Israeli Ambassador: Srebrenica is not genocide – the world should believe those who know it

Israel has never accepted that the crime in Srebrenica be called genocide, Israeli Ambassador to Serbia Jahel Vilan stated. Vilan, in an interview for Sputnik, said that significant and important authorities and historians such as Efraim Zuroff, Yehuda Bauer, or Gideon Greif should be trusted on this matter.

In his opinion, using the term genocide in the case of Srebrenica is incorrect and gives a distorted picture of the event.

"I'm not saying that the Holocaust is the only genocide; there have been other genocides around the world. But when you call Srebrenica genocide, in my opinion, it diminishes the importance of that term, which I believe should only be used for genocides. Israel was also called to The Hague for alleged genocide in Gaza. For me, Srebrenica should not be called genocide," Vilan pointed out.

He doesn't know, he says, how the vote on the resolution proposal on Srebrenica will go, but he adds that Israel is the country that has suffered the most from the United Nations and understands what it's about.

"It's not about historical facts or moral aspects; it's about politics. Everything in the United Nations is politics and only politics. And there are standards for one country and different standards for other countries. Unfortunately, most of the time, we suffer from such a formula by which the UN operates. Perhaps Serbia will suffer from the same UN policy, but in my opinion, such issues should be resolved on a moral and legal level, never to be mixed with politics," Vilan emphasized.

Once questions like Srebrenica enter politics, it's never good for historical or moral facts, the Israeli ambassador stressed.

Vilan says he doesn't understand how it's possible that many European countries have recognized the crime in Srebrenica as genocide.

"I believe that countries should ask themselves, especially when they come to the UN, which are more politically motivated than committed to historical truth, what such a decision will bring to the region, Bosnia and Herzegovina, how it will affect the stability of that state - positively or negatively. Unfortunately, I don't think the resolution carries any positive message or idea that the country should remain united," Vilan concluded.