On June 18, 2026, Patriarch Porfirije of Serbia received members of the Organizing Committee for the Commemoration of Serbian Victims in the Middle Drina and Birač regions during the armed conflicts of 1992–1995, at the Patriarchal Palace in Belgrade.
After welcoming the delegation from the Republika Srpska, Patriarch Porfirije emphasized that a people who preserve the memory of their victims remain in unbroken communion with both God and truth, underscoring that the remembrance of those who perished in the Middle Drina and Birač is inseparable from the spiritual life of the Church.
“The prayerful commemoration of 3,267 innocent Serbian martyrs does not belong to the past — it is a living responsibility toward the future and a cornerstone in the foundation of true peace among people,” said Patriarch Porfirije of Serbia.
Representatives of the Organizing Committee briefed the Patriarch on the details of the final preparations for this year’s commemoration of the victims in the Middle Drina and Birač regions. In presenting the Patriarch with the proposed programme for the prayer gathering to be held on July 4, 2026, in Bratunac, under the auspices of the highest institutional bodies of the Republika Srpska, the members of the Committee stressed that the support of the Serbian Orthodox Church and of Patriarch Porfirije personally is of invaluable importance to all initiatives aimed at preserving the memory of the fallen.
