Former Yugoslav general Pavle Strugar returned to The Hague tribunal today to stand trial for the 1991 shelling of the Croatian city of Dubrovnik after failing to show up as ordered last week, the court said.
General Strugar was flown to the Netherlands on a Montenegrin government jet from the capital Podgorica. His lawyer said earlier this week General Strugar would return voluntarily to The Hague.
General Strugar (70) surrendered to the tribunal in October 2001 and was freed pending the scheduled start of his trial this month. The tribunal last week denied his request for a trial delay on health grounds and said he was expected to show up last Friday.
General Strugar failed to show and instead checked into Belgrade's main military hospital, breaking his government-backed pledge and provoking warnings from Belgrade that he would be arrested. Officials said today General Strugar had not been arrested.
General Strugar is one of four ex-officers indicted for the shelling of the picturesque Croatian port town of Dubrovnik on the Adriatic Coast. One pleaded guilty, one said he was not mentally fit to stand trial and charges against a third were dropped.
Dubrovnik's Old Town -- popular with tourists for its medieval and Renaissance buildings -- suffered heavy damage when Yugoslav forces shelled it from land and sea after Croatia declared independence from Serb-dominated Yugoslavia in 1991.
Strugar's trial is expected to start next week.