Cause of Death of Victims Established in Icanovic Trial
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Hasan Icanovic, the former commander of the 505th Knights Brigade of the Fifth Corps of the Bosnian Army, has been charged with crimes against prisoners of war in the Velika Kladusa area in late 1994.
According to the charges, Icanovic killed two prisoners of war and beat other captives with a rifle butt in the area of Latica Glavica in late 1994.
At today’s hearing, forensic expert Zeljko Karan presented his findings on the remains of two of the victims in the case, Huso Kujundzic and Fikret Kovacevic.
“The fragmentation of Kujundzic’s skull was most probably caused by a projectile fired from a firearm, but, considering the fact that no soft tissue was present, the fragmentation could have also been caused by a mechanical blow, i.e. a strong explosion. As far as Kovacevic’s remains (which contain a fragmentation of ribs) are concerned, we can say with great probability that the fragmentation was caused by a projectile fired from a firearm,” Karan said.
Court expert Zoran Obradovic said he confirmed that the remains belonged to Kujundzic and Kovacevic through DNA analysis.
Witness Senad Mahmutovic, who resides in the United States, was unable to attend the trial. The statement he gave during the investigation phase of the case was read aloud instead. In his statement he said that members of a unit of the National Defense of the Western Bosnia Autonomous Region were captured in 1994. The unit’s squad commander, Huso Kujundzic, was killed during their capture.
Safija Kujundzic, Huso Kujundzic’s wife, was examined as an injured party at today’s hearing. She said she would file a property and legal claim after the conclusion of the trial.
The trial will continue on September 8.
