Battle of Vrdi

The Battle of Vrdi was a battle in the Bosniak-Croat conflict during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It took place during the fourth Bosniak offensive. ARBiH failed to take Vrdi and move south to Goranci.

Battle of Vrdi
Part of the Croat–Bosniak War and Bosnian War
Date 4 – 6 September 1993 Location Vrdi, Bosnia and Herzegovina Result HVO Victory
Belligerents
Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia	Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Commanders and leaders
Miljenko Lasić	Sefer Halilović
Units involved
HVO	ARBiH El Mujahid

Battle

The Muslim attack began early in the morning on September 4th. The attack was directed towards Vrdi, Jelica antenna, and other positions in that direction. The Muslim units involved in the attack were the Special Purposes Detachment Zulfikar (including the so-called "Handžar Division" and Silver Fox), the Igman Wolves, and the Drežnica Battalion. Initially, Muslim scouts reported good progress. However, excellent Croatian electronic reconnaissance had a significant impact. They managed to decode the Muslim forces' communications, causing Muslim artillery to target their own troops. Consequently, all further fire control was directed by Nihad Bojadžić due to his recognizable voice. Around 3 PM, Muslim sources reported that they were advancing towards Vrdi and had allegedly captured the Jelica antenna and Arapovo Hill, even reaching the village cemetery. The HVO deployed reserves in the battle. In response, Muslim forces also brought in reinforcements. Information came that Croatian civilians were fleeing from Vrdi. By the end of the first day of the battle, Muslim sources reported they were nearing the center of Vrdi. Due to the fighting at Pisvir, it was impossible for the Muslims to send reports to the press in Sarajevo, so they directed them to the Hydroelectric Plant on the Neretva, where the General Staff of ARBiH had a communication center. Muslim media reports were embellished, depicting areas they had not actually captured and citing alleged orders from their commanders not to harm civilians. The Zrinski battalion intervened at Vrdi.

On September 6, 1993, a fierce attack on the HVO on the Vrdi front began. HVO soldiers managed to stop this attack, thereby defending their positions and the Croatian population in Mostar. During the operation, members of the ARBiH committed several massacres of civilian populations and captured HVO soldiers, and destroyed and plundered Croatian property.

Croatian positions were defended by heroes from Grude, Široki Brijeg, Tomislavgrad, Konjic... The decisive battle between the ARBiH, supported by fighters from the Middle East, and the HVO took place on the feast of St. Francis and the day after. The so-called ARBiH shattered like a soap bubble on the HVO lines in the zone of responsibility of the Grude brigade Vitez Ranko Boban. Croatian forces suffered eighteen deaths and several serious injuries. Among the fallen from the Vitez Ranko Boban brigade were Damir Logara, Vice Paradžik, Goran Spajić, Miro Spajić, Nediljko Barić, Gordan Milićević, and Davor Šimić; from HVO Tomislavgrad Stjepan Šapina; from HVO Široki Brijeg, Damir Anić; from HVO Konjic, Denis Jozić, and other notable individuals.

The battle was crucial for the survival of Croats in Herzegovina and beyond. As part of the conquest operation of the elite units of the ARBiH, Neretva '93 aimed to expel Croats and take control of the area where Croats lived. Despite significant efforts, they did not succeed, and the HVO preserved long-standing territories. To ensure mere survival, more than 20 HVO members, mostly from Grude and Široki Brijeg and Vrdi itself, perished.

Later interpretations by the ARBiH of their failure included exaggerations of their achievements, boasting that they had broken through the front lines of the HVO and reached just 8 km from Široki Brijeg, and that only an intervention by Alija Izetbegović, allegedly prompted by Šefko Omerbašić, saved the HVO. The truth is that the battles were very intense and the Croatian forces fiercely resisted. The Muslim forces could not achieve an easy dominance as in Central Bosnia because they could not achieve the element of surprise; the defenders were prepared for the attack from that direction, unlike in Central Bosnia where everything was open to them as allies. The Muslim forces had to face the reality that they had bitten off more than they could chew, and the days of easy conquests were over. Herzegovina proved to be a tough nut to crack, leaving them only to vent their frustration on isolated Croatian enclaves in Central Bosnia.

There is a monument to the fallen defenders at the Vrdi pass. On the anniversary of the defenders' death at Vrdi, a grand Croatian victory is commemorated.