Ratko Mladic: Hague tribunal ‘will get proof of former Serb general’s ill health’

• Lawyer says suspected war criminal had lymph node cancer • Mladic could try to implicate Dutch in Srebrenica massacre Ratko Mladic, the former commander of the Bosnian Serb army, is due to appear in front of an international court at The Hague at 10am on Friday to answer 11 charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, amid questions over his health. His arraignment in court 1 of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague gives the families of thousands of his army’s victims their first clear look at a man who went on the run 16 years ago when he was first indicted for his alleged role in ethnic cleansing in Bosnia from 1992 to 1995: including the siege of Sarajevo, the Srebrenica massacre and the hostage-taking of UN personnel. Mladic’s long-awaited appearance in front of three judges – from the Netherlands, Germany and South Africa – promises an insight into his health problems, which are concerning prosecutors. His lawyer, Milos Saljic, on Thursday claimed to have documents proving that the former general, now 69, had suffered lymph node cancer and was treated at a Serbian hospital in 2009. Previously he had said that Mladic could die before the trial; there had also been unconfirmed reports that Mladic had had two strokes. Court officials said that since Mladic’s entry into custody on Tuesday night, following his extradition from Serbia that day, he had been communicative for long periods and co-operative. He had undergone a battery of health tests to sort fact from rumour, officials said. When faced with the charges Mladic could re-state his position that he does not respect the legitimacy of the court; he could enter a plea immediately or within 30 days, or he could refuse to respond to the charges and the court would then

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