A man with a gun followed them into the forest

The respondents, a group of six adult men from Pakistan aged 18 to 30, described suffering an aggression at the hands of four local people in the abandoned house where they had found shelter, near Grabovac (Bosnia-Herzegovina), on January 2nd, 2023.

The respondents reported that, at first, a silver car arrived and parked in front of the house where they were staying, at 9:00 p.m. Two men stepped out of the car, approached the house, and smashed the window glass with sticks and stones, while intimidating the group inside the house to go away. According to the respondents, the perpetrators were saying: “You go outside, you go, you go, you go.” The group remained inside in silence and did not react. The two people then reportedly poured gasoline on the house walls, set it on fire, and again yelled at the group to leave. After this, they started the engine and drove a few metres away from the house. At that point, the group decided to exit.

Once outside, they encountered four local men, two of whom they recognized as the ones who had first arrived. All of the men were reportedly holding long wooden sticks, and two also had guns. The respondents estimated them to be around 40–45 years old. Two were wearing trousers and jackets; the other two, trousers and sleeveless T-shirts (undershirts). Their faces were covered with black ski masks; nonetheless, the respondents reported recognizing one of them by his eyes and voice. They claim he had previously kicked them out of another abandoned building and described him as “a famous thief in the area.” The group suspected the men were under the influence of alcohol, as their behavior appeared erratic.

The four men reportedly kept shouting “Go, go, go away,” and threatening the group with sticks. One respondent asked what they wanted and what was wrong, but the threats continued, and one of the men in a sleeveless shirt fired three shots into the air. The group fled toward the forest. One of the attackers reportedly followed them for about one kilometre. This forced flight through the woods exposed the group to further risk, as the area is marked as a potential minefield.

The group scattered in the forest, and one person became separated. He had no phone, as it had been stolen two days earlier, so the others had no contact with him until the night of the following day, January 3rd. The respondents described spending the night in the forest without blankets or food, searching for a safe place to sleep, as “this place is not safe for us.”

The following morning, the group returned to the house to try to recover their belongings and assess the damage. They found that their clothes, blankets, and mattresses had been set on fire, and that one of their two power banks had been stolen. That same morning, the person writing this report observed two Bosnian men approaching the house with a chainsaw. A second assessment revealed the following: several items including a second battery, a battery box, and jerry cans for water had been stolen; plastic trash bags filled with the respondents’ remaining belongings were lying on the ground; and the house’s door had been removed from its hinges.

Meanwhile, the respondent who had separated from the group reported reaching two houses to ask for help during the night. At the first house, the people reportedly refused to assist. At the second, a woman called the police and told him to “go to Lipa camp.” Police officers arrived 30 minutes later and accompanied him to the house where the attack had taken place. They reportedly told him: “You don’t stay here, you go Lipa camp.”