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ICTY Receives Footage of Alleged War Crimes By Croatian, Bosnian Forces2006-08-08BBC Monitoring EuropeanExcerpt from report in English by Croatian news agency HINA Zagreb, 8 August: The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) has received video recordings made in the summer of 1995 that allegedly show war crimes committed by Croatian and Muslim forces after Storm Operation, spokesman for the UN tribunal Anton Nikiforov said on Tuesday [8 August]. The footage was sent to the tribunal by Serbian deputy state prosecutor for war crimes Dragoljub Stankovic. The Hague tribunal's investigating mandate has expired and it can no longer launch new investigations, Nikiforov said, adding that the tribunal would be happy to assist Croatian and Bosnian prosecutors. Nikiforov said he had not seen the recordings, adding that according to those who had seen the footage, it is clear who were the victims and who were the perpetrators. He stressed The Hague expected Croatian and Bosnian authorities to launch a joint investigation, adding that the ICTY would help. According to him the recordings show faces of the people present, adding that these people could be witnesses in the investigation. ICTY Chief Prosecutor Carla Del Ponte is on vacation, but investigators, lawyer and the deputy chief prosecutor are here, Nikiforov said. Following the video-recording broadcast by the B92 TV station from Belgrade and TVBN from Bijeljina last Friday, showing the people involved in the killing of Serb refugees fleeing Croatia after Operation Storm on 7 and 8 August 1995, Serbian President Boris Tadic said on Monday he expected Croatia and Bosnia to investigate the case. The Croatian State Prosecutor's Office said in a statement on Monday it had received a video recording of war crimes allegedly committed in Dvor na Uni, during Operation Storm, adding that it had requested of the Interior Ministry to carry out a criminal investigation. After reviewing the recordings, the Croatian State Prosecutor's Office position is that there was founded suspicion that unknown members of the Army of Bosnia-Hercegovina in the said region had committed war crimes against civilians and prisoners of war which is why the Croatian State Prosecutor's Office is in contact with the Bosnian Prosecutor's Office, the statement said. [Passage omitted] The independent Belgrade B92 television and Bosnia's TVBN last Friday simultaneously aired the said amateur video-recording which the two TV stations say shows members of the "Hamze" unit of the Army of Bosnia-Hercegovina and the Croatian Army unit "Black Mambas" killing captured Serb civilians and soldiers. (c) 2006 BBC Monitoring European. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.
Channel: USHMM: International Law
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