Alija

Izetbegovic Biography
Alija Izetbegovic was a Bosniak activist and the first president
of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Read on to know more about Alija
Izetbegovic's profile, childhood, life and timeline.
Quick Facts
Famous as

Political Activist, First President of Bosnia &

Herzegovina

Nationality

Bosniak

Political
ideology

Party of Democratic Action

Born on

08 August 1925 AD

Zodiac Sign

Leo

Born in

amac, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Died on

19 October 2003 AD

Place of death

Sarajevo

Spouse:

Halida Repovac

Children

Bakir Izetbegovi

Education

University of Sarajevo

Works &
Achievements

Alija Izetbegovi was the first President of

Bosnia & Herzegovina.

Alija Izetbegovic, the first president of the Bosnia-Herzegovina

was a Bosnian activist who ruled the nation during one of the
bloodiest phases of its history. Born into an aristocratic but
impoverished family, he moved to Sarajevo, which later became
the center of his political activities. After being part of many
political organizations, his political growth was on the rise after
he formed the Party of Democratic Action and was elected as
the President of the country. However, what followed was
intense political turmoil which included the fallout of the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Despite numerous peace efforts, he
could not stop a bloody war which extended for four years
between the various ethnic groups. This mild-mannered Muslim
leader spent half of his presidency in fighting for the survival of
his own country. Later, backstabbed by the other Muslim
leaders and facing contempt of the western leaders, he was
also partly blamed for the civil war which rocked the Balkans.
However, the thousands of mourners who attended his funeral
and the letters of condolences, which flooded Bosnia from the
leaders of almost 80 countries after his death, bears testimony
to the fact that he was one of the most loved and respected
European Muslim leaders in the world.
Childhood & Early Life
Izetbegovic was born on 8 August 1925 in Bosanki Samac
in the Northern part of Bosnia to an accountant father in a
distinguished family. He was the descendant of Slavic
Ottoman aristocrats who fled to Bosnia after Serbia
attained independence from the Ottoman Empire.

Izetbegovic moved to Sarajevo the following year and

received his education from Sarajevo Law School.
At the age of sixteen, in 1940, he co-founded an
organization, Mladi Muslimani (Young Muslims) which
helped the refugees during World War II.
Izetbegovic refused to implement the piece plan created
by Portugal diplomat Cutiliero in 1992. He initially
endorsed the plan but later on withdrew his signature on
the suggestion of Clinton administration. Clinton later
explained that "they" (Madeline Albright and other
members of the Administration) forced him. T he result was
a bloody civil war in Bosnia resulting in around 100,000
deaths, mostly Serbs and Muslims. Consequently, the
Crime against Piece was removed from the list of crimes
prosecuted by the International Criminal Tribunal for
former Yugoslavia in Hague, in order to avoid prosecution
of the members of Clinton administration including Clinton
himself.
Care e r
When the Mladi Muslimani had to choose between the SS
Handschar (a SS Mountain Division of Nazi Germany
including Bosniaks) and the Partisans (a Communist
resistance group led by Josip Broz Tito), Izetbegovic
supported the SS division.
In 1946, after the war, he was arrested for his activities
during the course of war and was sentenced to three
years of imprisonment.
After being free, he obtained a law degree from Sarajevo
University and remained in active politics.
In 1970s, Izetbegovic published a manifesto titled, Islamic
Declaration, which expressed his views on relationships
between Islam, society and state. T he authorities
interpreted this manifesto as a call to introduce sharia
Law in Bosnia and barred its publication.
T he declarations still remains controversial and the

passages from the declaration were often quoted by the

opponents of Izetbegovic as an open call to Islamic
fundamentalism. Izetbegovic denied all the allegations.
Izetbegović authored one of his prominent works,
Islam between East and West in 1980.
In 1983, Izetbegovic along with his other Bosniak activists
were tried for indulging in hostile activities, spreading
hostile propaganda and making a visit to the Muslim
congress in Iran. T hey were sentenced to fourteen years
of imprisonment.
However, following persistent requests from human rights
organizations like Amnesty International and Helsinki
Watch, the Bosnian Supreme Court reduced the sentence
of Izetbegovic to twelve years.
In 1988, he was pardoned and released after five years
though the imprisonment cost his health dearly.
In 1989, Izetbegovic and other Bosnian activists
established a political party Party of Democratic Action.
Following this, the ethnic groups in Bosnia, Serbs and
Croats also established their own ethnically-based
parties.
In the general election that followed, Alija Izetbegovics
Democratic Action Party won the majority of the seats and
Alija Izetbegovic was elected as the President of BosniaHerzegovina.
In 1991, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia which included Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro,
Slovenia and Serbia (autonomous provinces of Vojvodina
and Kosovo) fell apart with Slovenia, Serbia, Croatia, and
Macedonia declaring independence. It was followed by a
bloody war which went on till 1994 despite several peace
attempts made by Izetbegovic.
Izetbegovics strong relationship with Iran resulted in the
latter providing arms and ammunitions to Bosnian.
Muslims the militants recruited by Iran even entered
Bosnia to fight Serbs and Croats.

In 1995, Izetbegovic along with his enemies were

persuaded by the international community to take part in
peace talks held at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near
Dayton, Ohio. T here, they agreed to end the war with the
NAT O peace keeping team was given the responsibility of
maintaining the cease fire.
Izetbegovic became the Member President of Presidency
of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
T he power of his party decreased after a High
Representative was sent to look after the affairs of the
state by the international community. It enjoyed more
power than the presidents.
In October 2000, Izetbegovic announced his retirement at
the age of 74 due to bad health.
Pe rsonal Life & Le gacy
Izetbegovic married four times; his first wife lives in
Turkey with whom he had one son and two daughters. He
married Melika and Amira under the Sharia code of law.
T he name of his fourth wife was not revealed to the
public.
Izetbegovic passed away in Sarajevo, Bosnia &
Herzegovina on October 2003 due to heart disease.