Croatian MOD on the tragic incident involving Czech citizens

The Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces express their regret over the tragedy in which a child lost its life and two people were injured, all of whom are Czech citizens. The “Josip Markić” training area consists of three sections. Section 1, Camp Bralovac, is fenced off and is owned by the Ministry of Defence. It is secured round the clock.

The spatial plan of Šibenik – Knin County designates the “Josip Markić” military training area as an area of special interest for the Republic of Croatia. The land used by the Croatian Armed Forces for training activities (firing positions and target areas – section 3) is bordered by the Dinara Nature Park. Bilingual warning signs (in Croatian and English) saying “Danger! Possible Unexploded Ordnance! Enter At Your Own risk!” are clearly displayed.

Six warning signs are displayed on all access routes leading to the target area, that is, to section 3.

Strict safety measures are implemented when military activities are conducted at the “Josip Markić” military training area to ensure the safety of both CAF members and civilians. During these activities, guard duty prevents unauthorized access and directs passers-by to safe areas.

Immediately before any firing exercises are held, the area is inspected by unmanned aerial systems to ensure a safe environment for carrying out the activity. The targets are positioned exclusively in the target area to prevent contamination of other parts of the training area.

Special attention is given to locating unexploded ordnance, which is destroyed on-site.

A monitoring team is organized to observe firing exercises, while a pyrotechnician destroys or disposes of unexploded ordinance based on the information provided by the monitoring team. After the activities, the unit conducts clean-up and removal of explosive remnants. To protect the environment, the exercise commanders inspect the area (section 3) and collect all safe ammunition fragments for disposal as waste.

When military activities are conducted at the “Josip Markić” military training area, the public is specifically informed through various channels: Radio Knin and other public media, the Knin Police Department, the City of Knin, the Knin Fire Brigade, the Knin Mountaineering Society, and the notice board displayed at the entrance to the “Josip Markić” military training area. This board clearly details the current month’s activity schedule and zones, including warnings on potential unexploded ordnance.

The Ministry of Defence and the Armed Forces have no knowledge of the specific type of explosive involved in this incident. The Zadar Police Department has reported that all traces found at the scene have been collected and will be sent for expert examination to the Forensic Science Centre “Ivan Vučetić”.

The warning signs clearly state that entry into the “Josip Markić” military training area is at one’s own risk, that it is a dangerous area, and that it is possible to encounter unexploded ordnance.

The “Josip Markić” military training area has been in operation for decades and such a tragedy has never occured before.