BELGRADE, Jan 26(Hina) - An indictment for a war crime committed against 192 prisoners of war at Ovcara farm outside eastern Croatia's Vukovar, filed with the Belgrade Municipal Court's special war crimes tribunal, charges eight
persons with organising and ordering murders and inhumane treatment committed on 20 and 21 November 1991, Belgrade's Radio B92 said on Monday.
BELGRADE, Jan 26(Hina) - An indictment for a war crime committed
against 192 prisoners of war at Ovcara farm outside eastern Croatia's
Vukovar, filed with the Belgrade Municipal Court's special war crimes
tribunal, charges eight persons with organising and ordering murders
and inhumane treatment committed on 20 and 21 November 1991,
Belgrade's Radio B92 said on Monday.#L#
The indictment is unavailable to the public but Radio B92 says it was
granted "exclusive access".
Under the indictment, the accused ordered that the prisoners be
brought from Vukovar's general hospital to the farm aboard buses,
enter a hangar and run between two rows of Territorial Defence (TO)
members who beat them. After they were identified at the hangar, the
TO members formed groups of 30 to 40 persons who were driven to
Grabovo, about one kilometre from Ovcara. Once there, the prisoners
were taken in groups to the edge of a previously dug pit where they
were shot at by firing platoons. At least 180 were killed that way.
The pit was later covered up with a bulldozer. Another dozen were shot
dead in front of the hangar and buried in a ditch.
The accused were members of the Vukovar TO, which was part of the
former Yugoslav People's Army. Eight are in the custody of the special
war crimes tribunal in Belgrade, while another 16 are under
investigation.
As announced, seven accused will be put on trial on March 9. The panel
of judges will be presided by Vesko Krstajic.
(Hina) ha sb