 Former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic has died, the UN tribunal said on Saturday, just decades months before his war crimes trial was expected to conclude.
| It was expected to conclude? Who knew? |
"Milosevic was found lifeless on his bed in his cell at the United Nations detention unit," the tribunal said in a statement.
| "Time to get up, Slobo!... Slobo?" |
"The guard immediately alerted the detention unit officer in command and the medical officer. The latter confirmed that Slobodan Milosevic was dead."
The tribunal said the Dutch police and a Dutch coroner were called in and started an inquiry. A full autopsy and toxicological examination have been ordered.
| "Dr. Quincy? Ms. del Ponte's on the line. Should I tell her you're out?" |
Milosevic's family has been informed, it added. The tribunal did not say how Milosevic had died. French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said Milosevic had died of natural causes.
| I'd guess he died of boredom, myself... |
| This was the Netherlands. Wonder if they euthanized him? |
 In a statement at an EU foreign ministers meeting just after news of Milosevic's death was confirmed, he said: "With the death of Milosevic, one of the main actors if not the the main actor in the Balkan wars of the late 20th century has left the scene."
| G'bye, Slobo! Give our warmest regards to Himmler! |
"I would like to spare a thought for all those who suffered so much from ethnic cleansing, tens of thousands of men, women and children, which Milosevic conceived and planned."
| "... but they're all dead, and we were all so much younger then, so it's time to move on." |
Serbia-Montenegro Foreign Minister Vuk Draskovic said on Saturday it was a pity former President Slobodan Milosevic had not been tried in his own country. "Milosevic organised many many assassinations of people of my party, of people of my family... He ordered a few times asasination attempts against my life," Draskovic told reporters at a European Union foreign ministers' meeting. "What can I say? I can say it's a pity he didn't face justice in Belgrade."
| Wonder if Ramsey Clark's signed up to represent him before St. Peter yet... |
Milosevic's death does not change the need for Serbia and Montenegro to come to terms with its past, the Austrian presidency of the European Union said.
| 5... 4... 3... 2... Cue the Munchkins! |
Milosevic, 64, suffered a heart condition and high blood pressure which had repeatedly interrupted his trial in The Hague on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes during the bloody disintegration of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. Two cardiologists treating Milosevic in The Hague had warned he was at risk of a potentially life threatening condition known as a hypertensive emergency, when surges in blood pressure can damage the heart, kidneys and central nervous system. Last month, the tribunal rejected a request by Milosevic to travel to Russia for specialist medical treatment, noting that his trial - that has already lasted four interminable years - was in the final stages and he might not return to complete it. The court said Milosevic's lawyers had not shown that his medical needs could not be met in the Netherlands and said experts from abroad could come to The Hague to treat him. Milosevic, who was overthrown in 2000 and sent to The Hague in June 2001, said last month his health was worsening.
| So, on his headstone they can engrave "See? I told you I was sick!" |
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