Convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic gets hero’s burial in Serbia
Thousands attend Belgrade funeral of former Bosnian Serb army general convicted of orchestrating Srebrenica genocide.
Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina/Belgrade, Serbia – Thousands of people have gathered in Belgrade for the funeral of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic, despite warnings against the “glorification” of the former Bosnian Serb army general.
Mladic, 84, died on August 27 while serving a life sentence for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the 1992–1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. His body was returned to Serbia on a government plane last week, sparking condemnation in the region and beyond.
Dubbed “the butcher of Bosnia“, Mladic was buried on Monday in a coffin wrapped in the Serbian flag, with full military honours and the participation of government members.
The most infamous part of his legacy is linked to the genocide in Srebrenica, in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina, near the border with Serbia. Bosnian Serb forces under Mladic’s command captured Srebrenica in July 1995, despite the UN having declared the municipality a “safe area”.