“Sarajevo safari”: the need to combat impunity for transnational war crimes

Motion for a resolution | Doc. 16426 | 16 June 2026

Signatories:

Ms Sabina ĆUDIĆ, Bosnia and Herzegovina, ALDE ; Mr Mehmet AKALIN, Türkiye, ALDE ; Mr Denis BEGIC, Sweden, SOC ; Mr Régis BERGONZI, Monaco, ALDE ; Ms Larysa BILOZIR, Ukraine, ALDE ; Mr Christophe BRICO, Monaco, EPP/CD ; Mr Iulian BULAI, Romania, ALDE ; Mr Nikolla CAMAJ, Montenegro, ALDE ; Mr Benjamin DALLE, Belgium, EPP/CD ; Mr Piero FASSINO, Italy, SOC ; Ms Sascha FAXE, Denmark, SOC ; Ms Béatrice FRESKO-ROLFO, Monaco, ALDE ; Lord Michael GERMAN, United Kingdom, ALDE ; Ms Gabriela HEINRICH, Germany, SOC ; Ms Kristina IKIĆ BANIČEK, Croatia, SOC ; Mr Julian JOSWIG, Germany, SOC ; Ms Mia KARAMEHIĆ-ABAZOVIĆ, Bosnia and Herzegovina, ALDE ; Mr Claude KERN, France, ALDE ; Ms Bisera KOSTADINOVSKA-STOJCHEVSKA, North Macedonia, SOC ; Ms Yevheniia KRAVCHUK, Ukraine, ALDE ; Mr Eerik-Niiles KROSS, Estonia, ALDE ; Ms Iris LUARASI, Albania, SOC ; Mr Arminas LYDEKA, Lithuania, ALDE ; Mr Saša MAGAZINOVIĆ, Bosnia and Herzegovina, SOC ; Mr Fabian MOLINA, Switzerland, SOC ; Ms Olena MOSHENETS, Ukraine, ALDE ; Ms Yuliia OVCHYNNYKOVA, Ukraine, ALDE ; Ms Lucia PLAVÁKOVÁ, Slovak Republic, ALDE ; Ms Marijana PULJAK, Croatia, ALDE ; Mr Georgios STAMATIS, Greece, EPP/CD ; Ms Kadri TALI, Estonia, ALDE ; Ms Liliana TANGUY, France, ALDE ; Ms Lesia VASYLENKO, Ukraine, ALDE ; Ms Susanna VELA, Andorra, SOC ; Ms Rian VOGELS, Netherlands, ALDE ; Ms Tamara VONTA, Slovenia, ALDE ; Mr Markus WIECHEL, Sweden, ECPA

This motion has not been discussed in the Assembly and commits only those who have signed it.

The allegations referred to under the designation “Sarajevo Safari” concern documented claims to the effect that, during the period of the siege of Sarajevo (1992–1995), foreign nationals are reported to have remunerated members of Bosnian Serb military structures in exchange for access to designated sniper positions, from which the targeting of civilians of the besieged city was allegedly carried out. These allegations attracted renewed public attention following the broadcast of the 2022 documentary Sarajevo Safari, directed by Miran Zupanič, but media records indicate that references to “sniper tourism” had already been reported in the Italian and regional press as early as 1995.

The Prosecutor's Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina initiated a case in 2022 following a criminal complaint by the then Mayor of Sarajevo, Benjamina Karić. The case is reported to concern unidentified perpetrators and alleged accomplices in connection with killings of civilians carried out during the siege.

In November 2025, the Prosecutor's Office in Milan initiated an investigation concerning Italian nationals who are suspected of participating in “weekend sniper” activities during the siege. According to media reports, this investigation pertains to allegations of aggravated murder committed under circumstances of particular cruelty and base motives.

Consideration of this matter by the Parliamentary Assembly would be of particular importance in view of its direct relevance to the following areas falling within the Council of Europe's competence: protection of human rights; establishment of accountability for grave violations of international humanitarian law; promotion and facilitation of cross-border judicial co-operation between member States; and combating impunity. The present case further raises considerations of broader significance with regard to transnational participation in atrocity crimes, the obligations incumbent upon State institutions in the conduct of investigations into historical crimes, and the protection of victims' dignity and historical memory in Europe.