A round-up of today's other world news stories in brief
Serb policemen jailed for 31 years
SARAJEVO– Bosnia's war crimes court has jailed two former Serb policemen for 31 years, each on a charge of aiding in genocide and taking part in the killing of more than 7,000 Muslims in Srebrenica in 1995.Judge Senadin Bektasevic said yesterday: "Radomir Vukovic (36) and Zoran Tomic (38) were members of the 2nd Sekovici Special Police Detachment which intended to partly exterminate a group of Muslims and help remove, forcibly, 40,000 civilians from the eastern enclave."
The judge said the two participated in the capture and execution of at least 1,000 Muslim men who tried to escape Srebrenica.
Bosnian Serb forces, commanded by Gen Ratko Mladic, killed about 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys after the town, a UN safe zone, fell to them. – (Reuters)
New Middle East effort by US envoy
JERUSALEM – US president Barack Obama’s envoy began a new Middle East peace mission yesterday that could determine whether Israel and the US sink deeper into discord over Jewish settlement policy.
George Mitchell’s visit to Jerusalem and the West Bank will be his first since Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu returned a month ago from low-profile talks with Mr Obama that underscored a rift between the two leaders.
Mr Netanyahu still has not responded publicly to what political sources have said was a list of 11 confidence- building steps Mr Obama wants him to take to coax the Palestinians back into negotiations. However Mr Netanyahu has rebuffed calls to halt the construction of homes for Jews on occupied land. – (Reuters)
Armenia opts not to ratify Turkey accord
YEREVAN – Armenia has suspended ratification of peace accords with Turkey, setting back to square one US-backed efforts to bury a century of hostility between the neighbours.
Christian Armenia and Muslim Turkey signed accords in October last year to establish diplomatic relations and open their land border, in an attempt to overcome the legacy of the first World War mass killing of Armenians by Turks.
However the process was already deadlocked before yesterday’s decision, with each side accusing the other of trying to rewrite the texts and setting new conditions.
Neither parliament has approved the deal, which would bring huge economic gains for poor, landlocked Armenia, burnish Turkey’s credentials as an EU candidate and boost its clout in the strategic South Caucasus. – (Reuters)