23 Oct 2009

Karadzic war crimes trial to proceed

7:18 am on 23 October 2009

The trial of Bosnian Serb wartime leader Radovan Karadzic for war crimes and genocide will start as scheduled, despite his intention to boycott proceedings.

The court says the trial will begin on Monday, when the judges are expected to decide the next steps in the proceedings.

Karadzic, 64, who is acting as his own lawyer, has told the court he will not attend the first day because he is not ready to begin his defence.

He faces 11 charges including genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity over the civil war in Bosnia in the 1990s which claimed an estimated 100,000 lives.