Becirovic calls for a response to Gaza and the Ukraine war at UN

Bosniak leader Becirovic recalls Bosnia genocide while speaking about Gaza at UN

Bosniak leader Becirovic brought developments in Gaza, Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina to the agenda at the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York. Becirovic also called on international actors to take concrete measures against the glorification of Ratko Mladic.

Scraper SystemSeptember 23, 2026, 11:49 AM

Bosniak leader Becirovic recalls Bosnia genocide while speaking about Gaza at UN

Bosniak leader Becirovic addressed developments in Gaza, Ukraine and Bosnia and Herzegovina in his speech at the 81st United Nations General Assembly. At the session in New York, he said the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina had preserved their determination to move forward despite facing severe trials.

Becirovic said Bosnia and Herzegovina had been subjected to aggression, genocide against Bosniaks and crimes against humanity between 1992 and 1995. He argued that some sought to implement major-power projects through the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, adding that this approach had been pursued through military means in the past and through political and diplomatic instruments today.

Becirovic noted that the highest judicial organs of the United Nations had determined that genocide had been committed against Bosniaks and that Bosnia and Herzegovina was intended to be divided. He said the world was surrounded by injustice, insecurity and intolerance.

Becirovic calls for a response to Gaza and Ukraine

Becirovic said that the rise of authoritarian populism, the attack on Ukraine, the suffering in Gaza, the war in the Gulf region and the situation in Sudan had drawn humanity into a deep crisis marked by uncertainty and fear.

Stressing that silence must not be maintained in the face of injustice, Becirovic said the world had failed to respond adequately to the attack on Ukraine and what he described as genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, just as it had failed to respond adequately during the period of attacks on Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Becirovic criticizes Serbia's leadership over Ratko Mladic

Becirovic said humanity's future did not lie in policies based on violence and human rights violations, and called for a culture of peace to be built through dialogue. He recalled that Bosnia and Herzegovina was the only country in Europe to experience genocide after the Second World War.

Becirovic described the Serbian leadership's glorification of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic as particularly dangerous, saying Mladic was not a hero but a convicted war criminal. He characterized the institutional glorification of Mladic as unacceptable and an act against civilization.

Becirovic argued that this stance meant the Serbian leadership was identifying itself with one of the most ruthless war criminals in European history, adding that it showed that the ideology and policies that led to aggression and genocide had not been abandoned.

Becirovic called on international actors to take concrete measures against those who glorify war criminals at the institutional level.

Bosniak leader Becirovic recalls Bosnia genocide while speaking about Gaza at UN