Testimony in the war crimes trial of Mr Slobodan Milosevic was called off today after a small fire broke out in the UN tribunal.
Court officials said all other cases were also suspended for the day because of the fire that erupted in a deep fat fryer in the second-floor staff canteen. It forced hundreds of personnel to evacuate.
No injuries were reported in the blaze, which was quickly contained but filled nearby areas with smoke. There was no immediate word on how the fire started, but it was called an accident.
"The former Yugoslav president was taken back to his detention center outside The Hague," said Mr Zdenko Tomanovic, one of his lawyers.
Mr Nicholas Innell, chief of security, said there was no suspicion of arson. He said the fire knocked the canteen out of commission, did minor damage to other parts of the building and disrupted the fire-detection system.
AFP