Appeals Court Rules Dutch State Responsible for Srebrenica Killings

In a landmark verdict on Tuesday, a Dutch appeals court ruled that the Dutch state is responsible for the deaths of three Bosnian Muslim men killed during the Bosnian war. It is the first time an individual state is being held responsible while carrying out a United Nations mandate.
Appeals Court Rules Dutch State Responsible for Srebrenica Killings
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Jasper Fakkert
7/5/2011
Updated:
9/29/2015

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/file_download_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/file_download_medium.jpg" alt="UNDER FIRE: A Dutch U.N. peacekeeper mans a position near the town of Srebrenica in 1995. (Ed Oudenaarden/AFP/Getty Images)" title="UNDER FIRE: A Dutch U.N. peacekeeper mans a position near the town of Srebrenica in 1995. (Ed Oudenaarden/AFP/Getty Images)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-128658"/></a>
UNDER FIRE: A Dutch U.N. peacekeeper mans a position near the town of Srebrenica in 1995. (Ed Oudenaarden/AFP/Getty Images)

AMSTERDAM—In a landmark verdict on Tuesday, a Dutch appeals court ruled that the Dutch state is responsible for the deaths of three Bosnian Muslim men killed during the Bosnian war. It is the first time an individual state is being held responsible while carrying out a United Nations mandate.

Tens of thousands of Bosnian Muslim men, women, and children had sought protection from the U.N. in the Srebrenica enclave. The area was declared a safe haven for Bosnian Muslims by the U.N., but in the summer of 1995, it became the site of the worst massacre by Serbian forces in the Bosnian War—over 8,000 men and boys were slaughtered.

Relatives of three of the Bosnian Muslims killed have accused the Dutch state of acting unlawfully over refusing the three entrance to the refugee compound, thereby effectively handing them over to the approaching Bosnian Serb troops.

According to the judge, the Dutch state is responsible for their deaths because the Dutch troops had witnessed multiple incidents in which the Bosnian Serb troops had mistreated or killed refugees, and therefore knew that the three were at great risk.

The three Bosnian Muslims were among the thousands who had sought protection. A U.N. resolution in 1993 declared a 19-square-mile area around Srebrenica as a “safe area,” for Bosnian Muslim refugees. The area was under the protection of 600 lightly armed Dutch infantry troops, called Dutchbat.

On July 6, 1995, Bosnian Serb forces had laid siege on the enclave of Srebrenica and started shelling the town. As shells were nearing the refugee center, requests by the Dutchbat for air support from U.N. forces were denied.

In the following days, Serbian troops intensified their attacks and took 30 Dutch troops hostage. Bosnian Serb commander Ratko Mladic—who is currently on trial in The Hague on accusations of genocide related to his role in the massacre—personally led the siege on the city.

Dutch peacekeepers eventually handed over 5,000 Muslims who had sought refugee at the Dutch base, and in return the Dutch hostages were released. In the end, the Dutch troops left Srebrenica, after which Mladic’s men overran Srebrenica and an estimated 8,000 Muslim men and boys, aged 12-77, were killed.

The Dutch state has always blamed its failure for protecting the Bosnian Muslims on the United Nations, saying the Dutchbat did not receive the support they needed, and were not well enough equipped to protect the civilians against the heavily armed Bosnian Serbs.

In previous court rulings against the Dutch state over their handling of the situation, the judges ruled the U.N. responsible since the Dutch troops were operating as peacekeepers under a U.N. mandate.

But on Wednesday, the Dutch appeals court in The Hague argued that by then, the Dutch government had assumed control over its troops and was directly involved in handling the situation in Srebrenica, making the government responsible.

“Since these actions go directly against the U.N. mandate—to protect civilians—the [Dutch] state has to bear the responsibility for its actions,” read a statement by the Böhler law firm defending the plaintiffs.
The case is the first time an individual government has been held responsible for its conduct while carrying out an U.N. mandate.

“Up to now, states have behaved as if their peacekeepers operate with absolute immunity. This decision establishes that no international peacekeeper can avoid responsibility for crimes under international law,” said Michael Bochenek, Director of Law and Policy for Amnesty International, in a statement.

<a href="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/file_download-1_medium.jpg"><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/07/file_download-1_medium.jpg" alt="MOURNING: Bosnian Muslim women pray in front of the memorial wall with the names of victims the 1995 Srebrenica massacre at on June 3. (Elvis Barukcic/AFP/Getty Images)" title="MOURNING: Bosnian Muslim women pray in front of the memorial wall with the names of victims the 1995 Srebrenica massacre at on June 3. (Elvis Barukcic/AFP/Getty Images)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-128659"/></a>
MOURNING: Bosnian Muslim women pray in front of the memorial wall with the names of victims the 1995 Srebrenica massacre at on June 3. (Elvis Barukcic/AFP/Getty Images)
In its response to the court ruling, the Dutch government has said it will study the verdict before deciding what action to take.

While the Dutch government has faced several lawsuits over its handling of the situation in Srebrenica, this is the first time it has been found responsible for the deaths.

Another case that is currently pending before the Supreme Court is by a group called “the Mothers of Srebrenica.” The group is demanding compensation for the state’s failure to protect their family members. In this case as well, lower courts had ruled there could be no prosecution since the Dutch troops were operating under a U.N. mandate and therefore had immunity.

“The court is convinced that Dutchbat was neglecting the rights of these families and that has a political dimension. It shows that U.N. troops were not acting as supposed to. It is time that the U.N. apologize to the 6,000 mothers of Srebrenica and start negotiations on this subject,” said Axel Hagedorn, lawyer for the group in an e-mailed response.

“The U.N. was there to protect the people in Srebrenica and did not do what it had to do, to protect and prevent the genocide from happening. That is a clear obligation of international law and is of a higher ranking than immunity,” he said.

Jasper Fakkert is the Editor-in-chief of the U.S. editions of The Epoch Times. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication Science and a Master's degree in Journalism. Twitter: @JasperFakkert
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