War criminal Ratko Mladic would be buried in Belgrade next week, his son said on Friday, as an EU official canceled a visit to Serbia over the “glorification” of the former Bosnian Serb military leader.
Mladic died last week while serving a life sentence in The Hague for war crimes committed during the 1990s war in Bosnia.
His body was returned to Serbia on a government plane on Thursday, with his casket draped in flags and welcomed with military honors.
Photo: AP
“My father’s funeral will take place on Monday, September 7, starting at 7am,” Mladic’s son Darko said.
Details of Mladic’s brutal crimes during the war, including his role in the Srebrenica massacre, which was ruled a genocide by a UN court, led international media to dub him the “Butcher of Bosnia.”
Despite this, he is still lauded by some Serbs as a hero, particularly in Bosnia’s Serb entity Republika Srpska — where his death was marked with vigils and gatherings.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic earlier suggested “tens of thousands” could attend his funeral.
Mladic’s son also repeated accusations that the decision not to release his father and alleged refusal of external medical treatment amounted to “murder.”
“The family’s view is that the murder of General Mladic was carried out at The Hague tribunal,” he said.
The Hague court rejected requests for his release on health grounds, suggesting his palliative care in detention was adequate.
Mladic was the military face of a brutal leadership trio alongside former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic and Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic.
The 1992 to 1995 war left about 100,000 people dead and 2.2 million displaced.
Although Serbia’s top officials have largely avoided commenting on Mladic’s death, pro-government figures have repeatedly lionized him alongside blanket coverage in tabloid media praising his legacy.
As his coffin was driven from the airport toward the capital, groups of mostly young men gathered on motorway overpasses, displaying banners honoring Mladic and lighting flares.
Some uniformed police officers were also seen saluting along the roadside as the motorcade passed.
European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos said she had decided to scrap an upcoming visit to the Balkan nation after Thursday’s repatriation.
“The glorification surrounding his death is incompatible with the values on which the EU path is built,” Kos said.
Vucic said Kos’ accusations were “stupid.”
“Were we supposed to ban the funeral? Ban people from attending? Not regulate traffic?” he said. “Marta Kos will not lecture me on who the criminals are and who they are not.”
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