ICTY convicts former Yugoslavia general on additional Dubrovnik siege charges News
ICTY convicts former Yugoslavia general on additional Dubrovnik siege charges

[JURIST] The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia [official website] Thursday convicted [judgment summary; press release] former Yugoslav general Pavle Strugar [ICTY factsheet, PDF] on additional charges related to his role in the 1991 shelling of Dubrovnik [BBC report], the historic Croatian city that UNESCO has declared a World Cultural Heritage [UNESCO website] site. The Appeals Chamber found that the Trial Chamber had erred by finding Strugar not guilty on counts of devastation and unlawful attacks against civilians. It also reduced Strugar's sentence to seven and a half years’ imprisonment in consideration of his poor health. AP has more.

In 2005, the ICTY sentenced [ruling text; JURIST report] Strugar to eight years in prison for failing to prevent attacks by his soldiers on civilians and for damaging or destroying cultural institutions or artifacts during the Dubrovnik siege. Strugar, who commanded Yugoslav forces during the siege, was found guilty of violating Article 3 of the Statute of the Tribunal [text], which governs the laws of war. The Trial Chamber found him not guilty on four other counts, including murder, cruel treatment, devastation unjustified by military necessity, and unlawful attack on civilian objects. Both the Prosecution and the Defense appealed the trial judgment.