THE HAGUE: Two Bosnian Serb generals wanted for war crimes have decided to turn themselves in to the UN tribunal based in The Hague probably next week, a daily newspaper reported yesterday.
Gen Vinko Pandurevic, wanted in connection with the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, and Gen Dragomir Milosevic, indicted over the 1992-1995 siege of Sarajevo, should surrender between January 7th and 14th, the Nezavisne Novine daily reported.
The two suspects decided to face the tribunal following talks in Belgrade with the Bosnian Serb President, Mr Mirko Sarovic, who convinced them to go to The Hague, the daily said, quoting an unnamed source close to the president. The generals in return asked for financial support for their families, the report said.
However, an adviser to Mr Sarovic denied the report.
"These are plain speculations, neither Sarovic nor any of his staff members had been persuading anybody to surrender voluntarily to" the UN tribunal, Mr Drago Vukovic said. He said Mr Sarovic believed that co-operation with the UN tribunal should be left to the relevant institutions in the Bosnian Serb entity.
Gen Pandurevic faces genocide charges in connection with the deaths of 7,000 Muslims in Srebrenica, according to the indictment of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), made public in mid-December.
He commanded the brigade which led the assault on Srebrenica in 1995, resulting in a massacre that is considered the bloodiest incident of the Balkans war.
Gen Milosevic was charged for atrocities committed during the 1992-1995 siege of Sarajevo, during which troops under his command shelled civilian areas and snipers terrorised residents, according to the indictment.
Their surrender should show that the Bosnian Serb entity of Republika Srpska has finally started to cooperate with the ICTY, the source said.
However, it was not clear whether the two suspects were to turn themselves in to Yugoslav or Bosnian Serb authorities.
Despite formal pledges, Republika Srpska - which along with the Muslim-Croat Federation makes up post-war Bosnia - remains the only part of former Yugoslavia that has not brought war crimes suspects to justice.