Ratko Mladić, the ‘Butcher of the Balkans,’ buried in Belgrade with military honors

Ratko Mladić, convicted of genocide and war crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina, was buried in Belgrade with military honors after dying in late August at age 83 in The Hague, where he was serving a life sentence.

The former Bosnian Serb army commander, known by his critics as the “Butcher of the Balkans” but regarded as a hero by many in Serbia, was buried at Topčider cemetery beside his daughter Ana. She died by suicide in 1994, during the height of the 1992-1995 Bosnian war.

After a ceremony at Belgrade’s St. Luke’s Church, members of the Serbian army covered the coffin with the flags of Serbia and Republika Srpska, one of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s two autonomous entities. Police motorcycles led the procession, while thousands of people applauded as the hearse passed, according to footage broadcast by regional broadcaster N1. A military band and honor guard attended the cemetery ceremony, and a Serbian army unit fired a volley with small arms.

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Thank you, brothers, for coming to judge whether my father was a hero or a criminal.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić did not attend, according to public broadcaster RTS, although his son Danilo was present. Defense Minister Bratislav Gašić, Justice Minister Nenad Vujić, former Republika Srpska President Milorad Dodik, Russia’s ambassador to Serbia Alexander Botsan-Kharchenko and former Greek defense minister Panos Kammenos also attended.

“Thank you, brothers, for coming to judge whether my father was a hero or a criminal,” Mladić’s son Darko said during the funeral. Those present responded by shouting, “Hero, hero!” Mladić was arrested in Serbia in 2011 after nearly 16 years as a fugitive and transferred to The Hague days later. The United Nations tribunal convicted him in 2017, and an appeals chamber upheld the life sentence in 2021. He spent about 15 years in United Nations custody. The tribunal found him guilty of genocide for his role in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, in which more than 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys were killed, as well as crimes against humanity and war crimes including the siege of Sarajevo.

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Hero, hero!