Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadžić receives life in prison!

The United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals in The Hague, increased the prison sentence for wartime leader of Bosnian Serbs Radovan Karadžić to life in prison.

The appeals chamber found Radovan Karadžić guilty of genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina, judging that a 40 year sentence, which he received in the first instance ruling, is an inadequate punishment.

The ruling announced on Wednesday states that the appeals chamber confirmed conclusions from the first instance ruling regarding Karadžić’s responsibility for ethnic cleansing of Muslims and Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina, for genocide in Srebrenica, for years of terrorizing Sarajevo and for taking members of the UN hostage, as well as Karadžić’s participation in four joint criminal enterprises within the framework of which these crimes were committed.

The ruling against Karadžić came two years after he was found guilty before the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and sentenced to 40 years in prison.

The final ruling was read by the appeals chamber, presided by Danish judge Vagn Prusse Joensen and consisting of members William Hussin Sekule from Tanzania, Jose Ricardo de Prada Solaesa from Spain, Graciela Susana Gatti Santana from Uruguay and Ivo Nelson de Caries Batista Rosa from Portugal.

Source: HRT