ICTY denies prosecution request to move Bosnian war crimes trial out of The Hague News
ICTY denies prosecution request to move Bosnian war crimes trial out of The Hague

[JURIST] The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) [official website] has denied [order, PDF] a prosecution motion [PDF text] which sought to move the trial of former Bosnian army commander Rasim Delic [ICTY case backgrounder, PDF; Trial Watch profile] out of the international court at The Hague. Prosecutors sought the change [JURIST report] after the court limited the scope of the trial and the number of witnesses prosecutors could call. In its ruling Thursday, the court emphasized its prior consideration of the prosecution's witness list, its belief that the number of witnesses and amount of time allocated are ample for the prosecution to present its case, and its belief that moving the trial now "would not be in the interests of justice". The court also noted that prosecutors could file motions during the trial if it wished to present additional witnesses, or seek additional time to hear evidence. The trial will begin as scheduled [press release] on July 9.

Delic led Bosnia's Muslim army during the 1992-95 Bosnian war [Wikipedia backgrounder], in Sarajevo, and is accused of a number of crimes [amended indictment, PDF; ICTY materials], including murder, rape, and two counts of cruel treatment. He has pleaded not guilty [JURIST report] to the charges. Reuters has more.