Milan prosecutors investigate Italians accused of paying to kill civilians during Sarajevo siege

Prosecutors in Milan have opened an investigation into allegations that Italian nationals paid Bosnian Serb soldiers for trips to the hills around Sarajevo in the 1990s so they could shoot civilians during the city’s four-year siege.

The probe, led by prosecutor Alessandro Gobbi, focuses on possible charges of voluntary murder aggravated by cruelty and motives described as abject. The investigation was triggered by a complaint submitted by Milan-based writer Ezio Gavazzeni, who collected material over several years, alongside a separate report sent by former Sarajevo mayor Benjamina Karic.

The siege of Sarajevo, which lasted from 1992 to 1996, resulted in more than 10,000 deaths under relentless shelling and sniper fire. The city’s geography, encircled by steep mountains, made it especially vulnerable, while snipers terrorised residents by targeting anyone on the streets, including children.

The allegations centre on so-called “sniper tourists”, individuals from Italy and other western countries who allegedly paid Bosnian Serb soldiers to be taken to positions overlooking Sarajevo, from where they are accused of firing at civilians purely for personal pleasure. According to The Guardian, these trips were arranged by soldiers loyal to Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic, who was later convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Gavazzeni said he revisited the claims after watching “Sarajevo Safari”, a 2022 documentary by Slovenian director Miran Zupanic. In the film, a former Serb soldier and a contractor describe foreigners being escorted to the hills to shoot at residents. Serbian veterans have rejected the allegations, but the documentary prompted Gavazzeni to reconnect with the director and expand his investigation.

He said he had identified several Italian suspects and believes the number involved could be far higher. His account suggests that groups would meet in Trieste, continue to Belgrade, and then be transported by Bosnian Serb soldiers to vantage points around the besieged city. He described it as a “traffic of war tourists” driven by what he called “indifference towards evil”.

One of the most widely remembered sniper killings was the 1993 death of the couple Bošco Brkić and Admira Ismić, whose bodies lay for days on a bridge between opposing lines. Their story became symbolic of the brutality and hopelessness suffered by Sarajevo’s civilians.

Lawyer Nicola Brigida, who assisted Gavazzeni in preparing the complaint, said the material compiled over years of research is substantial enough to support a serious inquiry. With questioning expected to begin in the coming weeks, Milan prosecutors are now working to establish whether Italian citizens took part in one of the most disturbing allegations linked to the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

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