# Čelebić

Čelebić is a village in the Bosnian City of Livno in Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. During the Bosnian War the village was divided between Serb and Croat forces until December 1994, when the Croats took control of the village.

## History

At the end of 1991, the village of Čelebić, along with Donji Rujani represented a line which divided territories under Croat and Serb control and signified the administrative reach of the Municipality of Livno, held by the Croats. In December 1991, the Serbs established checkpoints in Čelebić and Čaprazlije, seceding the villages from the municipal control. As a response, the Croats established checkpoints towards Bosansko Grahovo and Glamoč, in the villages of Donji Rujani, the western parts of Čelebić and south of the Korićina mountain pass.
The Serb forces prepared for an offensive towards Livno in April 1992. Ferdinand Sučić was appointed commander of the Croat defence in Čelebić. Croat forces in Čelebić were composed of the two platoons of the 3rd Battalion of the Croatian Defence Council (HVO) in the nearby fields near the road and in the hills above the village. In the village itself, the Croats stationed an anti-tank platoon, while an infantry platoon was located beneath the mountain Velika Golija east of the village. In total, the Croat forces numbered around 180 soldiers.
The Serb offensive from Bosansko Grahovo through Čelebić towards Livno started on 23 April 1992. The Serbs prepared for the offensive with artillery fire and started the offensive at 09:00 AM, with an armoured company of 32 tanks and other armoured vehicles. After the attack started, the Croats reinforced their defences with additional two platoons from Ljubunčić and Žirović. With the help of mortar fire, they managed to stop the tank attack by damaging several tanks. With the Serb intent to save the damaged tanks, the confrontation turned into fierce fighting lasting for hours. After losing anti-tank weapons, some 40 Croats soldiers retreated towards Kovačić. Sučić was killed during the attack. The Serbs managed to save the damaged tanks. After an artillery cannonade, in a manoeuvre commanded by Ante Gotovina, the Croats managed to return to their positions in Čelebić the next day. The Croats had five, while the Serbs had four killed soldiers, with several wounded on both sides.
The line between the Serb and the Croat forces remained still until 13 June 1992, after the HVO artillery destroyed several Serb armoured vehicles, after which Serbs retreated in the northwestern part of the village. After that, the line between the Serb and the Croat forces remained unchanged until December 1994. During the Operation Winter '94, on 2 December 1994, the Croat forces started a barrage on Ljuta Glavica hill above the village, while on 4 December, they managed to secure the hill, semicirciling the Serb forces in the village, forcing them to retreat.

## Demographics

| Ethnic group | Population 1961 | % | Population 1971 | % | Population 1981 | % | Population 1991 | % | Population 2013 | % |
| Croats | 467 | 69.60 | 357 | 63.19 | 510 | 65.98 | 316 | 70.54 | 121 | 90.98 |
| Serbs | 199 | 29.66 | 169 | 29.91 | 262 | 33.89 | 131 | 29.24 | 12 | 9.02 |
| Others | 5 | 0.75 | 39 | 6.90 | 1 | 0.13 | 1 | 0.22 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 671 | 671 | 565 | 565 | 773 | 773 | 448 | 448 | 133 | 133 |

## Footnotes

* ↑ Marijan 2021, p. 278.
* ↑ Marijan 2021, pp. 284–285.
* ↑ Marijan 2021, pp. 286–287.
* ↑ Marijan 2021, p. 300.
* ↑ Marijan 2021, pp. 289–299, 300.
* ↑ Marijan 2021, pp. 301–303.
* ↑ Marijan 2021, p. 303.
* ↑ Marijan 2021, p. 305.
* ↑ Nacionalni sastav stanovništva FNR Jugoslavije 1994c.
* ↑ Nacionalni sastav stanovništva FNR Jugoslavije 1994b.
* ↑ Nacionalni sastav stanovništva FNR Jugoslavije 1994a.
* ↑ Nacionalni sastav stanovništva 1993, p. 70.
* ↑ Ethnicity/National Affiliation, Religion and Mother Tongue 2019, pp. 520–521.