Mladic, the infamous “Butcher of the Balkans”, is currently serving a life sentence in a U.N. detention center for his role in Bosnia’s devastating war. However, his defence lawyers have filed an urgent motion on the court’s website, requesting his release on medical grounds. The motion states that Mladic, who is 82 years old and has experienced cognitive impairments, requires specialized medical treatment that can only be provided in Serbia.
Mladic led Bosnian Serb forces during the war and was convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. These crimes included terrorizing the civilian population of Sarajevo during a siege and massacring more than 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995. Despite these heinous acts, Mladic’s lawyers argue that he deserves to be treated with compassion and released on medical grounds so that he can receive the care he needs to live out his remaining years with dignity.
The International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT), which oversees Mladic’s case, has not yet made a decision on the release application. However, if approved, Mladic would be allowed to return to Serbia where he could receive specialized medical treatment without language barriers hindering communication.
