Croatian General Ante Gotovina Arrested

One of the ICTY’s “most wanted” individuals was arrested Wednesday night in Spain’s Canary Islands, and now awaits transport to the Tribunal in The Hague to stand trial.^[1] Gotovina was originally indicted in 2001 for war crimes and crimes against humanity.^[2] In March 2004, the indictment against him was amended and unsealed, and the Tribunal issued a warrant of arrest at the same time.^[3] Since that time, Gotovina has graced the list of ICTY top fugitives along with notables such as Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic.^[4] His arrest leaves six indictees still at large and sought by the ICTY.

International diplomatic leaders have highlighted the political and symbolic significance of the arrest. Croatian Prime Minister Ivo Sanader said today that the arrest was "the final confirmation of Croatia's credibility."^[5] The fugitive status of Gotovina and others has been cited repeatedly as an obstacle to Croatia’s ascension to the European Union (EU) and contributed to a halt in the approval process earlier this year based on the EU’s complaint that Zagreb was not fully cooperating with the Tribunal.^[6] In comments today, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn praised the arrest and urged Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina to step up their efforts to bring the remaining fugitives to The Hague.^[7]

In Croatia, General Gotovina and others have been hailed as heroes of the 1991-1995 war, most famously by Croatian tennis star Goran Ivanisovic at the time of his 1991 Wimbledon Championship victory.^[8] Some reporters of Gotovina’s role in the 1990s conflict, particularly the 1995 “Operation Storm,” have suggested that he may have been cooperating with an effort headed by the United States to pressure Serbia into participating in negotiations.^[9] We will continue to monitor the evolution of this case at the ICTY.

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[1] CNN, Top Croat War Crime Suspect Held, Dec. 8, 2005, available here.
[2] The original Indictment, June 8, 2001, is available on the ICTY website here.
[3] The Amended Indictment, February 24, 2004 is available on the ICTY website here. The Trial Chamber Order is available from the ICTY website here.
[4] View the ICTY “Most Wanted” poster here.
[5] See CNN, Dec. 8, 2005, here.
[6] Guardian Unlimited, Croatian War Crimes Suspect Arrested in Canaries, Dec. 8, 2005, available here.
[7] EurActive.com, Croat General Gotovina Held in Spain, Dec. 8, 2005, available here.
[8] See Guardian Unlimited, Dec. 8, 2005, here.
[9] Radio Nederland, Gotovina—From Folk Hero to Wanted War Criminal, Dec. 8, 2005, available here.