Jovica Stanišić denied early release by Hague tribunal

The President of the International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals, Graciela Gaut Santamaría, has rejected the request for early release by Jovica Stanišić, the former head of Serbia's State Security Service.

While Stanišić met the initial requirement of serving two-thirds of his sentence to be considered for parole, Santamaría stated that several factors weigh against his release. These include the gravity of his crimes and a failure to demonstrate sufficient signs of rehabilitation. She noted that there was no evidence of compelling humanitarian reasons to justify overturning the negative assessment.

In May 2023, the Mechanism sentenced Stanišić to 15 years in prison for aiding and abetting war crimes in Bosanski Šamac. Stanišić had formally requested his early release in March 2026.