Sarajevo Operation

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Sarajevo Operation
Part of World War II in Yugoslavia
3rd Yugoslav Partisans' Corps enter liberated Sarajevo, 6 April 1945
Date 28 March - 10 April 1945 Location Sarajevo, Bosnia 43°52′N 18°25′E / 43.867°N 18.417°E / 43.867; 18.417Coordinates: 43°52′N 18°25′E / 43.867°N 18.417°E / 43.867; 18.417 Result Partisan victory
Belligerents
Yugoslav Partisans	Nazi Germany  Independent State of Croatia Chetniks
Commanders and leaders
Slavko Rodić Vladimir Perić †	Ernst von Leyser
Strength
38.000 men	50.000 men of which 35.000 Germans
Casualties and losses
637 killed 2.020 wounded	5.700 killed and wounded 6.000 prisoners

Sarajevo

Location of Sarajevo within the Independent State of Croatia

Untenable position of Sarajevo

The Sarajevo Operation was an operation by the Yugoslav Partisan Army which led to the liberation of Sarajevo and Central Bosnia in March-April 1945.

The Battle[]

The German defense plan for Yugoslavia of 22 February 1945 had named Sarajevo as a fortified city, which could only be abandoned by direct permission from Adolf Hitler. By 20 March , the failure of Operation Spring Awakening (the German offensive in Hungary) and the successful offensive of the Yugoslav 4th Army in Lika (North-Western Croatia), made holding Sarajevo pointless. The retreat was ordered, with 3000 wounded German soldiers from the Sarajevo hospital going first. Interception of Yugoslav wireless communications had revealed to the Germans that the general attack was planned for 28 March. In order to secure their retreat routes, the Germand Army carried out the Berggeist, Maigewitter and Osterglocke Operations.

On 28 March 1945, the Yugoslav Army launched their attack. Under command of the Operational HQ for Liberation of Sarajevo were the 2nd, 3rd and 5th Corps of the Yugoslav army, supported by the 11th and 13th Krajina and 18th Central Bosnian Brigade, an Artillery Brigade and a Tank Company. Overall commander was the commander of the 2nd Corps . Sarajevo and its surrounding areas was defended by German and NDH forces under command of the German 21st Mountain Corps.

After heavy fighting, the city of Sarajevo was liberated on 6 April.

During the pursuit of the enemy, Yugoslav units liberated Visoko, Kakanj and on 10 April Busovača, which concluded the Sarajevo operation.

Order of battle[]

Axis[]

• XXI Mountain Corps (Ernst von Leyser)
  • 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen
  • 369th (Croatian) Infantry Division
  • 181st Infantry Division
  • 9th Mountain Ustashe Home Guard Division (5 brigades)
  • Romanija, Zenica and Herzegovina Chetnik Corps.

Partisans[]

• 2nd Corps (Radovan Vukanović)
  • 3rd Division
  • 29th Division
  • 37th Division
• 3rd Corps (Pero Kosorić)
  • 27th Division
  • 38th Division
• 5th Corps (Slavko Rodić)
  • 4th Division
  • 10th Division
  • Zenica Combat Group

See also[]

• Walter Defends Sarajevo

Sources[]

• Sarajevo Operation