Türkiye marks Srebrenica genocide's 31st anniversary

Türkiye's Communications Director Burhanettin Duran has marked the 31st anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide, describing it as one of the darkest chapters in human history and a wound that remains open in the collective conscience.

In a statement, Duran said the massacre, which claimed the lives of more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslims, continues to stand as one of the gravest crimes ever committed against human dignity. He said he remembered those killed in the genocide with mercy and shared the grief and sorrow of the Bosnian people wholeheartedly.

Duran said Türkiye would continue standing firmly for peace, justice and human dignity, and remain a voice for the oppressed, wherever persecution, injustice or humanitarian tragedy occurs, from Bosnia and Herzegovina to Kosovo, the Caucasus, the Middle East, Gaza and Africa.

He invoked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's words that a fairer world is possible, adding that Ankara would keep working to strengthen humanity's shared conscience and to help establish lasting peace.

The Srebrenica genocide took place in July 1995, when Bosnian Serb forces under General Ratko Mladic overran the UN-declared "safe area" of Srebrenica and systematically killed more than 8,000 Bosniak men and boys over several days.

It has been recognised by international courts as an act of genocide, the worst atrocity on European soil since the Second World War.

Ankara has used the anniversary in previous years to renew calls for international accountability and to warn against the recurrence of mass atrocities left unaddressed by the global community.