Bosnian Serb Surrenders, Faces Srebrenica Charges

A Bosnian Serb army officer surrendered to a U.N. war crimes tribunal Wednesday to face charges of murder and persecution of Muslims while serving near the eastern town of Srebrenica in 1995.

Lt. Col. Dragan Jokic turned himself in at the court’s office in the Bosnian town of Banja Luka and was flown to the Netherlands, where he has been accused of four counts of crimes against humanity and violations of the laws and customs of war during Bosnia-Herzegovina’s 3 1/2-year war.

Jim Landale, a spokesman for the U.N. Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, said Jokic stands accused of extermination and murder based on ethnic or religious grounds. A warrant for Jokic’s arrest was issued secretly after his indictment was confirmed by a judge May 30.

Prosecutors allege that Jokic was chief engineer of the Zvornik Brigade near Srebrenica when a massacre occurred.

Jokic’s surrender came after the arrest Friday of another Bosnian Serb officer, Col. Vidoje Blagojevic, who has been charged with genocide.

Jokic and Blagojevic served in the 15,000-strong Drina Corps under Bosnian Serb Gen. Radislav Krstic, who was convicted of genocide and sentenced this month.

More than 7,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys were executed after the Bosnian Serb army overran the U.N.-supervised “safe area” of Srebrenica in July 1995.