Bosnian War

The first prosecution witness at the trial of Nikola Maric, accused of the detention, persecution and killing of Bosniaks in the Prozor area, said that the defendant repeatedly assaulted him.

Two unnamed former Bosnian fighters suspected of committing war crimes during the early 1990s conflict, including the torture and murder of civilians, were arrested in the Netherlands.

Former fighter Zoran Milic, who was convicted killing four members of a Bosniak family in Busovaca in 1993, had his prison sentence reduced from nine to seven years on appeal.

Former Bosnian Croat fighter Zdenko Jakisa was arrested in the US state of Minnesota on suspicion of committing a series of violent crimes against civilians during the 1990s war.

A witness said that ex-fighter Marinko Bjelica, on trial for war crimes in Kalinovik, vowed to commit murder at a school where Bosniaks were detained, in order to avenge his two sons.

The defence for former Bosnian Army soldier Edin Dzeko, charged with executing six Croats in 1993, said that witnesses who accused him of the killings were lying to avoid prosecution.

Monument to pope highlights multi-ethnicity of BiH

A monument to Pope John Paul II in Sarajevo sends the message that the city is one of peace, tolerance and multi-ethnicity.

BiH Cardinal Vinko Puljic (centre) prepares to bless the new statue of Pope John Paul II, who was canonised last month. [Ana Lovakovic/SETimes]

Nihad Bojadzic, the former deputy commander of the Bosnian Army’s Zulfikar Squad, said that he was not told about an attack on the village of Trusina, where 22 Croats were killed.

EASTERN SARAJEVO - Serbs from Republika Srpska (RS) commemorated on Saturday the death of 42 soldiers of the former Yugoslav Army (JNA) who were killed in the Dobrovoljacka street in Sarajevo 22 years ago, and at the same time, former members of the so called Green Berets gathered at the same location, but they dispersed without incident.

As a gesture of gratitude to former Pope John Paul II, recently procaimed a saint, a statue of the Catholic leader was unveiled in Sarajevo on April 30 to the delight of Bosnian Catholics and many other interested citizens in the mainly Muslim city.

The statue, made from a type of alumimium, represents the former Pontiff in an attitude of prayer.