The indictment against Gojko Jankovic was issued originally by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague, but last year the case was referred to the Bosnian judiciary after a state war crimes court was established in the country.
After years in hiding, Jankovic turned himself in to the Bosnian Serb authorities in March 2005 and was transferred to The Hague. After it was decided to refer the case to the State Court of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Jankovic was transferred to a prison in Sarajevo in December.
The indictment against Jankovic is represented by international prosecutor Philip Alcock, who said in his opening statement that most of the charges referred to the rape of imprisoned Bosniak women and girls.
The brutal tortures in which Jankovic participated were undoubtedly part of a wider campaign aimed at expelling the Muslim population from eastern parts of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Alcock said.
First witnesses for the prosecution will be called to testify in mid-May.