Del Ponte optimistic about Mladić arrest

Chief Hague Prosecutor Carla del Ponte says she is "80 percent certain" Mladic will be arrested before the year is out. Beta reported that Del Ponte added Thursday she was "strongly against the Tribunal's decision to release Ramush Haradinaj from pre-trial detention." Del Ponte optimistic about Mladic arrest In an interview carried by the October. 18 issue of Germany's Der Spiegel, Del Ponte added that "only in mid 2006" did she realize that Serbia "never intended to arrest Ratko Mladic." She added that the idea was go get him to surrender, an approach that worked with other war crimes indictees, stressing that a "serious plan to capture Mladic in his Belgrade hideout was put together earlier this year." According to Del Ponte, Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica finally agreed to endorse this plan after considerable coaxing, although military and civilian intelligence are not cooperating as well as they should be. Stressing that Belgrade's goal is EU membership, Del Ponte added that the EU will be out of reach unless Mladic is behind bars. She added she was convinced that Mladic will be in custody before the end of the year, possibly "as early as the next several weeks." Commenting on the Milosevic trial, Del Ponte remarked that the former Serbian president's death "angered her greatly." "It made four years of hard work pointless," said Del Ponte, whose term ends at the end of 2007. Meanwhile, the Serbian Army (VS) is searching military facilities for Hague fugitives as party of its daily activities. The statement was given by sources from the Defense Ministry yesterday after raids in military barracks in Pancevo and Zrenjanin.

Del Ponte optimistic about Mladić arrest

In an interview carried by the October. 18 issue of Germany's Der Spiegel, Del Ponte added that "only in mid 2006" did she realize that Serbia "never intended to arrest Ratko Mladić."

She added that the idea was go get him to surrender, an approach that worked with other war crimes indictees, stressing that a "serious plan to capture Mladić in his Belgrade hideout was put together earlier this year."

According to Del Ponte, Prime Minister Vojislav Koštunica finally agreed to endorse this plan after considerable coaxing, although military and civilian intelligence are not cooperating as well as they should be.

Stressing that Belgrade's goal is EU membership, Del Ponte added that the EU will be out of reach unless Mladić is behind bars.

She added she was convinced that Mladić will be in custody before the end of the year, possibly "as early as the next several weeks."

Commenting on the Milošević trial, Del Ponte remarked that the former Serbian president's death "angered her greatly."

"It made four years of hard work pointless," said Del Ponte, whose term ends at the end of 2007.

Meanwhile, the Serbian Army (VS) is searching military facilities for Hague fugitives as party of its daily activities.

The statement was given by sources from the Defense Ministry yesterday after raids in military barracks in Pančevo and Zrenjanin.