THE HAGUE, July 25 (Hina) - After more than two years, the trial of general Tihomir Blaskic before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague is entering its last week on Monday. The prosecution
and the defence will in the next several days present their closing arguments after which the three-man trial chamber will once again go through the statements of more than 150 witnesses and a thousand pages of evidence included in the file since June 24, 1997, when the trial against the former commander of the Operative Zone Central Bosnia began, and reach the verdict. Both the defence and the prosecution have submitted their final statements in writing, offering once again their interpretations of events and evidence charging Blaskic with crimes committed during the Croat-Muslim conflict in the Lasva River valley between May 1992 and January 1994. The statements are sealed since t
THE HAGUE, July 25 (Hina) - After more than two years, the trial of
general Tihomir Blaskic before the International Criminal Tribunal
for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague is entering its last
week on Monday.
The prosecution and the defence will in the next several days
present their closing arguments after which the three-man trial
chamber will once again go through the statements of more than 150
witnesses and a thousand pages of evidence included in the file
since June 24, 1997, when the trial against the former commander of
the Operative Zone Central Bosnia began, and reach the verdict.
Both the defence and the prosecution have submitted their final
statements in writing, offering once again their interpretations
of events and evidence charging Blaskic with crimes committed
during the Croat-Muslim conflict in the Lasva River valley between
May 1992 and January 1994. The statements are sealed since they deal
with materials discussed at sessions which were held behind closed
doors.
The prosecution team, headed by US attorney Mark Harmon, should on
Monday request the court to pronounce a concrete prison sentence,
and in the second half of the week, Blaskic's attorneys Anto Nobilo
and Russel Hayman, would summarise arguments supporting Blaskic's
acquittal.
The prosecution has charged Blaskic with crimes against humanity,
violations of the law or customs of war and the Geneva Conventions.
Although Blaskic has also been charged with organising, carrying
out and participating in the crimes, after the two years of the
trial, the trial chamber will be mostly deciding about the second
part of the indictment, which charges Blaskic of the failure to, as
a commander, prevent crimes, investigate them and punish the
perpetrators.
The trial chamber, including judges Claude Jorda, Mohamed
Shahabuddeen and Almiro Rodrigues, should decide whether Blaskic
is innocent or guilty by the end of this year.
Blaskic, aged 38, surrendered voluntarily to The Hague Tribunal on
May 1, 1996.
(hina) rml