Knin marked the 31st anniversary of Operation Storm on August 5, 2026. Thousands of citizens and veterans gathered to celebrate Victory and Homeland Thanksgiving Day, with special attention drawn by HOS members and Zadar bikers.
At the central square in Knin, beside the monument "Croatian Victory, Storm '95," members of the 9th HOS Battalion "Rafael vitez Boban," led by Marko Skejo, laid wreaths and paid tribute to the fallen in a special way. The president of the Association of the 9th HOS Battalion "Rafael vitez Boban," Miće Ćuk, addressed the crowd and congratulated them on Victory Day, announcing the salute from the Homeland War.
"We came to pay our respects at the monument for the fallen, missing, and deceased Croatian veterans of the Homeland War. We will salute them three times with the salute we used during the Homeland War," said Ćuk.
This was followed by the cry "For home," to which the crowd responded "Ready!" The salute was repeated three times in total. Earlier, the same salute was performed by Dražen Keleminec and his supporters.
A large number of Zadar veterans also took part in the celebration. The president of the association of veterans treated for PTSD, Jere Zurak, reported from Knin and noted that their bikers drew great enthusiasm on the streets.
"We were very happy and proud to see them; they enhanced this celebration, and everyone on the streets stopped to watch them. Besides our people from Zadar, there were bikers from other cities too, but ours were really numerous," Zurak said for Antena Zadar.
Zurak also described the atmosphere in Knin, emphasizing that despite the extreme heat, the turnout of veterans was exceptionally high. "There are a lot of people in town; many came despite the heat, so from our association, those of us who could came. For those with health issues, this is a very dangerous time, but I can say that today there are indeed many veterans from Zadar. We are here from all associations, and I am really glad that we gathered in such numbers in Knin today," he said.
Finally, he expressed pride and gratitude: "We are happy that we could come here and pay our respects to the victims, our dear colleagues who gave their lives for the freedom of our homeland."
