Serbia Tries Bosnian Ex-Soldier for Crimes Against Prisoners
This post is also available in: Bosnian
Viši sud u Beogradu. Izvor: BIRN
The trial of former soldier Osman Osmanovic opened at Belgrade Higher Court on Monday with the defendant pleading not guilty to charges of abusing civilians and prisoners of war held at the Rasadnik camp in Gornji Rahic in Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Brcko area during the summer of 1992.
Osmanovic’s lawyer Djordje Dozet told BIRN that his client “spoke very extensively about the allegations in the indictment” and that he denied that any crime had been committed.
The indictment claims that Osmanovic was a member of the Croatian Defence Council, and later of the Bosnian Army.
Osmanovic, a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, was arrested in November 2019 on the border between Serbia and Bosnia and remanded custody. Bosnia asked for his extradition but Serbia refused.
His other lawyer, Mirsad Crnovrsanin, argued last year that that there was no basis for the Serbian War Crimes Prosecution to be in charge of conducting an investigation into Osmanovic, as he is a Bosnian citizen, allegedly committed the crime in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the only witness and victim also lives in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“The crime under investigation in Serbia is the same as the one investigated in Bosnia, so all conditions for referring the case against Osman Osmanovic [to Bosnia] have been met,” Crnovrsanin said.
The trial continues on July 1.
