A memorial plaque to the slain Franciscans of Mostar was installed and blessed on the façade of the Franciscan Monastery of Sts Peter and Paul in Mostar on Saturday, 3 October 2026. The plaque is dedicated to seven friars who were killed on 14 February 1945, and it was blessed on the day of the Transitus of St. Francis.
The gathering began in the Franciscan church, where the Transitus of St. Francis was held before Mass. Members of the Franciscan family took part: friars, religious sisters, members of the Third Order, and members of Franciscan Youth (Frama). Numerous faithful who venerate St. Francis also filled the church.
Mass was celebrated after the Transitus. It was presided over by Fra Jozo Grbeš, provincial of the Herzegovinian Franciscan Province, who then also led the blessing of the memorial plaque outside the monastery. The Great Parish Choir led the liturgical singing during Mass.
Fra Mario Knezović, the Mostar guardian and parish priest, addressed those gathered with words of greeting and thanks. Thus, alongside the provincial, who presided over Mass, the celebration also included the local monastic and parish communities and members of the Franciscan family who had gathered for the Transitus.
At the conclusion of Mass, the plaque on the monastery façade was blessed. According to a report by Radio Mir Međugorje, on 14 February 1945 the partisans took the seven Mostar friars to whom the plaque is dedicated from the monastery, killed them, and threw them into the Neretva River.
Fra Jozo Grbeš blessed the memorial plaque in the presence of Fra Miljenko Stojić, vice-postulator of the cause of the martyrs. The other friars and a large number of faithful were also present for the blessing outside the monastery, after the Transitus and the Mass had concluded in the church.
The gathering concluded with fellowship in the monastery cloister, where around 400 guests had assembled. Information about the closing gathering was published on the Facebook page of the Franciscan Monastery and Parish of Mostar and reported by Radio Mir Međugorje.
