Al Jazeera World

Bosnian Leader Alija Izetbegovic: From Prisoner to President

He inspired a nation, fought against the siege of Sarajevo and founded Bosnia-Herzegovina as an independent state.

After Yugoslavia fell apart in the early 1990s and descended into a bitter regional conflict, Alija Izetbegovic fought for the survival of his country and people.

The first president of the independent Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Izetbegovic was no stranger to controversy and had served five years of a 14-year prison sentence in the 1980s.

This two-part documentary series uses interviews with members of his family and major regional figures as well as archive footage and reconstruction to tell the chequered history of this part of the Balkans through Izetbegovic’s eyes.

Part Two