Bosnia marks 31 years since Srebrenica genocide

Bosnia and Herzegovina is marking 31 years since the Srebrenica genocide, the worst massacre in Europe since World War II.

In July 1995, Bosnian Serb forces killed more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys after taking Srebrenica, a United Nations-declared safe area.

Bosnian Serb troops entered the town on July 11, 1995, after NATO airstrikes were halted and Dutch peacekeepers were unable to stop the advance.

Thousands of civilians fled to the UN base at Potočari, while others tried to escape through the forests toward Bosniak-held territory.

Women, children and the elderly were taken away by bus. Men and boys were separated, killed and buried in mass graves.

Mass graves are still being found decades later. Identifying victims remains difficult because many bodies were later moved and reburied in secondary graves.

Each year on July 11, the remains of victims identified over the previous year are buried at the Srebrenica memorial centre in Potočari.