On the anniversary of Operation Storm, testimonies reveal dramatic details of the battles at Lisina peak, the death of a comrade, and the moment they saw liberated Knin from Dinara.
On this day, August 4, 1995, the military-police operation Storm began, an action in which nearly 11,000 square kilometers of previously occupied Croatian territory were liberated in just 84 hours. Members of the 4th Guards Brigade also took part in this key operation of the Homeland War, and their testimonies, shared on the portal Metkovicnet, today evoke memories of the journey from winter battles on Dinara to the victorious entry into Knin.
Although Storm is most often associated with August 1995, for the members of the 4th Guards Brigade it began much earlier. Operation Winter '94, which lasted from November 29 to December 24, 1994, marked the beginning of tracing the path to Knin, the center of the Serbian rebellion. Particularly difficult and bloody battles were fought on the slopes of Dinara on December 23, 1994, in almost impossible conditions, followed by wintering on that mountain with snow and extreme cold.
Already in the spring of 1995, new offensive operations followed: Leap-1 on April 7 and Leap-2 from June 4 to 11, which took place in the area of Dinara and the Livanjsko Polje. The final preparations came with Operation Summer '95, from July 25 to 30, when Bosansko Grahovo and Glamoč were liberated, creating the key preconditions for the final blow.
Although the enemy had been heavily defeated, they regrouped and launched a counteroffensive to reclaim lost positions. Heavy fighting flared up on August 3, 1995, on Mount Jadovnik, at the strategically important Lisina peak, which controls the approaches to Knin. One of the participants recalled that dramatic charge: "In just 40 minutes, we almost ran to the top (1656 m) under full gear", where part of the unit immediately engaged the enemy.
In that battle, Josip Markić, deputy commander of the Reconnaissance Company of the 4th Guards Brigade, was killed. In his honor, the military training ground at Crvena Zemlja near Knin bears his name today.
After exhausting battles, the unit withdrew without rest to Livanjsko Polje and prepared for the final liberation of Knin. "We couldn't dream that that day had already dawned", recalls one of the veterans. Excitement and enthusiasm were at their peak, and weather conditions could not shake the soldiers' determination: "Heat and scorching sun, and we with weapons and ammunition, no one minded that heat..."
After enemy positions on Dinara were breached on August 4, the morning of August 5 brought a sight that remained permanently etched in memory: "...from Dinara, we saw Knin, an indescribable feeling, a heart as big as a house, pride that does not fade even today..." Operation Storm officially ended on August 7, 1995, with the complete liberation of the occupied parts of the Republic of Croatia.
"When I remember, tears come, memories smell..."
These lines, which best capture the emotions that the anniversary evokes in surviving participants, summarize the memories of the veterans of the 4th Guards Brigade of the operation that changed the course of Croatian history.
