Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic appointed Zdravko Jakop as defense minister after incumbent Mario Banozic was seriously injured in a road accident on Saturday, DPA reports.

Jakop is a former general who graduated from the NATO Military Academy in Rome.

Mario Banozic has been sacked as defense minister after the car he was driving crashed into a van in eastern Croatia. As a result of the accident, the driver of the van was killed, and Banozych was seriously injured.

Mario Banozic is hospitalized in intensive care at the hospital in Osijek, but his life is not in danger.

The prosecutor’s office says that, according to the first conclusions of the investigation, Mario Banozic caused the accident. Near the city of Vinkovci, where he lives, he overtook a truck and crashed head-on into a minibus traveling in the opposite direction. Dense fog reduced visibility in the area. (Source: Agerpres)