Primošten massacre

On 13 November 1942, Partisans ambushed an Italian truck convoy near Primošten, fourteen Italian soldiers were killed, seven were wounded and six were taken prisoner.[2] Three days later, Italian forces ordered reprisals against the civilian population of Primošten.[3]

On 16 November 1942, Italian forces surrounded Primošten and indiscriminately shelled and bombed the village with artillery from land and sea and with three planes. The bombardment lasted for four hours,[1] causing a large number of civilian deaths and injuries and heavily damaged large parts of Primošten.[4]

After the artillery attack, Italian infantry entered the village, shooting or bayoneting a number of male civilians, who were separated from the women and children.[4] The remaining homes were torched and looted, others were booby-trapped with grenades, killing a number of civilians (including children) that tried to later return to their homes.[4]

Around 300 homes were destroyed or damaged during the attack.[4] Nearby villages were also burned and looted, 200 civilians were arrested[1] and were deported to the Vodice concentration camp.[4]

Between 80[4] and 150[1] civilians were killed. 150 children were left without one or both of their parents.[3]

In 2007, a mass grave containing the remains of 50 victims of the Primošten massacre were found in the Digova cave, near the village of Široke.[5]

• Tomasevich, Jozo (2001). War and Revolution in Yugoslavia, 1941–1945: Occupation and Collaboration. Stanford: Stanford University Press. ISBN 978-0-8047-7924-1.