Hand Ties, the Only Firm Evidence

While not denying the witnesses’ statements or material evidence presented to him, Dunjic stuck to his allegations based on the fact that between 450 and 500 persons, whose bodies were exhumed from mass graves, had their hands tied with wire or rope, which, according to him, was the only firm evidence that they were shot.

Karadzic, former President of Republika Srpska and supreme Commander of its Army, is charged with genocide against about 7,000 Muslims from Srebrenica, as well as other crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Prosecutor Christopher Mitchell quoted to expert Dunjic a statement by Franc Kos, who will testify in defence of Karadzic next week, in which he said that he participated in the murder of hundreds of Muslims on Branjevo farm, near Zvornik on July 16, 1995.

The State Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina sentenced Kos to 35 years in prison for genocide in Srebrenica.

When asked whether Kos’ statement was in line with autopsy reports pertaining to bodies found on Branjevo farm, Dunjic answered affirmatively, but he added that he did not know about Kos’ testimony.

When the Prosecutor asked how come that Kos, who would testify in defence of Karadzic, would confirm that the Muslims had been shot, while, on the other hand Dunjic said that most of them had been killed in battles, indictee Karadzic objected by saying: “When did we say that they were killed in battles?”

Presiding judge O-gon Kwon then asked the indictee: “Did you say that they were shot?” Karadzic’s legal counselor Peter Robinson responded by saying that the Defence had not taken a stand on the issue.

The Defence’s expert agreed with the Prosecutor that 132 bodies were found in the grave on Branjevo and that 77 of them had their hands tied. However, he stuck to his allegations that there was no forensic evidence that victims, whose hands were not tied, were shot.

When asked whether he compared bullet-caused injuries on tied and untied victims in order to determine whether there were any similarities between them, Dunjic answered negatively.

According to the charges and Tribunal’s verdicts, between 1,000 and 1,200 Srebrenica Muslims were shot on Branjevo farm on July 16, 1995.

Responding to Dunjic’s comments about grenade shrapnel pieces found inside the exhumed remains, Prosecutor Mitchell quoted Kos’ statement that members of his Squad threw hand bombs on Muslim men, who were detained in the warehouse in Kravica village.

While accepting the explanation, Dunjic, however, said that it did not exclude combat activities as the cause of death of the persons exhumed from the graves.

According to the charges and previously pronounced verdicts, Serb forces killed about 1,000 Muslims in that warehouse on July 13, 1995.

When the Prosecutor suggested that he neglected evidence about shooting when making his conclusions, Karadzic’s expert said that he did not have the witnesses’ statements, but that it did not change his conclusion about between 400 and 500 shot people and a large number of people killed in battles.

Following Dunjic’s testimony, the Prosecutors began cross-examining Defence’s military expert Dragomir Keserovic. The examination is due to be continued on July 25. Keserovic gave his main statement at the beginning of July.