Milosevic trial resumes after break

THE HAGUE, Netherlands -- The trial of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic has resumed after a three-week break brought on by his ill health.

A spokesman for the U.N. war crimes tribunal in The Hague said Milosevic had fully recovered from the flu.

His illness caused a two-week adjournment, followed by a one-week recess previously scheduled for the first week of April.

The trial re-opened on Monday, but business was carried out behind closed doors to protect the identity of the first witnesses.

In a brief open session, the judges allowed Milosevic continued latitude in cross-examining witnesses, but warned him against wasting time with repetitive questioning or harassment of witnesses.

Milosevic, 60, is on trial at The Hague answering war crimes charges in connection with events in Kosovo in 1999 and Croatia in 1991 and alleged genocide in Bosnia between 1992-95.

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He has previously said he does not recognise the court and declined to plead to the charges against him. The court's judges entered not guilty pleas on his behalf.

Last month, the European Court of Human Rights threw out his claim that he is the victim of human rights abuses.

Milosevic argued that his transfer to The Hague last year was illegal and violated his human rights.

But the human rights court in Strasbourg said he had not exhausted the legal avenues of appeal available to him in the Netherlands. It did not say whether it considered the grounds of Milosevic's action itself valid.

Since it began on February 12, the court has heard 19 of the 350 witnesses the prosecution planned to call.

The trial is expected to last as long as two years.

Meanwhile, Serbian prime minister Zoran Djindjic has predicted that other war crimes suspects will be quickly arrested and extradited to the U.N. war crimes tribunal.

Yugoslavia is facing the loss of around $40 million in financial aid from the U.S. as well as punitive sanctions if its fails to hand over the suspects.

Some 15 suspects indicted by the U.N. court for alleged crimes in Kosovo, Bosnia and Croatia are believed to be at large in Serbia, the dominant Yugoslav republic.