Former Croatian commander, Slobodan Praljak, committed suicide in a Hague courtroom by drinking a vial of poison during his appeal on his previous sentence for crimes committed in Mostar during the war in Bosnia. He was responsible for destroying the old bridge in Mostar among other things, and unfortunately got to go out as a martyr rather than die in prison where he belonged. After ingesting the poison in the courtroom, the trial was suspended and Praljak rushed to the hospital where he would later die. There’s been no word yet on where he got the poison to commit suicide.
Judges at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia were in the midst of delivering appeals rulings on Wednesday involving six defendants over Croatia’s often-overlooked involvement in the Bosnian conflict. They upheld two of the sentences before moving on to Slobodan Praljak, who had been sentenced to 20 years in prison for war crimes linked to his involvement in an offensive against a Bosnian town.
But when judges announced that they had upheld the sentence against Mr. Praljak, he addressed the bench in Croat. In a solemn voice, he said: “Slobodan Praljak is not a war criminal. I reject your judgment with contempt.”
Mr. Praljak then raised a small vial and drank from it. His lawyer called out, “Our client says he took poison.” Mr. Praljak was taken from the courtroom shortly afterward, and the hearing was suspended.
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THE HAGUE, Netherlands — A former Bosnian Croat military chief who claimed to have taken poison just after his 20-year sentence was upheld by appeals judges at a United Nations war crimes tribunal Wednesday has died, according to Croatia's state TV.
Slobodan Praljak yelled, "I am not a war criminal!" and appeared to drink from a small bottle, seconds after judges reconfirmed his sentence for involvement in a campaign to drive Muslims out of a would-be Bosnian Croat ministate in Bosnia in the early 1990s.
Presiding Judge Carmel Agius had overturned some of Praljak's convictions but upheld others and left his sentence unchanged.
Praljak, 72, tilted back his head and took a gulp from a flask or glass as the judge read out the verdict.
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