THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) – The Latest on the judgment on former Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic (all times local):
12:55 p.m.
Paddy Ashdown, a former U.N. High Representative for Bosnia, says the genocide conviction of Bosnian Serb military chief Ratko Mladic is a victory for justice.
Ashdown, a former leader of Britain’s Liberal Democrat party, says “those who value the rule of law in war will welcome” the verdict against “the murderer of Srebrenica.”
He says that “those who bled in the Bosnian wars have retribution and that those in Bosnia who “understand there is no peace without justice can now look more confidently to the future.”
Mladic was earlier convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity, and sentenced him to life in prison by the United Nations’ Yugoslav war crimes tribunal for atrocities during Bosnia’s 1992-1995 war.
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12:50 p.m.
In Lazarevo, a small Serbian village where former Bosnian Serb military chief Ratko Mladic was arrested in 2011, residents have dismissed the guilty verdict against him as biased.
Villagers say they do not recognize the United Nations’ Yugoslav war crimes tribunal, which they say has sought to solely blame Serbs for the crimes of the Yugoslav wars of the 1990s.
A villager Igor Topolic says he is “horrified and saddened.” Topolic adds “all this is a farce for me, he (Mladic) is a Serbian national hero.”
Another villager MIlinko Zeljak says “he (Mladic) should be here with us, not dying out there on his own.”
Residents have dubbed their village as Mladicevo (Mladic’s village) to show their admiration for Mladic and defiance toward The Hague court.
The court found Mladic guility of genocide and crimes against humanity and sentenced him to life in prison for atrocities perpetrated during Bosnia’s 1992-1995 war.
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12:25 p.m.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein has hailed the conviction of former Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic as a “momentous victory for justice.”
In a statement, he said Mladic is “the epitome of evil, and the prosecution of Mladic is the epitome of what international justice is all about.”
He added: “Mladic presided over some of the darkest crimes to occur in Europe since World War II, bringing terror, death and destruction to thousands of victims, and sorrow, tragedy and trauma to countless more.”
“Today’s verdict is a warning to the perpetrators of such crimes that they will not escape justice, no matter how powerful they may be nor how long it may take. They will be held accountable,” Zeid said.
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12:10 p.m.
A U.N. court has convicted former Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic of genocide and crimes against humanity and sentenced him to life in prison for atrocities perpetrated during Bosnia’s 1992-1995 war.
The court in The Hague convicted Mladic of 10 of 11 counts in a dramatic climax to a groundbreaking effort to seek justice for the wars in the former Yugoslavia.
Presiding Judge Alphons Orie read out the judgment Wednesday after ordering Mladic out of the courtroom over an angry outburst.
Mladic was found guilty of commanding forces responsible for crimes including the worst atrocities of the war – the deadly three-year siege of the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo, and the 1995 massacre of some 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the eastern enclave of Srebrenica.
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11:55 a.m.
The U.N. judge reading out the verdict for Gen. Ratko Mladic says the Bosnian Serb military chief was responsible for crimes including persecution, extermination, murder in Bosnian towns.
The judge also said that Mladic intended to commit genocide in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica where some 8,000 men and boys were massacred.
The court has not yet ruled on whether Mladic is guilty of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Judge Alphons Orie is now reporting on the court’s determination of who was responsible for a litany of horrors during the 1992-95 Bosnian war.
The judge also said Mladic intended to carry out a deadly campaign of sniping and shelling in Sarajevo.
Mladic was sent out of the courtroom after an angry outburst. He is facing verdicts on 11 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes for allegedly masterminding atrocities by Serb forces during Bosnia’s 1992-95 war. He insists he is innocent.
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11:50 a.m.
A U.N. judge has ordered Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic removed from court after an angry outburst at the hearing determining whether he is guilty of genocide and war crimes.
The defense lawyer for Mladic requested a delay in Wednesday’s proceedings because Mladic had three high blood pressure readings during a break.
Presiding Judge Alphons Orie refused the request, and Mladic got out of his chair and shouted criticism “Lies! Shame on you” as he was led out to a nearby room where he could following the proceedings on a screen.
The court is reading its verdict for Mladic on 11 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes for allegedly masterminding atrocities by Serb forces during Bosnia’s 1992-95 war.
He insists he is innocent.
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11:15 a.m.
Supporters of Ratko Mladic have put up posters in Bosnia praising the former Bosnian Serb military chief.
Posters in the eastern Bosnian town of Bratunac carried a photo of Mladic in military attire with the words “you are our hero” written above.
Some former soldiers who fought under Mladic came together to watch the pronouncement of the U.N. war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia on whether he is guilty of genocide and other crimes during Bosnia’s 1992-95 war.
At the same time, survivors of the 1995 massacre in the eastern town of Srebrenica gathered at the memorial center to also watch the live TV broadcast from the courtroom of The Hague-based U.N. war crimes tribunal for former Yugoslavia.
Mladic insists he is innocent.
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10:55 a.m.
The U.N. war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has confirmed that genocide occurred in the Bosnian town of Srebrenica, but has yet to rule on whether Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic was responsible.
Presiding Judge Alphons Orie said the court found that “genocide, persecution, extermination, murder and the inhuman act of forcible transfer were committed in or around Srebrenica” in 1995.
Previous judgments have that the massacre of some 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica was genocide.
The court said Wednesday however it is “not convinced” of genocidal intent in six other municipalities, in line with previous judgments.
The court will rule later on whether Mladic is guilty of genocide and other crimes during Bosnia’s 1992-95 war.
He insists he is innocent.
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10:20 a.m.
A skirmish broke out outside the Yugoslav war crimes tribunal after a young man carrying a Serbian flag approached a group of Bosniaks awaiting the verdict in a trial of former Bosnian Serb military chief Ratko Mladic.
A Bosniak woman tried to take the Serbian flag from the man.
The scuffle ended when a security officer intervened.
The man, who said he came to support Mladic, shouted: “Do not touch my flag.”
The Bosnian woman told him to stop provoking victims, adding that it “is sad that the villains still glorify genocide and aggression.”
The incident reflects the divisions between the Serbs and Bosniaks over Mladic’s trial on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
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10:15 a.m.
United Nations judges have opened a hearing to deliver their judgment in the genocide trial of former Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic.
Mladic looked relaxed in the courtroom of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, greeting lawyers and giving a thumbs-up to photographers in court.
Presiding Judge Alphons Orie, wearing a red and black robe, opened the hearing by greeting lawyers and then giving a background of when Mladic was indicted, when he was captured, details of the trial and detailing the charges against Mladic.
Mladic is set to hear verdicts on 11 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes for allegedly masterminding atrocities by Serb forces during Bosnia’s 1992-95 war. He insists he is innocent.
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10.05 a.m.
Lawyers for former Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic say that he will appear in a United Nations war crimes tribunal for the judgment in his long-running genocide trial despite health concerns.
In a filing to judges Wednesday shortly before the hearing was due to start at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, Mladic’s lawyer say that he “insists on appearing” despite his ailing health. Mladic has been insistent on his innocence.
Mladic is set to hear verdicts on 11 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes for allegedly masterminding atrocities by Serb forces during Bosnia’s 1992-95 war.
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9:50 a.m.
The son of former Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic says his family is ready for anything as the U.N. Yugoslav war crimes tribunal prepares to rule on whether his father committed genocide and other crimes during the Bosnian war.
Darko Mladic accused the court of “not being objective, and that makes us concerned.”
Speaking outside the courthouse in The Hague, Darko Mladic said the prosecution “didn’t manage to connect Ratko Mladic with any point of the indictment” and that the family is ready for whatever judgment.
Ratko Mladic’s lawyer, Dragan Ivetic, said the general faces a “risk of deterioration of his health, including death, that could be caused by these proceedings.”
Mladic stands accused of commanding forces responsible for crimes including the worst atrocities of the 1992-95 war.
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8:20 a.m.
The United Nations’ Yugoslav war crimes tribunal is set to pass judgment on former Bosnian Serb military chief Gen. Ratko Mladic, who is accused of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes during Bosnia’s devastating 1992-95 war.
Mladic, who faces 11 counts, stands accused of commanding forces responsible for crimes including the worst atrocities of the war – the deadly three-year siege of the Bosnian capital, Sarajevo, and the 1995 massacre of some 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the eastern enclave of Srebrenica, which was Europe’s worst mass killing since World War II.
The three judge panel will rule Wednesday on whether the 75-year-old former general is guilty or innocent and, if they convict Mladic, they will immediately pass sentence.
Prosecutors have sought a life sentence.
