SARAJEVO, Oct 24 (Hina) - The Prosecutor's Office of the Hague war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia is currently investigating 48 suspects and all investigations will be completed by the end of 2004, as planned, chief
prosecutor Carla Del Ponte said in Sarajevo on Friday.
SARAJEVO, Oct 24 (Hina) - The Prosecutor's Office of the Hague war
crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia is currently
investigating 48 suspects and all investigations will be completed
by the end of 2004, as planned, chief prosecutor Carla Del Ponte
said in Sarajevo on Friday. #L#
She arrived in the Bosnian capital after a brief trip to Pristina.
Later today she will visit Banja Luka to talk with representatives
of Bosnian Serb authorities.
Del Ponte reiterated she was very dissatisfied with their
cooperation since not one suspect or indictee has been arrested and
they refuse access to documentation necessary for the
investigations.
She explained such lack of cooperation had required the raid the
U.N. tribunal's investigators carried out in Bosnian Serb
intelligence offices last week. She said certain documents were
found and were being analysed.
Del Ponte went on to say the tribunal was intensively working on the
preparation of some trials which would be turned over to domestic
courts in Sarajevo, Belgrade, and Zagreb, namely cases in which
investigations have been completed or have yet to start.
The chief prosecutor said all trials at The Hague should be
completed by the end of 2008, but added this depended on whether
Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic would be turned over to the
tribunal by then.
Commenting on a recently issued indictment against four Serbian
army and police generals, Del Ponte said they must be extradited
since they are high-ranked people involved in serious cases
investigated by the tribunal.
She said they would be tried alongside three former Serbian
officials previously accused of and detained over crimes in
Kosovo.
The chief prosecutor confirmed her office had investigated former
Bosnian President Alija Izetbegovic and that the investigation was
called off as in the case of Croatian President Franjo Tudjman --
due to their deaths.
Members of the Army of Bosnia-Herzegovina committed crimes too and
it is our duty to investigate, she said, adding that Izetbegovic had
been under investigation for war crimes but not crimes against
humanity.
Commenting on the case of fugitive Croatian General Ante Gotovina,
Del Ponte confirmed she would move next week that the indictment
against him be extended. She declined to say what the extension
might contain, adding that the tribunal first had to approve her
motion.
(hina) ha