Croatian president annuls war criminal's medals

President Ivo Josipovic said Thursday that since Branimir Glavas was convicted of "a very grave crime," he is annulling the medals Glavas received for defending Croatia in 1991, when local Serbs rebelled against the country's independence.
Glavas, an independent lawmaker since 2007, was convicted last year of ordering wartime atrocities against Serb civilians and sentenced to eight years in prison. Just ahead of the verdict, he fled to neighboring Bosnia.
Glavas is the first senior Croatian politician to be held responsible for war crimes against the Serbs.