About Arkan
Željko Ražnatović (Serbian Cyrillic: Жељко Ражнатовић, pronounced [ʒêːʎko raʒnâːtoʋitɕ]; 17 April 1952 – 15 January 2000), better known as Arkan (Serbian Cyrillic: Аркан), was a Serbian warlord, mobster and head of the Serb Volunteer Guard during the Yugoslav Wars, considered one of the most feared and effective paramilitary forces during the wars. His paramilitary unit was responsible for numerous crimes in Eastern Bosnia, including murder, pillaging, rape and ethnic cleansings. Arkan was one of the most feared, celebrated and iconic figures in Serbia during his time. Arkan was on Interpol's top 10 most wanted list in the 1970s and 1980s for robberies and murders committed in countries across Europe, he escaped jail twice, and was later indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia for crimes against humanity. Up until his assassination in January 2000, Ražnatović was the most powerful organised crime figure in the Balkans, as well as the most powerful state-sponsored gangster in Serbia. Ražnatović had links to Avraham Golan, an infamous security contractor. == Early life == Željko Ražnatović was born in Brežice, a small border town in Lower Styria, PR Slovenia, FPR Yugoslavia. His father, Veljko Ražnatović, a Montenegrin Serb, served as a decorated officer in the Yugoslav Air Force, being highly ranked for his notable involvement in World War II. Veljko was stationed in Slovenian Styria at the time when his fourth child Željko was born. Infant Ražnatović spent part of his childhood in Zagreb and Pančevo before his father's job eventually took the family to the Yugoslav capital of Belgrade, which is considered his hometown. He grew up with three older sisters in a strict, militaristic patriarchal household with regular physical abuse from his father.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.