This chapter examines prisoner exchanges that various units negotiated independently of the Pisarovina cartel. To provide the proper context, the chapter covers not only the contacts from 1944 and 1945, but also those which took place in the year preceding the establishment of the neutral zone. The willingness of a unit commander to offer or accept an exchange was largely dependent on the manner in which the high commands on both sides decided to wage the war. Therefore, the centrally negotiated agreement from early 1944 had a huge impact on the conduct of the war. Furthermore, several instances of German-Partisan talks pertaining to issues other than prisoner swapping are discussed as well.

Few episodes from the war in Yugoslavia have received as much attention from scholars and the general public as the so-called March Negotiations of 1943. The bulk of the NOVJ, including thousands of wounded, found itself totally surrounded in the Neretva River Valley by a heterogeneous coalition of enemy forces. With the choice of possible escape routes rapidly dwindling, Tito decided to use diplomacy. Under the guise of prisoner exchange, his envoys sought to obtain recognition of the NOVJ as a regular army from the Germans, as well as a temporary cease-fire, which would enable them to concentrate all their forces for a showdown with the Chetniks. In return, the Partisans appeared willing to discuss the possibility of a negotiated settlement with the Axis powers, and did not hide their intention to oppose a British landing in Yugoslavia with all available means.

What transpired in Pisarovina, a small village located on the outskirts of Zagreb, is unique not only to Yugoslavia, but to the Second World War in general. Pisarovina was the location officially agreed by both the German occupation authorities and the Yugoslav Partisans to function as the center of the prisoner exchange cartel at the end of 1943. In order to facilitate this, the village and its immediate surroundings were declared a neutral zone, quite possibly the only such place in war-torn Europe. The system saved hundreds, if not thousands, of prisoners who faced an uncertain fate. Frequent contacts between the envoys provided both the Germans and the Partisans with a "back-channel" for talks on political issues and trade, as well as the opportunity to spy on each other.

The Second World War in Yugoslavia is notorious for the brutal struggle between the armed forces of the Third Reich and the communist-led Partisans. Less known is the fact that the two sides negotiated prisoner exchanges virtually since the beginning of the war. Under extraordinary circumstances, these early contacts evolved into a formal exchange agreement, centered on the creation of a neutral zone—quite possibly the only such area in occupied Europe—where prisoners were regularly exchanged until late April 1945, saving thousands of lives. The leadership of both sides used the contacts for secret political talks, for which they were nearly branded as traitors by their superiors in Berlin and Moscow. This book is the first comprehensive analysis of prisoner exchanges and the accompanying contacts between the German occupation authorities and the Yugoslav Partisans. Specifically, the book will argue that prisoner exchange had a decisive influence on the POW policies of both sides and helped reduce the levels of violence for which this theater of war became infamous. It will also show that the contacts, contrary to some claims, did not lead to collusion between these two parties against either other Yugoslav factions or the Western Allies.

This chapter contains a few concluding remarks. This book is the first attempt at a comprehensive analysis of non-violent contacts between the Partisans and the German occupation authorities in Yugoslavia in the Second World War. Far from being the final word on the topic, it is a starting point for further research on various aspects of POW history. Frequent exchanges of able-bodied prisoners between the occupation forces and a resistance movement, partly through a cartel negotiated directly between their high commands, was a distinctive feature of the Second World War in Yugoslavia. It was probably the only place in war-torn Europe where representatives of two irreconcilable ideologies, Communism and Nazism, met regularly at the negotiating table. Both were primarily motivated by the desire to save their own men, but the talks did mitigate, however marginally, the horrors of the war.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a polygenic disease of unknown etiology, occurs worldwide in both developed and underdeveloped countries and involves all races. The aim of this study is to determine the correlation between hematological parameters (DBC and ESR) and biomarkers of inflammation (CRP) in patients with RA predisposing gene variants HLA-DRB1*04 or HLA-DRB1*03. This study analyzed the results of hematological and biochemical parameters of 33 patients diagnosed with RA, carriers ofgene variants of HLA-DRB1*04 or HLA-DRB1*03, and 33 subjects of control group non-carriers for HLA-DRB1*04 or HLA-DRB1*03. All hematological parameters (DBC) were analyzed on a Beckman Coulter DxH 800 hematology counter. The erythrocyte sedimentation rate was expressed in mm/h. The CRP biochemical test was performed on a Cobas c311 automatic analyzer. In group of RA patients carriers of HLA-DRB1*04 or HLA-DRB1*03 gene variants, the values of HGB and HCTwere significantlylower(p < 0.05) while the values of RDW, RDW-SD, MO, BA, MO#, BA#, ESR and CRP were statistically increased (p < 0.05) from the control group without these variants.

ABSTRACT Vaccination uptake in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH), in Bosnia and Herzegovina, is suboptimal. This study aimed to (1) assess vaccination coverage, timeliness and drop-out for children born in 2015 and 2016 and compare these with official administrative coverage estimates, (2) identify associations between characteristics of children/caregivers and vaccination uptake. This was a cross-sectional study based on patient files for children 12–23 months (n = 1800) and 24–35 months (n = 1800). Methods were adapted from the World Health Organization cluster survey methodology. A two-stage stratified sampling procedure was conducted in urban and rural strata. A structured paper-based form was completed by a pediatrician/nurse from randomly selected primary care centers and patient files. Estimates were based on weighted analysis with a 95% confidence interval to account for the survey sampling design. Vaccination coverage was consistent with administrative coverage levels for BCG, DTP and MMR, and lower for HepB; all considerably lower than regional targets. Children in urban areas had lower vaccination uptake. An assumption that anti-vaccination sentiment prevails among caregivers was not confirmed; only 2% of children were not vaccinated at all, instead challenges related to delays and drop-out. An assumption of caregiver concerns for the MMR vaccine was confirmed with low uptake and delays. The FBiH has experienced vaccination schedule changes due to supply issues; findings confirmed that sustainability in supply and schedule is high priority. These data are new and provide important information for developing strategies to increase uptake.

Access or access point usually presents approaching roadway constructed directly along the driveway of the main road through whom vehicles are entering on or exiting from private property, but also it implies commercial approaching and access roads. Increased access-point density connected on the main road affects the disorder of functional dependence of fundamental parameters of traffic flow. An increase of access-point density on the main road has the effect of decrease of capacity and speed of traffic flow, but also increase of travel time. This paper is the outcome of research on several roadway segments in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and results are presenting the distribution of access points in a function of section length. Key results are related to access-point density, i.e. number of access points on both sides of two-lane highways divided by the length of the roadway segment. Depending on access-point density, decrease of free flow speed appears on mentioned sections which value goes from 2,35 km/h to 21,53 km/h and that is significant dispersion determined free flow speeds on given sections. In this paper is analyzed unplanned and uncontrolled construction of a large number of access points along the driveway of two-lane highway, which does not attract significant attention in our country and neighborhood. The main goal of this paper is to determine decrease of speed on segment of representative road network depending on access-point density and highlight the importance and necessity of increased control of access points.

Abstract Fetal shoulder dystocia (FSD) is an unpredictable and critical obstetric intrapartum emergency, where an objective problem is the relationship between the mother's pelvis and the child, i. e., an anthropometric disorder of delivery mechanics and dynamics. It is evident that the need to perform other maneuvers indicates the severity of FSD, which in turn correlates with the consequent iatrogenic injury of the fetus and/or mother. FSD is certainly the most controversial forensic obstetric problem, with the most disputes, compensation for damages due to peripartum injury to the child and/or mother, pain suffered, the need for someone else's care, and permanent disability. Suboptimal procedures and inadequate documentation are factors of forensic risk and subsequent litigations. Prevention of FSD is generally not possible, although good antenatal care can sometimes exclude risky cases of FSD, and some rare, chronic intrauterine disorders can result in orthopedic and neurological sequelae, which is especially important in forensic analysis. Because FSD is largely impossible to predict, it must be viewed as an intrapartum acceptable risk. During childbirth, FSD may compromise the safety of the mother and unborn child, therefore education and skills acquisition are necessary for obstetric work. Risk control, proper procedures, and proper documentation, along with good communication with the pregnant women and their families, significantly reduce litigation procedures.

The development of robotics and AI agents has enabled their wider usage in human surroundings. AI agents are more trusted to make increasingly important decisions with potentially critical outcomes. It is essential to consider the ethical consequences of the decisions made by these systems. In this paper, we present how contrastive explanations can be used for comparing the ethics of plans. We build upon an existing ethical framework to allow users to make suggestions to plans and receive contrastive explanations.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to investigate adverse effects, progression free survival (PFS), one-year local control (LC) and one-year overall survival (OS) of patients with liver oligometastases treated with stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT), and whether there was a significant difference in these parameters in patients with primary colorectal cancer compared to other tumor localizations. PATIENTS AND METHODS Patients were simulated using four-dimensional computed tomography (4DCT). Using volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT) technique, SBRT was performed on 16 patients with <3 liver metastases. The prescribed dose was 60 Gy in 8 fractions (BED 105 Gy). Cone beam CT (CBCT) was used for image guidance before each fraction with online correction. RESULTS There were no adverse effects. Median PFS for all patients, patients with primary colorectal cancer, and patients with primary non-colorectal cancer was 11 months (SE 2.1), 16 months (SE 2.8), 6 months (SE 2.4), respectively. There was no significant difference in the PFS for these two observed groups (P=0.09). The one-year LC was 62.5%. Patients with primary colorectal cancer had one-year LC of 87.5%, while the group of patients with primary non-colorectal cancer had one-year LC of 37.5% (P=0.063). The total one-year OS was 87.5%. In the group of patients with primary colorectal cancer, the one-year OS was 100%, while in the group of patients with primary non-colorectal cancer, the one-year OS was 75% (P=0.317). CONCLUSION SBRT with 8 × 7.5 Gy can be safely delivered and is effective method of treating liver oligometastases.