The man, who preferred to withhold his name, now lives in the Serbian capital. He decided to come along and pay tribute to Mladic, who he considers a “hero who defended his country” and who, in his view, Serbia “betrayed” when it extradited him to the UN war crimes tribunal in The Hague in 2011.

A large number of people with similar views, mostly men, gathered in front of the Army House before the commemoration began. Some of them were wearing T-shirts depicting Ratko Mladic, with messages expressing support for him.

Three men wearing identical T-shirts stood together and posed for journalists’ photos. As well as an image of Mladic, the shirts bear the phrases often used as a message of support for him: “General, are you afraid of anyone? ‘I fear no one but God.’”