Bosniak Commander Naser Oric ‘Bragged About Murder’
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Prosecution witness Ibran Mustafic testified at the state court in Sarajevo on Tuesday that Oric told him in Srebrenica in 1993 that he was involved in the wartime killing of one of his alleged victims, Slobodan Ilic.
“He said that he killed Ilic,” said Mustafic.
“He said that he saw him in a group of prisoners and that he hit him in the eye. Because Ilic did not make a sound after the blow, Oric was frightened and killed him,” he added.
Mustafic said that his brother, who was killed in July 1995, was also present during the conversation which took place in May 1993.
Oric’s defence tried to dispute the witness’s testimony, quoting statements to the media in which Mustafic said that he would only testify against Oric if “the indictment has 100 pages”.
Mustafic confirmed that he said this and added that he only planned to testify against Oric if the indictment had 200 pages.
Oric and former Bosnian Army soldier Sabahudin Muhic are charged with killing three Serb captives, including Ilic, in the villages of Zalazje, Lolici and Kunjarac in 1992.
According to the charges, Oric was the commander of Bosnian Army territorial defence units in Srebrenica and Muhic a member of his forces.
Mustafic testified that he first heard about Ilic and four other Serbs being killed near Srebrenica while he was in Tuzla in 1992.
He also said that he detailed this in a book he wrote, and told Oric’s lawyer Lejla Covic to stop using the word “allegedly” while posing questions, saying it “offended his intelligence”.
At last Tuesday’s hearing, doctors found that Mustafic was able to give evidence in court, after his original testimony on June 28 was stopped as he was behaving inappropriately and interrupting the judge.
Over 100 people attended Tuesday’s hearing in the high-profile trial.
The former Srebrenica commander’s prosecution has drawn criticism from Bosniaks who see Oric as a hero for his defence of Srebrenica in 1992 and from Serbs who claim the charges are too lenient.
The trial will continue on November 1.
