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Vojislav Seselj: Serbian ultra-nationalist cleared of war crimes over Balkan wars Vojislav Seselj: Serbian ultra-nationalist cleared of war crimes over Balkan wars
(35 minutes later)
Vojislav Seselj, the Serbian ultra-nationalist and former deputy prime minister of Serbia, has been found not guilty of war crimes over the Balkan wars in the 1990s. Vojislav Seselj, the Serbian ultra-nationalist, has been found not guilty of war crimes over the Balkan wars in the 1990s.
Mr Seselj had been accused by prosecutors of stoking murderous ethnic tension at the outset of the 1990s wars that followed the collapse of federal Yugoslavia into seven successor states.  Mr Seselj, now 61, had been charged with nine counts alleging that he was responsible for or incited atrocities by Serbian paramilitaries in the wars in Bosnia and Croatia.
But judges at the UN war crimes court at The Hague acquitted the politician of all counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity he faced. But judges at the UN International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) at The Hague acquitted the politician of all counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Mr Seselj has denied all charges. Mr Seselj, who served as deputy Prime Minister of Serbia from 1998 to 2000, has denied all charges.
Judge Jean-Claude Antonetti said: "With this acquittal on all the nine counts of the indictment the arrest warrant issued by the appeals chamber is rendered moot."Judge Jean-Claude Antonetti said: "With this acquittal on all the nine counts of the indictment the arrest warrant issued by the appeals chamber is rendered moot."
"Vojislav Seselj is now a free man.""Vojislav Seselj is now a free man."
The move is likely to boost Mr Seselj's Serbian Radical Party ahead of an election in April. According to an indictment dated December 2007, he was charged with three counts of crimes against humanity and six counts of war crimes for inciting ethnic cleansing in Croatia and Bosnia.
In 2003, Mr Seselj surrendered voluntarily to the ICTY. But he went on hunger strike when the court tried to appoint a defence lawyer against his wishes.
In 2014, he was permitted to return to Belgrade after the tribunal released him on humanitarian grounds due to ill health.
The move to acquit Mr Seselj is likely to boost his Serbian Radical Party ahead of Serbia's general election on 24 April. He is staunchly against the European Union and has campaigned against Serbia joining NATO.
This article will be updated shortlyThis article will be updated shortly
Additional reporting by Reuters Additional reporting by agencies