Eurasia Press & News
A prosecution witness in the trial of wartime Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic described on Tuesday before the United Nations War Crimes Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia how he survived the killing of 1,000 Muslims in eastern town of Srebrenica in July 1995.
Protected witness listed as KDZZ-045 said he was among some twelve to fifteen thousand Muslims when Bosnian Serb forces under Karadzic’s command overran the UN protected enclave.
About one third of Muslims were armed and tried to fight their way out of Srebrenica, but he surrendered when Serb soldiers said the prisoners would be exchanged, the witness said.
But a day later the prisoners were taken to a village of Petkovci, near Srebrenica, where they were placed in a local school. At night they were taken out in groups and killed at a nearby filed, the witness said.
Karadzic challenged the witness’ being present at the killings, saying there were many contradictions in his testimony. Asked by Karadzic how long the killings lasted, the witness replied he would be “ashamed of asking that question” because of 1,000 people killed in Petkovci.
