Russian media deny the Srebrenica genocide to deflect responsibilyty for Bucha

The Srebrenica Memorial Center published the report(opens in a new tab) “Denial of the Srebrenica genocide in the Russian media”. It shows how prominent Russian mass media outlets, as well as bloggers, commentators, and political figures denied the historical facts about the genocide in Srebrenica to strengthen their denial narratives about Russia’s crimes.

The main example analysed by the report is related Bucha.

In April 2022, Ukrainian forces entered the city of Bucha. Global media outlets issued photos and videos of the victims on the streets of the city, sparking international condemnation of the actions attributed to the Russian army. Russian media responded denying the Russia’s responsibility for the events in Bucha, by also referring to them as staged provocations or fabrications similarly to what happened in Srebrenica. The strategy is to equate the two events, Bucha and Srebrenica, to discredit the credibility of both, portraying them as manufactured narratives.

Only during the month of April 2022, the reports identifies over 30 cases of Srebrenica genocide denial, including in mainstream Russian media outlets. Here is an example of the language used by the First TV, a Russian state television channel: “[…] by the way, about the Yugoslav Srebrenica. Recall that this town has become synonymous with the genocide of the Muslim population, which, according to the West, was committed by the Bosnian Serbs in July 1995. But over time, many facts appeared confirming that a well-planned operation was carried out in Srebrenica, behind which stood Western intelligence services.”

Different Russian media exhibited similar language, terminology, and publication timelines. This suggests a coordinated effort, a pattern and also a connection between mass media and Russian government view. The reports highlights how dangerous these operation could be for the public, concluding:

“The impact of such denial narratives can be significant, as they shape public opinion and foster scepticism towards well-established historical truths. It is crucial to recognize and critically assess the sources of information, particularly in cases where denialism is employed to distort historical events“.

The Srebrenica Memorial Center published the report entitled “Denial of the Srebrenica genocide in the Russian media”, in cooperation with the Austrian Service Abroad and country’s researchers looking at materials from 2000 to 2023.

The report was issued around the annual commemoration of the genocide of Srebrenica, which was committed in July 1995 by the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Over 8,300 Muslim boys and men were systematically and deliberately killed in and around the city of Srebrenica.

The International Criminal Tribunal for ex-Yugoslavia in 2004 and the International Court of Justice in 2006 established these atrocities as genocide.

The tragedy of Srebrenica took place at the depth of the war that swept across Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1992 to 1995 that claimed around 100,000 victims, half of them civilians./euvsdisinfo.eu/