Russia vetoes Srebrenica 'genocide' resolution

(ANSA) - Rome, July 8 - Russia on Wednesday vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution describing the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of some 8,000 Muslim men and boys by Bosnian Serb troops as "genocide".
    Four other members of the council abstained while the remainder voted in favour.
    The killing was the worst massacre in Europe since World War Two.
    The motion had angered Serbia, which rejects the term 'genocide'. It had been drafted to mark the 20th anniversary of the atrocity, which came amid the bloody break-up of Yugoslavia into independent states.
    During the Bosnian War, which saw Serbia-backed Bosnian Serb forces fighting the Muslim-led Bosnian government, thousands seeking shelter at what was supposed to be a UN refuge were slaughtered.
    The resolution said that "acceptance of the tragic events at Srebrenica as genocide is a prerequisite for reconciliation".