UN tribunal reverses decision to move Lukic case

AMSTERDAM, July 11 (Reuters) A Bosnian Serb man accused of war crimes while leading a paramilitary group known as the ''Avengers'' or ''White Eagles'' will be tried by a UN court after a decision to refer the case to a Bosnian court was over ruled.

Today an appeals chamber of the UN war crimes tribunal reversed a decision by the tribunal to put the case of Milan Lukic under Bosnian jurisdiction because the charges he faces over his role in 1992-1995 conflict were so serious.

''In light of the notorious role played by paramilitary organisations and their leaders during the conflict in the former Yugoslavia ... the Appeals Chamber considers that the Appellant's case should be retained by the Tribunal.'' The appeals chamber said that Lukic ''will be perhaps the most significant paramilitary leader tried by the Tribunal to date''.

Lukic, who was on the run for almost seven years, is accused of murdering at least 100 Bosnian Muslims in and around Visegrad, in south-eastern Bosnia, His co-accused cousin, Sredoje Lukic, was a member of the unit, according to the tribunal.

Sredoje Lukic did not appeal the earlier decision to move the trial, but the appeals chamber said the referral bench should reconsider the decision regarding him as it was more appropriate to hear both cases together.

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