Croatian Helsinki Committee

Croatian political leaders, wartime generals and war veterans gathered on Friday in the town of Knin to mark the anniversary of the country's victorious military offensive, Operation Storm, which effectively ended the independence war in the country in 1995.

"I was in the hospital for six days, after that I wore a leg brace for a month," he added.

Some two-and-a-half years later Drca, together with many other Croatian Serbs, was forced to flee the country and come to Serbia.

Croatia's political leadership, wartime generals and war veterans gathered on Thursday in the town of Knin to mark the anniversary of the victorious military offensive, Operation Storm, that practically ended the independence war in the country in 1995.

Part of the ceremony took place at the Knin Fortress, while another part was held at the town's football stadium.

Marijana Stojcic, a sociologist and researcher from the Belgrade-based Centre for Public History, believes that the rival official narratives about Operation Storm in the two countries, created and supported by nationalists, are being used to achieve political goals.

Domagoj Zovak, whose satirical TV show News Bar Prime Time airs on regional cable N1 TV, received death threat after the latest episode, about the 23rd anniversary of Croatian military operation 'Storm'.

"You too will also get [a bullet] in the back of the head," said a message sent to Zovak on Facebook.

BELGRADE - The president of the Coalition of Refugee Associations, Miodrag Linta, has urged the EU to request Croatia to start war crimes trials and stop glorifying its military operation "Storm".

19 years since Croatia's attack on Serb areas

BELGRADE -- Thursday marks 19 years since the beginning of Croatia's Operation Flash, when 283 Serbs were killed and at least 15,000 driven out of their homes.

Among the victims were 57 women and nine children.