Markale Mortar: Unraveling the Mystery

Abstract

On February 5, 1994, a mysterious, lone mortar round was
lobbed into the midst of a bustling Sarajevo market, killing dozens
of Bosnian civilians. The exact details of this incident were
dubiously opaque, and its resounding effects proved sufficient to
alter drastically the war's trajectory. Some scholars have
promoted the somewhat obvious position that the Serb army, at
that time laying siege to the city, were the perpetrators of this
attack on innocent Bosnian civilians. Other factors may shed light
upon a rather shocking alternative narrative: the Bosnian Army, at
the behest of its government, shelled its own people in a risky
attempt to garner international favor. What follows in this paper is
a comparative analysis of both Serb and Bosnian culpability for
this war crime.