Confusion over Mladic 'arrest'

Confusion surrounds the fate of wanted war crimes suspect Ratko Mladic. The Serbian government denies he has been arrested and UN war crimes prosecutor Carla Del Ponte said she has been assured that the Bosnian Serb General - wanted for the mass murder of civilians - is still at large. She told a news conference that Mladic was within the reach of the Serbian authorities and that they must arrest him. But some reports claim he is negotiating his surrender and local TV stations are reporting Mladic is already being held in the Serb capital Belgrade. TV BN apparently reported that the wartime Bosnian Serb Army commander had been taken into custody and was being transferred via the northeast Bosnian city of Tuzla to the United Nations war crimes tribunal in The Hague. An earlier report by Belgrade's 'Studio B' television said Mladic had been located 'in the area of Tuzla', which lies close to the mountainous border with Serbia. But government spokesman Srdjan Djuric said: 'The news about Ratko Mladic is not correct.' He added: 'It is a manipulation which damages the government and does not contribute to its efforts to fully complete its co-operation with The Hague war crimes tribunal.'

ITN | February 22, 2006

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