Briefly Noted

Slobodan Milosevic was this week charged with the murder of his best friend and

mentor, Jovica Stambolic.

The Belgrade special prosecutor announced that Milosevic will be charged

jointly with former special forces chief Milorad Lukovic, former army chief

of staff Nebojsa Pavkovic, former secret service boss Radomir Markovic and his

deputy Milorad Bracanovic.

They are also jointly charged with the attempted murder of opposition leader

Vuk Draskovic.

Stambolic, who first met Milosevic when the two men were students, was

ousted by Slobodan in the late Eighties. In 2000, he disappeared while jogging,

and his body was found earlier this year in an unmarked grave.

MILOSEVIC "SICK"

Slobodan Milosevic's genocide trial was halted this week when he reported sick. No details of his illness were given.

STANISIC "TOO ILL" TO STAND TRIAL.

Jovica Stanisic may once have been Slobodan Milosevic's brightest secret service officer, but this week his lawyer that claimed his mental faculties were so degraded that he was unable to stand trial.

Dutch lawyer Gert-Jan Knoops told the tribunal that his client's mental and physical health were too poor, adding, "The physical condition of the accused is deteriorating further and has a detrimental effect."

He requested the judges allow a Dutch forensic psychiatrist to examine Stanisic and offered to supply ten health reports from Belgrade.

But prosecutors asked for their own expert to be allowed to examine Stanisic, 53, who appeared in court with his co-defendant, Franko Simatovic. Judges agreed to consider the request and to hold the next hearing on January 20.

Both men are accused of being at the very heart of the Milosevic regime, and are charged with four counts of crimes against humanity and one count of violations of the laws and customs of war for their role in the wars of Bosnia and Croatia.

SERBIA TO HOLD VUKOVAR TRIALS

Serbia's special war crimes court will hold trials into the massacre of Croats at Vukovar at the end of the year, said special prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic.

The news will be welcomed in The Hague, where efforts are underway to encourage Balkan states to set up their own war crimes courts to take over from the tribunal, which is expected to close its doors by 2010.

DEL PONTE HOLDS CROATIA'S FUTURE IN HER HANDS

The United Kingdom said this week that it will unblock Croatia's path European Union membership once tribunal chief prosecutor Carla Del Ponte agrees Zagreb has made progress on war crimes.

Britain and the Netherlands are at the moment blocking an association agreement between the EU and Zagreb.

British minister for Europe Denis MacShane indicated that the key issue at stake was whether Zagreb hands over its most high-profile indictee, General Ante Gotovina.

But Croatian deputy prime minister Goran Granic described this as impossible, adding, "General Gotovina is not under [our] jurisdiction, so we cannot carry out the tribunal's order."

BELGIUM CAVES IN

Belgian judges this week threw out two war crimes cases that had been brought by human rights groups against US president George W Bush and Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon.

Chris Stephen is IWPR's tribunal project manager.