‘Terminally-ill' Bosnian Serb general serving life for genocide seeks release from prison
Lawyers for former Bosnian Serb general Ratko Mladic, serving life imprisonment for genocide, have asked a UN court to release him on 'humanitarian grounds' – claiming he has a terminal medical condition and just months to live.
Mladic (83) – known during the Yugoslav war as the Butcher of Bosnia – was found guilty in 2017 of extermination, murder, persecution and forcible transfer in connection with the massacre of 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the 'safe haven' of Srebrenica in July 1995.
He was also convicted of directing the 43-month siege of the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo, in which almost 14,000 people died. It lasted a year longer than the siege of Stalingrad and was the longest siege of a capital city in the history of modern warfare.
Mladic's application for early release lodged with judges at the international court in The Hague by his long-time legal team, Dragan Ivetic and Branko Lukic, comes just weeks before the 30th anniversary commemoration of the Srebrenica atrocities, on July 11th.
READ MORE
According to a motion lodged last week with the court and now publicly available on its website, Mladic has been moved to palliative care at the UN detention centre a few kilometres from the court, and has just 'months to live'.
[
The Irish Times view from 2021 on Ratko Mladic: held to account
Opens in new window
]
Although the details of his medical condition are redacted from the motion as it appears on the court's website, it is known that Mladic has suffered two strokes and a heart attack in recent years while incarcerated.
The former commander of the Army of Republika Srpska also had a pacemaker fitted at a Dutch hospital in 2023. However, his condition continues to deteriorate and since then, his kidneys have failed.
'Given Mladic's incurable condition and his short life expectancy, continued detention serves no legitimate purpose, and amounts to inhumane treatment and punishment,' the motion reads.
As well as saving the UN detention centre the cost of palliative care, his lawyers argue, early release would allow Mladic to explore all his medical options, so as to live out the remaining months of his life with his family.
[
Inside Srebrenica: old scars, new wounds
Opens in new window
]
Mladic's son, Darko, said he had spoken to two doctors on the UN medical team who confirmed the terminal diagnosis. 'Our Serbian doctors share the opinion that he has very little chance of surviving until the end of this year,' he added.
Mladic was convicted and sentenced by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia.
This has largely completed its work and has been subsumed into the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT), also in The Hague.
The motion is listed on the IRMCT website as an 'urgent defence motion'.
However, there is no indication of when the court will rule.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Journal
4 hours ago
- The Journal
Government rejects motion calling on it to stop sale of 'Israeli war bonds'
GOVERNMENT HAS REJECTED a joint-proposal from the opposition which called on the Central Bank to stop facilitating the sale of Israeli bonds within the EU, an issue that has moved up the political agenda in Ireland in recent months. The motion, put forward by the Social Democrats and supported by Sinn Féin, People Before Profit and the Labour Party, sought the reversal of a previous government decision to block a bill calling for the same measure last month . Members of those parties on Monday requested that a free 'vote of conscience' take place on the issue – meaning that government TDs would not have to vote with their party. The motion was defeated this evening 85 to 71 in the government's favour. Israeli State Bonds have been advertised as a method to support the country's economy and, more recently, websites promoting the investments have emphasised their importance to Israel's military operations in Gaza. Some TDs, as a result, have dubbed the securities as 'Israeli war bonds'. Coalition-supporting TDs, independents Barry Heneghan and Gillian Toole, repeated their vote to support the opposition's call . Both TDs previously said that they had a right to vote, as independents, in a manner they agreed with, pointing out that the programme for government does not include references to the issue. Advertisement Bonds from countries outside the EU must have legal documents approved by a central bank from a member state in order for the securities to be sold within the European single market. In the case of Israel, the country is Ireland. A protest outside the Dáil today calling on government to support the opposition's motion. Alamy Alamy The Central Bank itself is responsible for assessing whether the products it offers are compliant with these EU requirements. Since Hamas's attack on Israel on 7 October 2023 and Israel's subsequent bombardment and siege of Gaza, there has been mounting pressure on the Government from pro-Palestinian activists in Ireland to stop the facilitation of the sale of these bonds. But, Governor of the Central Bank Gabriel Makhlouf today defended its offerings, telling TDs at an Oireachtas Committee that the UN's Genocide Convention applies only to the Irish State, not the country's banking regulator. Activists have demonstrated at the site in Dublin over the last number of months and have called for legislation that would give Ireland the power to refuse the sale of Israeli 'war bonds' over human rights concerns. Speaking during a Fine Gael parliamentary party meeting this evening, finance minister Paschal Donohoe told members that oppositional TDs wanted the government to tell the state's banking regulator what to do, despite its mandated independence. The Dublin Central TD said government cannot approve legislation that impedes on the independence of the Central Bank for legal purposes. Opposition TDs argued this evening that, as the bonds are intended to fund the war in Gaza, Ireland has obligations under the UN's Genocide Convention to use 'all means likely to have a deterrent effect' on those suspected of committing such crimes. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Times
11 hours ago
- Irish Times
‘Palestinian lives being weighed against bond markets,' Dáil hears in debate over Israeli bonds
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has been accused of 'speaking the truth in order to bury it' by acknowledging genocide in Gaza but failing to prevent the Central Bank's role in the sale of Israeli war bonds. In a Dáil debate calling for an end for the bank's involvement in the sale of the bonds, Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon said the Israeli bonds prospectus advertisement says ''stand with Israel. Israel is at war.' These bonds bankroll the bombs, the starvation, the extermination,' he said. He said that while the Government states that genocide is happening, 'Ireland must do nothing that might affect our GDP, that might affect our relationship with the US. This is what it comes down to - Palestinian lives being weighed against bond markets and bilateral trade flows'. What is happening 'by virtue of the fact that we're refusing to meet our obligations for the prevention of genocide is collusion. And what the Taoiseach is doing is speaking the truth only in order to bury it'. READ MORE Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe insisted the Government 'is working relentlessly with partners and with others to affect the type of change that Israel may not be able to ignore'. He said 'our efforts are making a difference, but I accept that they need to deliver more'. Ireland's approach to the unfolding tragedy is one of 'principled conviction, but also a recognition of the realities that we face, that we have to build up a diplomatic coalition to achieve more. 'We also have to be conscious of laws that are already in place,' he said as he introduced a countermotion. He said that, similar to the Sinn Féin motion, the Social Democrats proposal 'would be unworkable, will contravene EU law and would not achieve its intended objective'. The Social Democrats introduced the motion two weeks after Sinn Féin introduced legislation which was voted down , to stop the Central Bank's involvement in the sale of Israeli bonds. Party deputy leader Cian O'Callaghan said 'men, women, and children are being starved to death'. 'Mothers have been forced to try and boil grass to feed their children and starvation is being used as a weapon of war against innocent people. 'The Governor of the Central Bank says that the Central Bank cannot act on this, that it's beyond their competency to decide whether or not genocide is taking place.' But he said in January 2024 'the International Court of Justice confirmed the plausibility of the charges of genocide taken against Israel by South Africa'. The Government recognised that 'what's happening in Gaza is genocide' but 'it is not simply enough to say that what is happening is genocide'. The Government 'must do everything you can to stop and prevent genocide in Gaza.' The Israeli government 'is selling these bonds to help finance the genocide. And the Irish Central Bank is facilitating the sale of those bonds in Europe. That is a direct link between these bonds and the genocide that is taking place and this has to stop.' Sinn Féin finance spokesman Pearse Doherty described the Government's response as 'shameful' and that they would be 'on the wrong side of history' as 'genocide is staring us in the face'. People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy asked 'is your argument seriously that a regulation on financial prospectuses should override the UN Convention on the prevention and punishment of the crime of genocide'. Minister of State Robert Troy said measures have to be negotiated and agreed internationally 'at EU and UN level for them to have real impact and credibility'. He added that 'any attempt to act unilaterally could undermine the unified approach that we're beginning to see form at EU level. We cannot seek to uphold international law by breaking EU law.'
The Journal
16 hours ago
- The Journal
At least 31 killed and 'about 200' wounded by Israeli fire at Gaza food distribution site
ISRAELI FORCES HAVE opened fire on people waiting to enter a food distribution centre run by the US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, killing 31 and wounding 'about 200″, according to the local civil defence agency. 'We transported at least 31 martyrs and about 200 wounded as a result of Israeli tank and drone fire on thousands of citizens… on their way to receive food from the American aid centre,' civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP. The Israeli army did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment. Restrictions imposed on media in the Gaza Strip and the difficulties of access on the ground mean AFP is not able to independently verify the death tolls announced by the civil defence agency. Bassal said thousands of Palestinians had been gathering since 2 am in the hope of reaching the food distribution centre. 'Israeli tanks fired several times, then at around 5:30 am, intensified their fire, coinciding with heavy fire from drones targeting civilians,' he said. There have been a series of deadly shootings by Israeli forces since the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) first opened aid distribution points in the Palestinian territory on 27 May. Advertisement The introduction of this new US and Israeli-backed entity into the besieged Palestinian territory has been part of Israel's plan to circumvent UN agencies and NGOs that already work in Gaza and have done so for decades. Those UN agencies and officials repeatedly condemned the establishment of the organisation, warning that it would allow Israel to weaponise the provision of food. NGOs said it would only serve to allow Israel to carry out a plan proposed by US President Donald Trump, and endorsed by Israeli government officials, which is to remove the Palestinian population from the area. Trump's proposal to 'clean out' Gaza has been widely condemned as a plan for ethnic cleansing. The man who was initially heading up the organisation, US military veteran Jake Wood, resigned the day before it began operating in Gaza, citing similar concerns to those expressed by the UN. Israel has said the GHF is a means of preventing food and other supplies from falling into the hands of Hamas. In mid-May, Tom Fletcher of the UN's humanitarian affairs office called the Israeli-US plan to take over aid distribution 'a cynical sideshow'. With reporting from AFP Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
