Who were the alleged rich 'sniper tourists' who shot civilians on 'human safari' for £70,000

The Public Prosecutor's Office in Milan has opened an investigation into wealthy tourists who would allegedly pay £70,000 to travel and shoot down innocent civilians with sniper guns during the 1992-1996 Siege of Sarajevo.

New allegations claim that the foreigners - referred to as 'sniper tourists' - would pay Bosnian Serb army units to give them access to hills where they could take part in a morbid 'human safari'.

For almost four years, Bosnian Serb forces surrounded the city and trapped around 300,000 people inside. Around 11,000 civilians were killed, including more than 1,600 children and tens of thousands were injured.

People faced constant sniper fire, and essentials like food, water, electricity, and medicine were often cut off.

Now, a new investigation claims that the army gave foreign tourists access to safe spaces in hill areas where they allegedly shot at unarmed civilians, including children.

New allegations claim wealthy foreigners paid to act as 'weekend snipers' during the Siege of Sarajevo (MIKE PERSSON/AFP via Getty Images)

The investigation into the 'human safari'

Prosecutors believe that it was mainly Italian citizens, amongst others, who would take part in these so-called 'human safaris'.

A US congresswoman has also announced that she has opened an investigation after reports state that American tourists also took part.

A 17-page complaint filed by journalist Ezio Gavazzeni stated that 'very wealthy people' would pay large sums to 'be able to kill defenceless civilians'. Some reports suggest that different rates were charged to kill men, women or children.

Gavazzeni told Italy's La Repubblica that he thinks 'at least a hundred' tourists took part in these killing sprees.

The wealthy foreigners were referred to as 'sniper tourists' (ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images)

Witness testimonies and book

The campaign to expose these alleged killings gained traction in 2014 when Luca Leone, an Italian journalist and author, released the book The B**tards of Sarajevo.

Also in the 2022 documentary Sarajevo Safari, directed by Miran Zupanič, a retired Bosnian intelligence officer, Edin Subašić, describes how foreign tourists were ferried from Belgrade to sniper posts around the city, such as hills overlooking 'Sniper Alley'.

John Jordan, an ex US Marine, testified to the International Criminal Tribunal that 'tourist shooters' came to Sarajevo 'to take pot shots at civilians for their own gratification'.

He recalled one man who arrived with a hunting rifle 'more suited to wild boar than to urban combat', and handled it 'like a novice'.

Around 11,000 civilians were killed during the 1992-1995 Siege of Sarajevo (Antoine GYORI/Sygma via Getty Images)

Backlash to claims

Critics point to a lack of evidence and say that it's hard to back up many of the claims given how long it has been after these events may or may not have taken place.

Tim Judah, a British journalist and Balkans specialist, believes that while some of the alleged activities may have taken place, it may not have been on the scale that's being reported

“From 1992 to 1995, I spent a lot of time in Pale, which was the HQ for Bosnian Serb forces, and I didn’t hear about it,” he said to The Telegraph.

“I’m not saying it didn’t happen. It is possible that there were people willing to pay to do this. But I don’t think the numbers would have been very large.”