Only six jailed by UN court over Srebrenica massacre

Thirteen years after the massacre of some 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica, the UN war crimes tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has sentenced only six of the 19 people indicted.

With the arrest Monday of Radovan Karadzic, only one fugitive linked to the genocide now remains at large.

Here is an overview of what has happened to the 19 suspects charged for the Srebrenica massacre by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Background:

Srebrenica was a UN-protected Muslim enclave until July 11, 1995, when it was overrun by Bosnian Serb forces who loaded thousands of men and boys onto trucks, executed thousands, and threw their bodies into mass graves.

The Serbs brushed aside lightly-armed Dutch UN peacekeepers in the "safe area" where thousands of Muslims from surrounding villages had gathered for protection.

The Srebrenica massacre, Europe's worst atrocity since World War II, has been termed genocide by the International Court of Justice, which handles disputes between nations, and the ICTY, set up by the UN to try war crimes committed during the Balkans conflict.

Arrested:

The tribunal's most wanted fugitive, Radovan Karadzic faces charges of genocide for the massacre and ethnic cleansing of non-Serbs during the 1992-1995 Bosnian war.

Fugitive:

The Bosnian Serbs' military leader Ratko Mladic, who appears on the same charge sheet as Karadzic, now heads the list of the last two fugitives wanted by the ICTY. Diplomatic sources have said he is in Serbia.

Judged:

The highest ranking Bosnian Serb sentenced over the massacre is Radislav Krstic, the general who led the attack on the enclave. Krstic was found guilty on appeal of having aided and abetted genocide, and was sentenced to 35 years in prison in April 2004.

In its verdict, the tribunal's appeals chamber confirmed that genocide had taken place in Srebrenica, creating an important legal precedent.

In March 2007, colonel Vidoje Blagojevic was acquitted on appeal of genocide charges over Srebrenica. He was sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

His co-accused Dragan Jokic got nine years for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

In December 2003, Bosnian Serb officers Dragan Obrenovic and Momir Nikolic, who pleaded guilty to participating in the massacre, were sentenced to 17 and 27 years in prison respectively. On appeal, Nicolic's sentence was reduced to 20 years.

The first person to be convicted over the killings was Drazen Erdemovic, a former soldier in the Bosnian Serb forces, who was sentenced to five years in jail in 1998 after he entering a guilty plea. He served his time in Norway and was released in 2000.

Died during proceedings:

Former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic (64) was on trial for war crimes and crimes against humanity for his role in the bloody wars in Bosnia, Croatia and Kosovo of the 1990s, including the Srebrenica killings, but died unexpectedly in March 2006 without the judges having reached a verdict.

On trial:

Bosnian Serb officers Vinko Pandurevic, Ljubomir Borovcanin, Vujadin Popovic, Drago Nikolic and Ljubisa Beara are standing trial on genocide charges for their alleged roles in the massacre. They were allegedly involved in planning and organising summary executions.

In the same mass trial are Bosnian Serb generals Milan Gvero and Radivoje Miletic who face charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity for blocking humanitarian aid to the enclave. Gvero is also charged with assisting in the capture and detention of Muslims in Srebrenica.

Awaiting trial:

Former army captain Milorad Trbic faces charges of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity for helping with the transport of Muslim prisoners to execution sites and personally shooting Muslims. The ICTY agreed in April last year to transfer his case to the war crimes chamber of the Bosnian State Court.

General Momcilo Perisic, the former chief of staff of the Yugoslav Army, is accused of providing logistical assistance to the Bosnian Serb army "including those actions that resulted in atrocities".

Zdravko Tolimir, a former member of the Bosnian Serb army's main staff accused of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity for allegedly supervising soldiers who carried out mass executions around Srebrenica. He was transferred to the ICTY after his arrest in Bosnia in May 2007.

(Agencies)