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 (armed forces), 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 colon ...

of the

Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (JNA/; Macedonian language, Macedonian, Montenegrin language, Montenegrin and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian language, Croatian and ; , J ...

(JNA) in charge of the unit involved in the Battle of Vukovar during the

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...

in 1991. He was convicted for not preventing the mass killing of 264 Croats that followed the

fall of Vukovar The Battle of Vukovar was an 87-day siege of Vukovar in eastern Croatia by the Yugoslav People's Army (JNA), supported by various paramilitary forces from Serbia, between August and November 1991. Before the Croatian War of Independence the Bar ...

, and sentenced to 20 years.

Biography

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

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

in the JNA and later Commander in Chief of the

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

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

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

for a while since many blamed him for the military defeat. At one point he was placed under

house arrest House arrest (also called home confinement, or nowadays electronic monitoring) is a legal measure where a person is required to remain at their residence under supervision, typically as an alternative to imprisonment. The person is confined b ...

, sent into early retirement and ended up selling produce at a green market. 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 offense is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use that concept often use that of an indi ...

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 Crimin ...

and Slavko Dokmanović, by the

International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) was a body of the United Nations that was established to prosecute the war crimes in the Yugoslav Wars, war crimes that had been committed during the Yugoslav Wars and to tr ...

(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 Crimes against humanity are certain serious crimes committed as part of a large-scale attack against civilians. Unlike war crimes, crimes against humanity can be committed during both peace and war and against a state's own nationals as well as ...

: article 5 of the ICTY Statute (

persecution Persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or group by another individual or group. The most common forms are religious persecution, racism, and political persecution, though there is naturally some overlap between these term ...

s on political, racial and religious grounds; extermination;

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse committed with the necessary Intention (criminal law), intention as defined by the law in a specific jurisd ...

;

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons including corporal punishment, punishment, forced confession, extracting a confession, interrogational torture, interrogation for information, or intimid ...

; 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, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

. 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