukovarska)Street, Ive Lole Ribara (now Ante Starčevića)
Street, Franje Račkog Street and Kralja Tomislava Street.
55