Jevic et al: Prosecution Demands 115 Years for Genocide

Prosecutor Ibro Bulic recommended sentencing the first defendant Dusko Jevic to 35 years of prison, Mendeljev Djuric to 30 years, and Goran Markovic and Nedjo Ikonic to 25 years respectively.

“The defendants were important links in the chain of command concerning the extermination of the Bosniak population. They did not sit in offices, they were in the field and they actively participated in the bloodshed,” said Bulic.

He said that the prosecution has proven that in July 1995 the four defendants took part in the forced expulsion of Bosniaks from the territory of Srebrenica and the murders of over 1,000 men in Kravica.

“Genocide is more than mere numbers. It is the extermination of a people. The defendants were aware that their actions were contributing to genocide,” said the prosecutor.

Bulic added that the defendants believe that they did nothing wrong.

“Denial means there is no remorse. For them, the murders were justified then, just as they are now. According to their defence, the crimes were legitimate, because others initiated them and they would not have happened had others not initiated them,” said Bulic.

Jevic is charged as a commander of the Jahorina Training Centre of the Special Police Brigade of Republika Srpska, Djuric and Ikonic as company commanders, and Markovic as a platoon commander.

“The murders were planned and systematic. Members of the Jahorina unit were in Kravica for two days, and they could have acted only with the knowledge and under the supervision of the defendants,” said Bulić.

The next hearing is scheduled for March 29, when the defence will present its closing arguments.