War crimes suspect Karadzic handed over to Hague tribunal

Radovan Karadzic, a onetime psychiatrist who led his Bosnian Serb people through a brutal ethnic war, was extradited early today to the international tribunal in The Hague, where he will stand trial on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

A fugitive for more than a decade, Karadzic has been in a Serbian jail since his arrest, which was announced July 21.

He had been living a secret life in Belgrade as a New Age-style healer, disguised in a bushy white beard and openly dispensing advice to a new community of followers.

Karadzic was president of the self-declared Bosnian Serb Republic during Bosnia-Herzegovina’s 1992-95 war and is accused of orchestrating a campaign of mass murder aimed at repressing Bosnian Muslims.

In an extensive indictment from the war crimes tribunal, he is accused of overseeing the 1995 massacre of more than 7,000 Muslim men and boys in the besieged enclave of Srebrenica -- the largest atrocity in post-World War II Europe -- and of staging a 43-month siege of Sarajevo, Bosnia’s capital.

Karadzic also faces charges of extermination, murder, deportation, inhumane acts and other crimes against Muslim, Croat and other non-Serb Bosnian civilians.

The extradition followed violent protests Tuesday in Belgrade by Serbian nationalists and involved an elaborate ruse.

Under cover of darkness, a convoy of sport utility vehicles sped from the courthouse where Karadzic was being held and headed toward Belgrade’s airport about 3:45 a.m. today.

But the convoy was a decoy.

As journalists pursued it, Karadzic emerged a few minutes later in a dark-colored BMW, sitting in the back seat between two agents wearing ski masks.

He was driven to the airport, handed over to tribunal officials and bundled onto a chartered jet to be flown to The Hague, where he will be arraigned within days.

Serbian authorities were awaiting an appeal by Karadzic’s attorney but say none arrived. Justice Minister Snezana Malovic signed the final extradition order after a local court found that all legal requirements had been met.

The new Western-leaning government of President Boris Tadic is braced for more violent reaction.

In the demonstrations late Tuesday, nationalists bused to Belgrade from all over the country marched through the capital’s streets and chanted slogans against the government and in defense of Karadzic, a hero to many Serbs.

Some protesters clashed with police, who fired tear gas. Nearly 50 people were injured, half of them police officers.

“This government is kneeling in front of its foreign masters,” said one of Karadzic’s legal advisors, Kosta Cavoski, a law professor at Belgrade University. “They are not just kneeling, they decided to arrest the biggest Serb hero, Radovan Karadzic.”

Meanwhile, a Serbian television station, B-92, aired an old documentary Tuesday night showing Karadzic being interviewed about the slaughter at Srebrenica.

A reporter says, “Srebrenica should be an example of. . . .” and Karadzic interrupts to say, “It should be an example of efficiency by the Serb army, an example of Serbian generosity.”

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wilkinson@latimes.com

Special correspondent Cirjakovic reported from Belgrade and Times staff writer Wilkinson from Rome.