Serbia: Thirteen reservists sentenced to 193 years in jail

[INAT]

Belgrade, 12 March (AKI) – A special Belgrade war crimes court on Thursday sentenced 13 former Yugoslav reservists to between five and 20 years each for killing 200 Croat prisoners at Ovcara farm in Vukovar, eastern Croatia, in November 1991.

Judge Vesko Krstajich said the suspects were guilty of "murder, torture and inhuman treatment of war prisoners."

The court acquitted another five members of the paramilitary group accused of killing Croat prisoners in the Vukovar massacre.

Vukovar had been under siege for months by the former Yugoslav Army during the war for Croatia's independence that erupted in July 1991.

It was the second trial of former reservists. In the first ruling at the end of 2005, 14 out of 16 reservists were sentenced to a total 231 years in prison. But the Serbian Supreme Court annulled the verdict and ordered a new trial.

At the repeat trial on Thursday, the court sentenced Miroljub and Stanko Vujovic, Predrag Milojevic, Djordje Sosic, Miroslav Djankovic, Ivan Atanasijevic and Sasa Radak to 20 years. Six others got from five to 15 years.

Former reservists' commanders, known as "Vukovar three" were tried and sentenced by the Hague-based United Nations war crimes tribunal in 2007.

The tribunal sentenced two former Yugoslav army officers to 20 and to five years respectively for failing to prevent the Ovcara killings carried out by paramilitary reservists under Yugoslav army command.

The tribunal acquitted a former Yugoslav army captain over the same charges.

The court is planning to end its work in 2010, and has been gradually turning remaining cases over to local courts in the Balkans. Several war crimes trials are currently under way in Serbian and Bosnian courts.

However, the European parliament on Thursday adopted a resolution demanding the extension of the ICTY's mandate for at least two years.

http://www.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/Politics/?id=3.0.3096675352

This is how it should be.The accused should ALL have been tried in their home country and not in a political court.

[Sanat-e-naft]

That is assuming that their home country's court was not political.

[Hippie Homer]

Whats the point of giving them 193 years, we know they're not gonna live that long, wouldn't it be more easy to just tell them they will die in jail.

[khaz]

So a Serbian court sentenced Serb's to prison for war crimes, has the new Country of Kosovo sentenced any Kosovo Albanians to prison for any war crimes. Just curious.

[G-AWZT]

So a Serbian court sentenced Serb's to prison for war crimes, has the new Country of Kosovo sentenced any Kosovo Albanians to prison for any war crimes. Just curious.


I doubt it. The KLA are heroes.:roll:

[V.I.D.]

Whats the point of giving them 193 years, we know they're not gonna live that long, wouldn't it be more easy to just tell them they will die in jail.

Dude, they were sentenced to 193 years of jail total, with individual sentences ranging from 5 to 20 years. Have you missed that part completely?

I'm glad that they received such sentences if found guilty. The scum knows of no borders. As for the KLA and all other Serbs' past enemies it us up to their prospective authorities to pursue justice. Somehow we're still not seeing any of that just yet, but that's their own shame.

[Hyde]

So a Serbian court sentenced Serb's to prison for war crimes, has the new Country of Kosovo sentenced any Kosovo Albanians to prison for any war crimes. Just curious.

The KLA and their leaders were not even sentenced by the ICTY, so how the hell could you expect them to sentence themselves...:roll: They even let naser oric walk free. Go figure...

[Gentius]

So a Serbian court sentenced Serb's to prison for war crimes, has the new Country of Kosovo sentenced any Kosovo Albanians to prison for any war crimes. Just curious.

Of course they have together with UNMIK and now with EULEX.

[Paya]

Of course they have together with UNMIK and now with EULEX.
Yeah, like the monster who set up a bomb that killed 12 Serbs in a Nis Express bus, was sentenced to 40 years by an UNMIK court and found not guilty by the EULEX one.

As far as I know, no war crimes have been prosecuted by Albanian courts.

[Sanat-e-naft]

Yeah, like the monster who set up a bomb that killed 12 Serbs in a Nis Express bus, was sentenced to 40 years by an UNMIK court and found not guilty by the EULEX one.

As far as I know, no war crimes have been prosecuted by Albanian courts.


Just a quick question for you, and maybe this is my own ignorance, but why would Albania try them? What would be their basis for trying anyone, were they at all involved in the conflicts? (Besides the fact that many "Kosovars" are of Albanian descent) Cheers.

[Gentius]

Yeah, like the monster who set up a bomb that killed 12 Serbs in a Nis Express bus, was sentenced to 40 years by an UNMIK court and found not guilty by the EULEX one.

As far as I know, no war crimes have been prosecuted by Albanian courts.

He was cleared due lack of evidence by EUELEX, if you have anything to add you may inform them. But don't say didnt we brought down any of them.

Sure we have some in leadership who I personally consider criminals but they are protected by US.

[Paya]

Just a quick question for you, and maybe this is my own ignorance, but why would Albania try them? What would be their basis for trying anyone, were they at all involved in the conflicts? (Besides the fact that many "Kosovars" are of Albanian descent) Cheers.
My bad, I should have said Kosovo Albanian courts.

And yes, Albania was to a degree involved in the conflict. Their artillery often shelled Serbian positions (not before the NATO bombing, though) The majority of UCK training camps were in northern Albania, and some UCK personnel were Albanian Army professionals.

Also, the Yugoslav Army made several small-scale raids into Northern Albania.


He was cleared due lack of evidence by EUELEX, if you have anything to add you may inform them. But don't say didnt we brought down any of them.
Well, if you don't find anything fishy about ELUEX prosecution lacking evidence to confirm the sentence of a man previously sentenced to 40 years of prison, then I am really at a loss for words.

[Sanat-e-naft]

Hey thanks for the info, had no idea about the cross border issues, learn something new everyday.