(7 Jul 1996) Natural Sound

Bosnian Muslims from the small village of Ahatovici have buried 47 of their men, four years after they were massacred by Bosnian Serbs.

The men had been bussed to another village believing they were to be involved in a prisoner exchange - but their bus was attacked with guns and grenades.

Hundreds of Muslims gathered on a hillside Sunday near Ahatovici, 35 kilometres (20 miles) northeast of Sarajevo to bury the victims one of the first mass civilian executions of the war.

The coffins containing the remains of the 47 victims were unloaded and taken to a nearby grave site.

It was all too overwhelming for some who had waited so long to say goodbye.

One woman, who lost four sons, fainted and had to be led away by friends.

The burial was the final stage of an horrific journey that began in June 1992.

Less than five months into the war, more than 50 Muslim men were arrested in their homes in the small village of Ahatovici, seven kilometres (five miles) south of Sarajevo.

Rebel Bosnian Serbs told the men they would be exchanged for prisoners the Bosnian Muslim government was holding.

They were put on a bus and set off for Pale, the Bosnian Serb headquarters - but they never arrived.

Instead, the bus drove to the town of Sokolina, 40 kilometres (25 miles) northeast of Sarajevo.

There they were told to lie on the floor of the bus - Bosnian Serbs then fired anti-tank rockets, small arms and grenades at them.

Forty-seven were killed. Only eight survived.

The bodies and survivors were found the next day by fellow Muslims from Sokolina.

Fearful of further attack, they buried the bodies quickly, in a mass grave close to the execution site.

Four years later, on June 24th, the bodies were exhumed by the International Police Task Force and representatives of the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague.

The victims were identified and released to their families for a proper burial.

On Sunday, the coffins were laid in rows in the blistering Balkan heat - and relatives said farewell to their loved ones.

The 47 men were buried after a service led by religious leaders.

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