Last major Serb warcrime suspect arrested

Serbia’s last remaining major war crimes fugitive sought by the United Nations tribunal has been arrested: Goran Hadzic.

The key figure in the breakaway Krajina Serb republic in Croatia is charged with ordering the killing of hundreds and the deportation of thousands of non-Serbs from the area, during the 1991-95 Croatian war.

Hadzic will join wartime General Ratko Mladic being held in The Hague for trial, and the Serb political chief Radovan Karadzic. Their capture is expected to help Belgrade’s long drive to re-enter the European mainstream.

Until The Hague issued its indictment on July 13, 2004, Hadzic had lived openly in the northern Serbian city of Novi Sad. Tipped off by nationalist hardliners in Serbia’s security services, he then went underground.

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