Ratko Mladic, the former Bosnian Serb general convicted of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity during the 1992-1995 war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, has died at the age of 84. He passed away in a United Nations prison hospital in The Hague, Netherlands, where he was serving a life sentence.

Mladic was sentenced in 2017 by the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) for orchestrating atrocities including the Srebrenica massacre, where more than 8,000 Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) men and boys were killed after the enclave fell. He was also convicted for crimes related to the nearly four-year siege of Sarajevo, which resulted in 10,000 deaths, including 1,500 children.

He had been in custody since 2011 after nearly 16 years on the run. Despite his convictions, Mladic remained defiant, stating in 2014 that he did not recognize the court.

The United Nations International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals confirmed that Mladic was receiving adequate medical care while in detention. A family member, speaking anonymously due to the sensitivity of the situation, confirmed his death and said Mladic's son, Darko Mladic, was en route to The Hague.

Mladic was a notorious figure in the Balkans wars of the 1990s, known as the "butcher of Bosnia" for his role in the worst massacre in Europe since World War II. His death marks the end of a significant chapter in the pursuit of justice for the victims of the Bosnian conflict.

According to the Srebrenica Memorial Centre, 149 cases of public denial of the Srebrenica genocide were recorded in early 2026, highlighting ongoing challenges in addressing the legacy of the conflict.

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