The Dogs of War in Foca

Testifying at Ratko Mladic’s trial, Defence witness Dragan Milanovic says that “dogs of war from Serbia and Montenegro”, who were not “under anybody’s command”, used to pillage and burn Muslim houses in Foca in the spring of 1992.

Milanovic said that “revenge” against Muslims happened at that time due to Serb victims.

“Some houses were burnt in Foca town. The first houses, which were burnt in the town on April 11, were owned by Serbs. Between ten and 12 Serb houses… Later on, Muslims houses were burnt as well,” the witness said, adding that this was done by individual groups with the aim of “hiding the traces” of robberies.  

He mentioned that both he and his father were robbed, despite the fact that they were Serbs.

Milanovic, who, as he said, was Commander of “a self-formed squad” of the Territorial Defence at that time, said that Muslims had left Foca even before the breakout of the conflict in the town “due to the propaganda of about 5,000 members of ‘White Eagles’, who were allegedly on their way to the town”.  

When asked by presiding judge Alphons Orie if he knew anything about prisoners in the Penal and Correctional Facility in Foca, where, according to the charges against general Mladic, grave crimes were committed against Muslims, Milanovic said that he “had absolutely nothing to do with the prison”.  

Contrary to the witness’ allegation that, following the initial conflicts in Foca, Muslims continued leading “normal lives…just like Serbs”, Prosecutor Camille Bibles said that Serb forces subjected the Muslim population to ethnic cleansing in order to create “a clean Serbian Foca”.

“I disagree with you… Both Muslims and Serbs had left the town even before that. Neither of them simply felt safe. In my opinion, there was no intention to create a clear ethnic community in Foca,” Milanovic said.

The Prosecutor presented the witness with a statement given by Miroslav Stanic, President of the Crisis Committee in Foca, who said that there were “99 percent of Serbs” in Foca, which was also written in a wartime diary of general Mladic, on September 17, 1992.  

“Stanic said that, but it is not known to me,” Milanovic commented, describing Stanic as “a Bohemian, who liked to brag.”

The indictment charges Mladic, former Commander of the Republika Srpska Army, with the persecution of Muslims and Croats throughout BiH, which reached the scale of genocide in Foca municipality.
 
Next witness Milan Vujicic will testify about the happenings in Foca at the hearing scheduled for tomorrow, July 17.

Mladic is also charged with genocide in Srebrenica, terror against the local population in Sarajevo by long-lasting shelling and sniping, and taking UNPROFOR members hostage.