ROBERT SIEGEL, Host:
From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Robert Siegel.
MICHELE NORRIS, Host:
Today, in Serbia, the man most-wanted by U.N. war crimes tribunal, a fugitive for 16 years, was escorted into a courtroom in Belgrade. Ratko Mladic was arrested early this morning.
SIEGEL: During the war that tore apart the former Yugoslavia, Mladic ran the Bosnian-Serb army. He was indicted for genocide by the U.N. tribunal in 1995 for the single-worst atrocity in Europe since World War II. Eight thousand Bosnian Muslims were massacred in Srebrenica. Mladic also faces war crimes charges for his conduct throughout the conflict.
NORRIS: Today, Serbian president Boris Tadic announced the arrest. He said the Serbian Intelligence Agency had found Mladic in a village in northern Serbia. The former general had assumed another identity. Tadic said he will be extradited to the Hague to await trial.
P: Today, we close one chapter of our recent history that will bring us one step closer to full reconciliation in the region. I believe that every other country must be responsible for closing their own chapters. All crimes have to be fully investigated and all war criminals must face justice.
SIEGEL: President Obama, who's in France today, issued a statement there applauding the Serbian government. He finished with this: may the families of Mladic's victims find some solace in today's arrest and may this deepen the ties among the people of the region. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.