Belgrade Higher Court acquits former VRS Drina Corps commander of charges for crimes in Srebrenica

(Patria) - The Higher Court in Belgrade has acquitted former VRS Drina Corps commander Milenko Živanović of charges of war crimes against the civilian population in July 1995 in Srebrenica.

By the first-instance verdict, Živanović was acquitted of charges that he ordered the forced relocation of the Bosniak population from the protected zone of Srebrenica, reports Al Jazeera Balkans.

In the explanation of the verdict, the judge stated that Živanović, as commander, issued tasks to the Drina Corps, but that none of those tasks were aimed at the forced displacement of Bosniak civilians, but rather at combat tasks against units of the opposing side in the armed conflict.

In this case, the prosecution had sought a five-year prison sentence for Živanović, which is the legal minimum.

During the court proceedings in Serbia, Milenko Živanović was at liberty.

With the fall of Srebrenica, Serbian military, police and paramilitary formations from the RS and neighboring Serbia committed genocide against the inhabitants of that "UN protected zone".

After occupying the town and its surroundings on July 11, 1995, they killed at least 8,372 people.