THE HAGUE, July 27 (Hina) - The prosecutor's office with UN's war-crimes tribunal at The Hague declined to specify on Friday why 17 July 1995 was chosen in the indictment against Croatian General Ante Gotovina as the date marking the
start of the time in which "crimes were planned, instigated or committed" during and after Operation Storm. The prosecutor's office also declined to say if it had knowledge of a meeting Croatia's then state leadership held at Brijuni on that day. According to a statement from the President's Office dated 17 July 1995, President Franjo Tudjman received at Brijuni Defence Minister Gojko Susak, Interior Minister Ivan Jarnjak, and a delegation of top military and national security officials. Asked about the date in the Gotovina indictment, which was disclosed on Thursday, the spokeswoman for the Hague tribunal's Office of the Prosecutor, Florence Hartmann, said collected e
THE HAGUE, July 27 (Hina) - The prosecutor's office with UN's war-
crimes tribunal at The Hague declined to specify on Friday why 17
July 1995 was chosen in the indictment against Croatian General
Ante Gotovina as the date marking the start of the time in which
"crimes were planned, instigated or committed" during and after
Operation Storm.
The prosecutor's office also declined to say if it had knowledge of
a meeting Croatia's then state leadership held at Brijuni on that
day.
According to a statement from the President's Office dated 17 July
1995, President Franjo Tudjman received at Brijuni Defence
Minister Gojko Susak, Interior Minister Ivan Jarnjak, and a
delegation of top military and national security officials.
Asked about the date in the Gotovina indictment, which was
disclosed on Thursday, the spokeswoman for the Hague tribunal's
Office of the Prosecutor, Florence Hartmann, said collected
evidence indicated that Gotovina, President Tudjman and others
planned the Storm military operation as early as July 17.
Hartmann declined to say if her statement was based on the knowledge
the prosecutor's office had of the content of the Brijuni military
meeting, or if the knowledge of the prosecutor's office was based on
transcripts from the meeting.
The indictment says: "Between 17 July 1995 and 15 November 1995,
Ante Gotovina, acting individually and/or in concert with
others, including President Franjo Tudjman, planned, instigated,
ordered, committed or otherwise aided and abetted in
the planning, preparation or execution of the crimes charged below
(in the indictment) in the course of, and after, the "Oluja" (Storm)
offensive."
According to the 1995 statement from President Tudjman's Office,
the Brijuni meeting was held on the occasion of the forced
retirement of then military chief-of-staff General Janko Bobetko.
At the time Gotovina was commander of the Split Military District.
The statement says the meeting was called "in view of discussing
current defence issues in light of the international situation and
Croatia's position in connection with the escalating crisis in
Bosnia-Herzegovina."
"The military districts' commanders and senior officials briefed
the President... about the current situation in areas within their
jurisdiction... the President... pointed to the need of further
implementing state policy in all areas and at all levels of state
and civil authority," the statement said.
Operation Storm began on Aug 4. and ended three days later.
General Gotovina is accused of crimes against humanity and
violations of the laws and customs of war committed against
Croatian Serbs during Storm. He has been charged on both individual
and commanding responsibility for the persecution, killing and
harassment of Serbs, the destruction of villages and plunder of
Serb property in areas under his command.
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