The Hague (dpa) – The trial of Serb general Ratko Mladic, accused of genocide in the Bosnian war, will begin on May 14, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) announced on Wednesday. The tribunal had initially said the trial would begin on March 27, but changed the date to “allow the parties time to complete any outstanding pre-trial preparations,” it said in a statement. Mladic was arrested in Serbia in May, after 16 years on the run, and handed over to the ICTY days later. The commander of Serb forces in the 1992-95 Bosnian conflict faces charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and violation of laws or customs of war. He was accused of ordering the execution of 8,000 Muslim boys and men at Srebrenica and the indiscriminate shelling of Sarajevo throughout the war. Mladic's prolonged time on the run had been a major obstacle to Serbia establishing closer ties to the European Union. His health has overshadowed the proceedings, but in December the tribunal declared him medically fit to stand trial. He is the most significant figure to face justice since the trial of former Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic, who was accused of genocide for his role in the wars in Croatia, Bosnia and Kosovo. Milosevic died of a heart attack in 2006 before a verdict was reached. He had spent nearly five years in detention and more than four years on trial. The United Nations formed the ICTY in 1993 to prosecute major war crimes suspects for their role in the conflicts that erupted with the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia. All the trials are expected to close before the end of 2014. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/azXTL Tags: Bosnia, Genocide, Mladic, Trial Section: Europe, Human Rights, Latest News
