Serbia Confirms Ratko Mladić Will Be Buried With Full State Honors

Ratko Mladić, the former commander of the Army of Republika Srpska, will be buried with the highest state honors, Serbian Justice Minister Nenad Vujić confirmed.

Vujić told Banja Luka's Alternative Television (ATV) that Mladić, as a general, will be afforded the respect and protocols befitting his rank. He emphasized that the specific arrangements, including the burial site, will be determined by Mladić's family.

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General Mladić is a general and the protocols are known. His role is also known, and what belongs to General Mladić will certainly be respected. I emphasize that Republika Srpska is not the one deciding here; the family will also decide on the place where he will be buried, as it is a matter for his family.

Serbia is prepared to retrieve Mladić's body and is awaiting the necessary procedures and timeline from the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals. Vujić stated that Serbian authorities would travel to The Hague to collect the body as soon as they receive the green light.

Mladić was sentenced to life imprisonment by the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals for genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes committed during the Bosnian War. He commanded the VRS Main Staff from 1992 to 1996 and was arrested in Serbia in 2011 before being extradited to the Hague Tribunal.

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We expect the Mechanism to give us a certain timeframe for the procedures and steps we need to take. If they said to come tomorrow morning, we would be in The Hague and would collect General Mladić's body.