In 1993, Bosniak Admira Ismić and Bosnian Serb Boško Brkić, a couple with connections across different ethnic groups, decided to escape the conflict.
However, through his connections, Asai joined a platoon heading to the front and encountered photographer Mark Milstein, a stringer for Reuters, who pleaded to accompany them, desperate to capture compelling images.
Upon reaching a building overlooking the bridge, Asai claims they saw the bodies of the young couple, appearing as if the man had been shot first, and the woman had collapsed while trying to help him.
Local soldiers identified the snipers as Serbian forces and described the couple as high school sweethearts attempting to escape the war.
Milstein’s photographs of the tragic scene were widely circulated by international media and used in Kurt Schork’s article, which turned the couple into a symbol of the senseless violence during the siege.