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US files civil case to revoke Bosnian guard's citizenship
The Justice Department has initiated legal proceedings to cancel the US citizenship of Kemal Mrndžić, alleging he concealed his role as a guard at the infamous Čelebići prison camp during the 1990s Bosnian conflict.
Concealment of wartime service
According to federal officials, Mrndžić omitted details of his military service when applying for US immigration benefits. Court documents state he failed to disclose that he "persecuted Bosnian-Serb detainees" while stationed at the camp, where systematic abuses were documented.
Čelebići camp atrocities
A United Nations war crimes tribunal previously established that prisoners at Čelebići endured executions, torture, sexual violence, and other inhumane treatment. The facility, operated by Bosniak and Bosnian-Croat forces, became a symbol of the broader campaign of violence during the war.
Criminal conviction and sentencing
In October 2024, a US jury convicted Mrndžić on multiple counts of fraud and misrepresentation tied to his passport and naturalization applications. He was sentenced in January 2025 to over five years in federal prison.
"The United States will not allow those who persecute others to exploit our immigration system," said Brett Shumate, a senior Justice Department official during the Trump administration. "This case underscores our commitment to the integrity of the naturalization process."
Broader context of the Bosnian War
The conflict erupted after the dissolution of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s, culminating in the Srebrenica massacre in July 1995. Bosnian-Serb forces killed more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys in what the UN has classified as genocide-the deadliest atrocity in Europe since World War II.
The violence ended with the US-brokered Dayton Peace Agreement, signed on December 14, 1995. Former Serbian leader Slobodan Milošević was later tried for war crimes and genocide in connection with the conflict.
