THE HAGUE (Islamweb & News Agencies) - Former Bosnian erb general Radislav Krstic was jailed on Thursday for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre of thousands of Muslim men and boys -- the first person convicted of genocide by the Hague war crimes court.Krstic, 53, was sentenced to 46 years in prison -- the court's harshest penalty yet -- for the grisly mass executions of Muslims fleeing the U.N. safe area in eastern Bosnia in Europe's worst atrocity since World War Two. (Read photo caption below).
Almost 8,000 Muslims were slaughtered after Srebrenica fell in July 1995 to Serb forces, of which Krstic was a commander.
``In July 1995, General Krstic, you agreed to evil,'' presiding Judge Almiro Rodrigues told the defendant, who lost a leg in a mine explosion and was allowed to sit for the verdict.
``Knowing that the women, children and old people of Srebrenica had been transferred, you are guilty of having agreed to the plan to conduct mass executions of all the men of fighting age.
``You are therefore guilty of genocide, General Krstic.''
In Sarajevo, Muslim women who lost relatives in the massacre wept as they watched a live broadcast of Krstic's sentencing and said the tribunal should have given him the maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Krstic had denied eight counts -- two of genocide, five of crimes against humanity and one of violations of the laws or customs of war. His lawyer said he would appeal.
Defense counsel had disputed that the intent existed to wipe out a population group, as the United Nations defines genocide. It argued that Krstic committed no crime personally and could not be held responsible as a superior either.
Up to 15,000 Muslim men and boys tried to flee the Serb forces, but many were captured and killed. Many of the men who stayed were separated from women and children and bussed away to be shot. Others were decapitated on the spot.
``This sets an important legal precedent because it is the first time an international court has ruled that genocide was committed in Bosnia, and specifically in Srebrenica,'' tribunal spokesman Jim Landale told Reuters.
PHOTO CAPTION:
Bosnian Serb former general Radislav Krstic accused of genocide for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, enters the courtroom on crutches, flanked by a UN security officer in the Hague August 2, 2001. Krstic was found guilty of genocide for the murder of thousands of Muslims in the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, Europe's worst atrocity since World War Two. (Ed Oudenaarden/Reuters)