Reactions to Death of Ratko Mladic, Former General Convicted of Bosnia Genocide

Ratko Mladic, the former Bosnian Serb military commander convicted of genocide and other war crimes, died on August 27, 2026, while serving a life sentence in The Hague. The news prompted sharply contrasting reactions across the Balkans. Survivors and victims’ families said his death could not erase the suffering caused by the 1990s war or the massacre at Srebrenica. Some Serbian nationalists praised Mladic and questioned his conviction, reflecting continuing disputes over the conflict’s history and responsibility.