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REGISTRY
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The Hague, 11 June 2007
JP/MOW/1161e
Milorad Trbić transferred to stand trial in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Milorad Trbić, a former security officer of the Zvornik Brigade of the Bosnian Serb Army, was transferred today from the custody of the Tribunal to Sarajevo to be tried before the war crimes section of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The indictment against Trbić charges him with genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, extermination, murder, persecutions and forcible transfer committed against the civilians of the Srebrenica area from July to November 1995.
The indictment alleges that Trbić entered an agreement with several others, including Generals Ratko Mladić, Milenko Živanović, Zdravko Tolimir and Radislav Krstić, to kill the able-bodied Bosnian Muslim men from Srebrenica that were captured or surrendered after the fall of Srebrenica on 11 July 1995 and remove the remaining Muslim population of Srebrenica and Žepa from Republika Srpska with the intent to destroy those Muslims. In addition, it is alleged that from about 1 August 1995 through about 1 November 1995, Bosnian Serb Army and police personnel including Trbić participated in an organised and comprehensive effort to conceal the killings and executions by reburying bodies exhumed from initial mass graves to secondary graves.
Trbić surrendered to the Tribunal on 7 April 2005. He entered a plea of not guilty to all charges in the second consolidated amended indictment during his further initial appearance on 11 May 2005.
On 4 May 2006, the Prosecution filed an 11bis motion for the case against Trbić to be referred to the authorities of Bosnia and Herzegovina and a referral hearing was held on Monday 15 January 2007. After having considered various factors, including the gravity of crimes and his alleged level of responsibility, the Referral Bench on 27 April 2007 ordered the referral of the case to the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Trbić is the tenth accused that the ICTY had issued an indictment against who has been transferred to Bosnia and Herzegovina for trial. One additional accused was transferred to Serbia and another case involving two accused to Croatia. Two further persons are under consideration for transfer.
Under the terms of the Tribunal’s completion strategy, a small number of ICTY cases involving low or intermediate level accused persons may be referred to competent courts in the region of the former Yugoslavia. This is intended to enable the Tribunal to focus upon the most senior persons responsible for crimes and to strengthen the rule of law in the states of the former Yugoslavia.
Since its first hearing in November 1994, the Tribunal has indicted 161 persons with proceedings completed in the case of 107 accused. No further indictments will be issued. It is planned that the Tribunal complete its mission by the end of 2010.
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International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia
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