Four former Yugoslav army and navy commanders have been charged with violating the laws and customs of war for attacks on Dubrovnik in 1991, the Hague war crimes tribunal said today.
Mr Pavle Strugar, Mr Miodrag Jokic, Mr Milan Zec and Mr Vladimir Kovacevic were indicted over heavy shelling of the medieval walled Croatian city by Yugoslav forces between October and December 1991.
The Yugoslav army and navy surrounded the coastal city after Zagreb declared independence from Serb-dominated Yugoslavia in June 1991 and moved into Croatia to back a rebellion by its minority Serbs.
Dozens of civilians were killed in the Dubrovnik attack, the court said.
The indictment, which had been under seal since February, was disclosed after the court received a request from chief prosecutor Ms Carla Del Ponte for it to be made public, the court said in a statement. Ms Del Ponte called for the four to be arrested immediately.