Serbia Arrests War Crimes Fugitive Karadzic

Belgrade _ Bosnian Serb war crimes suspect Radovan Karadzic has been arrested in Serbia, presidential and government sources in Belgrade say.

Serbian agents apprehended Karadzic and handed him over to judicial authorities, a statement said.
A statement by the National Security Council headed by Serbian President Boris Tadic said Karadzic was arrested and handed over to the investigative judge of the Belgrade-based Special War Crimes Court.

The statement did not offer further details.

Karadzic was arrested on Serbian soil, a high-ranking police official who spoke on the condition of anonymity told Balkan Insight.

He did not elaborate further.

The Bosnian Serb wartime political leader disappeared in 1996 and was subsequently indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague.

He is accused of war crimes and genocide over the massacre of 8,000 Bosniak men and boys in the eastern Bosnian town of Srebrenica.

Under the law, the authorities must first confirm Karadzic's identity beyond doubt and initiate proceedings for his handover to the Hague.

This could take between 72 hours or up to a week if he appeals on the court's decision.

The news comes as The Hague Tribunal’s chief prosecutor Serge Brammertz’s is to visit the Serbian capital.

Brammertz is set to arrive in Belgrade on Wednesday in the first visit to the Serbian capital since the change at the helm of government, as the new pro-European Premier Mirko Cvetkovic took over the cabinet previously run by nationalist Vojislav Kostunica, who had been blamed by the West for doing very little if nothing to bring top war crimes fugitives to justice.

Over the weekend Serbian officials both in Belgrade and the Serb entity of Bosnia denied having any knowledge of the whereabouts of the remaining war crimes fugitives. Read more: http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/main/news/11927/

If Karadzic's arrest is confirmed, two fugitives from the 1990s Balkan Wars remain at large.

They are Bosnian Serb wartime military leader Ratko Mladic, who is also indicted for genocide, and Croatian Serb Goran Hadzic indicted for war crimes during the 1991-1995 Croatian War.

Serbia’s new government has been urged to cooperate with the tribunal so Belgrade can move closer to the European Union.

Brussels and Belgrade signed the Stabilisation and Association Agreement, seen as the first step towards full EU membership, at the end of April, but Serbia can only fully reap the benefits of the deal, such as access to millions of euros in funds, if Belgrade is deemed to be fully cooperating with The Hague.