Serbian President Boris Tadic has confirmed the arrest of Europe's most wanted war crime suspect Ratko Mladic.
The president said the former wartime general's arrest has marked an end to a very difficult chapter in Serbia's history and that his "extradition process is underway".
Serbian police arrested Mladic after receiving an anonymous tip. He had documents on him bearing the name Milorad Komadic.
Commander of Bosnian Serb forces in the 1992-95 Bosnia war, Mladic was indicted in 1995 on genocide in the Srebrenica massacre of 8,000 Muslim men and 43-month siege of Sarajevo.
He was sought by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia on genocide charges.
Croatian newspaper Jutarnji List, which first reported the story citing Serbian police sources, said Serbian special forces had made the arrest on Thursday in Serbia.
The paper said it followed a tip-off that Komadic bore a resemblance to Mladic.
Ratko Mladic's arrest has been a pre-requisiute condition for Serbia joining the European Union.
The European Commission has said the arrest would show the country wanted to move forward on European Union membership.
