Son of Serbian general says Ratko Mladić was killed in custody in The Hague

Serbian former army commander Ratko Mladić was effectively killed in custody at the Hague Tribunal because of inadequate medical treatment and the deliberate use of powerful drugs, his son Darko Mladić has claimed.

Speaking at a press conference in Belgrade, Darko Mladić said his father’s death resulted from improper treatment and the intentional administration of powerful opiates, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

“The killing of General Mladić at the Hague Tribunal was the result of improper treatment and the deliberate administration of powerful opiates, which ultimately led to his death,” he said.

The body of former Bosnian Serb army commander Ratko Mladic, who led the Army of Republika Srpska during the Yugoslav Wars, was returned to Belgrade on September 2, days after he died while serving a life sentence for war crimes at a United Nations detention facility in The Hague.

A Serbian government plane carrying his coffin, wrapped in a Serbian flag, landed in Belgrade shortly before 6 p.m. local time. Mladic’s son and granddaughter, as well as Serbian Justice Minister Nenad Vujic, were also on board.

Serbian soldiers transferred the coffin to a vehicle that local media said would take it to a military hospital, where an autopsy is expected to be conducted over the weekend.

A commemoration is due to take place on September 5, followed by a funeral at a church in a Belgrade suburb on September 6. Mladic is expected to be buried beside his daughter.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said tens of thousands could attend the funeral, posing a security challenge.

Mladic was convicted of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes linked to the 1992-95 Bosnian war, including the 1995 Srebrenica massacre and the siege of Sarajevo.

His potential state funeral has drawn criticism from European officials. EU enlargement commissioner Marta Kos said: "The glorification of Ratko Mladić as a ​war criminal is against fundamental European ​values and has no place ⁠in the European Union or in the countries that aspire to become members of the Union."

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic warned: "Serbia was ​to organise a ⁠state funeral for Mladic it would close the door to the European Union".

A UN mechanism is investigating the circumstances of Mladic’s death, as is routine when inmates die at the detention unit.

By Aghakazim Guliyev