“There is a possibility that the Trial Chamber might have erred in its assessment of the guarantees offered by the Republic of Croatia," a bench of three judges of the Appeals Chamber notes in its decision granting leave to the Croatian generals to appeal another decision dismissing their motion for provisional release.


A bench of three judges of the Appeals Chamber granted leave to Ivan Cermak and Mladen Markac to file an appeal against the decision dismissing their motion for provisional release.

The Croatian generals – charged with crimes committed in the course of and after Operation Storm – asked twice to be allowed to wait for the start of their trial in Croatia, but the Trial Chamber dismissed both their motions. The defense sought leave last month to put the issue before the Appeals Chamber.

The Appeals Chamber allowed the appeal to be filed, finding that "there is a possibility that the Trial Chamber might have erred in its assessment of the guarantees offered by the Republic of Croatia." The Rules of the Tribunal stipulate that the authorities of the country in which the accused reside should present guarantees that the accused will be returned to detention and will not pose any threat to victims and witnesses; the Trial Chamber had doubts about the effectiveness of Zagreb's guarantees.

Seeking leave to file an appeal, Cermak's and Markac's defense counsel noted that in the Prlic et al. case, another Trial Chamber accepted the guarantees of the Croatian government and released the six accused despite the opposition of the prosecution; this decision was confirmed in August by the Appeals Chamber.

The Appeals Chamber took those arguments into account when it allowed Cermak and Markac to appeal, adding that the prosecution itself is not opposed to the provisional release of the Croatian generals.

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