ICTY OFFICIALLY INFORMS ZAGREB ON SUSPENSION OF ARREST WARRANT

ZAGREB, April 9 (Hina) - The Croatian government was on Wednesday officially notified by the UN war crimes tribunal about the suspension of an order for the arrest and transfer of retired Croatian general Janko Bobetko. #L# The secretary of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), Hans Holtius, on Wednesday informed the Croatian Ambassador to The Hague, Jaksa Muljacic, that the ICTY established that the Croatian government had fulfilled its obligations pursuant to an order of Judge Carmel Agius and that under the same order issued by Judge Agius, the order for the arrest and extradition of the retired 83-year Croatian general was suspended, according to a statement released by the Croatian government on Wednesday afternoon. The ICTY's order for Bobetko's apprehension and hand-over was automatically suspended after the Croatian government announced that the indictment against the general had been served on. On 19 March Judge Carmel Agius issued an order asking Zagreb to serve the indictment either on Bobetko or on his lawyers and that, in turn, the above-mentioned order for his apprehension and extradition would be suspended. A war-time Croatian Armed Forces Chief-of-Staff, Gen. Bobetko, was indicted based on individual and command responsibility for war crimes during the Medak Pocket military operation in 1993. (hina) ms