Sabic

Hundreds of people gathered in front of the Belgrade elementary school Vladislav Ribnikar where eight pupils and one security worker were killed in Wednesday's mass shooting - and later on at Belgrade's Cvetni Trg [Flower Square], after which they went to the Education Ministry to hold a protest.

Former commander of the 9th Mountain Brigade of the Bosnian Army, Nezir Kazic, received 10 years, while Fadil Covic, former chief of the Public Safety Station in Hadzici, and Becir Hujic, former manager of the Silos detention camp in Tarcin until August 1994, got eight years in prison each.

Mustafa Djelilovic, a senior wartime figure in Bosnia's Hadzici municipality who was being retried for war crimes after his initial conviction was overturned, has died, his defence lawyer told BIRN on Wednesday.

"Unfortunately, he passed away on the way to hospital last night," said lawyer Edina Residovic.

According to Belgrade daily, after Cajetina Mayor Milan Stamatovic, leader of the "Together for Sumadija" movement, Veroljub Stevanovic is another prominent public figure that joined the new bloc led by Sabic, and will act together in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

The appeals chamber of the Bosnian state court has upheld the first-instance verdict acquitting ex-policemen Jadranko Saran, Samir Sabic and Zijad Kadic of wartime crimes against civilians and prisoners of war, one of the men's lawyers told BIRN on Wednesday.

The Bosnian prosecution on Tuesday appealed against the first-instance verdict acquitting former policemen Jadranko Saran, Samir Sabic and Zijad Kadic of unlawfully detaining civilians, as well as murder and inhumane treatment at several detention facilities in Bosanska Krupa between September 1995 and July 1996.

They were also cleared of unlawfully postponing detainees' release.

A lawyer for Obradovic has appealed against the decision to keep him in custody and some Serbs, including activists involved in months of anti-government demonstrations, have begun protesting in front of the prison in Belgrade.

"There is absolutely no reason to impose custody. Not one," the lawyer, Ljubisav Radosavljevic, told BIRN.

Milan Marinovic, the candidate proposed by the Serbian parliament's Committee for Culture and Information, was chosen as Serbia's new Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection on Friday evening.

Most opposition MPs were not present for the vote.

In the same time, the Committee had suggested to the Serbian Parliament the termination of duty of the former Commissioner for Information of Public Importance and Personal Data Protection, Rodoljub Sabic.
Marinovic was elected by majority of votes between three candidates, while the proposal of his candidacy will be submitted to the Serbian Parliament for consideration.

Lawyers for Mustafa Djelilovic, Fadil Covic, Mirsad Sabic, Nezir Kazic, Becir Hujic, Halid Covic, Serif Mesanovic and Nermin Kalember appealed at the Bosnian state court on Thursday against their convictions for crimes against Serb and Croat civilians illegally detained at the Silos camp, the Krupa barracks and the 9th of May elementary school in the Hadzici municipality.