Croatia fights 'war crime' extradition

Bobetko (r) ran the army for much of the Croatian war

Croatia says it will challenge the indictment of a former army chief, General Janko Bobetko, by the International War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague.

The government said it had asked the tribunal to allow it to lodge a formal complaint against Mr Bobetko's indictment on crimes against humanity for his alleged role in the killing of ethnic Serbs in Croatia in 1993.

Bobetko 'did not punish' killers

The announcement came after a vote by the Croatian parliament to support a legal challenge.

The Croatian authorities have refused to arrest the 83-year-old general, saying the move would be unconstitutional.

The nationalist opposition in parliament has demanded that Croatia freeze co-operation with the tribunal, and has threatened civil disobedience.

Polls suggest that 80% of Croats oppose the extradition of the general, who is regarded as a war hero.

But President Stipe Mesic has said his country has an obligation to co-operate fully with the tribunal.

Correspondents say the reformist government risks a political backlash at home by handing over the general.

'Unlawful killing'

General Bobetko, who was the Croatian army chief of staff for most of Croatia's 1991-1995 war against Serb separatists, has said he would rather die than stand in the dock on war crimes charges.

The indictment blames the general for the "unlawful killing of at least 100 Serb civilians and captured or wounded soldiers" during and after a 1993 military action in a Serb-dominated enclave known as the Medak pocket.

Prosecutors say he knew his troops were killing Serbs and failed to prevent or punish the crime.

Prime Minister Ivan Racan has referred the indictment to the country's constitutional court, which could take weeks or months to make a judgement.

Co-operation plea

His government has said the indictment incriminates a legitimate military action to liberate an area occupied by Serb rebels.

Correspondents say that, if all else fails, the government is likely to plead that the general's poor health makes it impossible for him to travel to The Hague.

Mr Racan warned, however, that the country's international standing had already suffered some negative effects as a result of its stance, with worse to come.

He stressed Croatia wanted to solve the issue in "cooperation with The Hague (court) and the international community".

General Bobetko is the highest-ranking Croat, and the oldest person to be indicted by the Hague tribunal.

The tribunal has told Croatia it is obliged to arrest and hand over the general and dismissed the challenge to the indictment as "absolutely ridiculous".

Under the late President Franjo Tudjman, Croatia came close to international sanctions for failing to hand over a dozen Bosnian Croat indictees in 1997.

The country's new leadership has up to now had a reputation as a frontrunner in the region for its readiness to co-operate with the tribunal.