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Did Daughter's Death Drive Mladic Crazy?

Also: Tribunal denies bid to avoid extradition

By John Johnson,  Newser Staff

Posted May 31, 2011 9:40 AM CDT

(Newser) – No surprise here: A tribunal in Serbia had little sympathy for Ratko Mladic's reported ill health and denied his bid to avoid extradition to the Hague to face war crimes charges. He could be on a plane within hours, reports the BBC. Earlier today, officials allowed Mladic to visit his daughter's grave, and the New York Times and Newsweek provide a fascinating peek at how her death in 1994 is rumored to have changed Mladic for the worse.

According to official Serbian accounts, Ana Mladic committed suicide with her father's military pistol. One popular version has it that she caught wind of atrocities in the Balkans and could not deal with it. Mladic, meanwhile, maintains she was murdered. "Some people think he went mad," a former commander tells Newsweek's Janine di Giovanni. “Mladic’s life had two phases—before and after the death of Ana." About a year after her death, the Srebrenica massacre in which he stands accused took place.

This photo taken around the date of his arrest on Thursday, May 26, shows Ratko Mladic.
This photo taken around the date of his arrest on Thursday, May 26, shows Ratko Mladic.   (AP Photo/Politika Newspaper)
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COMMENTS
Showing 2 of 2 comments
TheVEG
May 31, 2011 10:44 AM CDT
Kind of looks like a defense team already looking to justify his actions for an insanity plea. 
Dave99
May 31, 2011 9:52 AM CDT
The theme of "Hecuba" is that you are good in direct proportion to the degree that you are weak. If you go off the deep end when you lose a loved one that is proof of your virtue. Thats doesn't mean that your mental destruction will prevent you from doing horrible things.

More Newser Stories

As Trial Begins, Mladic Taunts Survivors

West's Stalling Made Mladic's Slaughter Worse

How Mladic Finally Got Caught

Mladic to Be Extradited to Hague

Ruthless Ratko Mladic Nicknamed Himself 'God'


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