Milan prosecutors have launched an investigation into allegations that wealthy tourists paid between £70,000 and £88,000 to shoot civilians during the Sarajevo siege in the 1990s, with higher fees demanded for targeting children.
The investigation centres on claims that foreign nationals travelled to the besieged Bosnian capital for what has been described as "human safari" trips, where they allegedly acted as snipers shooting residents for sport.
These disturbing allegations suggest gun enthusiasts and individuals with far-right sympathies participated in the killing of innocent civilians during one of modern warfare's longest capital city sieges.
According to the allegations, tourists flew from Trieste to Belgrade aboard Serbian airline Aviogenex before being transported to the hills overlooking Sarajevo to target civilians below.
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The siege lasted from 1992 to 1996, during which more than 10,000 residents died from shelling and sniper fire.
Streets, including Meša Selimović Boulevard, became known as "Sniper Alley" due to the constant threat from gunmen.
The main thoroughfare to Sarajevo airport couldn't be avoided despite the extreme danger it posed to residents.
Witnesses claim the tourists paid Bosnian Serb forces linked to Radovan Karadžić, who was later convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity.
Milan prosecutors have alleged wealthy £70,000 and £88,000 to shoot civilians during the Sarajevo siege in the 1990s
|GETTY
The investigation originated from a 17-page legal complaint filed by Milan-based writer and journalist Ezio Gavazzeni, supported by former magistrate Guido Salvini and Benjamina Karic, who served as Sarajevo's mayor from 2021 to 2024.
The allegations gained prominence through a 2022 documentary titled "Sarajevo Safari" by Slovenian filmmaker Miran Zupanic, which gathered testimonies about wealthy individuals from various nationalities paying to shoot residents.
Mr Gavazzeni said: "We are talking about wealthy people, with reputations - businessmen - who during the siege of Sarajevo paid to kill unarmed civilians.
“They left Trieste for a manhunt and then returned to their respectable daily lives,” he told la Repubblica.
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The tourists allegedly paid extra to shoot at children
|GETTY
Lead prosecutor Alessandro Gobbi reportedly possesses a list of potential witnesses who could provide testimony in the case.
These include a Bosnian intelligence agent identified only as "ES" who claims Italian intelligence knew about the allegations in 1993 and that classified documents still exist.
A Slovenian intelligence official and a wounded firefighter who testified during Slobodan Milosevic's 2002 trial at The Hague are also among potential witnesses.
The firefighter described seeing "tourist shooters" whose distinctive clothing and weapons set them apart from Serbian soldiers.
The Bosnian consul in Milan, Dag Dumrukcic, told la Repubblica that Italy has his government's "full cooperation" in the investigation.
"We are eager to uncover the truth about such a cruel matter and settle accounts with the past.
"I am aware of some information that I will contribute to the investigation," he said.
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