Old Trade School

The Old Trade School in Vareš-Majdan was used as a site of detention, with classrooms turned into cells. On 23 October, members of HVO apprehended over 250 Bosniak civilians and confined them to detention facilities in Vareš. There was no abuse in this detention facility and visits were permitted. On 3 November 1993, all the HVO soldiers from Vareš retreated towards Kiseljak. That same day, they left the Gymnasium, School and Trade School in Vareš-Majdan and the prisoners were free to go.

For unlawful detention of civilians, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) convicted Dario Kordić, president of HDZ BiH and vice-president of HZ-HB, and sentenced him to 25 years in prison, while Mario Čerkez, commander of the HVO Vitez Brigade was sentenced to six years in prison. Under the doctrine of command responsibility, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) convicted the wartime president of HVO and prime minister of HZHB Jadranko Prlić and sentenced him to 25 years in prison; the head of the HZHB Department of Defence Bruno Stojić was sentenced to 20 years in prison; the commander of the HVO Main Staff Slobodan Praljak was sentenced to 20 years in prison; the chief of the HVO Main Staff and deputy commander of the HVO forces Milivoje Petković was sentenced to 20 years in prison; the head of the HVO Military Police Administration Valentin Ćorić was sentenced to 16 years in prison; and the head of the Service for Prisoner Exchange Berislav Pušić was sentenced to 10 years in prison. The Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina convicted members of the HVO special unit “Maturica”, Zdravko Mihaljević, sentencing him to six years in prison, while Miroslav Anić aka Friga was sentenced to 15 years in prison.