Croatia buys land in Austria to dedicated to WW II massacre

The Croatian government on Thursday said it will donate funds to help buy land in southern Austria to commemorate the site where tens of thousands of Croats fleeing their pro-Nazi regime were slaughtered in the aftermath of World War II. 40,000 supporters of Ante Pavelic's pro-Hitler government, who had fled in 1945 as Croatia was being liberated by anti-fascist forces, were killed by Yugoslav soldiers as a revenge near the southern Austrian village of Bleiburg. The massacre continues to fuel controversy in Croatia, where many are still struggling to come to grips with the country's past, and Pavelic is still a popular figure with some in the older generation. Thousands of Croats flock to the site every year to commemorate those who perished. A plaque has been erected at the site, a grass field. In a statement, the government announced Thursday that it will donate around US$ 152,000 to a trust that will buy and maintain the part of the property on which the monument is placed.