Karadzic to face first ICTY hearing on Thursday (Roundup)

Jul 30, 2008, 12:45 GMT

The Hague - Almost 13 years after the 1992-95 Bosnia war, former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic was in UN detention in the Netherlands Wednesday, awaiting formal charges at an international court for crimes committed against Croats and Muslism during that war.

Nine days after Serbian authorities announced Karadzic's arrest, ending more than 12 years on the run, Karadzic was flown to the Netherlands in a Serbian government plane, landing at Rotterdam Airport at 6:30 am (0430 am GMT.)

At 7:40 am (0540 GMT) two black mini buses entered through the gates of the UN detention centre in Scheveningen, near The Hague.

A few minutes later two helicopters arrived, one of which landed on the main courtyard inside the prison compound, while the second continued circling above. Authorities did not specify whether he had in one of the helicopters or in one of the two mini buses.

Karadzic, 63, is scheduled to make his first appearance before International Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) at 4 pm (1400 GMT) Thursday.

During that session, he will formally be charged with 11 counts, including genocide, complicity in genocide, persecutions, deportation, unlawfully inflicting terror on civilians and taking hostages.

Under court regulations, Karadzic has 30 days to enter a guilty or not guilty plea.

Chief Prosecutor of the ICTY Serge Brammertz said it would take the both the prosecution and defence months to prepare for the trial, which in itself could last years.

He said his team was already reviewing the indictment against Karadzic, last updated in 2000.

But he vowed to do his utmost to ensure proceedings would be efficient and quick.

'It will be a complex trial,' he said, promising to do what he could so that victims would see justice done.

'The arrest of Radovan Karadzic is immensely important for the victims who had to wait so long for this day,' Brammertz told a news conference at the ICTY in The Hague.

'It is also important for international justice because it clearly demonstrates that their is no alternative to the arrest of war criminals and that there can be no safe haven for fugitives,' Brammertz added.

He noted that two further key war crimes suspects, former Bosnian Serb army chief of staff Ratko Mladic and Goran Hadic, who was president of the so-called 'epublic of Serbian Krajina, were still at large.

Brammertz also praised the Serbian civil authorities for their 'excellent cooperation' with the ICTY in the past months.

The European Union too welcomed the transfer, with a spokesman in Brussels calling it 'a significant step for international justice' as well as for 'EU-Serbia relations.'

Serbia's current government has hoped the arrest will speed up its bid to join the bloc.

Hours before the extradition, thousands of ultra-nationalist Serbs protested in downtown Belgrade in support of Karadzic.

Around 150 people on Tuesday night clashed with the police on the sidelines of the mass 'All Serbs' rally organized by the ultranationalists. Some 27 policemen and 21 civilian were injured, including two journalists.

Hooligans threw stones, bricks and bottles at the police, broke lampposts and turned over garbage bins in the streets around the central Republika square, where some 10 000 people gathered to support Karadzic and to protest the against 'tyrannic regime' of pro- European president Boris Tadic, which arrested him 10 days ago.

After an hour of violence and clashes with the police - who used rubber bullets and tear gas - the situation calmed down and in the early morning hours the city was cleaned of the broken glass, stones, bricks, broken chairs, bins and lampposts.

'Chaos' and 'Hooligans' are the main headlines in Wednesday's press, with photographs of injured civilians and youth with hoods on their faces throwing stones at the police.

As Belgrade cleaned up after overnight riots by Karaedzic supporters, Serb leaders stayed out of sight and avoided comment on his extradition.

Handing him over to the ICTY was a delicate task for Serbia's pro- Western government and President Boris Tadic, who are viewed as traitors by ultranationalists.

Serbian Radical Party, which organized Tuesday's rally against the Tadic government and in support of Karadzic, was aiming for some 100,000 people to attend but only around 10,000 showed.

The last large rally organized by ultranationalists was on February 21 against independence of Kosovo. The rally resulted in the death of one person, torching of western embassies and looting of downtown shops.

Similar incidents of looting occurred Wednesday night in several boutiques around the square, media reported Thursday.

Kosovo declared independence from Serbia on February 17 and was recognized by more than 40 countries including all major Western powers.