Thirteen charged with assassination in trial of century

THE trial of 13 suspects charged with the assassination of reformist Serbian prime minister Zoran Djindjic opened with the suspected mastermind still at large and conspiracy theories rife.

The suspects, including alleged assassin Zvezdan Jovanovic, a former special police unit officer with links to organised crime, arrived at the Belgrade Special Court amid tight security and sat behind a bullet-proof glass screen.

Jovanovic has been charged with having shot Djindjic on March 12 outside the Serbian government building in a murder that shocked the former Yugoslav republic and dealt a fatal blow to the reformist government.