Kovači is the main war cemetery for soldiers killed defending Sarajevo during the 1992–1995 siege — a hillside above Baščaršija covered with rows of white marble headstones and green Islamic grave markers extending up the steep slope. The cemetery is still active, with new burials as war-related deaths (of wounded veterans, of those who died later from injuries) continue to be added.
The graves are not anonymous. Each headstone shows the name, date of birth, and date of death — many of them young men in their teens and early twenties who died in the early months of the siege when the city's defenders had almost no weapons. Walking through the cemetery, reading the dates, is one of the most sobering experiences Sarajevo offers. The grave of the Bosnian president Alija Izetbegović is also here, marked by a simple stone slab. The view over Baščaršija from the upper sections of the cemetery is panoramic.