Key facts
- Thousands attended the funeral of convicted war criminal Ratko Mladic in Belgrade.
- Free bus services were arranged for attendees from Bosnia and Serbia.
- The funeral included military honors.
- The European Union condemned the event and warned against glorifying war criminals.
- Serbian government ministers and the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church attended the funeral.
- Mladic's coffin was flown back to Serbia on a government plane.
Thousands of people gathered in Belgrade, Serbia, for the funeral of Ratko Mladic, a Bosnian Serb military leader convicted of genocide and war crimes. Mladic, widely known as the 'Butcher of Bosnia,' died at 84 while serving a life sentence. The funeral included military honors, and free bus services were provided for attendees from Bosnia and Serbia. The European Union condemned the event, stating that any glorification of war criminals contradicts fundamental European values. Serbian government ministers and the head of the Serbian Orthodox Church attended the service. Despite his conviction for the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, Mladic remains a figure of national pride for many Serbs, particularly in Republika Srpska. Victims' families expressed deep pain and anger over the funeral proceedings, while an NGO editor highlighted the challenges in post-conflict societies regarding national reckoning with past crimes.