Operation Storm, the last major battle of the Croatian War of Independence begins.
The Croatian War of Independence was fought between 1991 and 1995 as Croatia sought to break away from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Following the rise of nationalist movements across Yugoslavia in the late 1980s, Croatia held a referendum on independence in May 1991, with a large majority of voters supporting separation. Croatia formally declared independence on 25 June 1991, although implementation was temporarily delayed under international pressure. The conflict quickly escalated when the Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA), supported by local Serb forces who opposed independence, launched military operations against the newly formed Croatian state.
The war was marked by intense fighting, sieges, and widespread destruction across Croatia. One of the most significant battles was the Siege of Vukovar in 1991, where Croatian defenders resisted a prolonged assault before the city fell after nearly three months. The medieval city of Dubrovnik was also besieged and subjected to shelling despite its status as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Throughout the conflict, both Croatian and Serb forces were accused of committing war crimes, including the killing of civilians, forced displacement, and the destruction of cultural and religious sites. Hundreds of thousands of people were forced to flee their homes, creating a major humanitarian crisis.
As the Croatian Army became better organised and equipped, it gradually regained territory that had been occupied earlier in the war. Major offensives in 1995, including Operation Flash in May and Operation Storm in August, proved decisive in restoring Croatian control over most of the contested areas. Operation Storm, in particular, was one of the largest military campaigns in Europe since the Second World War. While it effectively ended organised Serb resistance in Croatia, it also led to the mass exodus of much of the Croatian Serb population and remains a subject of historical and political debate. The conflict officially concluded with the signing of the Dayton Peace Agreement in December 1995, which primarily ended the wider Bosnian War but also confirmed peace in the region.
The Croatian War of Independence had a profound impact on Croatia’s development as an independent nation. Approximately 20,000 people were killed, and the country’s infrastructure, economy, and communities suffered extensive damage. In the years following the war, Croatia focused on reconstruction, refugee resettlement, and strengthening democratic institutions. The peaceful reintegration of the remaining Serb-held territory of Eastern Slavonia in 1998 marked the final step in restoring Croatia’s territorial integrity. Today, the war is commemorated as a defining chapter in modern Croatian history, while efforts at reconciliation and addressing the legacy of wartime crimes continue to shape relations between Croatia, Serbia, and other countries of the former Yugoslavia.