sarajevo - a bit of history

bosnia and herzegovina, and especially sarajevo, having been occupied by the romans, the ottomans and the austro-hungarians, are a real mix of cultures and religions, with mosques, synagogues, catholic and orthodox churches one next to the other.



it is on this bridge, that the first world war 'began': here in 1914 Gravilo Princip shot the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife in protest against the Austro-Hungarian empire.



in october 1991, after slovenia and croatia had called for independence, bosnia and herzegovina did the same, but here the serb reaction was stronger. the city of sarajevo was sieged during 3 years and the only way out (to escape) and in (for food, weapons,..) was a 800m tunnel (passing under the UN-controlled airport). during three years the city was under serbian bombings and shelling, the citizens remained mostly without food, water, electricity and heating.


you can still see holes in the houses.


and walk in the market, where in 1995 the serbs let explode some grenades.



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