Anniversary of rocket attack on government buildings marked

October 7th marks 27 years since the government offices at St. Mark's square in Zagreb were the target of a rocket attack by greater Serbian aggressors during the early stages of the Homeland war.

In what is now known as the 'bombing of Banski dvori', President Franjo Tuđman, Stipe Mesić and Ante Marković, the prime minister of Yugoslavia, were meeting together in the government building at the time of the attack - all narrowly escaping with their lives.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković laid a wreath at the commemorative plaque on the government building this morning.

"We remember the 7th of October, 1991, a Monday afternoon, when acting in league with Greater Serbian aggression against the Republic of Croatia, the JNA fired rockets at the Banski dvori," said Plenković during the wreath-laying ceremony.

Fighter jets from the Yugoslav People's Army launched six rockets at the building, with two hitting their mark. One person died in the attack, while four others were injured. The Banski dvori, on the other hand, sustained significant damage.

The prime minister said that while key members of the government had narrowly escaped with their lives, the event helped expedite Croatian independence.

"As you all know, that moment propelled Croatian parliament to declare independence. It's a moment we can look back on as something that sped up the process of Croatian independence and subsequent international recognition," said the prime minister.

The previous day, Tuđman had called upon the Croatian population to mobilize against Greater Serbian aggression. Also, on October 8th, a three-month moratorium on the implementation of the declaration of independence was to expire. Following the attack, Croatian Parliament used the opportunity to sever all remaining ties with Yugoslavia. The 8th of October is now celebrated as Croatian Independence Day.

Source: HRT