THE HAGUE, July 19 (Hina) - The UN war crimes tribunal's prosecution on Friday announced it would ask the tribunal to change the indictment against the former commander of the Yugoslav Army (JNA) for the area of Vukovar (eastern
Croatia), Mile Mrksic, who has so far been indicted of the mass killing of civilians and soldiers at Ovcara.
THE HAGUE, July 19 (Hina) - The UN war crimes tribunal's prosecution
on Friday announced it would ask the tribunal to change the
indictment against the former commander of the Yugoslav Army (JNA)
for the area of Vukovar (eastern Croatia), Mile Mrksic, who has so
far been indicted of the mass killing of civilians and soldiers at
Ovcara. #L#
Hildegard Vertz-Retzlaff, the prosecutor in the Mrksic case as well
as in the Croatian section of the indictment against Slobodan
Milosevic, said on Friday that the prosecution was planning to
lodge this request until the end of August. She, however, did not
explain, at a pre-trial session of the Mrksic process, the further
intention of the prosecution.
The tribunal's chief prosecutor, Carla del Ponte, has to date
announced the enlargement of the indictment against the former
Croatian Serb rebel leader, Milan Martic, accused of the shelling
of Zagreb.
Mrksic and another two JNA officers, Veselin Sljivancanin and
Miroslav Radic, are known as the notorious Vukovar troika, accused
of crimes against humanity, the breaches of the law and customs of
war and serious violations of the Geneva conventions which they
committed when they abused detainees and killed 200 soldiers who
defended Vukovar and citizens at the farmland "Ovcara" outside this
Croatian town on 20 November 1991.
On Friday's pre-trial session, Mrksic's lawyers asked for his
temporary release due to his health condition. Mrksic's attorney,
Miroslav Vasic, said his client had voluntarily surrendered to the
Tribunal after he had undergone an operation when a by-pass had been
implanted to his heart. According to the lawyer, Mrksic has not
passed a period of necessary rehabilitation, and his health has
been deteriorated.
The prosecution, however, thinks that the defendant's health is
considerably well.
At the session, a senior Yugoslav official offered Belgrade's
assurances for the surveillance of Mrksic if he would be let to come
back to Belgrade.
The tribunal announced it would decide on the matter as soon as
possible.
(hina) ms