Ante Gotovina celebrates 71st birthday

Retired Croatian General Ante Gotovina is celebrating his 71st birthday. A prominent figure of the Croatian War of Independence, Gotovina's life has been marked by diverse military experiences and legal battles.

Before his service in Croatia, Gotovina joined the French Foreign Legion at age 17 under the pseudonym Andrija Grabovac. During his time in the Legion, he served in various African nations, including Djibouti, Congo, and Ivory Coast, where he was wounded by a sniper in Chad in 1981. He also spent time in South America providing training to paramilitary units.

Returning to Croatia in 1991, he rose to the rank of Lieutenant General and played a key role in military operations such as Maslenica and Operation Storm. Following his military career, he faced legal proceedings at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). After being arrested in the Canary Islands in 2005 and initially sentenced to 24 years in prison, he was ultimately acquitted of all charges by the Appeals Chamber in November 2012.