More than 30 years after the end of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992-1995), Srebrenica remains emblematic of its brutality.
asserted
Srebrenica → remain → brutality
And no one is more closely linked to the genocide that took place in the small town in eastern Bosnia than Ratko Mladic, the former commander-in-chief of the Bosnian Serb army.
asserted
that → link → army
Although the United Nations had declared Srebrenica a "safe area," Bosnian Serb forces attacked the town.
asserted
forces → declare → town
Within just a few days in July 1995, they expelled women and children, then killed more than 8,300 unarmed Muslim boys and men in the nearby village of Potocari — on Mladic's direct orders, according to the verdict handed down by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague 22 years later.
uncertain
they → expel → Hague
The ICTY classified it as genocide.
asserted
ICTY → classify → genocide
Mladic was also held responsible for other war crimes beyond the Srebrenica genocide.
asserted
Mladic → hold → genocide
Under his command, the years-long siege of Sarajevo began at the start of the war.
asserted
siege → begin → war
The city was shelled for more than 40 months, killing around 11,000 people, including more than 1,600 children.
asserted
city → shell → children
Mladic always claimed that he targeted only military objectives.
asserted
he → claim → objectives
But numerous reports and intercepted radio communications indicate that civilian facilities and residential areas were also deliberately attacked.
asserted
facilities → intercept → ?
Around 100,000 people were killed during the four-year war in Bosnia, while some 2.2 million were driven from their homes in cities and villages across the country, half of its total population at the time.
asserted
million → kill → time
In 2017, Mladic was sentenced to life in prison by the tribunal in The Hague.
asserted
Mladic → sentence → Hague
International media dubbed him "the Butcher of the Balkans."
asserted
media → dub → Balkans
He was found responsible for some of the most serious war crimes and the genocide committed during the Bosnian War.
asserted
He → find → War
Mladic consistently denied any responsibility.
asserted
Mladic → deny → responsibility
He saw himself as an avenger of the Serbs for centuries of Ottoman rule in the Balkans, and viewed Bosnia's Muslims, who today call themselves Bosniaks, as direct descendants of the Turks.
asserted
who → see → Turks
In front of his soldiers, he referred to them simply as "the Turks" and showed no empathy.
asserted
he → refer → empathy
"Borders are always drawn with blood, and states are marked with graves," he is quoted as saying.
asserted
he → draw → graves
At the beginning of the Croatian War in June 1991, when Serbs living in Croatia rose up against the independence of the former Yugoslav republic with active support from Serbia, Mladic's role fundamentally changed.
asserted
role → live → Serbia
As a colonel in the Yugoslav army, he became commander of the 9th Corps in the Croatian city of Knin.
asserted
he → become → Knin
His task was to organize Serb militias and support them in their fight against Croatian independence.
asserted
task → organize → independence
Under Mladic's command, the Croatian cities of Sibenik and Zadar were bombarded, and Croatian civilians were driven from surrounding towns and villages.
asserted
civilians → bombard → towns
In May 1992, he took on the same role in Bosnia.
uncertain
he → take → Bosnia
By then promoted to general, Mladic became commander-in-chief of the Bosnian Serb forces, seeking to establish a territorial link between Serb-held areas in the east and west of the former Yugoslav republic.
asserted
Mladic → promote → republic
But he began his career as a committed communist.
asserted
he → begin → communist
Born in eastern Bosnia in 1943, Mladic was just two years old when his father, one of Tito's Partisans, was killed by fascist Croatian Ustasha militia.
asserted
father → bear → militia
The loss is often described as a formative influence, shaping his later worldview.
asserted
loss → describe → worldview
As a young man, Mladic embarked on a military career, attending the Military Academy in Belgrade.
asserted
Mladic → embark → Belgrade
He later graduated at the top of his class.
asserted
He → graduate → class
He quickly rose through the ranks of the Yugoslav army, which for many years was regarded as one of the most stable institutions in the multiethnic state.
asserted
which → rise → state
Before the end of the Bosnian War in late 1995, Mladic was indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia.
asserted
Mladic → indict → Yugoslavia
But he evaded arrest for years.
asserted
he → evade → years
Supported by networks within the Serbian military and political establishment, he lived largely undisturbed underground and was even seen in public.
asserted
he → support → public
He was finally arrested in 2011, after 16 years on the run and mounting international pressure.
asserted
He → arrest → run
The subsequent trial in The Hague lasted a total of 523 days.
asserted
trial → last → days
Nearly 600 witnesses testified, while numerous documents and other pieces of evidence were examined.
asserted
documents → testify → evidence
Mladic was ultimately sentenced to life in prison at trial, among other charges for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
asserted
Mladic → sentence → humanity
In 2021, an appeals chamber upheld the verdict, making it final.
asserted
it → uphold → verdict
Legally, this established his responsibility as one of the principal figures behind the crimes committed during the Bosnian War.
asserted
this → establish → War
A war criminal who saw himself as a hero
Internationally, the verdict was hailed as historic.
asserted
verdict → see → hero
…and 10 more, not listed.
The Aporia
