International Arrest Warrant Issued for Bosnian Serb Leader

An international arrest warrant has been issued by a Bosnian court for Milorad Dodik, the Bosnian Serb leader. Dodik is accused of undermining the constitutional order and faces a year in jail and a six-year political ban. He traveled abroad despite a local arrest warrant.

A Bosnian court has issued an international arrest warrant for Milorad Dodik, the leader of the Bosnian Serb region, on charges of attacking the constitutional order. Dodik, who recently left the country, was sentenced to one year in jail and banned from politics for six years, escalating a crisis since the 1990s conflict.

Dodik, known for his pro-Russian stance and secession advocacy, proposed legislation to curb state judiciary and police powers in the Serb region—a move temporarily blocked by Bosnia's constitutional court. Ignoring a local arrest warrant, Dodik crossed into Serbia and later attended an antisemitism conference in Israel.

The international warrant also involves Nenad Stevandic, speaker of the Serb Republic's parliament, who similarly traveled to Serbia and returned to Bosnia. The warrants are now with Interpol, although Dodik dismisses the charges as politically driven.

(With inputs from agencies.)