Historic bridge rebuilt in divided Mostar
An historic bridge reduced to rubble during the Bosnian war was being reopened today, nearly 11 years after it was destroyed by Croat forces.
The famous Stari Most landmark, which spanned the River Neretva in the city of Mostar, was brought down in a deliberate shell attack during fighting in November 1993.
VIPs and heads of state from across south-eastern Europe will gather today for the inauguration of its new replica – viewed as a symbol of reunification for divided Mostar.
The destruction of the architectural treasure was a major blow to the city and a low point for morale.
Built by the Ottomans in the 16th century and a survivor of centuries of conflict, the “Old Bridge” was a powerful symbol of multi-culturalism and ethnic tolerance.
During the 1992-1995 conflict, Croats and Muslims fought each other for 11 months in the capital of Herzegovina – the second largest city in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
On November 9, 1993, the battered monument collapsed into the river after withstanding months of Serbian, then Croatian onslaught.
In 1994, Unesco launched an appeal to recreate the 30-metre long, 20 metre-high humpbacked bridge and work by Turkish company ER-BU began in 2001.
The multi-million pound reconstruction work was painstakingly carried out using some of the original stone recovered from the river bed.
The remainder was taken from the same quarry used to build the first one 500 years ago and crafted using traditional methods.
Designed by Turkish architect Mimar Hajruddin in 1566, the original bridge was flanked by two fortified towers – Halebija and Tara.
At the time of the Second World War, it was strong enough to support the crossing of Nazi tanks and during the bloody Bosnian conflict, it also provided the only access to a source of drinking water which people collected at night while dodging sniper fire.
After the war, Mostar was left divided into a Croat-run western half and Muslim-run eastern section.
Around 250,000 people died in the inter-ethnic conflict between Bosnian Muslims, Croats and Serbs – part of the break-up of Yugoslavia.
