Page 12448
1 Monday, 8 March 2010
2 [Open session]
3 [The accused entered court]
4 --- Upon commencing at 2.17 p.m.
5 JUDGE PARKER: Good afternoon.
6 While the witness is being brought in, I'd mention that on Friday
7 just before we finished it was moved by the Defence for the admission of
8 an overview of recorded criminal offences. The Chamber has come to the
9 view that it should receive only those passages that dealt with offences
10 that the witness was able to speak about. They were each in turn put to
11 the witness in the course of the hearing. We will receive each of those
12 as an exhibit. We will not receive any other part of the overview on the
13 basis of the present evidence. Because this is in total but a very small
14 part of the whole document, the Chamber would direct that the Defence
15 prepare a document which includes only those summaries that were put to
16 the witness. Once it's checked with the Prosecution, the Chamber will
17 then treat that as the exhibit. That ought to be done in the course of
18 this week I would imagine.
19 There are two other procedural motions. From the 22nd of
20 February, the Prosecution sought leave to upload a missing page of
21 Exhibit P1029. It was the Blue Book of the OSCE. The Chamber would
22 authorise that missing page to be uploaded and form part of the present
23 exhibit. On the same day, the Prosecution indicated that it had received
24 an official translation of the document marked for identification as
25 P1532. The Chamber will grant leave for that to be uploaded into
Page 12449
1 e-court. When that is done, the document presently marked MFI P1532
2 should become an exhibit.
3 [The witness entered court]
4 JUDGE PARKER: Good afternoon.
5 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Good afternoon.
6 JUDGE PARKER: Will you please read aloud the affirmation shown
7 to you now.
8 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] I solemnly declare that I will
9 speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
10 JUDGE PARKER: Thank you. Please sit down.
11 Mr. Popovic has some questions for you.
12 Mr. Popovic.
13 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honours.
14 WITNESS: BRANKO MLADENOVIC
15 [Witness answered through interpreter]
16 Examination by Mr. Popovic:
17 Q. [Interpretation] Good afternoon, Mr. Mladenovic.
18 A. Good afternoon.
19 Q. Mr. Mladenovic, before I start asking questions of you, I will
20 ask you that after you hear the question I asked, wait for a moment
21 before you start answering because we both speak the same language. We
22 will thus enable the interpreters to do their work properly, and I will
23 also ask you to speak slowly so that they may be able to correctly
24 interpret what you are going to say.
25 Please start by stating your full name.
Page 12450
1 A. My name is Branko Mladenovic.
2 Q. Thank you. When were you born and where?
3 A. I was born on the 22nd of August, 1968 at Urosevac.
4 Q. Mr. Mladenovic, were you a member of the Ministry of the
5 Interior, or are you still staff of that ministry?
6 A. Yes, I was a member of the Ministry of the Interior of the
7 Republic of Serbia
8 Q. Thank you. Could you please explain briefly your duties in the
9 Ministry of the Interior during your career so far.
10 A. After graduating from the secondary school of the Ministry of the
11 Interior at Vucitrn, I worked as a police officer at the Prizren police
12 station. After that, in 1989 I was sent to Urosevac where I was also a
13 police officer at the police station. For a while I was a chief of
14 sector at the Urosevac police station. For a brief period I was the
15 assistant shift commander, and after that the shift commander of the duty
16 service of the SUP
17 the criminal police combatting drug addiction and drug smuggling. And
18 from 1996 through 1998 I worked as the assistant commander of the police
19 station of Urosevac.
20 Since the 1st of June, 1998, and until the end of 1999 I was
21 commander of the Stimlje police station. After the Kosovo police
22 secretariats were relocated to the Republic of Serbia
23 territory of the Smederevo police administration. In 2001 I was deputy
24 company commander of the Belgrade
25 Belgrade
Page 12451
1 and sexual offences at the Smederevo police administration. From 2006,
2 so -- sorry, yes -- well, from 2006 till now I have worked as chief of
3 the department for foreigner -- for foreigners for the combatting of
4 human smuggling and smuggling in general in Smederevo, which work I still
5 do today.
6 Q. All right, Mr. Mladenovic, during my examination I will focus
7 mostly on 1998 and 1999. You have already said what you said at that
8 time. So speaking about the Stimlje police station, can you tell us
9 which territory was covered by your police station, that is, from the 1st
10 of June, 1998, when you were appointed commander of the Stimlje police
11 station?
12 A. At that time the Stimlje police station covered the territory of
13 the Stimlje municipality, including the surrounding villages, Muzicane,
14 Vojnovci, Davidovci, Rasince, Gornje and Donje Godance, then the village
15 of Petrovic, Petrastica, Duga, Karacica, and Zborce, the village of
16 Crnoljevo, Rance, Racak, Malo Poljce, and Petrovo.
17 Q. Thank you. What were your powers when you were commander of the
18 Stimlje police station?
19 A. As commander of the Stimlje police station, I had the competences
20 as laid out by the Law on Internal Affairs, namely to protect the lives
21 and security of persons and their property, the prevention and clearing
22 up of criminal offences, identifying and finding the perpetrators of
23 criminal offences. Activities had to do with traffic control, the
24 protection of public law and order, securing certain persons and
25 facilities, public rallies and gatherings, as well as certain
Page 12452
1 administrative business with regard to citizenship, personal IDs, travel
2 documents, driving licences, and the registration of motor vehicles.
3 Q. Thank you. Who was your immediate superior in 1998 and 1999?
4 Speaking of these two years, I'm always referring to the period starting
5 with the day when you were appointed commander of the police station in
6 Stimlje.
7 A. In 1998 and 1999 my immediate superior was the chief of the
8 department of the police, Mr. Radomir Mitic, and the chief of the SUP of
9 Urosevac, Bogoljub Janicevic.
10 Q. Were these persons the ones from whom you received commands and
11 orders and instructions while you were commander of the police station?
12 A. Let me try and clarify this. Every -- all the tasks that I have
13 listed are part of my legal obligation. So each police officer,
14 including myself as a commander, was duty-bound to adhere by the law and
15 act in accordance with the rules, the rule book about the carrying out of
16 our jobs and tasks. Certain instructions and orders certainly came in
17 from my immediate superior, the chief of the department of the police,
18 Radomir Mitic, and the chief of the SUP
19 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. Speaking about the Stimlje police
20 station and the years 1998 and 1999, can you try to explain to us what
21 the security situation in the territory covered by your police station
22 was in 1998 and immediately before the NATO forces started bombing?
23 A. In 1998 the political situation that previously was very bad in
24 the territory covered by the Stimlje police station, that is, the
25 municipality of Stimlje, was very bad and problematic mostly because in
Page 12453
1 early 1998 there was a huge escalation of terrorism, certain terrorist
2 groups that sprung up in that period received support in the surrounding
3 villages which were in a hilly area covered with forests which made
4 police control difficult. And speaking about Petrastica, Zborce, Duga
5 and Karacica. Then the village of Crnoljevo
6 and Petrovo. In those villages, the Albanian terrorists in 1998
7 established their staffs, and later they forced the civilian population
8 to take up arms, dig trenches and fortifications, that they would use to
9 attack the police and the state bodies of the Republic of Serbia
10 this very bad situation the police station couldn't protect the civilian
11 population and help them because every -- our attempt to go to those
12 villages resulted in an attack on my patrols by the Albanian terrorists.
13 In that period a certain number of police officers was killed,
14 and in early, or rather, in June 1998 the Pristina-Prizren highway
15 through Crnoljevo, the Crnoljevo canyon, was completely blocked. That
16 is, the Albanian terrorists gained control over that road. And they
17 kidnapped several dozen citizens of Serb ethnicity and some individuals
18 of other ethnicity who did not support their activity and their fight.
19 Q. Thank you.
20 A. Just a moment, please. I do apologise, but if I can, I would
21 like to finish. I keep following this.
22 Q. Please go on.
23 A. This situation made it necessary to do the following. These
24 villages where the terrorists had organised themselves, and those are the
25 villages I mentioned a few moments ago, Albanian civilians started moving
Page 12454
1 out of these villages and sought refuge in Stimlje, Urosevac, Lipljan,
2 Pristina. They were under the control of the police. After that, a
3 police action followed by the police staff for combatting terrorism from
4 Pristina. So these strongholds were crushed and up until the 12th of
5 June, 1999
6 population never actually returned to these villages.
7 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. I'm sure we'll discuss this in
8 greater detail during your testimony today. I would be interested in the
9 following. Could you please explain to us the role of communication that
10 you mentioned -- actually, the road between Pristina and Prizren. What
11 was the importance of that road in general. And did that road go through
12 the town of Stimlje
13 A. This road was very important. It linked the capital of Kosovo,
14 Pristina, with Metohija, Prizren-Pec-Djakovica, and it went through
15 Stimlje, Crnoljevo, that Crnoljevo gorge through Dulje to Suva Reka and
16 Prizren. It was important because that was the only road there. There
17 was an alternative road, but that was much longer via Urosevac,
18 Brezovica, Prevalce, all the way to Prizren. This road was very
19 important. It is a road which is like an artery for the life of the
20 civilian population of Kosovo and Metohija.
21 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. I'm just going to ask you, for the
22 purpose of the transcript, when you spoke about this situation over the
23 past few minutes, did you speak about the security situation in the
24 territory of the police station of Stimlje?
25 A. Yes, yes. I spoke of how difficult the situation was in the
Page 12455
1 territory of the police station of Stimlje because Stimlje as a
2 municipality borders with Drenica, where the major stronghold of the
3 Albanian terrorists was. The forests around these villages were
4 convenient for the Albanian terrorists. They hid in those forests and
5 they used the civilian population as a human shield. They exercised
6 violence against them. The state organs and the police station of
7 Stimlje were called upon to protect the civilian population.
8 Q. Page 5, line 23, says that you'd spoke about the political
9 situation, but it was actually the security situation.
10 Mr. Mladenovic, I would like to show you some documents, and I
11 would like to hear your comments. With the permission of the Court yet
12 again we are going to use a binder that we prepared for this witness.
13 Every time when I call up a certain document on the screen, I'm going to
14 tell you what number that is in your binder.
15 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honours.
16 Now I would like us to look at P357.
17 Q. That's number 1 in your binder, Mr. Mladenovic. These are rules
18 about the internal organisation of the Ministry of the Interior, the 31st
19 of December, 1987 is the date. I would be interested in Article 4,
20 paragraph 31. It's page 8 in the B/C/S version, and I think it is
21 something similar in English or perhaps it's page 6 in English.
22 Could we just wait for a moment to see the document on our
23 screens. It's not the right page in English. I need Article 4.31. It's
24 two pages before the page that we see now in English. And in B/C/S, yes,
25 it's the right page. Yes.
Page 12456
1 While we're waiting for that page to appear -- yes, yes, this is
2 the right page in English as well.
3 Mr. Mladenovic, are you familiar with this document?
4 A. Yes, I am. And it speaks of the internal organisation of the
5 Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Serbia
6 1987 in Article 4 it says --
7 Q. Yes, Article 4, please let us look at 31.
8 A. Yes, 31. It says that Urosevac was established as a secretariat
9 for the area of the municipality of Urosevac
10 Strpce. In 31 it is the SUP
11 Kacanik.
12 Q. Yes. It says in Urosevac a department of the interior of the
13 municipality of Kacanik
14 Stimlje and Strpce.
15 A. That's right.
16 Q. Thank you. So that is that Article 4. It actually defines the
17 internal organisation of the secretariat in Urosevac.
18 A. These rules also define the work and responsibilities of the
19 police station of Stimlje, or rather, police stations in general, thereby
20 Stimlje as well.
21 Q. Since we're discussing this, could you please look at Article 48.
22 It should be page 36 in the English or try 39.
23 A. Article 48 defines the role of the police stations, which is the
24 following. Police stations shall ensure the safety of citizens and their
25 property on the territory of the municipality for which they have been
Page 12457
1 established and perform any other internal affairs related tasks on that
2 territory within their sphere of activity. They shall directly perform
3 tasks in the prevention and detection of crimes, the discovery and
4 apprehension of the perpetrators of crimes and their transfer into the
5 custody of the competent organs --
6 Q. Mr. Mladenovic, we don't need to read the entire paragraph
7 because we have it here before us in writing. Could we just hear your
8 brief comment. Were these actually the responsibilities that you had and
9 the work that you carried out at the Stimlje police station?
10 A. Yes. This was the work and duties conducted by the police
11 station in Stimlje, the so-called regular work and duties of the police
12 station.
13 Q. Could you please look at the last sentence in this article that
14 says:
15 "Police stations may include departments as well ..."
16 Did you have police departments within your police station?
17 A. We did not, but in the period of 1998 after the agreement reached
18 between Milosevic and Holbrooke a temporary branch police station was
19 established in the village of Crnoljevo
20 between Pristina and Stimlje and then moving on to Crnoljevo, Suva Reka,
21 and Prizren.
22 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. Tell me, the work and duties you
23 conducted at your police station, did they fall under the regular police
24 work and duties of the public security of the Ministry of the Interior?
25 A. Yes, only that. The police station in Stimlje carried out only
Page 12458
1 that work for which it was organised and that they were supposed to carry
2 out on the basis of these rules and the law. There was no other work
3 that was carried out by the policemen of the police station in Stimlje.
4 This was regular police work, stemming from these laws and regulations.
5 Q. In order to be more specific within your answer, the police
6 station in Stimlje, or rather, the members of that police station, were
7 you ever involved in carrying out special security-related police work in
8 the territory of Kosovo
9 A. No. It was the staff and the special police units that were in
10 charge of that. We were not involved in such tasks.
11 Q. Thank you. We'll discuss this in greater detail as well, so I
12 don't want to dwell on it longer now. I would be interested in the
13 following. Would you please explain to me what the ethnic structure was
14 of the members of your police station.
15 A. It was mixed. There were ethnic Albanians, Serbs, and Roma.
16 Q. Can you give us the names of some of the members of your police
17 station who were ethnic Albanians?
18 A. [No interpretation] --
19 THE INTERPRETER: Interpreter's note: Could the witness start
20 again. We did not hear the beginning.
21 THE WITNESS: [Interpretation] Luri, Nazmi, Hysen, I cannot
22 remember any more.
23 THE INTERPRETER: Interpreter's note: Not all names have been
24 recorded.
25 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation]
Page 12459
1 Q. Thank you. Mr. Mladenovic, very briefly in relation to this
2 topic, tell me, did Albanian pupils attend the state school in Stimlje;
3 and if so, what is your source for this information?
4 A. In Stimlje, in addition to the police station of Stimlje, there
5 was an elementary school. A large number of children attended that
6 school from Stimlje itself and from the surrounding villages. The school
7 worked all the way up until the beginning of the bombing on the 24th of
8 March, 1999
9 Q. Thank you. Tell me, members of the Albanian national minority,
10 did they work in state institutions and state enterprises in the
11 territory of Stimlje? Again, I'm asking you about your very own direct
12 knowledge.
13 A. Albanians worked in state organs and organisations. Truth to
14 tell, their numbers were somewhat smaller than in the 1990s. However,
15 they had the same kind of jobs that the Serbs had. After what happened
16 in 1998 and 1999, some of them received threats from Albanian terrorists.
17 So in that period a number of them left their jobs in our state organs.
18 Q. Thank you. How many policemen worked at your police station?
19 A. 140. That was the total number including the active and reserve
20 police force.
21 Q. And how was work organised within your police station?
22 A. In the police station all this work that we mentioned a moment
23 ago were carried out through patrols and through a sector-based type of
24 work. That is how all our work was carried out.
25 Q. Thank you. You mentioned a few moments ago when you referred to
Page 12460
1 the number of policemen in Stimlje, you mentioned active and reserve
2 policemen. Did you have reserve policemen on your -- in your police
3 station?
4 A. Yes. In the Stimlje police station we had members of the reserve
5 police force as well. There were 70 of them, about 70, and 68 were
6 active-duty policemen. That was their exact number.
7 Q. Thank you. Can you tell me on the basis of whose orders members
8 of the reserve force were engaged within your police station?
9 A. All members of the reserve police force can be engaged only on
10 orders from the minister. In my police station of Stimlje, they were
11 engaged in that way too, the reservists, that is.
12 Q. Thank you. But since we're talking about the number of
13 reservists who are needed within the police station of Stimlje, how does
14 one actually decide what that number will be, and do you play any role in
15 that?
16 A. I think that this is regulated by some rules, but I believe that
17 the ratio is one to one, that there can be one reserve police officer per
18 active police officer so that it's roughly a one-to-one ratio.
19 Q. Is there an interdependence, or rather, does the number of the --
20 did the strength of the reserve police depend on the security situation
21 in the territory covered by police station?
22 A. Yes. Depending on the security situation and security-related
23 problems, we filed an application for a certain number of reserve police
24 officers to be called up. We forwarded that application to the
25 department of the police and the SUP
Page 12461
1 assessments, I suppose that they asked the minister for approval; and
2 having received it, they decided to call up a number of reserve police
3 officers. It all went through the department of the police where there
4 was an officer in charge of the reserve police. Everything we spoke
5 about goes through the department of the police and the officer in charge
6 of the reserve police force. As a police station we could only relay the
7 security-related problems and ask for approval to use reserve police
8 forces to carry out our security-related tasks.
9 Q. When you speak about the security-related tasks, what kind of
10 tasks exactly are we talking about?
11 A. I'm always referring to our regular tasks and our regular work,
12 which our -- for which we are responsible under the law. I can enumerate
13 them.
14 Q. Now, that will not be necessary. Was there a special way of
15 organising the personnel to go about their regular work and duties, given
16 the fact that the reserve police were also used?
17 A. The reserve police could not carry out any tasks independently.
18 They did so with active police officers. The patrol leader was always an
19 active police officer who only was assisted by a reserve police officer,
20 and it was the active police officer who was responsible for their work.
21 Reserve police officers were only used as assistants to the active police
22 officers.
23 Q. Thank you. Do you know what reserve branch police stations were
24 and what was their organisation?
25 A. Reserve branch police stations are a familiar notion. They
Page 12462
1 existed in 1998 and 1999. We were unable to defend all the villages that
2 were threatened by the Albanian terrorists, and therefore, some reserve
3 police officers who hailed from those villages organised village guards
4 for their homes and villages. They were armed. That was their role.
5 And this went on until they were engaged as reserve forces of either the
6 military or the police. Until that time they guarded their villages and
7 homes. Among them, there were also armed Albanians and armed Serbs too.
8 This part of the work also went via the department of the police and the
9 officer in charge of these aspects, namely, the reserve personnel and
10 reserve branch police stations. They had radio stations and were able to
11 submit information regularly, report to us, so that we could come there
12 fast to help them if necessary. At Muzicane, Rasince, Gornje Godance and
13 Donje Godance, at Petrovic, and perhaps at other villages too, there were
14 such organisations.
15 Q. Thank you. But let us be more precise for the sake of the
16 transcript. My question and your answer do not refer to reserve police
17 stations but reserve police departments?
18 A. Yes, that is correct. They did not have bases of their own, they
19 didn't have facilities. They were locals who were simply at their homes
20 and guarded their homes. They were self organised. They were self
21 organised to protect their homes and villages, and the villages I listed,
22 Muzicane, Rasince, Gornje Godance, Donje Godance, and Petrovic had such
23 village guards, so in the day-time and in the night-time too police
24 patrols would call on them and thus we provided protection to those
25 villages.
Page 12463
1 Q. Tell me, the people who were members of reserve police
2 departments, did they have their war time duties, and what would have
3 happened if they -- or what would happen if they received calls to
4 report?
5 A. Yes, they all had served in the army earlier and had their war
6 time duties. So they belonged to either the police or the army as
7 reserve forces. And if they should be called up under their war time
8 duties, they were obliged to proceed in accordance with that.
9 Q. Thank you. Could you please explain to me, you mentioned that
10 the Albanian population was also armed when we were speaking about the
11 reserve police departments. Can you clarify, and could you provide
12 examples, who were these people?
13 A. They were civilians who lived in those villages. They were loyal
14 and hard-working citizens. They were afraid for their families. And
15 since they were reserve police officers or reserve soldiers, they were
16 armed as all other members of the reserve forces of either the police or
17 the army. I now cannot remember everybody's names, but I remember the
18 families Qeremi and Olluri, they were all of them practically involved.
19 I didn't have the list nor did I keep a register. It was kept by the
20 department of the police, the officer who was in charge there for the
21 reserve forces and these reserve police departments.
22 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic.
23 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Could we now please see document
24 P257.
25 Q. It's number 2 in your binder, sir. Let me ask you some general
Page 12464
1 questions. Did you have members of special police forces in your police
2 station?
3 A. Yes. There were 11 uniformed police officers who were members of
4 a special police unit.
5 Q. Thank you. To which company did these police officers from the
6 Stimlje police station belong?
7 A. I'm not sure, but I believe that they were members of the 6th
8 Company of the 24th Intervention Brigade, that's the Urosevac company.
9 They were staff of that Urosevac company, and the company itself was part
10 of the 124th Intervention Brigade.
11 Q. Before we continue with the 124th Intervention Brigade, let me
12 ask you whether you during your police career were ever a member of a
13 special police unit?
14 A. Yes, I was in 1993 and 1994.
15 Q. As members of this special police forces, did you ever take part
16 in any special assignments in 1993 and 1994; if so, which?
17 A. Yes. I was a member of a special unit that would task -- that
18 was tasked with breaking up the demonstrations in Belgrade. I believe
19 that I was involved in such activities two times.
20 Q. Thank you. Do you remember when you were breaking up the
21 demonstrations in Belgrade
22 there from Urosevac?
23 A. I cannot remember precisely because it was a long time ago, but I
24 believe that there was a staff that commanded these special units. The
25 staff was in Belgrade
Page 12465
1 Q. It isn't really necessary for you to remember the commander's
2 name. It was quite some time ago. But these units, I mean the PJPs,
3 were they used in all of Serbia
4 A. Yes, they were established for the entire Republic of Serbia
5 they had the task of taking action in territories where the security
6 situation demanded that. But this was directly controlled by the
7 minister, so I don't to go into that.
8 Q. Yes, we'll see a document about that. Before that, tell me about
9 these PJPs, were they regular police units, or were they established
10 according to need?
11 A. No. The PJPs are not regular police units. They are deployed
12 depending on need.
13 Q. Thank you. As far as you know, in 1996, 1997, 1998, or 1999 were
14 they used in the territory of the Republic of Serbia
15 were the reasons for their use?
16 A. I cannot remember precisely where they were used, but in 1996 I
17 think that they were used to provide security to certain personalities,
18 on the occasion of demonstrations in Belgrade or Novi Sad
19 And in 1998 and 1999 they were also used to combat terrorist activities,
20 that is, in terrorism enforcement.
21 Q. Thank you. Please now take a look at the exhibit that you have
22 in front of you. This is a decision on the establishment of the 124th
23 [Realtime transcript read in error "144th"] Intervention Brigade. Were
24 the members of the PJPs from your police station part of the
25 establishment of this brigade?
Page 12466
1 A. I think it doesn't say here, but they were members of the 6th
2 Company of the 124th Brigade -- this brigade.
3 Q. I can see a mistake in the transcript. So the question was about
4 the 124th intervention brigade of the PJP.
5 Mr. Mladenovic, when they were not engaged as members of the
6 PJPs, what were the tasks of those staff of your police station who were
7 also members of the PJPs?
8 A. When they were not engaged in their capacity of PJP members, they
9 worked or they carried out their regular duties and tasks of their
10 respective police stations. They had different tasks. Those from my
11 police station were shift commanders, chiefs of sections, or regular
12 police officers.
13 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. Tell me, we speak directly about the
14 PJP members from the Stimlje police station. How did you call them up,
15 based on whose orders, and where did you send them, referring to the PJP
16 members from your police station?
17 A. I never received a written order for their engagement. That went
18 through the SUP
19 Mostly it went like this: The chief of the department of the police, my
20 immediate superior, informed me mostly over the phone. He would say when
21 the members of the PJPs shall be prepared and inspected, and relocated to
22 the respective PJP unit for subsequent tasks. Once we transferred them
23 there, they carried out their respective assignments as commanded by
24 their superiors. I mean the superiors from the PJP.
25 Q. What was the name of the commanding officer of that company of
Page 12467
1 the PJP that included officers from your police station?
2 A. The commander was Milan Lecic.
3 Q. Thank you. When you receive orders from the department of the
4 police, yes, department of the police, what were you duty-bound -- what
5 was your duty with regard to the preparation of the members of the PJP?
6 A. My only duty was of a logistic nature. We should -- we were
7 supposed to call them up, to inspect them with regard to their equipment
8 and weapons, and transport them to the place they were supposed to report
9 to carry out subsequent tasks. No more.
10 Q. Thank you. From the moment when members of the PJPs from your
11 police station were sent in this way, what is their relationship towards
12 you after that, in your capacity as commander of the Stimlje police
13 station?
14 A. From the moment when they are engaged in the special unit, when
15 they report to the special unit, to the PJP, they had nothing more to do
16 with me and our police station. From that moment onwards, I was no
17 longer their superior officer, and I did not receive any reports about
18 their further engagement or could I put any questions in that respect.
19 Everything that had to do with discipline, criminal responsibility,
20 et cetera, was transferred to the chief of SUP. I would receive
21 information about that, though, because in accordance with the
22 instructions on how to keep police station records, we kept a book of
23 responsibility of our employees at the police station. That is why I
24 could just receive information to the effect that, say, disciplinary
25 proceedings were initiated against a member of the police station or for
Page 12468
1 a minor infraction. Nothing that had to do with their specific tasks.
2 Q. My direct question will be whether you received any information
3 in relation to anti-terrorist actions or operations that were carried out
4 by members of the PJPs from your police station?
5 A. No. I did not receive such reports or were they duty-bound to
6 report to me about their actions and operations.
7 Q. Mr. Mladenovic, as you explained to us already, after you'd send
8 these members of the PJPs would you submit any further reports to the
9 police administration department?
10 A. No. Since I received these orders orally, after sending the
11 members of the PJPs from my police station further on, I only informed my
12 superior over the telephone. At that time it was Radomir Mitic.
13 Q. Very briefly, what is it that you informed him about?
14 A. In the briefest possible terms, that in accordance with his order
15 members of the police were sent, as instructed, with equipment and arms
16 to Urosevac. That is where they gathered most of the time and then they
17 were engaged there. That would be it, that the task was accomplished as
18 it had been set.
19 Q. Thank you. Bearing in mind what you just told us just now, who
20 commanded the forces of the PJPs in the territory of Kosovo
21 A. In the territory of Kosovo
22 staff for combatting terrorism of the MUP of the Republic of Serbia
23 headquartered in Pristina.
24 Q. Where do you get that knowledge, Mr. Mladenovic?
25 A. From the collegium from the chief of SUP, Bogoljub Janicevic. We
Page 12469
1 had regular collegium meetings there, and I regularly attended them on
2 Mondays, sometimes even two or three times a week depending on the
3 security situation and the problems that we had to resolve. At one of
4 these meetings the chief informed us that the minister established a
5 staff in Pristina to combat terrorism and that the commander of this
6 staff was Major-General, as he was at the time, Sreten Lukic. And that
7 that staff directly answered to the minister for all activities. They
8 are subordinated to the minister, and the minister has direct control
9 over the most important security problem that existed in that period of
10 time in Kosovo. Also, all police units are subordinated to that staff,
11 the staff for combatting terrorism in Kosovo and Metohija in Pristina.
12 Q. Mr. Mladenovic, did you tour your PJPs once they left, as you
13 explained to us?
14 A. No. I was not duty-bound to tour these units, and I did not do
15 so. As a matter of fact, we were strictly prohibited from interfering in
16 their work. That is to say that from the moment when they were engaged
17 in a PJP, they -- we had no further obligation in relation to them.
18 Q. Thank you. Did you ever receive any tasks that were -- that
19 would involve special security tasks? I'm referring to you and your
20 police station and I'm not referring to the members of the PJPs.
21 A. We never received such tasks. Our only task was to carry out
22 those tasks that were prescribed by law. I referred to them a moment
23 ago, and if necessary I'll go through it again. Our only duty was to do
24 that. As a matter of fact, there was even an order to the effect that by
25 no means should any persons who are not members of the PJPs be involved
Page 12470
1 in tasks carried out by the PJPs and that we should not expose to further
2 dangers our policemen who were not trained for carrying out such police
3 work. That is to say that our only duty was to carry out the work
4 specified in our rules.
5 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] D131, please.
6 Q. It's number 3 in your binder.
7 [Trial Chamber and Registrar confer]
8 JUDGE PARKER: This document is under seal I am told,
9 Mr. Popovic.
10 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] I assume that they are right. This
11 is a document that was admitted into evidence when a protected witness
12 was testifying. Therefore, I would suggest --
13 JUDGE PARKER: It should not be displayed outside the courtroom
14 then.
15 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] I would then kindly ask that we
16 move into private session so that we can have a look at this document.
17 JUDGE PARKER: It should be able to be displayed within the
18 courtroom, and I can see there are no people in a close position able to
19 view the screens. So we will proceed on that basis.
20 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you.
21 Q. Mr. Mladenovic, I'm now going to ask you to have a look at this
22 Official Note dated the 28th of September, 1998. Could you please tell
23 us briefly what this is all about. Could we hear your comments. Since
24 this document is under seal, would you kindly not make any comments in
25 relation to the actual names you will see in this document.
Page 12471
1 A. This document is an Official Note. It is a standard document
2 that would be sent by a policeman who had carried out an official duty on
3 the basis of the authority he had. It says here that a certain number of
4 persons were brought in to custody at the police station in Stimlje, a
5 certain number of persons were brought in. And these same persons were
6 handed over to the crime police department of the Urosevac SUP. This had
7 to be done whenever citizens would be brought in so that there would be
8 records of that at the police station, that the persons were brought in
9 and what happened to them afterwards. One copy accompanies the persons
10 there -- mentioned therein, in this case SUP of Urosevac, for taking
11 further action. These were probably persons who were linked to
12 terrorists.
13 Q. Thank you. I'm now going to ask you to read to yourself, not
14 aloud, please. Who compiled this Official Note and tell me yes or no as
15 to whether you know this person, and we'll go into detail in closed
16 session.
17 A. I know the person. This is a policeman from my police station.
18 At that time, the police station in Stimlje.
19 Q. Thank you.
20 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Can we now look at P1041.
21 Q. It's number 4 in your binder.
22 A. This is a document --
23 Q. Actually, just a moment. I'm going to put some questions to you
24 in this regard. The date is the 21st of October, 1998. The Ministry of
25 the Interior, the staff of the ministry. What staff is referred to in
Page 12472
1 the heading of this document, Mr. Mladenovic, do you know?
2 A. That is the staff that was established in Pristina, the staff for
3 combatting terrorism. I assume that that's that staff, the one from
4 Pristina, because that's the only staff that was there.
5 Q. Thank you. In the first paragraph it is stated that in order to
6 consistently implement tasks arising from the agreement on the OSCE
7 mission in Kosovo and Metohija, it is necessary to undertake the
8 following ..."
9 Are you aware of the existence of this mission; and if so, can
10 you tell us something about that in greater detail?
11 A. Of course I'm aware of the agreement. We called it the
12 Milosevic-Holbrooke Agreement. That agreement allowed verifiers from the
13 OSCE mission to verify everything that happened in Kosovo at the time.
14 On the basis of this agreement verifiers were deployed throughout the
15 territory of Kosovo. In the municipality of Stimlje
16 were nine of them, including their commander, Tommy Olofsson [phoen] from
17 Sweden
18 this agreement, I could give you my further comments.
19 Q. Let's deal with it slowly. First of all, are you familiar with
20 this dispatch, and did you see it at the time when it was sent?
21 A. Yes, I am familiar with it. All of us, all the secretariats,
22 received it, all the police stations too because it had to do with what
23 we were supposed to do.
24 Q. Thank you. Could you please look at (a) now, paragraphs 1, 2,
25 and 3, it's on the first page. Please read it to yourself, and could we
Page 12473
1 just hear your brief comment. What is it that this dispatch envisaged?
2 A. As you can see, in this document members of the mission enjoyed
3 diplomatic immunity, and they are allowed to move about and stay in the
4 territory, and it is our duty to provide them all assistance in carrying
5 out the tasks entrusted to them on the basis of the agreement. This also
6 spells out in specific terms what the obligations of police stations are.
7 At the request of members of the mission, they are duty-bound to give
8 them all information that they seek. Also, they say what the level is
9 because they were organised according to the same hierarchy as we were.
10 They had their commander, deputy commander, et cetera. So contact was
11 supposed to take place, as was the case in our country, commander with
12 commander, deputy commander with the deputy commander, and so on. If the
13 ranking officer is not there, then the next person in the chain was
14 duty-bound to communicate with them and to give them all necessary
15 information. On page 2 --
16 Q. Thank you. Let us move on to page 2 of this document. So (b),
17 reporting and information. What is this all about and what kind of
18 reports did you send?
19 A. This is a continuation of the same document, and it has to do
20 with the obligations of the organisation -- organisational unit, police
21 station in my particular case. In terms of reporting and informing about
22 provocations, attacks, movements, et cetera, we in the police station did
23 not have such movements, so not everything pertained to us, but this was
24 written for the entire secretariat. Then also there is a part that deals
25 with resubordination, that they were being resubordinated as spelled out
Page 12474
1 in this document.
2 Q. Thank you. Number 2, police actions carried out.
3 A. This did not pertain to the Stimlje police station. I'm saying
4 that this is a dispatch, a circulatory dispatch that was sent to all
5 secretariats. So everyone reported from the point of view of their own
6 province of work, the police station of Stimlje was not engaged in such
7 actions and therefore did not report about any actions.
8 Q. Thank you, but let us be precise. When you say "to all
9 secretariats," do you mean --
10 A. I mean all secretariats in Kosovo and Metohija, seven in all,
11 Mitrovica, Pristina, Pec, Prizren, Urosevac, Gnjilane, and Djakovica.
12 Q. Thank you. Mr. Mladenovic, let me ask you whether you know that
13 the road from Prizren through Suva Reka to Pristina was part of the
14 agreement and providing security to that road was foreseen by the
15 Clark-Naumann Agreement, as it was called. And this road was specially
16 mentioned as a road to be controlled by the security forces of Serbia
17 A. Yes, I know that. I was informed about that at one of the
18 regular meetings that we had with the chief of the secretariat of the SUP
19 at Urosevac. I never saw the details of that agreement. But at the
20 meeting we were told that under that agreement the highway was to be
21 controlled by the police forces. That is, there was a temporary police
22 squad to protect that road and some military forces were also to stay
23 there to protect it. I believe that was made clear in the agreement, and
24 the strength of those units was also determined.
25 Q. As you haven't seen that agreement, I will not show it to you
Page 12475
1 now, but you knew that the units of the VJ were involved in the
2 protection of that communication?
3 A. Yes.
4 Q. And providing security to that road by the police, did it involve
5 your police station in -- for part of that road, and how did you go about
6 it?
7 A. We had monitoring posts from Stimlje through Belince, Crnoljevo,
8 along the road in the hills above the road, not on the road itself, and
9 all the way to Dulje through the Crnoljevo canyon. Since this is a long
10 stretch of road and the police station didn't have enough staff to carry
11 out the task, it was decided at the level of the Urosevac SUP and
12 probably at a higher level too, it -- that the SUP of Urosevac establish
13 a company that will consist of active and reserve police officers and
14 that was at the level of the entire SUP
15 station, Stimlje, Strpce, Kacanik, and Urosevac shall provide one platoon
16 each, one platoon of police which will make up a company. That company
17 will deploy from Stimlje until Sumareva Kucica just outside Crnoljevo,
18 whereas the Gnjilane company, which was also composed of reserve and
19 active police officers, was deployed from Sumarevo Kucica all the way to
20 Dulje, but not on the road itself but in the hills above it. Mostly we
21 took possessions of the trenches that had been dug by the Albanian
22 terrorists in -- when they wanted to block that road. Our units were at
23 observation posts to provide security to that road. That was the only
24 task of these temporary police squads, and certainly there was traffic
25 police that controlled the entire highway.
Page 12476
1 Q. Thank you, but when you were speaking about providing security
2 and observation posts that were there, were you referring to regular
3 police duties that were part of the public security sector?
4 A. Yes. These were regular duties, and they were carried out by
5 regular units. They were not members of PJPs nor were they involved in
6 any combat operations. Their only task was to be deployed at the
7 locations laid out in the agreement and the monitors verified that
8 together with us and they were present until just before the bombing.
9 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic.
10 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Your Honours, Exhibit D136 was also
11 admitted under seal. It's a document dated the 6th of November, 1998
12 believe the situation is the same as with the previous document. It
13 contains some brief information, or rather, I would like to ask some
14 brief questions to elicit information about its contents. But as it's
15 almost time for the break, I don't know whether We should do that now or
16 later.
17 JUDGE PARKER: We will have the break. We will resume at a
18 quarter past 4.00. At that time the document can be displayed in the
19 court and not outside of the court.
20 --- Recess taken at 3.44 p.m.
21 --- On resuming at 4.17 p.m.
22 JUDGE PARKER: Mr. Popovic.
23 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honour.
24 Could we please have D132. It was under seal, hence I would
25 kindly ask that it only be broadcast within the courtroom.
Page 12477
1 Q. Mr. Mladenovic, that is your tab 6. It is dated the 6th of
2 November, 1998
3 in connection with organising of terrorists in the village of Racak
4 Could you please read out the document for yourself and comment on it.
5 Can you tell us whether you had information of this nature about Racak.
6 A. "On 6 November 1998
7 information that on the right side along the stretch of the road leading
8 from the village of Petrovo
9 terrorists were digging trenches and constructing bunkers and that they
10 were felling lots of trees for the construction of the bunkers."
11 This is an operational document submitted by a member of the
12 police station in Stimlje. This was an illustration of the events from
13 that time. In that period, November 1998, Albanian terrorists in the
14 villages erected fortifications and bunkers which they used to attack and
15 offer resistance to the state authorities. They attacked civilians and
16 all those trying to use the nearby roads. This is not the only
17 operational document which we received. It is one out of many that were
18 drafted by the policemen at the time.
19 Q. Thank you. To support that I would kindly ask to have D133
20 displayed. According to the information I have, this document was not
21 under seal.
22 It is your tab 7. It is dated 18 November 1998. Please look at
23 the first paragraph. You don't have to read it out loud, only to
24 yourself, and please offer your comment. In particular, can you tell us
25 whether this tallies with the information you had about Racak at that
Page 12478
1 time.
2 A. This document was drafted by the SUP in Urosevac and sent to the
3 MUP staff for the autonomous province of Kosovo and Metohija and
4 Pristina. Its contents speak of the villages around Racak as well as the
5 villages around Stimlje, out of which civilians were moving out for
6 reasons of fear.
7 Q. Please focus on the second sentence in the first paragraph, which
8 says:
9 "... KLA had come to Racak village and ordered the locals to
10 leave the village because greater numbers of them wanted to move into
11 it."
12 A. That is correct. They ordered the same thing in each and every
13 village where they planned to set up their strongholds. Civilians, of
14 course, fled such areas, foreseeing clashes between the KLA and the
15 police.
16 Q. Thank you.
17 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Could we next please have 65 ter
18 document 1187 from the Defence list, which is D008-5625. That is the
19 document.
20 Q. Mr. Mladenovic, it is your tab 8. We see that this is a
21 statement on the 22nd of November, 1998. This is the date of the
22 statement. Please look at the second paragraph. Read it and comment on
23 it briefly. But before that, just have a look at who the authorised
24 officials are at the bottom of the document, Jasovic and Sparavalo.
25 A. This statement was taken from -- should I mention the name or
Page 12479
1 not?
2 Q. You may do so.
3 A. Mustafa Metush. He is from Racak, the municipality of Stimlje
4 The statement was taken in the crime police department. The two people
5 mentioned, Mr. Jasovic and Sparavalo were two crime inspectors in the
6 Urosevac SUP
7 Qerqiz, held a meeting in the mosque. He requested that the locals
8 provide funds, 200 German marks each, which were to be used to buy
9 weapons. They used the same system in many villages. They would gather
10 assets and use such monies to buy weapons. Each inhabitant of the
11 villages had to also participate in the digging of trenches and erecting
12 bunkers for their needs. Whoever lacked funds had to provide them with
13 oil, flour, or foodstuffs. There were also individuals who had
14 machinery, such as tractors and diggers, which they had to use to dig
15 trenches and roads for the use of the KLA. There is a path or a road
16 between Rance and Jezerce which was made by KLA members with the
17 assistance of locals. There was much discussion about this because
18 people were already going through lots of hardship, and yet they had to
19 dedicate certain funds for their needs. Whoever disobeyed, things
20 happened to him.
21 Q. Please look at the penultimate paragraph. Read it to yourself
22 again and comment, please. Did you have such information at the time?
23 A. This is correct, I suppose, because many houses at that time had
24 been abandoned by the locals who were fearful of clashes between the
25 terrorists and police. Such empty houses, which were not under the
Page 12480
1 protection of the police station because they couldn't be due to their
2 location, became criminal targets. Such houses were looted by people
3 from that or nearby villages. That is why the abandoned house is
4 mentioned here, and it is stated that such houses are being looted. It
5 doesn't say by whom, but it was probably by such groups. This is what
6 was taking place at the time.
7 Q. Yes, we see a certain Mehmet Cazimi and Idriz Mehmeti mentioned
8 in the same paragraph. It says they lived on the hill above the old
9 folks' home, and I know that they have committed many crimes stealing
10 from the abandoned houses in Racak?
11 A. Yes. Is that correct.
12 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Your Honours, I seek to tender this
13 document into evidence.
14 JUDGE PARKER: Yes, it will be received.
15 THE REGISTRAR: Your Honours, that will be Exhibit D00818.
16 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you.
17 Could we please have D135 displayed.
18 Q. It is your tab 10, Mr. Mladenovic.
19 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] I have just been notified that it's
20 not under seal. I think we agree that it is not under seal.
21 Q. It is hardly legible. It is your tab 10, and the document is
22 dated 18 December 1998
23 "Several short bursts of fire were opened from Racak village on
24 the Stimlje police station. Members of the police did not respond to the
25 fire."
Page 12481
1 Signed by sergeant first class Svetomir Bocic. Can you please
2 comment on what is contained in the document.
3 A. This is probably a dispatch sent from the duty office of the
4 Urosevac SUP
5 him in person. He was the shift leader in the Urosevac SUP. This event
6 was recorded in our police station, I recall it. The attack came from
7 the village of Racak
8 groups stationed there. We had a forward security detail of a SUP
9 building which was attacked from their positions. The attack was
10 registered, but we did not return fire. I think this was also discussed
11 later with the verifiers. This dispatch was sent to the staff as a
12 regular dispatch on daily events in connection with the previous
13 information on the types of reporting.
14 Q. I don't think we can see that in this document, hence it is your
15 presumption?
16 A. Yes, it is. We also cannot see any stamps here.
17 Q. Thank you. Could we next have D136. It is your tab 11. Have a
18 look at page 2 of the document, please, and confirm to us whether you
19 indeed drafted and signed this document.
20 A. Yes, the signature is mine.
21 Q. Thank you. This is a report on contact with members of the OSCE
22 mission dated 21 December 1998
23 you communicated with OSCE mission members.
24 A. We communicated with them as of the moment of their arrival.
25 This is of course concerning my area, the area of the municipality and
Page 12482
1 police station of Stimlje. We agreed on the times that we were to meet.
2 At first it was daily, but later on, due to the increasing work burden on
3 our part it was on Mondays and Fridays. And of course as the situation
4 required in case there were more serious incidents and cases of
5 disturbing law and order.
6 Q. Thank you. Let us comment on a few things. First of all, tell
7 us who did you send this report to?
8 A. My obligation as an authorised official was to report on every
9 contact we had with the OSCE to the chief of the police department.
10 There was a conversation I had with the OSCE members, which is what I
11 wrote this report on and forwarded it to the SUP in Urosevac, and I
12 believe they would then forward such information to the staff although
13 it's my assumption only.
14 Q. Thank you. It seems everything is in the transcript.
15 In the first paragraph it says "without prior notice."
16 A. Yes. This was according to the agreement. They did not need to
17 notify us in advance when they wanted to establish contact or when they
18 wanted to inquire about a certain event. They were free to visit at any
19 time of day or night. They could enter the police station and request
20 that they see someone to whom they could put questions. It says here
21 that this was without prior notice and on their initiative. We can see
22 from the document what they wanted to discuss.
23 Q. I'll lead you through it. I'm interested in the mid-paragraph on
24 the first page. The sentence begins with "also." You don't need to read
25 it out loud. Please provide a comment only because you mention here that
Page 12483
1 members of all ethnic communities in the territory of Stimlje
2 threat by the terrorists in the villages of Racak, Petrovo, and
3 Crnoljevo?
4 A. Yes, the three villages are referred to because from those
5 villages there were constant provocations and attacks on the members of
6 the police. We shared this piece of information with them, hoping that
7 they would forward it appropriately to their own superiors.
8 Q. Thank you. The last sentence in the -- that paragraph, read it
9 to yourself, you mention two attacks of the 17th and the 20th of
10 December, one from the village of Racak
11 you please comment briefly. Is this what the situation was like in the
12 territory of the Stimlje police station?
13 A. Yes. The situation was such, and I state here that they attacked
14 in depth, which is something that is connected with the previous
15 dispatch. We informed the staff about this. The other attack was on a
16 check-point where a police patrol was located in charge of securing the
17 town. So these two armed attacks were registered, and the information
18 was shared with the verifiers. We did not respond to these attacks, and
19 we did not undertake any further action. On page 2 it says that there
20 was an explosion about 50 metres from the check-point. This was probably
21 a shell that exploded which had been launched from a hand-held launcher
22 or a weapon of that kind.
23 Q. Did you say 50 metres from the check-point?
24 A. Yes, 50 metres, not kilometres.
25 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Could we please go to D007-0120.
Page 12484
1 Q. It is your tab 12. Mr. Mladenovic, this is a criminal report
2 dated 3 January 1999
3 Stimlje on Lipljanski Put in front of a family house, Enver Gashi was
4 killed by terrorists, by automatic weapons. What operational data did
5 you have about this event, and do you recall it at all?
6 A. I remember the event. This happened on New Year's day, that is,
7 on the 2nd of January, 1999, but it was a public holiday. Operative
8 information indicated that Albanian terrorists shot Enver Gashi with the
9 intention of killing him because he was loyal to the authorities. The --
10 this man Enver Gashi was a car mechanic and used to repair cars in front
11 of his house, even our official vehicles. He was a fair man, and we
12 supposed that this was the reason why they killed him. Whoever
13 co-operated with the police and was an Albanian suffered their -- from
14 their vengeance.
15 We can see that this document was signed by the authorised
16 official DS. It stands for Dostan Sabani. This must have been forwarded
17 to the district prosecutor in Pristina.
18 Q. Thank you. Could you just repeat the name of the police
19 inspector who filed this report.
20 A. Dostan Sabani.
21 Q. Now it's all right.
22 A. He was inspector for violent crime and sexual offences.
23 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] I seek to tender this document into
24 evidence, Your Honours.
25 JUDGE PARKER: It will be received.
Page 12485
1 THE REGISTRAR: Your Honours, that will be Exhibit D00819.
2 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you.
3 Q. Now let's take a look at Exhibit D137. Mr. Mladenovic, you can
4 find it under tab 13. You can go to the second page of the document
5 immediately and tell us whether this is your signature and whether you
6 drafted this document.
7 A. Yes, it's my signature, and I drafted this document.
8 Q. Thank you. I want to go back to the first page. It's dated the
9 4th of January, 1995. It's a report on the meeting with members of the
10 OSCE version mission. Let me focus your attention on the second
11 paragraph. It starts by:
12 "At the moment when the OSCE verifiers arrived and asked for a
13 meeting in my office there was Ibish Qari," if I'm not mistaken, and it
14 goes on to say more about that meeting. Can you tell us if you remember
15 what this is about?
16 A. This is a document which like the reports on all these meetings
17 was forwarded to the secretariat at Urosevac. It's about the arrival of
18 the OSCE verifiers without prior notice, and when they arrived Mr. Ibish
19 Qari born in 1937 was in my office. He was an old man. He was going to
20 Racak or Petrovo to visit his daughter who was married there. And on the
21 road to Petrovo in the village of Malo Poljce he was kidnapped by the
22 members of the terrorist KLA. There was even information to the effect
23 that Sadik Mujota and his sons were the perpetrators. They kidnapped him
24 and kept him in a barn of some kind, he was - he isn't sure. They
25 blindfolded him, and he kept him there for ten days and he only received
Page 12486
1 food and water once a day. He somehow managed to escape and then came to
2 the police station to report the event. And I was speaking to him in my
3 office when the verifiers of the OSCE mission arrived, and thus I gave
4 them an opportunity to get first-hand information about these events. I
5 don't know what else I could add.
6 Q. In the last paragraph you say that you informed the OSCE mission
7 members of several terrorist attacks?
8 A. Yes. Here it says that the inspectors of the OKP of Urosevac of
9 the -- Musa and Vitomir Naskovic were also present during the
10 conversation and so were the verifiers of the OSCE mission.
11 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. Now please look at the following page
12 of the document.
13 A. What's your question?
14 Q. Let us wait for the document to appear on the screen. My
15 question is: You say that Ibish Qari reported his kidnapping at the
16 Stimlje police station and asked the MUP's assistance to protect him from
17 the terrorist gangs who had kidnapped him and who had threatened him,
18 threatened him that they would kill him if he were to report the
19 kidnapping to the police.
20 Please comment what this says.
21 A. Well, that's exactly how it was. His report was not only a
22 formal act. He came and -- to ask for protection because they had
23 threatened him. If he were to report the fact that he was kidnapped and
24 detained, that they would kill his family. He wanted to see his daughter
25 who was married at -- in one of these villages.
Page 12487
1 He requested protection from the police. His house was in
2 Stimlje, so we visited him regularly. So he was safe in his house, but
3 his movement if he was going to Racak or elsewhere was very risky. Not
4 only for him but for all loyal citizens. So we gave him advice not to go
5 there, and we provided protection to his family throughout the time we
6 were there, that is, until the 12th of June, 1999.
7 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic.
8 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Can we now please see Exhibit D139.
9 Q. This is under tab 14 in your binder. Mr. Mladenovic, this is a
10 report on sighting or contact with members of the OSCE mission dated 10
11 January 1999. A terrorist attack on the members of the police station of
12 Stimlje is mentioned, and it goes on to say that the OSCE verifiers
13 learned the name of the injured police officer who was transferred to
14 Pristina hospital. Do you remember this event?
15 A. Yes. I remember the event. I just want to comment on this
16 report. It is signed by Sasa Draskovic. At the time he was assistant
17 commander of the Urosevac police station and Svetislav Przic was then a
18 police officer of the Stimlje police station. He was lethally wounded on
19 the 10th of January, 1999, in the village of Slivovo
20 home. There were also Nenad Mitrovic, the deputy commander, and Miroslav
21 Zivic. They -- all three of them were in a vehicle travelling from
22 Stimlje to Urosevac, that is, going home. In Slivovo which is after
23 Kosare, between Kosare and Urosevac, they were ambushed, the vehicle was
24 hit and Przic suffered lethal injuries. Just a moment if you allow me.
25 Q. We can go into more detail because the following document speaks
Page 12488
1 in more detail about this very event, so in order to save time, can we
2 now see Exhibit D138, which is under tab 15 in your binder. If we could
3 look at -- yes, this is the document. Let's go to page 2 immediately.
4 This is a criminal report, and you can go on with your comment because
5 this is related to what you were saying.
6 A. This is a criminal report filed by -- filed to the secretariat in
7 Urosevac. After an on-site investigation at the site of the crime. This
8 report proves that the OSCE verifiers immediately upon learning that a
9 police patrol had been attacked wanted to go there in person to get
10 first-hand information. And this is a criminal report which after the
11 on-site investigation had been completed -- this criminal report was
12 drafted.
13 Q. If we look at the second page of the same document we see that
14 there are -- there's a protocol of the on-site investigation.
15 A. Yes.
16 Q. This also says that the site of the attack was the Muslim
17 cemetery which is in the immediate vicinity of the road. Could you
18 explain exactly where that was? We saw documents about Racak and now
19 this is the section of the road towards Urosevac.
20 A. The inspectors of the OKP of Urosevac speak about the direction
21 from Urosevac to Stimlje, the village of Slivovo
22 road. And this Muslim cemetery, so a religious facility, is on the left
23 side if you look from Urosevac toward Stimlje. It is in the immediate
24 vicinity of the road and there is a groove there. I used to pass by
25 there all the time because my house is near that village in Urosevac
Page 12489
1 town. I passed there regularly, so -- well, I don't think I should
2 comment any longer.
3 Q. All right.
4 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Let us now take a look at Exhibit
5 D140.
6 Q. It's under tab 16 in your binder. The document has only one
7 page, it's one page long. It's your report. You can check the
8 signature. Is it your signature?
9 A. Yes. Yes, this is my report.
10 Q. It was drafted upon the contact you had with the OSCE
11 verification mission, and it's dated 11 January 1999. Please read the
12 first paragraph to yourself and comment on it, especially with regard to
13 the claims of the verifiers who say that it was peaceful earlier in the
14 area of Stimlje, whereas the situation at that moment was tense. So
15 please comment on these allegations.
16 A. Well, that was their comment, that allegedly the situation in
17 Racak was calm, whereas now it was -- it was tense. I explained to them
18 that the situation was by no means calm. How could it be if our
19 surrounding villages there were terrorist fortifications and all the
20 population of those villages had moved out? The women and children had
21 left the houses in 1998, so most of the houses in Petrovo, Malo Poljce,
22 Racak, Rance, Zborce, Duga, Karacica, Petrastica and Crnoljevo were
23 empty. These were villages near the hills, and there were strong
24 terrorists -- strongholds there. So in this text I stated that their
25 allegations were not correct, that many people had been kidnapped, and
Page 12490
1 that Albanian terrorists attack innocent civilians, the army, and the
2 police from those villages. So this is one of these documents, and I
3 forwarded this report to the department of the police, that is, to my
4 base as stated in the instruction I received.
5 Q. Thank you. Speaking about these women and children who left
6 their houses in 1998 from Petrovo, Malo Poljce, Racak, Rance, and so on,
7 where did those people go?
8 A. The people from those villages didn't go far then. They
9 descended to Stimlje because the town of Stimlje was secured much better
10 so that all those civilians were either in Stimlje or with relatives in
11 Urosevac, Lipljan, Pristina, or Suva Reka, Prizren, depending on where
12 they have relatives. But mostly they were there. Sometimes they would
13 go to their village to see their house, but then they would be kidnapped
14 or mistreated or detained there. So most families took their women and
15 children to towns or villages which were better protected by the police.
16 For the most part, they were put up in Stimlje, but some went to Urosevac
17 or Lipljan or Suva
18 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. Now we have come to the events in the
19 village of Racak. Tell me, do you know anything about the events that
20 occurred in Racak on the 15th of January, 1999, or rather,
21 chronologically speaking what happened, where you were at the time, what
22 you did, et cetera?
23 A. On the 15th of January, 1999, at 6.00 in the morning I was at the
24 Urosevac SUP
25 police squad in Crnoljevo and to replace my men who had already been in
Page 12491
1 Crnoljevo. The company gathered at the Urosevac SUP.
2 Q. Thank you. Tell me, are we talking here about a temporary police
3 squad?
4 A. Yes. In that squad we took turns every 15 days, Stimlje, Strpce,
5 Kacanik, and Urosevac, commanders were company commanders. We changed
6 every 15 days and the personnel changed every 15 days too. So it was our
7 duty to take the company at the SUP
8 shift together with our men; and 15 days later we would go back with our
9 men. On that day I was supposed to leave at 6.00 a.m. in order to be at
10 that position by 7.00 and that we carry out the hand-over of duty. At
11 that time we could not leave because I was informed by an officer from
12 the police station that a blockade had been carried out by the traffic
13 police of the Urosevac SUP
14 and Crnoljevo near the village of Kosare
15 could not go out while that was still the case. I had no idea at the
16 time what was going on.
17 Q. Let us just be very specific with regard to some matters and then
18 we'll go on. Tell me, when you say that you received information from
19 the officer at the police station as recorded here --
20 A. Yes.
21 Q. -- tell us, what officer, if you remember. Not the name and
22 surname, but rather, what was that officer who provided you with that
23 information, what was his duty?
24 A. It was Milivoj Nedeljkovic. I remember he was an officer of the
25 branch police station. He was in charge of legality of work.
Page 12492
1 Q. Did you have any information about that, what kind of action is
2 underway, what is going on, and why the blockade had been placed there?
3 A. I did not have any contacts or did anyone inform me about that.
4 May I proceed?
5 Q. Yes, yes, please go ahead. What happened afterwards?
6 A. The entire company stayed there until the same officer let us
7 know that we could go and start our shift. That's when we set out,
8 that's when I led the company. I think it was around 8.30 in the
9 morning. When I arrived to that point there were quite a few vehicles
10 that were still waiting. They were waiting to be allowed to proceed,
11 civilian vehicles, that is. I think that we spent some time there then
12 and that then the order arrived to the effect that traffic would be
13 allowed on the road in both directions. I then went with my column to
14 Stimlje, and I stopped there for about half an hour because I was
15 supposed to take over part of the equipment for Stimlje for the platoon
16 that was in Stimlje. It had to do with some personal affairs that we
17 needed to take out into the field for cooking, et cetera.
18 When I entered the police station in Stimlje, in my office I
19 found the chief of SUP
20 the police department. We exchanged greetings, and Chief Bogoljub
21 Janicevic briefly spoke to me, saying that the PJP under the command of
22 the staff for combatting terrorism from Pristina was carrying out an
23 operation of breaking up terrorist strongholds, but that we as the police
24 station have nothing to do with that and that we should continue our
25 regular activities.
Page 12493
1 I spent a bit more time there with my assistants who had stayed
2 on at the police station, namely Zoran Djordjevic and Aleksandar Simic.
3 I gave them some brief instructions along the following lines: They
4 should keep the shift that had been prepared until this event
5 crystallises, or rather, to see whether any logistical support would be
6 needed for that action.
7 Q. Please, you said if logistical support would be needed for that
8 action. What kind of logistical support or assistance in relation to the
9 police station in Stimlje, if I understand you correctly?
10 A. Nothing special. We had two medical vehicles that were on duty
11 there if the wounded were supposed to be transported to hospital. That
12 would be it because they had their own line of supplies. Under their
13 command they carried all of that out separately, so nothing special
14 happened there except that the shift should stay there prepared if
15 anything is needed, say, an on-site investigation or other regular police
16 work that we were supposed to carry out. I left Stimlje at around 9.00
17 or 9.30 a.m.
18 Stimlje. Nothing unusual happened on that day. Shooting could be heard
19 from the area of Racak in the hills above Racak and Petrovo. We went on.
20 We carried out the change of shifts, and I stayed in Crnoljevo until the
21 20th, and it's only on the 21st that I returned to Stimlje due to certain
22 necessities of my own.
23 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. Now I'd like to go back to some of
24 the things you mentioned for the sake of clarification, things that
25 matter to me, actually. Tell me, when you came to the police station in
Page 12494
1 Stimlje, did you notice any units, any PJPs that were not from the police
2 station of Stimlje or any other members of PJPs?
3 A. I did not notice anything special at the police station. Things
4 were running as usual except Radomir Mitic was present there and Bogoljub
5 Janicevic, chief of SUP
6 Q. Thank you. And tell me, when you entered your office and when
7 you found the chief of SUP
8 anyone else there with them in that office?
9 A. No. In front of that office there were only two of my
10 assistants, Simic and Djordjevic. And in the office, in my office, it
11 was only Chief Bogoljub and Mitic, no one else.
12 Q. Thank you. Tell me, did you see then in any office or anywhere
13 in or around the police station in Stimlje, did you see Mr. Vladimir
14 Djordjevic there anywhere?
15 A. No, I didn't see him anywhere.
16 Q. Could you repeat to me once again around what time you arrived at
17 the police station and when you left it, how much time did you spend
18 there?
19 A. I cannot give you the exact time, but I think that we left
20 Urosevac around 8.30. Now, how much time we needed to get to Stimlje,
21 let's say it was up to half an hour. And then in Stimlje we spent not
22 more than half an hour. So it is possible that I was there up to 9.30 at
23 the latest or say up until 10.00 -- in the morning, that is, that's what
24 I'm talking about. That would be it roughly. I cannot remember the
25 exact time.
Page 12495
1 Q. Thank you. Tell me, you said that Djordjevic, if I'm not
2 mistaken, your assistant was at the office on that day. Did he ever
3 inform you that he saw General Djordjevic on the 15th of January on the
4 premises of the Stimlje police station?
5 A. On the 15th of January no one informed me that General Djordjevic
6 had been there or that he had come at all. It was only the chief of SUP
7 and the chief of the police squad who were in my office. That's what my
8 assistants told me. It's only when I came to the police station in
9 Stimlje on the 20th, due to certain commitments of my own that I had
10 there, my assistants informed me that General Djordjevic had come on the
11 18th, only three days after this particular event. Over those three
12 days, the 15th, the 16th, the 17th, and the 18th, they had engaged in
13 heavy fighting, the PJPs, especially with the terrorist strongholds. And
14 that due to these problems, an on-site investigation could not have been
15 carried out. They tried to carry out an on-site investigation on the
16 15th and on the 16th, and it was only on the 18th that they managed to
17 carry out an on-site investigation. When General Djordjevic came and he
18 personally sent out Radomir Mitic, the chief of the police squad, to
19 carry out that duty. The assumption was that one of the assistants would
20 be sent on that mission with a security detail because they belonged to
21 the police station in Stimlje; however, General Djordjevic then ordered
22 that the chief of the station go with the on-site investigation team. So
23 the assistants remained and that is the direct knowledge I had about
24 that.
25 Also, they informed me that in the fighting and in the attacks
Page 12496
1 from a Browning, from the so-called northern hill, which is a place
2 between Petrovo and Malo Poljce, in the area of the village of Luzac
3 there was a terrorist base there. They used a Browning to fire at the
4 police station. The police station was hit, and I think that that is
5 documented, that an on-site investigation was carried out and also that
6 photo documentation was compiled with how many projectiles the police
7 station in Stimlje had been hit.
8 I was informed about that and that was it for this particular
9 period of time. I don't know what else you're interested in.
10 Q. Before the 20th, as you said, did you know who carried out the
11 Stimlje operation or in any -- or in which way this was done?
12 A. As I said a few moments ago, I received some brief information
13 from the chief of SUP
14 when I stopped briefly there on the 15th that what was being carried out
15 was a police action by members of the PJPs. I don't know which ones and
16 I don't know what their numbers were. It was only that this action was
17 being carried out by the members of the PJPs under the command of the
18 staff for combatting terrorism in Pristina. The staff was under the
19 command of General Sreten Lukic. That is the same thing that I learned
20 from my assistants when I came back to the police station on the 20th.
21 Q. Very well. Tell me, I'm referring to the 20th now. When you
22 arrived then, did you receive any information to the effect that this
23 action had been portrayed as a massacre of civilians and the verifiers
24 were already making statements in this regard?
25 A. Statements were well underway that this had been a massacre that
Page 12497
1 civilians had been executed and things like that. That's the kind of
2 information that was bandied about. There was even a radio from the area
3 held by the KLA operating somewhere from Drenica, between 15- and 1700
4 hours. On that radio they were providing information allegedly that the
5 Serb police had carried out a massacre of civilians; that was never
6 proven of course. Because these were fighters from the so-called KLA,
7 UCK they called themselves. That means in translation the Kosovo
8 Liberation Army. That is that terrorist Albanian organisation that
9 engaged in combat in that area in that period of time. Later, of course,
10 when an on-site investigation was carried out Finnish pathologists and
11 our pathologists corroborated that. These were not civilians, rather,
12 they were members of the KLA for Racak, the commander was Sadik Mujota.
13 We all knew that. He was a man who openly conveyed a message to all,
14 that he had joined the Kosovo Liberation Army, as they called themselves,
15 and that they -- and that he would not stop before he enters the police
16 station and has a cup of coffee there. Those were his words. His camp
17 was near the police station at Racak at a point called Cesta. From there
18 his intention was to place under his control together with his terrorist
19 unit all of Stimlje. Of course he did not succeed in doing that because
20 that group had been crushed on time.
21 He got killed then, if I remember correctly, together with his
22 sons, Fatmir -- Fadil, I can't remember hat their names were exactly, and
23 his daughter got killed there too. He also had two brothers who were
24 involved in all of this. Before that we had had some intelligence, we
25 had the names of all of those who were casualties there, and they all
Page 12498
1 belonged to this organisation, and for the most part they came from those
2 villages, Racak, Petrovo, Malo Poljce, and there were people who came
3 from elsewhere like Vitina and, I don't know, other towns and villages in
4 Kosovo.
5 Q. Thank you. Tell me now, after these events and the information
6 you received, when did you return from the duty shift from Crnoljevo?
7 A. I returned from Crnoljevo after 15 days, probably on the 30th of
8 January.
9 Q. Thanks. Do you know anything about the burial that -- the burial
10 of the people who had lost their lives in that operation in Racak, the
11 burial that should have taken place?
12 A. Yes. After a while I was back at the Stimlje police station and
13 there were problems again. They -- the problems were with the bodies
14 claimed by the families. I think it was on the 10th of February, 1999
15 after the autopsy of the bodies. The bodies were transported and -- they
16 were transported to Stimlje and Danica Marinkovic, an investigative
17 magistrate, escorted that transport. This was arranged with the OSCE
18 verifiers and the Albanian families. I was in -- directly informed of
19 that by Bogoljub Janicevic, the chief of the SUP. I'm not sure what time
20 it was exactly, but it was winter-time. After 4.00 p.m. -- before that
21 at the police station they were already the local Muslim priest of
22 Stimlje. In the centre of the town there was a mosque where he held
23 religious services, and he was the -- there was also the president of the
24 Democratic League of Kosovo. He was the president of that organisation
25 in Stimlje. They came to see me in my office together with the
Page 12499
1 verifiers. They were eight in all or nine, I believe. Before they
2 had -- before they brought the bodies, TV teams had arrived and other
3 verifiers. The verifiers then started asking awkward questions about
4 whether we would intervene if members of the KLA would arrive with the
5 families. These people were in Racak and Petrovo, and I answered in the
6 affirmative because to us, the police, they were members of a terrorist
7 organisation, and we will try to arrest them. However, he said that we
8 must withdraw all patrols and that all police had to go away so that the
9 families can take over the bodies, and that's when the problem arose.
10 I don't know the man in person, but it was Colonel Mijatovic from
11 the staff in Pristina who had told them they could bury the bodies at
12 Cesta, which is in Racak. That's where they were killed actually. As
13 there was no cemetery, no religious burial grounds, I said that wasn't
14 possible because dead bodies are buried on religious burial grounds. You
15 cannot simply bury people where they come to death. And that certain
16 permits are required for cemeteries, permits issued by municipal
17 authorities. And when the problem arose he said to the investigative
18 magistrate, one of the verifiers I mean, "How do you want to hand over
19 the bodies if the families aren't here to claim them?" And then he
20 directly accused Danica Marinkovic of playing games with the bodies. She
21 had brought the bodies to Stimlje and nobody was killing to claim them
22 and that's where the problem arose. After that Danica Marinkovic, the
23 investigative magistrate, decided to return the bodies to Pristina, and
24 she informed the families that they could come to the hospital chapel in
25 Pristina and claim the bodies there. That's what I know about the event
Page 12500
1 which happened on the 10th in Stimlje.
2 On the following days, if you want me to continue --
3 Q. Well, did the burial take place?
4 A. Yes, the burial took place. In the morning the Albanian families
5 organised themselves. I'm not sure how. Anyway, we were informed that
6 they would claim the bodies on their own and they would bury them in the
7 mosque at Racak. On the same day around 10.00 or 11.00 the bodies were
8 transported on the road through Stimlje because that road led to the
9 centre of Racak. The bodies were taken to the mosque first and there was
10 media coverage and it was also covered by the verifiers. The locals of
11 those villages may have received orders to that effect or maybe it was
12 their genuine wish to attend the burial. But anyway, a large number
13 gathered in Racak for the burial. From what we were able to see, the
14 dead were buried like soldiers with Albanian flags wrapped around their
15 coffins, which is not the custom when you bury a dead Albanian.
16 After the burial we were able to observe that at the burial there
17 were persons in uniform, armed persons who were members of the so-called
18 Kosovo Liberation Army, the terrorist organisation. They attended the
19 burial in significant numbers and subsequently they kidnapped about 50
20 Albanians from the crowd. Among them two brothers of our reserve police
21 officers from the Olluri family, from the Petrovici village, and some
22 other Albanians.
23 Q. Thank you, Mr. Mladenovic. I'll ask you some more questions
24 about this and show you some documents, but I will need a rather lot of
25 time to do that. So as it's roughly time for the break with the leave of
Page 12501
1 the Trial Chamber we might as well break now.
2 JUDGE PARKER: Yes, we'll have the second break now and resume in
3 half an hour.
4 --- Recess taken at 5.28 p.m.
5 --- On resuming at 6.00 p.m.
6 JUDGE PARKER: Please sit down.
7 Mr. Popovic.
8 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Thank you, Your Honour.
9 Could we next please have D150.
10 Q. It's your tab 17. Mr. Mladenovic, this is a report on Albanians
11 kidnapped by terrorists from a funeral in Racak village dated 12th
12 February, 1999. Please acquaint yourself with the report shortly and
13 tell us, please, whether the information contained therein tallies with
14 the information you had about the event.
15 A. Yes. This was quite indicative of that period. On the 12th of
16 February several Albanians were kidnapped who attended the funeral.
17 Rexhep and Muhamed Olluri were members of the reserve police force in
18 Stimlje. They were kidnapped on that occasion. They were loyal
19 citizens.
20 Q. In paragraph 2 we see another name.
21 A. Yes, Zeqiri Basri who reported to the Stimlje police station that
22 on the 11th of February during the funeral in Racak, Stimlje
23 municipality, terrorists kidnapped his cousin Zeqir Hyseni about 50 years
24 old from Stimlje, former employee of the Pristina district prison. He
25 came to Racak village with his wife Hysnia in a blue Zastava 101
Page 12502
1 passenger vehicle. We insisted that the OSCE KVM take all measures to
2 liberty these people.
3 Concerning these kidnappings, on that same day we notified the
4 verification mission representatives who were in Stimlje. They promised
5 to do everything in their ability to try and liberate these citizens.
6 Q. Yes, thank you. We'll see another document which confirms that.
7 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Could we please have D010-0785,
8 D010-0785. That's the number.
9 Q. It is your tab 18.
10 It's a report dated 12 February 1999
11 what the contents are about and please tell us whether it's what you have
12 just referred to.
13 A. Yes, this was drafted the next day in the police station by the
14 police station commander in Stimlje, warrant officer Zoran Djordjevic.
15 He was in touch with certain OSCE mission representatives who were in
16 Stimlje. They came to the police station, telling him that they saw the
17 commander promising to come back with certain information in the
18 afternoon. In the meantime they went to the village of Petrovo
19 they had a discussion with the terrorists, who promised them that people
20 will be released in two hours' time. These people had been kidnapped the
21 previous day. The person in question were Mehmet and Rexhep Olluri and
22 Hysen Zeqiri. They promised them to release these people within the next
23 two hours. They had learned that morning of those people being kidnapped
24 in the Stimlje police station. The persons in question were Mehmet and
25 Rexhep Olluri and Hysen Zeqiri. They wanted to know whether we had any
Page 12503
1 information on any other persons who had been kidnapped. That's it.
2 This follows the previous documents. The verifiers had been informed and
3 the next day they came to the police station. I wasn't there at the
4 moment. The assistant commander was there. It says here that they were
5 there between 6.10 and 6.15 p.m.
6 of time. The persons had been kidnapped on the 11th and were held until
7 the 12th and around 8.00 p.m. on that day they were released.
8 Q. We'll see some other documents testifying to that.
9 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] I'll seek to tender this document
10 into evidence, Your Honours.
11 JUDGE PARKER: It will be received.
12 THE REGISTRAR: Your Honours, that will be Exhibit D00820.
13 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Could we please have D010-0788.
14 Q. It is your tab 19. We see that this report is dated 13 February
15 1999. Please read to yourself what the report is about and tell us
16 briefly whether this corresponds to the information you had.
17 A. That is correct. This is another report drafted in the Stimlje
18 police station. This was the following day after the document -- the day
19 we saw the previous document about. It was the 13th of February. The
20 report was drafted by a police station deputy commander, Mr. Mitrovic.
21 This report was also drafted at 6.10 p.m. following his meeting with the
22 verifiers who told him that in their negotiations with the terrorists
23 they managed to secure the release of the persons mentioned here, Taib
24 Zeqiri, Jemer Xherimi and Jakup Ibali. There were several people who had
25 been kidnapped. They did try to have all of them released. We saw the
Page 12504
1 previous document referring to those three people and here we have
2 additional three people subsequently released by the KLA.
3 Q. [Microphone not activated]
4 THE INTERPRETER: Microphone for counsel.
5 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation]
6 Q. Thank you.
7 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Your Honours, I move to have this
8 document admitted into evidence.
9 JUDGE PARKER: It will be received.
10 THE REGISTRAR: Your Honours, that will be Exhibit D00821.
11 MR. POPOVIC: [Interpretation] Your Honours, I'd like to move to a
12 completely different topic, which has to do with certain allegations I
13 wanted to put to the witness concerning the testimony of K-86 before this
14 Tribunal. For that purpose I wanted to quote certain parts of the
15 transcript and ask this witness to comment. Most of that transcript was
16 in closed session, hence I propose we do the same now so as to --
17 JUDGE PARKER: Private.
18 [Private session]
19 (redacted)
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Page 12505
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24 [Open session]
25 THE REGISTRAR: Your Honours, we're back in open session.
Page 12524
1 JUDGE PARKER: We will now adjourn. We resume tomorrow at 2.15.
2 We must adjourn overnight now. An officer will assist you during the
3 break.
4 --- Whereupon the hearing adjourned at 7.05 p.m.
5 to be reconvened on Tuesday, the 9th day of
6 March, 2010, at 2.15 p.m.
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