| Part of a series on |
| Aftermath of World War II in Yugoslavia |
|---|
| Main events |
| Massacres |
| Camps |
| Macelj massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part of theBleiburg repatriations | |
 A cross in Macelj | |
| Location | Macelj,SR Croatia,Yugoslavia (nowCroatia) |
| Date | May and June 1945 |
| Target | NDH prisoners of war and civilians |
Attack type | Mass executions |
| Deaths | 12,000 (estimated) |
| Perpetrators | Yugoslav Partisans |
TheMacelj massacre occurred in May and June 1945, at theend of World War II in Europe, in the forests nearMacelj, a village in northernCroatia. At the site, a large number of soldiers, women, and children were shot during theBleiburg repatriations.[1]
In 1992, after Croatia became independent, 1,163 bodies were excavated from 23 mass graves in the region, leaving around 130 possible mass grave locations unexplored.[1]
Among those executed in Macelj were 25 Catholic priests from theFranciscan monastery of Široki Brijeg, which were temporarily hidden in nearbyKrapina.[2] In 2008, theCroatian Ministry of the Interior launched an investigation into Stjepan Hršak's possible involvement in that event.[2]
Reburial of the exhumed bodies in 2005 was followed by a public mass led byCardinal Josip Bozanić, at the timeArchbishop of Zagreb.[3]