When I returned to East Mostar a few days later, I was once again targeted by snipers in the surrounding hills. Upon my arrival at the hospital I was devastated to learn that one of the children had not survived. Damir's injuries were so severe that the doctors were unable to save him and he died within a few hours. He was only five years old. His mother was waiting with Elmir and the baby. She was still in shock and sat staring ahead, seemingly oblivious to everything around her.
We left Mostar as dusk was falling. Elmir lay on a stretcher in the back of my ambulance together with his mother, grandmother and baby sister. Included in the evacuation were August and Erna Cipra, an elderly Jewish couple who had been trapped in the area for some time. Thankfully the ceasefire held and we made it safely across the front line. After crossing no man’s land, I became confused in the dark and missed our police escort who had promised to wait on the other side of the airfield.
A group of HVO soldiers appeared and signalled for me to stop the vehicle. They were dirty and scruffy, their appearances suggesting they had returned from a long stint on the front line. All of them looked tired, their faces taut with stress and lack of sleep. I was immediately concerned for the safety of my passengers, some of whom were Muslim and I held my breath as they peered inside. The young mother stared blankly at the fearsome faces of the men; too traumatised to know or care what was happening as her mother stroked her hand. August and Erna were relatively calm, even when the soldiers ordered everyone out of the vehicle. I prepared to intervene when to my relief I spotted a familiar face among the crowd. It was one of the policemen sent to escort us and he shouted at the group of soldiers who reluctantly moved away.
The rest of the journey was uneventful and we finally reached the UN headquarters in Medjugorje. Lynne, my colleague was waiting outside the base with a couple of reporters and she asked the soldier on guard to open the gate. I was astonished when he refused and immediately got out to challenge the decision, but he just turned his back. I couldn't believe that the United Nations would literally turn their backs on wounded children. I looked around but there was no sign of anyone who might be able to help; just a dark empty road.
An officer from the UNPROFOR battalion came out to tell me that they were forbidden to assist me in any way. I asked if we could at least have some food and water for the evacuees and eventually a soldier appeared with some yoghurt and water. Headlights came down the road and to my relief I saw a SKY news vehicle approaching. Lynne had had the presence of mind to inform Christopher Morris of our arrival.
Chris directed his cameraman to start filming as one of the crew spoke to the soldiers. ‘This is an ambulance’ she said slowly and clearly, ‘an ambulance with sick children inside.’ The officer just looked at her blankly, "I don't understand," he said turning away.
I was already feeling very frustrated but Elmir had begun to cry and my frustration quickly turned to anger. I launched an attack on the United Nations and all the major aid organisations whose policies were so rigid, that they seemed incapable of responding to an emergency, even when it involved seriously wounded children. I had risked my life to bring them to safety yet no one was willing to help.
"These are organisations funded by the tax payers and charitable donations," I continued "and I'm sure that people would prefer it to be spent on saving lives, rather than on maintaining unwieldy bureaucracies."
Finally an urgent call brought a team of Croat doctors to the base. They arrived in a fully equipped ambulance into which the patients were carefully transferred and driven to the main hospital in Split.
The following day I visited the hospital where I found Elmir sitting up and smiling. The shrapnel had been removed from his eyes and his sight had been saved. As I approached him he became agitated but when I asked the doctor to tell me what was the matter he seemed slightly embarrassed. "He says he wants you to move away because you're blocking the view of his mother."