Stanislav Galić (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet ( sr, / , ) is a variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language, updated in 1818 by Serbian linguist Vuk Karadžić. It is one of the two alphabets used to write standard modern Serbian, th ...

: Станислав Галић; born 12 March 1943) is a

Bosnian Serb The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sr-Cyrl, Срби у Босни и Херцеговини, Srbi u Bosni i Hercegovini) are one of the three constitutive nations (state-forming nations) of the country, predominantly residing in the politi ...

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

and former

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps of the

Army of Republika Srpska The Army of Republika Srpska ( sr, Војска Републике Српске/Vojska Republike Srpske; ВРС/VRS), commonly referred to in English as the Bosnian Serb Army, was the military of Republika Srpska (RS), the self-proclaimed Serb ...

(VRS) during the

War in Bosnia and Herzegovina The Bosnian War ( sh, Rat u Bosni i Hercegovini / Рат у Босни и Херцеговини) was an international armed conflict that took place in Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina between 1992 and 1995. The war ...

. He was convicted of Terror as a

Crime against humanity Crimes against humanity are widespread or systemic acts committed by or on behalf of a ''de facto'' authority, usually a state, that grossly violate human rights. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity do not have to take place within the ...

, and

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

as violations of the laws and customs of War, for his part in the

Siege of Sarajevo The Siege of Sarajevo ( sh, Opsada Sarajeva) was a prolonged blockade of Sarajevo, the capital of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the Bosnian War. After it was initially besieged by the forces of the Yugoslav ...

Background

Galić was born in the hamlet of Goleš, in the municipality of

Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city of Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is also the ''de facto'' capital of this entity. I ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

. Prior to the beginning of the war he was an officer in the

Yugoslav National 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 ...

. On 7 September 1992 he became the commander of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps (''Sarajevsko-romanijski korpus''), the unit of the VRS which besieged

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...

, the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Galić remained commander of the SRK until 10 August 1994 which is when he was replaced by

Dragomir Milošević Dragomir Milošević (Serbian Cyrillic: Драгомир Милошевић; born 4 February 1942) is a former Bosnian Serb commander of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps (SRK) of the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS) which besieged Sarajevo for three years ...

War crimes

In 1998 the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia indicted Galić on the basis of individual responsibility on charges of murder, inhumane acts other than murder,

crimes against humanity Crimes against humanity are widespread or systemic acts committed by or on behalf of a ''de facto'' authority, usually a state, that grossly violate human rights. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity do not have to take place within the ...

, unlawfully inflicting terror upon civilians, attacks on civilians and violations of the laws and customs of war. The indictment was sealed until Galić was arrested by the British SAS on 20 December 1999. On 5 December 2003, his trial ended in a conviction and a 20-year sentence for the shelling and sniping of

. Galić appealed the judgement. On 30 November 2006, his appeal was rejected and the appeals chamber extended his sentence from 20 years to

life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...

. He was taken to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

to serve his sentence.

References

1943 births Living people People from Banja Luka People convicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina convicted of war crimes Bosnia and Herzegovina prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Serbian prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by international courts and tribunals Siege of Sarajevo Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina convicted of crimes against humanity Officers of the Yugoslav People's Army Army of Republika Srpska soldiers {{serbia-bio-stub