Friday, April 6, 2001

By Adam Ramirez, Bosnia bureau

Ivana Avramovic / Stars and Stripes Staff Sgt. Steven Glover of Company A, 2nd Battalion, 121 Infantry Regiment, watches dignitaries leave from his guard duty position at Forward Operating Base Connor.

FORWARD OPERATING BASE CONNOR, Bosnia and Herzegovina — A new base camp won’t heal all of the tension and animosity in eastern Bosnia overnight: But it can help.

Weary Muslims returning to the area where their family and friends were massacred hope the proximity of the new U.S. base will keep them safe.

The hillside base, officially known as Forward Operating Base Connor, opened its gates Thursday as politicians lauded it with speeches of hope and rebuilding.

But as residents will tell you, peacekeepers can’t guard everything, all the time.

"Just a month ago, people would stop their cars in front of our houses and threaten to cut our throats," said Selim Ramic, 47, as he worked on his home just down the street from the new Connor base. "Still, since the new base — the screaming has died down. We feel much safer with SFOR there."

Crews built Connor in two months on 3.1-acres. It will accommodate 150 soldiers and allow for a rapid response to the area.

"The war in Bosnia is over and our goal now is to build a tolerant society which will allow everybody to return to his home," Maj. General Walter L. Sharp told about 250 people gathered at the new base. "Together we can ensure a secure and stable environment for generations to come."

But that environment around the area where the base now stands was horrific six years ago. Mass graves were discovered around Srebrenica, where Serbs murdered at least 7,000 Muslims and thousands more fled on a dangerous exodus to Tuzla. Many consider the Srebrenica massacre as one of the worst in Europe since World War II.

Ivana Avramovic / Stars and Stripes Selim Ramic rebuilds his house that was completely destroyed during the war near the new Forward Operating Base Connor. Many refugees have returned to the area since the announcement that the new U.S. base would open.

Since then, very few Muslims have returned to the town, which is 20 miles west of the base camp. Those who have tried to reclaim their homes have faced constant harassment.

U.S. peacekeepers stationed at Connor will try to keep the peace for all refugees returning, said Thomas Miller, U.S. ambassador to Bosnia.

"The violence we’ve seen in this area won’t be tolerated," Miller said. "Anyone attacking or causing violence to returnees will be prosecuted. My government is doing all it can to support the people of Bratunac and Srebrenica to return to their homes."

This is comforting news to Bosnian Muslims like Hasib Sabic, 51, whose house was burned to the ground in 1995.

"Last year most people from here wouldn’t even come to look at their land — now there is a change," Sabic said. "We feel much safer now than before."

The road to stability and peace will not be a simple one, said Mico Micic, Minister of Returns and Displaced Persons for the Serb Republic.

"I have to stress that returning things to normal is going to be very difficult for all the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina," Micic said. "One thing is certain, without help from the international community, we won’t be able to solve this problem."

Representing the Bosnian Serb Interior Ministry, Deputy Minister Brane Pecanac told the gathering that Connor will help keep peace.

"The tragic war is behind us and you are a convincing guarantee that it will not happen here again," Pecanac said.

The base is named after Sgt. James P. Connor, a World War II hero who led his men in battle against the Germans in southern France. Connor, who was shot twice and wounded by a mine, received the Medal of Honor for his heroism on the beach at Cavalaire on Aug. 15, 1944.

As for Remic, the man rebuilding his house near the base, he hopes his construction work will be sa

"I hope not to hear anymore screaming that they are going to burn down this house," Remic said. "We are grateful to SFOR. People are starting to come back now. There have been 16 houses started around here."

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