German spy agency sets sights on Balkans, focuses on Bosnia

November 28, 2017 By administrator

Germany’s foreign intelligence agency BND is increasingly focusing on the Balkans and especially Muslim-majority Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Berliner Zeitung reports. Bosnia faces a growing influence from the Gulf states.

The German Intelligence Agency (BND) is increasingly concerned about Islamist tendencies in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Berliner Zeitung daily newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing sources from the intelligence community. The agency is allegedly also turning its attention to the whole of the volatile Balkan region.

For generations, the Muslim population in multi-ethnic Bosnia has adhered to a very liberal interpretation of Islam. This perspective was also reinforced by authorities in secular former Yugoslavia, which included Bosnia along with six other present day Balkan states. However, religious divisions flared up during the break up of the socialist state in the 1990’s and the influence of religion has been growing ever since.

During the war, volunteers from various Middle Eastern countries traveled to the Balkans to join forces with the Muslim Bosniaks. Many of them were issued Bosnian passports after the war and went on to recruit young people for their religious struggle.

According to Tuesday’s report, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states are investing a lot of money to push a much stricter, Wahhabist teaching of Sunni Islam in the Bosnian society. Saudi charities also poured funds into building places of worship, including the King Fahd Mosque in Sarajevo, the biggest mosque in the Balkans, which is dominated by Wahhabis.

‘Fragile states’

Hundreds of people from Bosnia also traveled to the Middle East to join jihadi militias in the recent years, with similar cases also reported in the other Muslim-dominated Balkan states, Kosovo and Albania. According to Balkan media, the war in Syria attracted a number of veterans from the Yugoslav wars who went to fight as mercenaries.

Another issue, the Berliner Zeitung states, is that the country was part of the so-called Balkan route during the 2015 refugee influx, which saw over a million migrants travel from the Mediterranean across Greece and further north to reach the wealthy western European nations.

The BND is also cooperation with other intelligence services in their Balkan-related activities, according to the report.

Two weeks ago, BND chief Bruno Kahl described Bosnia and several ex-Yugoslav nations as potentially “fragile states.”

FM of Bosnia and Herzegovina: We hope NK conflict will be settled in favor of people living there

August 30, 2017 By administrator

Bosnia and Herzegovina closely follows the overall situation over the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina Igor Crnadak said on Wednesday at a joint press conference with Armenia’s Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian.

“We support the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group. We hope this long-lasting conflict will, first of all, be settled in favor of the people living there,”Mr. Crnadak noted.

Erdogan versus Gulen battle now spills over into Bosnia’s

July 22, 2016 By administrator

By Gordana Knezevic

July 22, 2016

As if Bosnia did not have enough of its own problems, it is at risk of becoming embroiled in the increasingly fraught domestic struggles of Turkey. The country’s friendship with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is certain to come under strain because of the extensive network of Fethullah Gulen’s schools scattered across the country.

In January 2015, Erdogan had asked for the closure of the entire network of Gulen’s schools in Bosnia, according to the Bosnian daily Avaz. Apart from the capital Sarajevo, they are present in all the major centers in the Muslim-Croat Federation — Bihac, Zenica, Tuzla, and Mostar. The request was not sent through regular diplomatic channels, but directly to the ruling Muslim Party of Democratic Action (SDA) run by Bakir Izetbegovic.

Gulen schools have been active in Bosnia since 1997. Several hundred flats, kindergartens, high schools, and universities are part of the network. The most prominent are the International Burch University in Sarajevo and the Una-Sana college in northern Bosnia.

The Gulen movement is dedicated to investing in education for the lower and middle classes. The movement states its purpose is to impart the moral values of Islam, as well as subjects such as mathematics, physics, and chemistry, with a view to forming a new Turkish elite and eradicating the secular ideas of Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the modern Turkish state.

Postwar Bosnia has been an important playground for Turkish politicians. With Erdogan keen to revive memories of his country’s imperial heritage, the former Ottoman province could be an ideal stage for Turkey to flex its muscles as a regional power.

There is a new geopolitical context, as well. Since the war (1992-1995), Bosnian Serbs have been looking to Serbia as their “motherland,” and Bosnia as a kind of “temporary home.” It is similar with the Bosnian Croats. Croatia is the “homeland” and their presence in Bosnia seen as merely accidental. Squeezed between the two, many Bosnian Muslims have turned to Turkey. Turkish flags are often waved by young fans in the streets of Bosnian cities following sporting victories.

However, Turkey’s patronage of Bosnia’s Muslim community is more apparent than real. It is a myth that Turkey is the biggest investor in Bosnia. In fact, Austria tops the list and Turkey is not even among the top 10 investors in the country. But Turkey did help with the restoration of the famous Old Bridge in Mostar. It was also involved in the latter stages of another landmark project, the reconstruction of Banja Luka’s Ferhadija mosque, opened on May 7, 2016.

In other words, Turkish investments in Bosnia are token by comparison with other countries, but they are focused on the rebuilding of highly symbolic structures from the Ottoman period, which were destroyed in the war. Such perceived expressions of “brotherly love” between Turkey and the Bosnian Muslims are viewed askance by Belgrade — even though Turkish investments are far higher in Serbia and Croatia.

In terms of foreign education, however, Turkey dominates — for now, at least. A few months ago, the official line from Sarajevo’s International Burch University was that as an institution of higher education it was founded and run in accordance with local regulations, and was subject to oversight by the Bosnian authorities. There has been no comment since the ongoing crisis in Turkey began to unfold, with the government’s crackdown on alleged Gulenist supporters including thousands of teachers and university deans.

The Turkish Embassy in Sarajevo has previously disowned the Gulenist educational network in Bosnia, stating that “the Turkish state has no link with Bosna Sema [a Gulen school],” and asking Bosnian citizens to be wary.

The same appeal for caution was issued by Salmir Kaplan, the former culture and sports minister in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, one of the country’s two constituent entities. Kaplan had first-hand experience of the Gulen schools and has said he was struck by their cult-like aspects. Others, like Slavo Kukic, a professor in Mostar, have pointed to the absence of any educational standards. It is too easy for anyone to open a university in Bosnia, Kukic told RFE/RL’s Balkan Service:

“The first universities and schools [after the war] were started in gas stations. They did not have space. Now they are producing PhDs. The way it seems to work is — enroll on Thursday and graduate by Saturday, metaphorically speaking. We will pay for this [laxity] in the next decade.”

For Bosnia, the proliferation of foreign educational institutions, in the form of Gulenist schools, has thus far seemed more benign than the parallel invasion of Saudi-style mosques preaching a severe form of political Islam. But with events in Turkey escalating dramatically, Bosnia may find itself no longer a showcase for Turkish power and largesse, however token or symbolic, but a new battlefront in a suddenly furious domestic dispute.

PACE adopts Turkish Bosnia MP’s anti-Armenian report “Turks are full control of PACE”

January 26, 2016 By administrator

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on Tuesday voted on PACE MP Milica Marković’s (Bosnia and Herzegovina) anti-Armenian report about Sarsang Reservoir in Nagorno-Karabakh, and entitled “Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water.”

The respective draft resolution was adopted by a vote of 98 for, 71 against, and 40 abstentions.

As reported earlier, however, the PACE MPs rejected MP Robert Walter’s (UK) anti-Armenian report entitled “Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and Other Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan.”

To note, representatives of the Unified European Left Group, the Socialist Group, and the European People’s Party voted against both anti-Armenian reports.

Bosnia Imam Halilovic Calls For Jihad Against The Serbs

September 8, 2015 By administrator

“BiH: Imam Halilovic calls for Jihad against the Serbs,” InSerbia.info, September 8, 2015:

SARAJEVO – Nezim Halilovic, the imam of the mosque of King Fahd in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), in his last sermon, a religious lecture, called Allah to destroy the Republika Srpska, or as he called it, “an entity built on crime and genocide”, writes Serbian daily “Novosti”.

In the above-mentioned mosque, access is restricted to the media and police, and information from sermons leak to the public when they who attend it begin bragging about what imam Halilovic said. Although so far he had tens of mesages which spread religious and national hatred, call for war and the destruction of the Republika Srpska, he has never been sanctioned.

Since the mosque is located in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is in jurisdiction of the Interior Ministry of BiH (MIA), but this institution says that they haven’t received complaints against Halilovic and have not conducted an investigation against him. In addition to MIA of BiH, security agency SIPA is also silent to the radical statements made by imam Halilovic.

Gojko Vasic, director of the police of the Republika Srpska, said for “Novosti” that ignoring Halilovic’s radical statements clearly shows how the security institutions of the Federation of BiH and SIPA are ready to fight terrorism.

“MIA of the Federation of BiH allows hate speeches, calls for war and terrorist actions on its territory, and we are talking about the fight against terrorism in BiH. Halilovic is the best example. He is a problem to the security in the Federation of BiH, and it is up to them to solve it,” said Vasic.

He added that the RS police will do everything it can to protect the citizens of the Republika Srpska, but that the problem of Halilovic and his public statements must be solved by MIA of BiH, Novosti reports.

Nazim Halilovic’s actions are not accidental, said for “Novosti” Dzevad Galijasevic, an expert in the fight against terrorism.

According to him, Halilovic publicly calls for opening Wahhabi fronts in the Republika Srpska and military action, and for now security agencies are silent.

“Do we need to have a terrorist attack happening in the Republika Srpska, to have someone react to his radical calls? Halilovic is the extended arm of Saudi Arabia in BiH, but also in the region. Wahhabi centers in the world want to have major incidents in the Republika Srpska and BiH and a “Bosnian spring”, or better said the Islamic or Wahhabi. Halilovic’s actions and his calls for war, revenge and extermination of Serbs are a part of a planned chaos in the region by radical Islamic ideology led by the Islamic state,” said Galijasevic.

According to him, Halilovic’s messages are part of Saudi Wahhabism which is the most dangerous in the world, but regardless of the fact that he has been acting in BiH almost a decade, he has still not been sanctioned for his radical views. “How is it possible that none of the security agencies on the state level in BiH are brave enough to enter the mosque of King Fahd in Sarajevo? Everyone in the country know that the Wahhabis meet there and spread radical views, but there is no reaction. Sad to say so, but how many terrorist attacks will be required to happen in BiH to actually do something and prohibit the operation of such radical people and close objects where terrorism is supported?,” said Galijasevic.

Halilovic called the “consecrated individuals led with Allah’s hand to execute his wishes and commands”.

Before the commemoration on July 11 in Potocari, when the Prime Minister of Serbia Aleksandar Vucic was attacked, he held a sermon in which he called Allah’s curse on “the criminals and their accomplices, the lobbysts against the resolution on Srebrenica”.

Source: inserbia.info

Turkish Bosnia: ISIS set up stronghold in the heart of Europe as terrorists secretly buy land near an isolated village

July 20, 2015 By administrator

BY PATRICK HILL , ED WIGHT

Bosnia, Heartlands: The ISIS stronghold is not mapped by GPS

Security services think the area in Bosnia is used for ISIS training camps and could be a base for devastating terror attacks on the West, Islamic State have established a stronghold in mainland Europe, a Sunday Mirror investigation reveals. Report mirror.co.uk Visit the site to see Video of Bosnian children training in Syria

Terrorists are secretly buying land in an isolated village, surrounded by deep woodland.

Security services think the area in Bosnia is used for ISIS training camps and could be a base for devastating terror attacks on the West.

Crucially, the location gives IS a key strategic position due to its proximity to the Mediterranean which is used by extremists from Syria, Iraq and North Africa.

At least 12 ISIS fighters trained in the village of Osve have left for Syria in recent months and five are reported to be dead.

Terror expert Dzevad Galijasevic said: “From this village a large number of people went to Syria and are going constantly.

“The chosen location of some of the properties is on a hill, where there is no possibility to approach without being seen. It is clear that the source of the terrorist threat is right there. It is a major threat.

“There is no one there who isn’t ready to respond to the summons to jihad.”

We visited the hilltop village 60 miles from Sarajevo and six miles from the town of Maglaj afternoon.

It is not mapped by GPS and is only accessible by steep and winding roads barely wide enough for cars to pass.

A number of houses there appear to have been abandoned or only half built and it is not overlooked by any other settlement.

A number of villagers wore Islamic-style clothing, including two women wearing burkas.

Our guide – our driver and translator – said we were being watched and it was too dangerous to photograph them.

Clearly worried, the dad-of-one said: “We should leave now – our presence here is beginning to cause suspicion. This is a beautiful place but is incredibly dangerous.

“You cannot underestimate the possible threat here. If they see the camera all hell will break loose.”

It is understood that notorious ISIS supporter Harun Mehicevic is among fanatics who bought land in the area. He has purchased two hectares.

Mehicevic fled Bosnia during the 1990s Balkan wars and settled in Melbourne, Australia, where he is considered one of the country’s most dangerous men.

In one ranting sermon, he reportedly told an audience of potential recruits: “Allah will help the mujahideen (holy warriors) establish an Islamic State where Muslims can live with dignity and honour.”

Other known terrorists believed to have bought land in the village include Jasin Rizvic and Osman Kekic, who are both now fighting with ISIS in Syria.

Muslim leader Izet Hadzic – arrested by Bosnia’ and Herzegovina’s security service Sipa in a raid – is also understood to have property in the village, as have many others who have gone to fight in Syria and Iraq.

One villager told our investigators that locals fear the area is a “nest for terrorists”.

The man, who does not want to be named, said: “We regularly hear gunshots coming from the woods up there for long periods at a time. It happens every week.

“I don’t know what they are doing, whether it is target practice or something like that, but it happens regularly. “It is really concerning to hear such notorious members of ISIS are buying land. They keep themselves to themselves but it is better not to ask questions.

“It worries me that I am bringing up my children here. Now could be time to move out but it is not so easy to sell.”

Bosnia is an ideal position for jihadis travelling illegally from Syria to Greece, via Turkey, and then through Macedonia and Serbia.

Guns and other weapons are easier to obtain in Bosnia than in other parts of Europe due to illegal ownership following the conflicts of the 1990s.

Five months ago, anti-terror cops raided the village of Gornja Maoca in the north of the country following reports of houses flying the ISIS flag.

The area is home to followers of the strict Sunni Islam Wahhabi movement. It has been raided by police several times over the past decade due to suspected links with radical groups.

A report on jihadism in Bosnia said: “Returning foreign fighters from Syria and Iraq – battle-hardened, skilled in handling arms and explosives, and ideologically radicalised – pose a direct threat not only to the security of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also of the region and beyond.” The report, The Lure of the Syrian War: The Foreign Fighters’ Bosnian Contingent, said that between 2013 and 2014, 156 Bosnian men and 36 women travelled to Syria, taking 25 children with them.

It said 48 men and three women had officially returned by last January.

The authors, Sarajevo University associate political science professor Vlado Azinovic and Islamic theologian Muhamed Jusic, also found that Bosnia was ill-prepared to deal with the threat.

The report said: “There is a lack of co-ordination between local law-enforcement agencies on (foreign fighter) issues.”

Kristina Jozic of security service Sipa said: “The return of individuals participating in the conflict in Syria, fighting with ISIS, is undoubtedly a security challenge and a threat, the extent of which is hard to determine.”

She said: “Sipa continuously performs checks of all allegations that can be linked to terrorist activities in any way, whether that is financing, recruiting or other activities related to terrorism.”

She added that the village is under surveillance following a police raid in May.

Director of the Centre for Security Studies in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo, Armin Krzalic, said: “Bosnians who went to fight for Islamic State will be treated as a threat to security upon their return whether they have land here or not.”

BBC: Bosnia and Serbia floods: Death toll rises (Video)

May 17, 2014 By administrator

Serbia needs rescue teams, saving lives priority
Source: RTS, Tanjug

BELGRADE — Ivica Dačić has said that Serbia now above all needs assistance in equipment, along with rescue teams to save the affected towns and their residents.
More than two dozen people are feared dead in Bosnia-Hercegovina and Serbia after the worst floods in more than a century.

Tens of thousands have fled their homes as several months of rain fell in a few days and rivers burst their banks. Landslides have buried houses.

In one Bosnian town alone, Doboj, the mayor said more than 20 bodies had been taken to the mortuary.

In Serbia, an outer suburb of the capital Belgrade has been inundated.
Tsunami-like

“More than 20 corpses have so far been brought to the city’s morgue,” the mayor of Doboj, in the north-east, was quoted as saying.

The republic’s police chief, Gojko Vasic, said the situation had been particularly difficult in Doboj “because the flood waters acted as a tsunami, three to four metres high. No-one could have resisted.”