Ratko Mladic, the former Bosnian Serb general widely known as the “Butcher of Bosnia,” has died at age 84 while serving a life sentence for genocide and crimes against humanity, according to Serbian state media.
He passed away in a U.N. detention facility hospital following years of declining health and recent strokes.
Atrocities of the Bosnian conflict
During the 1992-1995 war, Mladic led military forces in brutal campaigns against non-Serbs. During the conflict, he commanded his troops to “scorch the brain” of civilians.
His forces carried out the 1995 Srebrenica massacre executing 8,000 Muslim men and boys. Before the killings, video captures him telling a local boy, “We give this town to the Serb people as a gift,” pretending to offer safety.
Capture and Hague life sentence
Mladic evaded authorities for 16 years after the war ended. Serbian security forces finally captured him in 2011, hiding in a small village.
In 2017, the United Nations war crimes court in The Hague convicted him of genocide terrorizing Sarajevo and war crimes sentencing him to life behind bars.
Defiance and final days
Throughout his long trial, Mladic remained defiant and showed no remorse. He rejected the court’s authority, once declaring, “Fate put me in a position to defend my country” against foreign powers.
Recent requests by his family to release him early on medical grounds were rejected just days before his death keeping him imprisoned until the end.
