GENERAL BLASKIC LEAVES FOR THE HAGUE

ZAGREB, April 1 (Hina) - General Tihomir Blaskic left for The Hague on Monday afternoon to appear voluntarily before the International Criminal Tribunal for war crimes committed in the area of former Yugoslavia. Blaskic, accompanied by his attorneys Zvonimir Hodak and Nela Pedisic, told reporters that he would plead not guilty. On November 2 last year, the tribunal indicted Blaskic and another five Bosnian Croats suspected of prosecuting the Bosnian Moslem population on political, racial and religious grounds. Blaskic was charged with committing crimes against humanity and grave breaches of the Geneva conventions and war law. The indictment was based on the fact that Blaskic had been commander of the Bosnian Croat (HVO) forces when the crimes against the Moslem population in the Lasva river valley of central Bosnia had been committed between May 1992 and May 1993. Upon arrival in The Hague, Blaskic would be detained in jail until Tuesday when the first hearing was scheduled. After that he was expected to be placed under house arrest. (hina) vm jn 011613 MET apr 96