Sentenced to 40 years in prison: Karadžić received half a million dollars for appeal preparation

The Mechanism for International Criminal Tribunals has allocated $508,797 for the preparation of Radovan Karadžić's appeal against the first-instance verdict for genocide and war crimes against humanity, reports the news agency Patria.

Karadžić's lawyer Peter Robinson admitted that the amount is larger than that provided for by the Tribunal's rules, justifying it by the complexity of the case. Karadžić was convicted of four counts of criminal conspiracy.

"There are a large number of grounds for appeal. The process we are undertaking is unique in that it focuses on legal issues, not factual findings," Karadžić's legal team explained in their request for funds exceeding the usual amount.

With the allocated money, the defense will hire two additional legal advisors, a lawyer, and a military expert who will provide an opinion on the shelling of Sarajevo, one of the crimes for which Karadžić was found guilty in the first-instance verdict, writes Birn.

In March of this year, Karadžić was found guilty of genocide against Bosniaks in Srebrenica in 1995, terrorizing the population of Sarajevo, persecution of Bosniaks and Croats throughout the country, and taking UN forces members hostage. He was acquitted of charges of genocide in seven municipalities of Bosnia and Herzegovina during 1992. He was sentenced to 40 years in prison.