Radovan Karadzic claims a "media witch hunt" means he will not receive Karadzic delays plea before war crimes court ...
Karadzic in custody of war crimes tribunal in The Hague ...
Bosnian Serbs jailed over Srebrenica killings ...
Karadzic 'aims to defend himself' ...
UN court clears Srebrenica chief ... a fair trial at a UN war crimes tribunal.
The former Bosnian Serb leader wrote to the tribunal saying he has already been branded a war criminal by the press, making an acquittal "unimaginable".
Mr Karadzic, who faces 11 counts of war crimes, including genocide, also claims he made an immunity deal with the US.
Richard Holbrooke, who negotiated the accord that ended the Bosnian war, told the BBC: "There was never any deal."
In a document submitted to the tribunal on Thursday, and released by the tribunal on Friday, Mr Karadzic said his arrest had been "accompanied by many drastic irregularities".
"The first irregularity I would mention is the media witch-hunt which began in the Muslim media even before the beginning of the armed conflict and which proclaimed me a war criminal at a time when the only victims were Serbs," he said.
He added that "the international media continued that media witch hunt... so that is now unimaginable to many people that this court could acquit me.
"I believe that this fact seriously jeopardises the trial itself."
Appearing before the court on Thursday, Mr Karadzic said he had decided to represent himself during his trial, but did not immediately enter a plea.
He was given 30 days to do so, and the tribunal judge adjourned the hearing until 29 August.
(BBC)
<< Back
