GENERAL MLADIĆ IN POOR HEALTH CONDITION

KALINOVIK, JULY 19 /SRNA/ - The health of General Ratko Mladić is poor, and the family is still awaiting a decision on whether he will be allowed to be released for treatment in Serbia, his son Darko Mladić said today.

"We hope to receive a positive decision. We asked for him to be released so that he can at least die in Serbia," Darko Mladić told reporters in Kalinovik. He said it is a miracle that the General is still alive, considering he has been bedridden for 15 months. "He’s holding on somehow. It’s a miracle he’s alive — but he is, he endures, and he will endure," said Mladić. General Mladić suffers from neurological, cardiovascular, and urological issues that are progressively worsening and becoming more complicated. At the beginning of June, General Mladić’s defense requested that the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals in The Hague grant him early conditional release on an expedited basis due to his severe health condition. The motion filed by Dragan Ivetić, the chief legal advisor to General Mladić, and submitted to Judge Graciela Gatti Santana, states that despite the reluctance of the medical service at the detention unit in The Hague to provide a definitive prognosis of his health, it is indisputable that the General is nearing the end of his life. Last year, General Mladić had a pacemaker implanted in a Dutch hospital, but his health has continued to deteriorate, and since then, his kidneys have failed as well. "Given the incurable nature of Mladić's illness and his short life expectancy, continued detention serves no legitimate purpose and constitutes inhumane treatment and punishment," the motion states. His lawyers argue that, in addition to sparing the UN detention center the costs of palliative care, early release would allow General Mladić to explore all medical options and spend the remaining months of his life with his family. General Mladić suffered two strokes and a heart attack during his time in detention.