Volunteers for the Croatian Army in pictures.

[Dalleer]

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/cgp.jpg

Text : " American volunteer Lieutenant of 109 Brigade HV, Mala Bosna, Vinkovci winter of 1991. Note beret and badge identifying this volunteer as a former French Foreign Legion paratrooper"


http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/131_Suma.jpg

Text: "American volunteer Lieutenant of 131 Brigade HV Independent Commando Squadron (Samostalni Diverzantski Vod) in no-man's land of the Zupanja forest area patrolling the Serbian lines in April, 1992."

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/group_vk.jpg

Text: "British Volunteers of 109 Brigade HV, Vinkovci, eastern Croatia spring 1992. Photo taken after they had returned from two nights under fire in No Mans’ land. Meho (right) was a Bosnian of Austrian citizenship"

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/dutch_snow.jpg

Text:Dutch volunteer of the Netherlands Platoon of 118 Brigade ZNG-RH, Perusic village, Gospic, Croatia. December 1991

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/dutch_fire.jpg

Text: Dutch volunteer of the Netherlands Platoon of 118 Brigade ZNG-RH, at a makeshift firing range, Perusic village, Gospic, Croatia December 1991.

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/brcko.jpg

Text: Czech and British Volunteers of 108 Brigade HVO, sheltering from tank fire in a house near Brcko, northern Bosnia, August 1992.

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/cro_nco.jpg

Text: British and Czech volunteers with a Croatian NCO, all serving in 108 Brigade HVO, northern Bosnia, August 1992.

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/ACFvAXmWm.jpg

Text: International Volunteers of 104 Brigade HVO in action, northern Bosnia 1995.

-----------------------


All of the images are from
http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/home/index.cfm

[Rantanplan]

Mercenary scum! :bash:

But great Pictures woot

[MolliG]

Very interesting. Would these guys have fought NATO, or fought 'for' them? I've never really understood the whole Bosnia (etc) thing.

Am I correct in thinking, that these soldiers/mercenaries would have been fighting for Croatia, for Croatia's independence from Yugoslavia?

:)

[Loco]

Very interesting. Would these guys have fought NATO, or fought 'for' them? I've never really understood the whole Bosnia (etc) thing.

Am I correct in thinking, that these soldiers/mercenaries would have been fighting for Croatia, for Croatia's independence from Yugoslavia?

:)
The years of 1991 and 1992 was the begining of the war, still passed almost the whole decade till NATO intervened, only blue helmets were there, and both serbians and croatians shooted them many times.
At first, Croatia fought with Serbia for being independent, but soon after fought agaisnt serbians and muslims in Bosnia for conquering the most lands it could, specailly the ones where croatian people were majority.

[Dalleer]

Since I don't post too many photos here (this is my second contribution, I think) I've decided that something a bit "different" was needed and when I came across a certain site about international volunteers for the Croatian army through another forum I felt that pictures such as these were needed to be shared.

I've tried to research the Yugoslav civilwar myself, and the role of these "international volunteers" (could be called in mercenaries in some cases) has always fascinated me.

[MolliG]

Very interesting. Would these guys have fought NATO, or fought 'for' them? I've never really understood the whole Bosnia (etc) thing.

Am I correct in thinking, that these soldiers/mercenaries would have been fighting for Croatia, for Croatia's independence from Yugoslavia?

:)
The years of 1991 and 1992 was the begining of the war, still passed almost the whole decade till NATO intervened, only blue helmets were there, and both serbians and croatians shooted them many times.
At first, Croatia fought with Serbia for being independent, but soon after fought agaisnt serbians and muslims in Bosnia for conquering the most lands it could, specailly the ones where croatian people were majority.

Ok thanks :).

Does anyone have any links to any websites, or know of any good books, that cover the whole Yugoslavian 'thing'?

[Dalleer]

Does anyone have any links to any websites, or know of any good books, that cover the whole Yugoslavian 'thing'?

I can recommend the only book you would ever need about the conflict, the only problem being that it's in Finnish.

For those Finnish people interested of the conflict, you should check the book called "Tervetuloa helvettiin" (Welcome to hell) by Maritta Vihervuori.

It's the definite guide for the background on situation in the Balkans, the war-phase, and beyond.

It's a long book, but nevertheless very much worth the read.

[Loco]

Since I don't post too many photos here (this is my second contribution, I think) I've decided that something a bit "different"
Your contribution is great, pleazz more! :)

[Hrvoje]

For books (Croatia War History) try here http://www.cwhb.cjb.net/

[tony6]

Interesting subject indeed...

[Dalleer]

Here's a few more pictures:

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/ACF0YxfDO.jpg

Text: American and British volunteers of 109 Brigade HV in the center of Vinkovci during a lull in the fighting, winter of 1991.

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/rest.jpg

Text: French (center) and American (right) volunteers of 131 HV Brigade's Independent Commando Squadron take a rest in no-man's land before crossing back into friendly territory following a long patrol in the Zupanja forest and recon of the Serb held town of Lipovac.

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/HVO_welsh.jpg

Text: Welsh volunteer Corporal serving in HVO. Prozor, Bosnia, March 1993.

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/brits.jpg

Text: British volunteer sergeants of the Intervention-reconnaissance Platoon, 108 Brigade HVO in action northern Bosnia, August 1992.



http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/brit_bos.jpg

Text: British volunteer sergeant of the Intervention-reconnaissance platoon, 108 Brigade HVO, Bosanska Posavina, August 1992.

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/recon.jpg

Text: A British and a French Volunteer, followed by a Croatian soldier of 108 Brigade HVO returning from a night spent in No Man’s Land reconnoitring Serb positions. Northern Bosnia, August 1992.

------------

All of the images are from

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/home/index.cfm

[anonymous individual]

There are many remarkable tales of those who had fallen. Go to the site's rememberance section, http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/remembrances/index.cfm Recommand to read the section of Collette Webster, Johannes Tilder, Hans Strassburger and Edmund Skinner. These recommandations are imcomplete. I have not finished reading all the stories. Please explore their lives by going into the section.

To those who had fallen, may them rest in peace.

[Dalleer]

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/remembrances/index.cfm

I'm sorry about having to correct other people's URL's but the last one included a dot that was not supposed to be there.

I've also read some of the stories, especially this German man named "Heinz" and his fate was something to remember...

[Clay]

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/recon.jpg
I have a book about snipers in Bosnia, it was a very good read.
http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/intls.jpg

Canadian and other volunteers of the Intervention-reconnaissance platoon, 108 Brigade HVO at the end of the mission that led to the death of British volunteer John Rowley. All those pictured had taken it in turns to carry the body and give covering fire. Photo taken a few minutes after their return to Government lines and Rowley’s body was evacuated by ambulance. Cerik village, Bosanska Posavina, northern Bosnia, 29th August 1992.

[Hrvoje]

Volunteers pic from "The Balkans On Fire"

http://community.webshots.com/s/image1/8/45/16/102684516MCxmJq_fs.jpg

More of "The Balkans On Fire"
here http://community.webshots.com/album/102684024MqhpQK?827

[Whistler]

Interesting stories.

I wouldnt be so quick to call them mercenaries. Maybe its just the way I look at it, but I always figured mercenaries were guys that went into a country and made 1000s of dollars training foreign armies for no real reason other than money.

These guys sound like volunteers who just believed in the Croation cause and joined the regular army, it looks like they made the same amount of money as the average soldier in the war.

[Kampfhamster]

Not all of them where mercenaries. I can remember, that many Croatians, Serbs, etc., who were foreign worker in Austria, Switzerland and Germany went home during their holiday for fighting.

[duck]

Quite a few of the volunteers were close to neonazi or racial supremacist groups.

[scoone]

volunteers?¿?, In case of war, are volunteers allowed in any army? I mean, those are mercenaries!!, does the Geneva Convention say something about them? Shall they be treatead as POW? :cantbeli:

[Whistler]

As a Spaniard you should know a lot about the subject considering all the foreigners that volunteered to fight fascism during your civil war.

[ßå$tĮТHÏ¿ð]

Call them what you will, they are some brave men.

[mustamato]

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/dutch_snow.jpg

Strange that he has ammo pouches intended for old bolt-action rifles. Not big enough for handgrenades either. I wonder what he carried there? Maybe more ammo to the AK...

Oh nevermind, found his hompage :)

http://members.home.nl/platoon118/index.htm

Great site anyway.

http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/images/uploads/ronnie.jpg
http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/remembrances/index.cfm?fuseaction=details&bookID=35

A true fighter, killed by such an asshole... (I hope they punished him really hard)

[Lobo]

If I'm not wrong, foreigners fighting for another country army can't be considered mercenaries. (Just remember the Latin American citizens who belong to the U.S. armed forces, and those who fighted and died in Ira.) I don't know very well the legal details, but I read this in another discussion board. It just a matter that they are figthing under some country flag.

[Chris O`Crooh]

You`re right, Lobo... I don`t think that anyone can call Poles, Czech, American, Norge, Dutch, Canadian, Rhodesian, South African - and brave men from other countries - that fought and died as pilots during Battle of Britain, as 'mercenaries".

On the other hand, we - in Poland - say, that "point of view depends on where you sit". That means, that we can consider American voluteer pilots as heroes, but Nazi propaganda presented them as "mercenaries".

And, of course, there are "pure" mercenaries, such as those %#&@!!! that attack Allied Forces in Iraq for $ 1000. Unfortunately, I am sure, that they are "heroes" for someone in the world, though............

[scoone]

Whistler I only know what I learned in the school , all the non-nationals that joined the International Brigade were in some way linked to the republican cause.They were fighting because of they beliefs , fighting for revolution they fought for their ideas.
A merc. fight for money. :bash:
Although I reckon that a lot of spaniards fought in Congo as mercenaries.But they were fighting for money not like the Intenational Brigades.
Here is some information about the Brigades.
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/SPinternational.htm

[Smintjes]

I remember an article in Soldier of Fortune magazine about Dutch volunteers in the Bosnian war. Bottom line was that they were a bunch of crazy drunks.

[Haiw]

And what exactely is wrong with that? :P

[Skaman]

There are many remarkable tales of those who had fallen. Go to the site's rememberance section, http://www.cfiva.org/cfiva/remembrances/index.cfm Recommand to read the section of Collette Webster, Johannes Tilder, Hans Strassburger and Edmund Skinner. These recommandations are imcomplete. I have not finished reading all the stories. Please explore their lives by going into the section.

To those who had fallen, may them rest in peace.


Very interesting read.

[scoone]

Do you know if Bob Denard is dead ? he was one of the most famous dogs of war.

[Smintjes]

Still alive I think.

http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Bob-Denard

[Kingpin]

Russian volunteers in Bosnia
http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd/foto/3rdo1.jpg

[scoone]

The guy with the long hair looks like Rasputin

[Upfrontreporting]

Kingpin:

The picture you posted, is it from some kind of veteran's organisation for russians who have fought on the side of the serbs in the Balkans?

It looks like there is some kind of war-diary on the same site, could you translate some of it, it would be interesting to read, seems like it covers russian mercenaries/volunteers in both Bosnia and Kosovo.


regards.

[soldierandy]

As far as I know there was a considerable number of Greek volunteers for the Serb forces during the war as well. They fought in Bihac and other places too.

[Dave the Dawg]

I suppose it is easy for some from the comfort of their easy chairs to denounce others in blanket terms, but anyone who has actually studied and/or talked to such "volunteers" will tell you that their motives are as varied as that of most volunteer (i.e. non-conscript) soldiers.

Some joined for money (although few in this case since the various Balkan statelets weren't awash in cash), some for adventure and some because they were psychopaths who just wanted to kill. Some were seeking to be part of a brotherhood of soldiers. Some were idealists fighting against what they saw as a rebirth of fascism (whether Greater Serbian, Greater Croatian or Islamofascist) and some were "idealists" fighting for such fascisms. And some, while by passport or nationality "American," "Canadian," "British," "French," "German" or whatever, were by ethnicity Croat, Serb, Albanian or Bosnian Muslim. And some were a combination of many of these categories.

One example is Željko "Nick" Glasnović, a former Canadian soldier and French foreign legionnaire who became a general in the HVO and later in the combined Muslim-Croat Army of Bosnia-Herzegovina. He was from Canada's large Croatian community, which sent many of its sons to Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. He was ethnically a Croat and politically a Croat nationalist. Although more moderate than many of his HVO comrades, sufficient that he was acceptable as head of the combined army's training and doctrine command, he was also accused of responsibility for war crimes committed by his brigade.

I also know of several other Croat officers who had served in the French Foreign Legion. One of the first commanders of Croatian special forces, Ante Gotovina, was a 20-year veteran of the Legion. I believe he was responsible for the French touches to Croatian special forces insignia. Here is General Gotovina in cammies and in dress uniform (BTW, the guy in civvies in the first picture is Gojko Šušak, the late Croatian Defense Minister and Canadian pizza king):

http://213.191.154.38/album/2/07Image-5.jpg

http://213.191.154.38/album/2/Image14.jpg

[Kingpin]

Kingpin:

The picture you posted, is it from some kind of veteran's organisation for russians who have fought on the side of the serbs in the Balkans?

It looks like there is some kind of war-diary on the same site, could you translate some of it, it would be interesting to read, seems like it covers russian mercenaries/volunteers in both Bosnia and Kosovo.


regards.

Yes, you're right but unfortunately i don't have enough time to translate so big amount of text :(

[soldierandy]

Is there a similar website to the croatian one for russian/greek volunteers? (even if it is in Russian)

[Kingpin]

Is there a similar website to the croatian one for russian/greek volunteers? (even if it is in Russian)

There wasn't any Russian volunteers on Croatian side. And on muslim side too.

[soldierandy]

I know that kingpin. I meant obviously if there is a similar website for russian/greek volunteers that fought on the SERB side..

[Kingpin]

I know that kingpin. I meant obviously if there is a similar website for russian/greek volunteers that fought on the SERB side..

I already answered this question


Kingpin:

The picture you posted, is it from some kind of veteran's organisation for russians who have fought on the side of the serbs in the Balkans?

Yes.

This foto from veteran's site. http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd

Some photos of Russian volunteers in Kosovo in 1999:

http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd/foto-osd/kos5.jpg

http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd/foto-osd/kos4.jpg

http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd/foto-osd/kos1.jpg

http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd/foto-osd/kos8.jpg

http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd/foto/kosovo-99.jpg

List of known losses of foreign volunteers from Serbian side killed in Bosnia and Kosovo.
http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd/spiski.htm

[Kingpin]

Very rare
For Russian speaking people.

This song first appeared on Russian radio stations during NATO bombing campaign in Kosovo and after that was immediately banned from them. This song shows what many people felt in Russia those days.

http://forum.vif2.ru:2003/nvk/forum/files/Kingpin/blood.mp3

"What color American blood is?"

[tiger-unit]

I just have a question, was there any, American or Canadian volunteers that fought for the russians in Chechnya ?

[army cadet_ngcsu]

I wonder if you can still join or if there are any other forces in the world like that, that you can join...if it is for the right cause, I'll join for a summer.

[serbian boy]

There are some serb soldiers fighting in Chechnya from what I've heard from people I know.
Camo Cloga Crbina Cpasava![/quote]

[Marmot1]

There are some serb soldiers fighting in Chechnya from what I've heard from people I know.
Camo Cloga Crbina Cpasava![/quote]

Also there were at least 2 poles but now probably there is none

[zwartjack1910]

Dear all , first my respect for everyone that fought and died in those years on every side they were.
I'd like to know something more about italian volunteers that joined these bloody wars.
Can someone help me?
Tks
G

[AK-Lover]

Dave the Dawg summed it up pretty well. If you are interested in Russian/Greek volunteers their was threads on that with some photos and info, do a quick search on that they should come up. I had some more pics of foreign volunteers/mercs on the Croatian side but I posted those a long time ago.

[Davidian]

Russian volunteers in Bosnia
http://www.sv-rus.ru/osd/foto/3rdo1.jpg

your pics are not showing:/

[valiant]

Mercenary scum! :bash:

But great Pictures woot

they were not mercenaries, they were volunteers

[Akinnen]

This is new to me:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ms0m--jsnDw

[cicka]

Johannes Tilder could not speak croatian.