Karadzic arrested in Belgrade after 13-year manhunt

22/07/2008

Police in Belgrade arrested Radovan Karadzic, indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Serbian authorities hope the arrest will clear the country's path to the EU.

By Igor Jovanovic for Southeast European Times in Belgrade -- 22/07/08

There were celebrations in Sarajevo early Tuesday (July 22nd) after word of wartime Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic's arrest in Belgrade. [Getty Images]

Police captured war crimes indictee Radovan Karadzic in Belgrade on Monday (July 21st) after a long period of surveillance by the Serbian security service. Co-ordinators of the arrest, Rasim Ljajic and Vladimir Vukcevic, said Karadzic had been hiding in Belgrade and had altered his appearance so drastically that he was unrecognisable to his associates.

They showed a photo of Karadzic with white hair and a long white beard. He had been working at a private clinic, renting apartments in Belgrade and using the alias Dragan Dabic.

However, Karadzic attorney Svetozar Vujacic said that his client claimed during questioning that he was arrested on Friday and had been kept in "some apartment" until Monday. The lawyer also said Karadzic is refusing to eat and is barely talking.

After news of the arrest, Belgrade was calm, though several dozen members of ultranationalist organisations gathered on the streets. Police arrested a few of the most aggressive young men; the others left after a half-hour protest.

The pro-European parties in Belgrade welcomed Karadzic's capture and said it will most likely accelerate Serbia's European integration and the beginning of the implementation of the Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA). The EU and Serbia signed the agreement on April 29th, but the EU then suspended it, demanding Belgrade's full co-operation with The Hague tribunal.

Representatives of the far-right Serbian Radical Party described the arrest as "a horrifying event" for Serbia. Party official Aleksandar Vucic said Serbia "is en route to vanishing", because with the arrests of Karadzic and fellow indictee Stojan Zupljanin last month, Serbian President Boris Tadic is starting to "return the favour" to international community elements that "helped him win the May general election".

Karadzic's arrest delighted representatives of the EU, the United States and the UN, who called it a very important event for Serbia's European future. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said he was confident Hague tribunal chief prosecutor Serge Brammertz would now conclude that Belgrade is fully co-operating. EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said the arrest "is a key event on Serbia's road to the EU".

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon described it as "a historic moment for the victims who waited 13 years for Karadzic to be brought to justice". White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said it proved Serbia's new government's commitment to full co-operation with the UN tribunal. She also noted the timing: the arrest came just days after the commemoration ceremony for the victims of the 1995 Srebrenica massacre.

Although it moved quickly to thwart any riots in Belgrade, the interior ministry distanced itself from the arrest, claiming it took no part in the operation. The interior minister is Ivica Dacic, leader of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS), the second strongest ruling coalition member. However, Parliament Speaker and SPS Vice President Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic said Serbia must fulfil its international obligations.

Analysts say Karadzic's arrest will not affect government stability, despite the SPS's resistance to extraditing indictees. The analysts say the quick reaction of police units that quashed potential riots also demonstrated governmental stability.

Under Serbian law, The Hague can receive Karadzic in about a week. Two more indictees -- Ratko Mladic and Goran Hadzic -- remain at large.