Ivan Srebrenjak

Ivan Srebrenjak or Srebrnjak (1903 – 21 May 1942) ran a Soviet intelligence network for the NKVD in the Balkans at the beginning of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia.

Srebrenjak was born in 1903 in Slavonia and became a member of the Yugoslav Communist Party in 1928. After he killed a Yugoslav policeman in 1930 he left Yugoslavia and became a member of a group of Stalin's killers known as "liquidators" headed by Josip Broz Tito. When Axis forces occupied Yugoslavia in 1941 Srebrenjak returned to Yugoslavia and set up an NKVD centre in Zagreb, part of the Red Orchestra network. Tito considered him an enemy and requested approval from Stalin to relieve Srebrenjak of that position, which was refused by Stalin.

In 1942, Srebrenjak was informed on to the Gestapo and the Ustaše, resulting in his capture. In captivity Srebrenjak was the first person to identify Tito as leader of Communist resistance movement in Yugoslavia to German and Ustaše authorities. To minimize further damage to his position Tito ordered the murder of Srebrenjak and on 21 May 1942 Srebrenjak was killed in an Ustaše prison. This murder allowed Tito to seize and stabilize his position of leader of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia.

Early life Srebrenjak was born in 1903 in the village of Oprisavci near Slavonski Brod, at the time in Austria-Hungary (modern day Croatia). In 1928 he became a member of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia and in 1930 he murdered a police agent in Zagreb under the orders of the communist party. Because of this murder he had to leave Yugoslavia.

In the Soviet Union Srebrenjak became a Soviet citizen with name Petar Petrovič Antonov who was considered one of the most capable intelligence officers.

In France After leaving Yugoslavia Srebrenjak first went to Paris in France and joined a group of Stalin's killers known as "liquidators" headed by Josip Broz Tito, whose members were also Vittorio Vidali, Vlajko Begović and Ivan (Stevo) Krajačić. In Paris Srebrenjak killed Yugoslav agent Ilija Šumanovac. Srebrenjak operated from this centre in Zagreb together with his wife Frančiška Srebrenjak (nee Klinc), who was a secret agent of the Yugoslav police and later the Gestapo. According to some sources she had a love affair with Stjepan Đaković, the elder son of Đuro Đaković.

Srebrenjak was the first victim of Tito's ambitions to become Stalin's intelligence officer not only for Yugoslavia but also for other Balkan countries. In a telegram sent to Tito on 1 July 1941, Kopinič asserted that Popović, Končar and Srebrenjak are enemy spies. Srebrenjak believed that some of Tito's close associates, like Ivo Lola Ribar and Boris Kidrič were in the service of the Yugoslav regime.

Tito hated Srebrenjak because he reported to Stalin about Tito's struggle for leadership of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia.

In February 1942 Srebrenjak was arrested by the Ustaše and tortured until he revealed names of Soviet agents in Croatia, Greece, Bulgaria and Italy. Tito sent Krajačić to kill Srebrenjak.