Mile Mrkšić ( sr-cyrl, Миле Мркшић; 1 May 1947 – 16 August 2015) was a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

of the

Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska ar ...

(JNA) in charge of the unit involved in the Battle of Vukovar during the Croatian War of Independence in 1991. He was convicted for not preventing the mass killing of 264 Croats that followed the fall of

Vukovar Vukovar () ( sr-Cyrl, Вуковар, hu, Vukovár, german: Wukowar) is a city in Croatia, in the eastern region of Slavonia. It contains Croatia's largest river port, located at the confluence of the Vuka and the Danube. Vukovar is the seat of ...

, and sentenced to 20 years.

Biography

Mrkšić was born in

Kozarac Kozarac ( sr-cyrl, Козарац, ) is a town in north-western Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina, located near the city of Prijedor. It is located west of Banja Luka. Kozarac is also famous because of the Kozara National Park. Kozarac ...

near Vrginmost on 1 May 1947. After the battle of Vukovar, he was promoted to

General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

in the JNA and later Commander in Chief of the

Serbian Army of Krajina The Serbian Army of Krajina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Srpska vojska Krajine, SVK, Српска војска Крајине, СВК) was the armed forces of the Republic of Serbian Krajina (RSK). Also known as the Army of the Republic of Serbian Krajina or ...

(SVK) in May 1995. After the fall of Krajina in August 1995, he was denied entry into

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

for a while since many blamed him for the military defeat. At one point he was placed under house arrest, sent into early retirement and ended up selling produce at a

green market Green market products are previously owned products that have been previously used and put back into productive use. These products are often repaired, refurbished and recycled by brokers, resellers or the original manufacturer. They are suitable ...

. Mrkšić was

indicted An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use the felonies concept often use that of ...

in 1995, along with Miroslav Radić,

Veselin Šljivančanin Veselin Šljivančanin (; born 13 June 1953) is a former Montenegrin Serb officer in the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) who participated in the Battle of Vukovar and was subsequently convicted on a war crimes indictment by the International Crimina ...

and

Slavko Dokmanović Slavko Dokmanović (Serbian Cyrillic: Славко Докмановић; 14 December 1949 – 29 June 1998) was a Croatian Serb who was charged with grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions, violation of the customs of war and crimes against hum ...

, by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY). Dokmanović later committed suicide. Mrkšić voluntarily surrendered to the ICTY on 15 May 2002, and was transferred to the court the same day. The trial against him commenced in October 2005 and ended proceedings in 2007, where he was convicted.

Charges

*Five charges of crimes against humanity: article 5 of the ICTY Statute ( persecutions on political, racial and religious grounds; extermination; murder;

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. definitions of tortur ...

; inhumane acts) *three charges of violations of laws or customs of war: article 3 of the ICTY Statute (murder; torture; inhumane acts). On 27 September 2007, the Trial Chamber found Mrkšić guilty of aiding and abetting the murder of civilians and prisoners of war at Ovčara, aiding and abetting their torture, and aiding and abetting the cruel treatment given there. He was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment. The verdicts caused indignation in Croatia, which had hoped for far more severe sentences. State-run radio called the outcome "shocking", while the Croatian prime minister said the verdicts were "shameful".

Sentence

In August 2012, Mrkšić was sentenced to 20 years in prison to be served in the high security prison of Monsanto,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

. He died three years later on 16 August 2015, aged 68.Mile Mrksic, a Serb Army Officer Convicted of War Crimes, Dies at 68
nytimes.com; accessed 11 March 2016.

References

External links

ICTY Case Sheet - Mrkšić et al. (IT-95-13/1) ''"Vukovar Hospital"''

BBC News Profile on The 'Vukovar Three'

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

, 9 March 2004 {{DEFAULTSORT:Mrksic, Mile 1947 births 2015 deaths People from Gvozd Serbs of Croatia Croatian people imprisoned abroad Croatian Serbs convicted of crimes against humanity Croatian Serbs convicted of war crimes People convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Military personnel of the Croatian War of Independence Military of Serbian Krajina Serbian soldiers Officers of the Yugoslav People's Army Serbian people who died in prison custody Prisoners who died in Portuguese detention