27.08.2026 15:50
Serb commander Ratko Mladic, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity in Bosnia, has died.
Serb commander Ratko Mladic, sentenced to life imprisonment for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity committed during the Bosnian War, has died. Known as the "Butcher of Bosnia," Mladic was held responsible for the killing of thousands of innocent Bosniaks, most notably in the Srebrenica massacre.
Ratko Mladic, who served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Army of the Republika Srpska (VRS) during the Bosnian War between 1992-1995 and committed one of history's bloodiest massacres, has died in the prison where he was serving his life sentence.
SREBRENICA GENOCIDE AND LIFE IMPRISONMENT
Mladic, one of the main actors in the largest genocide Europe had seen since World War II, in which at least 8,000 Bosniak men and boys were killed in Srebrenica in August 1995, was captured in Serbia in 2011 after years on the run.
The Serb commander, tried by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague, was found guilty of the following crimes in the case concluded in 2017:
- Genocide: The systematic destruction of the Bosniak population in Srebrenica.
- Crimes against humanity: Persecution, extermination, murder, and inhumane acts.
- Violations of the laws of war: The targeting and killing of civilians during the years-long siege of Sarajevo.
Mladic, whose life sentence was upheld by the final appeals court in 2021, has died while serving his punishment for crimes that have gone down in human history as a dark stain.