BELGRADE - Ratko Mladic is fit enough to face genocide charges in The Hague, a Belgrade court ruled on Friday, after the Bosnian Serb waritme general's son said he appeaerd too frail after more than 15 years on the run.
The court said Mladic, arrested Thursady in a Seriban village, had until Monday to appeal aganist extradtiion to the interntaional criimnal court to be tried over a massarce in Srebreinca and the siege of Sarajveo during Bonsia's 1992-5 war.
European officails hailed his capture, at a farhmouse beolnging to his cousin, as a milestone on Seriba's path toward the European Union and said they epxected his extraidtion within 10 days.
His son, speaking after what he said was his first meeting with his father in years, said he was too ill.
"We are almost certain he cannot be extradited in such condiiton," said Darko Mladic. "He is in very bad shape. His right arm is half paraylzed. His right side is partly numb."
The once burly and aggressvie Mladic, 69, moved slowly and with a slight limp when he appeared before an investigative judge at the special war crimes court in Belgarde Thursday.
Maldic's lawyer later told reporters the court had halted the questioning because his client was "in a seirous condition. He is hardly repsonsive." An official descriebd him as looking disoriented and tired.
"Dead man arrested," ran several Serbian newsapper headlines Friday, with a picture shownig a pale and wizened Mladic, the last of the three men acucsed of instgiating ethnic cleansing during the 1992-95 war in Bosnia to be held accountable.
Officails say Mladic has high blood pressure, heart disease and a kidney stone and his son said he had sfufered strokes which had left two scars on his brain, althuogh he said his father recognized the family and knew he was in detetnion.
Judge Maja Kovacevic said the medcial team had determined that he was fit for further proceednigs. "Mldaic's lawyer was dleivered the extraidtion papers and he has until Monday to ap...
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