Siege of Dubrovnik (Croatian: Opsada Dubrovnika) is a term marking the battle and siege of the city of Dubrovnik and the surrounding area in Croatia as part of the Croatian War of Independence. The siege was marked by severe bombardment of civilian targets, drawing much international attention. Dubrovnik is an old city located in the southernmost part of Dalmatia. It is a well-known tourist destination (a UNESCO World Heritage site), and was therefore demilitarized during the Communist Yugoslavia because it was considered that military presence does not go hand to hand with tourism. Because of this, when Croatia voted for independence in 1991, it was one of the few major cities in Croatia not to have major JNA military forces in the area, which spared it during the September's Battle of the barracks. Croatian military forces in the area at September were virtually non-existent [4] and were severely outgunned as the heaviest weapons available to them were two Soviet 76 millimeter artillery guns from 1942. [5] The defenders included just one locally conscripted unit - the 163rd Infantry Brigade, which - along with local police forces and volunteers - numbered less than 1,500 men and had no tanks or heavy guns. Towards the end of the year, the defenders were reinforced with the IX (9th) HOS Infantry Battalion of less than 300 men. The siege had immediately raised attention, as western reporters took pictures of the shelling (especially the Old City of Dubrovnik - a UNESCO World Heritage Site) - which drew international criticism of the JNA forces. The siege was heavily present in the international media, which pushed the pivotal and much more brutal Battle of Vukovar into second plan. Even before the siege, international Community attempted several treaties to limit JNA advances into overwhelmingly Croat areas, but these were broken by JNA without regard. [1] International reactions did nothing to quell the brutal bombardment, however, and the shelling continued to the end of the year. Croatian Navy and coastal artillery had successfully repelled JNA Navy forces along Dalmatia, and the Navy withdrew to Montenegro naval base of Boka Kotorska, but the situation on the ground was still unfavorable. Towards the end of the year, Croatian defenders managed a small counterattack that was aimed at displacing the JNA from the surrounding mountains, but this did not end the shelling entirely. Noted poet Milan Milišić became the first casualty of the shelling on October 5. On 6 December 1991, the heaviest shelling was reported on what came to be known as the St. Nicholas day bombardment, during which 13 civilians were killed and 60 wounded [4]. The last ceasefire went into effect at the end of the year and the shelling ended by 1992. It was besieged and attacked by JNA and Montenegro forces in late 1991, with the major fighting ending in early 1992 and the Croatian counterattack finally lifting the siege and liberating the area in mid-1992. podgorica niksic herceg novi milo djukanovic novak kilibarda slavko perovic lscg momir bulatovic kotor cavtat konavle kroatien cilipi mljet korcula tivat ulcinj bar buducnost sutjeska grbalj pljevlja lovcen njegos amfilohije radovic risto Tomislav Nikolic Srpska Radikalna Stranka Vojislav Seselj Serbia Srbija Serbian Serbs Radikali DSS Kostunica Cetnici SRS aleksandar vucic ceda jovanovic croatia hrvatska ivo sanader kiro prosviro ivica kirin jubito ldp boris tadic slobodan milosevic subotica novi sad oliver dulic milan nedic nazi hitler djordje balasevic radovan bosnia macedonia makedonija karadzic ratko B92 boka kotorska sveti stefan trebinje srebrenica skabrnja bleiburg blajburg vukovar war rat robert mitchum nives celzijus suzana mancic tom cruise BBC News Serb jailed for war crimes milan martic captain dragan kapetan vasiljkovic australia konavle ovcara mladic kosova albania ravna gora momcilo djuic chetnik yugoslavia jugoslavija sfrj unesco un usa germany italia dubrovnik croatia balkan hrvatska yugoslavia serbia srbija bosnia bosna germany italy greece macedonia russia war rat Dubrovnik War Yugoslavia Croatia Hrvatska Army Serbia Srbija Rat JNA Croatian Serbian Balkan Europe Chetniks Serbs Bosna