Irishman Thomas Crowley is considered to be a hero in Croatia because of his active role in the Croatian War of Independence. He joined as a volunteer with the Croatian Defence Forces in 1991 and was assigned to the Ante Paradzik First Battalion. He participated as a commando in battles at Dubrovnik, Livno, Mostar, Popovo Polje, Operation Maslenica, the liberation of Škabrnja and Zemunik, where he was wounded. In 1994 he led a training camp for the 114th brigade. He was killed in action near Dubrovnik in 1995 and is buried near Split. He died as a Major in the Croatian Armed Forces and was posthumously awarded the Croatian Medal of Honour in 2012.