Catholic Church in Croatia

BELGRADE - Alojzije Stepinac, the man who supported the Ustasha regime, can be neither a saint nor hero, said Efraim Zuroff, director of the Center "Simon Wiesenthal", following the unveiling of the memorial to the bishop of the Catholic Church in Osijek.

BELGRADE - A monument to Ustasha criminal Alojzije Stepinac in Osijek, Croatia "is a clear message to Serbs that crimes against them are allowed and will not be punished.

The Serbian foreign minister said this in a statement, asking also why the EU was silent about a rehabilitation of fascism and war crimes.

A monument to Ustasha criminal Alojzije Stepinac in Osijek, Croatia "is a clear message to Serbs that crimes against them are allowed and will not be punished.

BELGRADE - The Serbian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday handed a protest note to Croatian Ambassador in Belgrade Gordan Markotic in a vehement protest against the annulment of a 1946 conviction of Aloysius Stepinac, which it sees as a rehabilitation of fascism and the Ustasha Independent State of Croatia.

Pope Francis personally stopped the canonization of Croatian Cardinal Alojzije Stepinac after a letter sent to him by Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Irinej.

This has been stated by former Croatian Ambassador to the Vatican Filip Vucak.

Do not dream about revenge, dream about life, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic "urged everyone, even the victims," Tanjug reported.

He spoke on Sunday, the anniversary of the foundation of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) - a Nazi-allied WW2-era entity ruled by the Ustasha regime that operated death camps for Serbs, Jews, and Roma, including Jasenovac.

On his first visit to the Vatican, Croatia's new centre-right Prime Minister, Tihomir Oreskovic, is expected to lobby for the canonisation of the controversial Croatian cleric, Alojzije Stepinac.

Croatian leaders have decided to postpone the visit of Serbian President Tomislav Nikolic to Zagreb, writes Croatian daily Jutarnji List.

Pope Francis received on Saturday a SPC delegation that included Metropolitan Amfilohije, Bishop Irinej and former Ambassador to the Vatican Darko Tanaskovic.

Josip Bozanic has described "the blessed Alojzije Stepinac" as "a reflection of the face of mercy in the Croatian people's modern history."

Bozanic is the Croatian Roman Catholic cardinal, who made this statement as part of his Christmas message published in Zagreb.