War Criminal Dead After Drinking 'Poison' During UN Tribunal Appearance

Convicted war criminal Slobodan Praljak died on November 29 after drinking what he said was poison during an appeal in The Hague at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).

Former Croat general Praljak drank the liquid after declaring that, “Slobodan Praljak is not a war criminal” and that he rejected with disdain the ICTY verdict, according to a translation of his remarks from Radio Free Europe.

He then drank from a small vessel, before saying what he had drunk was poison.

Some time later, Croatia’s state-run HRT reported Praljak had died, citing sources close to his family.

Later, this was confirmed by Nenad Golcevski, a spokesman for the tribunal, who told reporters, “Mr Praljak drank a liquid while in court and quickly fell ill. The ICTY medical staff immediately assisted Mr Praljak. Simultaneously an ambulance was summoned. Mr Praljak was transported to a nearby hospital to receive further medical assistance, where he passed.” Credit: United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia via Storyful