Milošević (IT-98-29/1) “Sarajevo”

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Source: Milošević (IT-98-29/1) “Sarajevo”

Trial Judgment: 12 December 2007; Appeal Judgment: 12 November 2009

Dragomir Milošević, the Commander of the Sarajevo-Romanija Corps of the VRS, stood trial for allegedly having planned, ordered, instigated, committed, or otherwise aided and abetted in the planning, preparation, or execution of a protracted military campaign of sniping and shelling against the civilian population of Sarajevo between August 1994 and November 1995, which utilized modified aerial bombs. The prosecution accused him of individual and superior criminal responsibility for crimes against humanity for murder and inhumane acts; and violations of the laws or customs of war for murder, attacks on civilians, and causing terror.

In 2007, the Trial Chamber convicted Milošević of individual and superior criminal responsibility for crimes against humanity for murder and inhumane acts; and for violations of the laws or customs of war for murder, attacks on civilians, and causing terror to the civilian population.

In 2009, the Appeals Chamber decided Milošević’s appeal and found that the Trial Chamber erred when it considered that the aerial bombs were not a legitimate weapon, as there was no norm in customary international law explicitly prohibiting the use of air-delivered bombs in urban areas; the Appeals Chamber also found that the Trial Chamber erred when it convicted Milošević for murder both as a crime against humanity and as a violation of the laws or customs of war, as there were insufficient distinct findings relating to each conviction for the cumulative convictions to stand, and quashed the convictions for murder as a violation of the laws or customs of war; however, the Appeals Chamber found that the Trial Chamber did not err by convicting Milošević for causing terror as a violation of the laws or customs of war. The Trial Chamber sentenced Milošević to 33 years’ imprisonment; the Appeals Chamber reduced Milošević’s sentence to 29 years.