NATO Aggression, 1999

 

 

During the NATO bombing of Belgrade in 1999 even the targets in the very center of the city were hit, which can be best seen on this map.

 

During almost three months of bombing, only a few days and nights passed without air-raid alarm.

 

CHRONOLOGY:

Day 1 - Night between March 24 and 25

Series of attacks in the area of Batajnica where a military airport of the same name is located. One explosion in the Ralja region, 30 km south of Belgrade. Three detonations in the area around the mountain of Avala. The radar station in Rakovica was hit, damaging three school buildings and the outer wall of the monastery.

Day 2 - Night between March 25 and 26

Beside the Batajnica airport, Jajinci and Žarkovo were bombed.

Day 3 - Night between March 26 and 27

The targets in the areas of Avala, Topčider, Mali Mokri Lug, Sremčica, Lipovica and Voždovac were hit. The fire caught the forest of Lipovica.

Day 4 - Night between March 27 and 28

Another bombing of the Batajnica airport, Avala, Trešnja; the pre-school facilities in Petlovo Brdo and Vidikovac were damaged. Fire caught Lipovica again. The civil airport in Surčin got damaged.

Day 5 - Night between March 28 and 29

Batajnica airport was bombed again.

Day 6 - Night between March 29 and 30

Another bombing of the Batajnica airport, Avala, Jakovo and Zuce.

Day 7 - Night between March 30 and 31

Explosions in the area of Jakovo and Borča. Military installations on Avala were bombed. Several projectiles fell in the area of the Zuce village.

Day 10 - Night between April 2 and 3

Cruising missiles hit the buildings of the federal and republican ministries of internal affairs in Kneza Miloša Street. Fire in immediate vicinity of the Gynecological-obstetrical Clinic and the "Laza Lazarević" psychological hospital.

Day 11 - Night between April 3 and 4

The heating plant in the residential Block 70A in New Belgrade was hit, and a nightwatchman killed. The Police Academy in Banjica was hit. The detonation broke the windows on the building of the Military Academy of Medicine. The Jugopetrol reservoir in Rakovica was bombed. The forest of Lipovica was set on fire again.

Day 12 - Night between April 4 and 5

The building of the Air Force Command in the center of Zemun, in Glavna Street was hit. Water supply network and several residential buildings in the same street were damaged. The barracks in Cara Dušana Street (Riding school)were hit. One projectile fell near the City Hospital in Zvezdara. In the attack on wider area of Surčin, the building of the civil airport was damaged.

Day 15 - Night between April 7 and 8

The building of the republican Ministry of Justice (former City Command) at No. 9, Nemanjina Street. The windows on the surrounding residential buildings and the Belgrade Hotel were broken by the strong detonation.

Day 20 - Night between April 12 and 13

The "Vasa Čarapić" barracks of the Yugoslav Army in Banjica was bombed. An air battle took place in the sky above Novi Beograd. One unexploded missile fell near the "Beogradska arena" sports hall.

Day 22 - Night between April 14 and 15

Series of heavy explosions in Rakovica, where a large number of people were hurt mainly by broken glass. The building of the Municipal Assembly, Medical Center, school, pre-school facilities and several hundreds of apartments were damaged.

Day 23 - Night between April 15 and 16

For the second time in two days the quarry in Rakovica got hit.

Day 25 - Night between April 17 and 18

The three-year old girl Milica Rakić got killed in the attack on the suburban area of Batajnica. Five civilian were injured. Rakovica was bombed again.

Day 26 - Night between April 18 and 19

Four heavy detonations were recorded in the area of Barič, Obrenovac municipality, where a chemical industry is located.

Dan 27 - Night between April 19 and 20

Attacks in the area of Batajnica.

Day 28 - Night between April 20 and 21

The "Ušće" business center in Novi Beograd was hit. It housed many radio and TV stations and the head office of the Socialist Party of Serbia.

Day 29 - Night between April 21 and 22

The residence of the President of FRY at No. 15, Užička Street. Some twenty missiles hit the area of the Batajnica airport.

Day 30 - Night between April 22 and 23

The building of the Radio-Television of Serbia in Aberdareva Street, in the very city center was bombed. Sixteen people got killed and 18 suffered light and heavy injuries. The bridge on the Sava near Ostružnica was heavily damaged. The bombing in the areas of Avala and Krnjača, power conversion plants in Zemun Polje and Resnik were hit.

Day 32 - Night between April 24 and 25

Power conversion plant on Avala got hit, and the near-by transmitter of the Radio-Television of Serbia lost power.

Day 34 - Night between April 26 and 27

The "Ušće" business center in Novi Beograd was hit again. The radio-TV aerial on the top of the building was destroyed.

Day 35 - Night between April 27 and 28

Seven missiles hit the barracks of the Yugoslav Army in Topčider.

Day 36 - Night between April 28 and 29

The aerial tower in Krnjača, the bridge on the Sava near Ostružnica and the barracks in Topčider were hit.

Day 37 - Night between April 29 and 30

In the heaviest attack since the beginning of the aggression, the buildings of the Yugoslav Army Headquarters and already damaged building of the Federal Police were hit. The missiles also hit a residential area in Vračar, between the Južni Bulevar and Maksima Gorkog streets. The whole area was left without water supply. The RTS transmitter on Avala and the aerial of the Radio Studio B in Borča were destroyed. During these attacks three persons were killed and 40 wounded.

Day 39 - Night between May 1 and 2

The area of Lipovica forest was bombed again, as well as the villages of Surčin and Jakovo.

Dan 40 - Night between May 2 and 3

Special substances (graphite bombs), dropped on the high-voltage mains in the thermo-electric power plants "Nikola Tesla" in Obrenovac and "Kostolac" in Kostolac, caused short circuits and the breakdown of the power supply system. which left Belgrade, the whole Vojvodina, all the towns of the Pomoravlje region, Niš, Kragujevac, Smederevo, Valjevo and other towns without power supply, as well as parts of the Republic of Srpska which were supplied from these power plants. Because of this, many towns were left without water supply, too.

Day 41 - Night between May 3 and 4

The Straževica hill in Rakovica and the area around Batajnica were bombed. Because of the attack two nights ago, there was a partial breakdown of power supply system, which again caused the lack of power and water supply in many towns or parts of towns.

Day 45 - Night between May 7 and 8

In the heaviest attack since the beginning of the aggression, the buildings of the Yugoslav Army Headquarters and the Federal Ministry of Internal Affairs were hit again. In the bombing of the Embassy of China in Novi Beograd, four employees got killed, and five of them were heavily injured. the "Jugoslavija" Hotel was very damaged, and one guest got killed. In the repeated attack with graphite bombs on the thermo-electric power plant in Obrenovac and on several power conversion plants, the power supply system was damaged again and the whole city was left without electricity.

Day 47 - Night between May 9 and 10

Ever since the beginning of the NATO campaign, the citizens of Belgrade spent the first night without air-raid alarms.

Day 48 - Night between May 10 and 11

The area of the Zuce village and the "Prva iskra" factory in Barič were bombed.

Day 50 - Night between May 12 and 13

The Batajnica airport was bombed.

Day 51 - Night between May 13 and 14

Graphite bombs hit the thermo-electric power plants "Drmno" in Kostolac and "Kolubara" near Lazarevac. Many parts of Belgrade as well as other towns in Serbia were left without power supply.

Day 55 - Night between May 17 and 18

Wider area of Batajnica was bombed.

Day 56 - Night between May 18 and 19

The reservoirs of the "Jugopetrol" company in Čukarica were hit. The windows on the surrounding buildings on Banovo Brdo were broken.

Day 57 - Night between May 19 and 20

Three patients got killed, and several medical workers were injured during the attack on the Neurological Department of the Clinical-Hospital Center in Dedinje. In the moment of the attack four deliveries were in progress. Two pregnant women were lightly injured, and the babies were evacuated to other hospitals. The Batajnica airport, the "Prva Iskra" factory in Barič and a hangar on the old road to Obrenovac were bombed.

Day 58 - Night between May 20 and 21

The reservoirs of the "Jugopetrol" company in Čukarica were hit again. During that attack the residence of the Swiss ambassador was damaged. Several detonations were recorded in Rakovica, Lipovica and Ostružnica.

Day 59 - Night between May 21 and 22

The reservoirs of the "Jugopetrol" company in Čukarica were hit again. Also bombed were the area of Lipovica forest and the Straževica hill in Rakovica.

Day 60 - Night between May 22 and 23

Five workers were injured in the bombing of the thermo-electric power plant "Kolubara" in Veliki Crljeni. Belgrade and the greater part of Serbia were left without power supply. The targets in Obrenovac, Barič, Makiš, Lipovica and Rakovica were bombed.

Day 61 - Night between May 23 and 24

Large part of Serbia went out of electricity after the bombing of TE "Kolubara", TE "Nikola Tesla" and TE "Drmno". Heavy damages were made on the power conversion plants and mains. Many parts of Belgrade, Novi Sad and Niš, as well as other towns were left without power supply and water.

Day 62 - Night between May 24 and 25

The building of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Kneza Miloša Street was hit again, as well as the Straževica hill in Rakovica, the power mains near Obrenovac and the area of Batajnica.

Day 64 - Night between May 26 and 27

In the bombing of the Ralja village in Municipality of Sopot, three persons, including two children, were killed. The repair station of the "DMB" factory in Rakovica was hit. The areas of Makiš, Ostružnica, Batajnica and Zuce were bombed. Two unexploded projectiles fell in Novi Beograd and Vračar.

Day 65 - Night between May 27 and 28

The power conversion plants in Leštane and Bežanijska Kosa were hit. Belgrade and larger part of Vojvodina were left without electricity. The building of the Federal Directorate for Commodity Reserves in Novi Beograd was also hit.

Day 66 - Night between May 28 and 29

Wider area of Batajnica was hit.

Day 67 - Night between May 29 and 30

Wider area of Belgrade, area around Obrenovac, Bubanj Potok, the foot of Avala, area around Batajnica and Straževica in Rakovica were bombed. One bomb fell on the green area 300 m away from the "Vidikovac" Shopping Center.

Day 68 - Night between May 30 and 31

Several projectiles fell in the areas of Zvezdara, Ripanj, Miljakovac and the installations of the "Nikola Tesla" thermo-electric power plant in Obrenovac.

Day 69 - Night between May 31 and June 1

The high-voltage power conversion plants in Leštane and Bežanijska Kosa were bombed again. The whole Belgrade and most part of Vojvodina were left without power supply.

Day 70 - Night between June 1 and 2

The target was wider area of the city. Lipovica, Umka, Ostružnica, Bežanijska Kosa, Obrenovac and a gas station on the Belgrade-Pančevo road were bombed.

Day 71 - Night between June 2 and 3

One explosion in the area of Barič.

Day 72 - Night between June 3 and 4

The area of Batajnica was bombed. This was only the second night ever since the beginning of the aggression with no air-raid alarms in the city.

Day 76 - Night between June 7 and 8

Batajnica was bombed. The lighting balls were launched, which illuminated almost entire city. Some unexploded projectiles fell on Slankamen, Kotež and Zvezdara.