Bosnian Serb's genocide conviction overturned

HE HAGUE, May 9 (Reuters) Judges at the UN war crimes tribunal today overturned the conviction of a former Bosnian Serb army commander for complicity in genocide over the Srebrenica massacre, cutting his sentence to 15 years from 18.

Vidoje Blagojevic had helped with the transfer of Bosnian Muslims from the UN's so-called safe area of Srebrenica in eastern Bosnia in 1995.

But judges said without knowledge of the mass killings, Blagojevic's awareness of the transfer and other details was not enough to prove he knew of the principal perpetrators' genocidal intent beyond reasonable doubt.

Around 8,000 Muslim men and boys were slaughtered after Srebrenica fell to Serb forces in July 1995. The killings became one of the most notorious episodes of the 1992-95 Bosnian war.

Blagojevic had appealed against his 2005 convictions for complicity in genocide and of aiding and abetting murder, persecutions and inhumane acts.

Judges dismissed the majority of his grounds of appeal, including a request for a new trial because Blagojevic had not been allowed to change his defence counsel, Michael Karnavas. They ordered him to serve a 15-year sentence.

After the judgement was read out an angry, gaunt-looking Blagojevic shouted: ''This is outrageous. You are protecting Karnavas' criminal conduct in this courtroom.'' His co-accused Dragan Jokic unsuccessfully appealed his conviction for aiding and abetting murder, persecutions and extermination, for sending men and machinery to execution and burial sites in and around Srebrenica.

Judges upheld his 9-year sentence.

NO MAJOR ROLE At the intial trial, judges said the two men had not played a major role in the commission of crimes.

Fugitive Bosnian Serb wartime leader Radovan Karadzic and his military commander, Ratko Mladic, are wanted by the tribunal on genocide charges arising from the Srebrenica massacre as well as the siege of the Bosnian capital Sarajevo.

Prosecutors have struggled so far to prove genocidal intent in the conflicts that tore apart the former Yugoslavia. The tribunal has convicted only one person of genocide, for the Srebrenica massacre and only for aiding and abetting the crime.

The tribunal sentenced senior Bosnian Serb commander Radislav Krstic to 46 years in jail for genocide in a landmark verdict in 2001. But his sentence was cut to 35 years on appeal and his conviction cut to one of aiding and abetting genocide.

The appeals ruling on Blagojevic will come as a further blow to Bosnian Muslims after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) cleared Serbia of committing genocide in Bosnia, denying Bosnia the change to claim billions of dollars in damages.

Blagojevic and Jokic were part of a group of four jointly indicted for the Srebrenica killings, Europe's worst massacre since World War Two.

Blagojevic was a commander of the Bosnian Serb army's 1st Bratunac Light Infantry Brigade. Jokic was Chief of Engineering in the Zvornik Brigade.

The two other defendants in the case had reached plea agreements with prosecutors. Dragan Obrenovic received a 17-year prison sentence and Momir Nikolic a 27-year sentence in 2003 after pleading guilty to persecution.

REUTERS SKB ND1744