11 July 2015: Her Majesty Queen Noor of Jordan today commended the “strength, compassion, trust and tolerance” of the Mothers of Srebrenica, whose conduct she said is testimony to “the power of faith and humanity to triumph over evil.”

Her Majesty, who is a Commissioner of the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), was speaking at the commemoration in Srebrenica marking the 20th anniversary of the genocide. ICMP Chair Thomas Miller, and Commissioners Wim Kok, Knut Vollebaek and Alistair Burt also participated at the ceremony, which was attended by world leaders and 50,000 mourners.

“We do not stand with you only to mourn, but to continue the long and steady process of seeking – and securing – truth and justice,” Queen Noor said.

She noted that almost 90 percent of around 8,000 who went missing from Srebrenica in July 1995 have been identified and buried with dignity. “Accounting for the missing has been indispensable in the struggle for justice; in the quest to answer lies with truth, to confront a monstrous crime with the steady, strong and certain application of the rule of law,” she said.

Queen Noor said the women of Srebrenica have endured the most painful adversity with fortitude. “You have been steadfast. You have reached out to others who have suffered pain like yours, and as I have witnessed, even with empathy to those who may once have been enemies. Your strength, you compassion, and your commitment to intercommunal understanding inspire us all. Your compassionate wisdom, resilience and steadfast leadership prove that the evil that held sway here 20 years ago will not overwhelm our common humanity. Justice and truth will prevail.”

The full text of Queen Noor’s speech can be read here.