Hague tribunal reduces Sljivancanin’s sentence

The UN war crimes tribunal Wednesday (December 8th) cut the sentence of Veselin Sljivancanin, a former senior officer in the Yugoslav People’s Army (JNA), from 17 to ten years in prison. He was found guilty of aiding and abetting the torture of Croatian prisoners of war in Vukovar in 1991. In May 2009, the tribunal’s Appeals Chamber more than tripled his initial sentence. This time around marks the first time the tribunal has reviewed a second instance verdict. The court’s decision followed a new witness statement by a former JNA officer.

In other news Wednesday, the tribunal announced it has approved former Kosovo Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj’s request for temporary release, filed for family reasons. He will be permitted to remain in Pristina from December 17th to January 14th.