Jovan Divjak
| Jovan Divjak | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Native name | Jovan Divjak |
| Born |
11 March 1937 Belgrade, Kingdom of Yugoslavia |
| Allegiance | Yugoslavia (1956–1992) Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1995) Bosnia and Herzegovina (1995–1996) |
| Service/branch | Yugoslav Ground Forces (1956–1992) Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1996) |
| Years of service | 1956–1996 |
| Rank | General |
| Battles/wars | |
Jovan Divjak (Serbian Cyrillic: Јован Дивјак; born 11 March 1937) is a retired Bosnian Army general who served during the Bosnian War (1992–95). He was the Deputy Commander of the Army's Main Staff until 1994. An ethnic Serb, he publicly declares himself a Bosnian.
Divjak was born in Belgrade to parents originally from the Bosanska Krajina region of Bosnia. His father was stationed in the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) in Serbia. He and his family currently reside in Sarajevo, where he moved in 1966. From 1956 to 1959, he attended the Military Academy in Belgrade. In 1964 and 1965, he attended the École d'Éat Major in Paris. From 1969 to 1971, he was in the Cadet Academy in Belgrade, and from 1979 to 1981, he served in the War and Defense Planning School there. After several posts in the JNA, he was appointed Territorial Defense Chief in command of the Mostar sector from 1984 to 1989 and the Sarajevo sector from 1989 to 1991.
In 1991 and 199 Jovan Divjak was court-marshalled by the JNA for issuing 120 pieces of light armour and 20,000 bullets to the Kiseljak Territorial Defence and was sentenced to nine months' imprisonment. He avoided the sentence by leaving the JNA and joining the Territorial Defence of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the first days of war, he was arrested under the charge of collaborating with the Serbian forces and was imprisoned for 27 days. In prison, Divjak was on a hunger strike for four days, but nobody paid any attention.
Divjak later became the Deputy Commander of the Territorial Defense forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina and a month later he oversaw the defence of Sarajevo from a major JNA attack. Between 1993 and 1997, Divjak served as the Deputy Commander of the Headquarters of the Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina, charged with co-operating with civilian institutions and organisations (administration, economy, health, and education).
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