Serbia holds funeral for convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić
Thousands gathered in Belgrade for the funeral of Ratko Mladić, the 84-year-old former commander who died while serving a life sentence.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Thousands of people gathered in Belgrade, Serbia, to attend the funeral of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladić.
- Mladić died at the age of 84 while serving a life sentence in a UN prison in The Hague, Netherlands.
- He was convicted of genocide by a UN tribunal for his role in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre.
- The European Union issued a statement condemning any glorification of war criminals and revisionism.
Thousands of individuals gathered in Serbia's capital city of Belgrade to participate in the funeral proceedings of Ratko Mladić, the convicted war criminal widely known as the Butcher of Bosnia. Mladić passed away at the age of 84 while serving a life sentence at the United Nations detention facility located in The Hague, Netherlands.
He was previously found guilty of genocide by a United Nations war crimes tribunal due to his instrumental role in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, an atrocity that claimed the lives of approximately 8,000 Bosniak Muslim men and boys. This event has been formally documented as the worst atrocity in Europe since the conclusion of World War Two.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
Meanwhile, the European Union released an official statement declaring that Ratko Mladić was a convicted war criminal responsible for war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. The statement underscored that any glorification of war criminals, denial of genocide, and historical revisionism directly contradict fundamental European values and have no rightful place within the EU or among EU candidate countries. Serbia has maintained its status as a candidate to join the bloc since 2012, despite membership talks stalling recently.
During the 1990s, Mladić commanded Bosnian Serb forces against Bosnian Croat and Bosniak armies. Throughout the 1992-1995 Bosnian war, his troops executed what was termed ethnic cleansing in Bosnia-Herzegovina to forcibly expel non-Serbian populations, while also besieging the capital city of Sarajevo, which resulted in more than 10,000 deaths.
Mladić faced arrest in 2011, sixteen years after his initial indictment, and received a life sentence in 2021 following a nine-year trial. Despite his legal convictions for genocide, he continues to be regarded by numerous Serbs and nationalists as a heroic defender of the nation, particularly within the Republika Srpska entity where his death prompted various vigils.
"Ratko Mladić was a convicted war criminal who had committed war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity."
European Union
Several Serbian government officials joined the crowds paying respects outside the small St Luka church where Mladić lay in state before burial, including Defence Minister Bratislav Gašić and Justice Minister Nenad Vujić. Long queues formed early in the day as army veterans and supporters waited to enter, while his coffin was flown back to Serbia the previous week aboard a government aircraft.
The public memorial and official participation in honoring a figure linked to severe wartime atrocities highlight the deep historical and emotional divisions still present in the Balkan region. The legacy of the Yugoslav wars continues to influence modern societal views, creating a stark contrast between victims seeking justice and nationalists viewing the commander as a protector.
Conversely, for many victims and their surviving relatives, the funeral has reignited profound wartime trauma. Zdravka Gvozdjar, a resident of Sarajevo whose nine-year-old son was killed by forces under Mladić's command during the city's siege, expressed to Reuters that the funeral taking place in Belgrade was deeply distressing and argued that he deserved to be erased from memory rather than promoted as a hero.
Source: BBC World
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