Why Ratko Mladić remains a hero to some despite the genocide of Bosnian Muslims

The death of former Bosnian Serb military commander Ratko Mladić in August 2026 has revived debate over his legacy in Serbia, where he continues to be regarded by some nationalists as a hero despite his conviction for genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Mladić was the commander of Bosnian Serb forces during the 1992-1995 Bosnian war. During the Srebrenica genocide in July 1995, he was directly responsible for the execution of at least 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys, with 8,372 victims specifically documented.

Across the wider conflict, sources do not provide an exact overall tally exclusively for Muslim deaths, but note that Mladić, as commander of the Bosnian Serb forces, was responsible for the killing of an estimated 100,000 men, women and children in total during the war.

His military campaign specifically targeted territories populated predominantly by Bosnian Muslims, seeking to systematically destroy the core of their society through localised campaigns of murder, siege and torture. The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia at The Hague convicted him in 2017 and sentenced him to life in prison.

His death did not end the dispute over how he is remembered. The continued honouring and glorification of Mladić, including the return of his body with military and state honours, reflects a combination of nationalist ideology, perceptions of Serbia and Serbs as victims of Western intervention, and the political minimisation of wartime crimes.

Why is Mladić still seen as a hero by some Serbs?

For many Serbs and Bosnian Serb leaders, Mladić is remembered primarily as a military commander who defended Serb interests during the war rather than as a convicted war criminal.

Bosnian Serb separatist leader Milorad Dodik has defended Mladić's legacy, saying he was deeply respected because, as a commander, he stood to defend Serbs.

That view remains connected to a broader nationalist narrative in which the Bosnian Serb forces are seen as having fought to protect Serb communities and territory during the breakup of Yugoslavia.

What role does nationalism play?

Mladić is closely associated with the nationalist goal of creating a larger, ethnically homogeneous Serb state, often referred to as "Greater Serbia".

For Serbian nationalists, the creation of Republika Srpska, the Serb entity within Bosnia and Herzegovina established during the war, is an important part of that legacy. Republika Srpska retains many of the institutional characteristics of a state while remaining part of Bosnia and Herzegovina under the country's post-war constitutional structure.

Because nationalist politics remain influential, Mladić continues to serve as a symbol for those who view the wartime project as a defence of Serb national interests.

Why do some Serbs distrust the international tribunal?

A persistent narrative in Serbia holds that Serbs were unfairly targeted by Western governments and international institutions during and after the Yugoslav wars.

Critics of the UN tribunal at The Hague have accused it of disproportionately prosecuting Serbs while failing to adequately address crimes committed against Serbs.

That perception has allowed some nationalist politicians to portray Mladić's years as a fugitive from international justice as an act of resistance rather than an attempt to avoid accountability.

The narrative has also contributed to a wider reluctance among some parts of Serbian society to accept international judgments concerning the Bosnian war.

How has the Srebrenica genocide been treated politically?

The political environment in Serbia has also been shaped by efforts to minimise or deny the scale and character of crimes committed by Bosnian Serb forces.

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabić, for example, referred to the Srebrenica genocide as a "misunderstanding".

Such statements have contributed to an environment in which recognition of the genocide remains politically contentious. For critics, the continued minimisation of the crimes helps explain why figures such as Mladić can still receive public honours.

What crimes was Mladić convicted of?

Mladić was convicted by the UN tribunal in 2017 of genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity and sentenced to life imprisonment.

As commander of the Bosnian Serb army, he was found responsible for crimes committed during the 1992-1995 conflict, including the genocide at Srebrenica and the campaign against civilians during the siege of Sarajevo.

At Srebrenica in July 1995, Bosnian Serb forces under his command killed more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys after overrunning the UN-declared safe area.

The killings were followed by efforts to conceal the victims in mass graves. The Srebrenica genocide is regarded as the worst mass killing in Europe since World War Two.

Mladić also played a central role in the siege of Sarajevo, which lasted 1,425 days. Bosnian Serb forces subjected the city to sustained artillery fire, shelling and sniper attacks, killing more than 11,000 people, including about 2,000 children.

During the siege, Mladić told a journalist overlooking Sarajevo: "Look, I have Sarajevo in the palm of my hand. I can either destroy it or take it whenever I want"

The campaign also involved the destruction of mosques and other cultural and religious sites, contributing to the broader displacement and removal of Bosnian Muslims from areas claimed by Bosnian Serb forces.

Did Mladić understand the consequences of the campaign?

Evidence presented during his trial showed that Mladić was aware of the consequences of efforts to establish a separate and ethnically homogeneous Serb territory.

When the Bosnian Serb Assembly outlined strategic objectives for such a state, Mladić warned that achieving those aims would involve genocide, saying: "people are not keys or coins to move from one pocket to another"

The tribunal ultimately found him criminally responsible for genocide and other crimes committed by Bosnian Serb forces.

How have survivors reacted to his death?

For survivors and relatives of victims, Mladić's death has not brought straightforward closure.

Emir Suljagić, director of the Srebrenica Memorial and a survivor of the genocide, said the death of the man convicted of orchestrating the killings did not change what happened to his victims.

"The people he sent to their deaths never had the chance to grow old. That is the only fact about his death that matters to me"

Suljagić also said the challenge of preserving historical memory had become more important following Mladić's death.

"not to let the truth, responsibility and memory die with him. Mladić's death is another moment in which we must decide what we will remember and, more importantly, what we will not allow to be erased"

For survivors, the continued public celebration of Mladić is particularly painful.

Džemil Hodžić, who was 12 when his teenage brother was killed by a sniper during the siege of Sarajevo, said Mladić's death had not ended the ideology associated with him.

"The butcher may be gone, but unfortunately his legacy is still there … many share his ideology and views that the job is not yet finished because we are still here"

Hodžić described the public defence and celebration of Mladić's actions as the "glorification of a monster".

Why do survivors say justice is still incomplete?

Survivors and victims' advocates argue that Mladić was only one part of a much broader military and political structure responsible for crimes during the war.

Suljagić has pointed to the continued freedom of people who served under Mladić and participated in carrying out his orders.

"These guys are mass murderers, they are knee-deep in blood and they are walking about as free men"

For many survivors, that means Mladić's conviction and death do not represent the end of the search for accountability.

What does Mladić's legacy mean for the region?

The dispute over Mladić reflects a broader unresolved struggle over the memory of the Bosnian war.

For victims and survivors, he represents a military campaign that caused mass killings, displacement and the destruction of communities. For some Serbian nationalists, however, he remains a symbol of resistance and the defence of Serb interests.

That gap in historical memory has persisted decades after the war ended and continues to shape politics and relations across Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia.

Dr Waqar Azmi of Remembering Srebrenica summarised the view of advocacy groups by saying Mladić's life left behind "not one of heroism, but of shame: a dark reminder of the depths of human cruelty".

Mladić's death therefore marks the end of the life of a convicted war criminal, but not the political and historical debate surrounding his legacy.

With inputs from Al Jazeera, The Guardian and TRT World.