Prosecutor V. Boskoski. (Terrorist Activities‪)‬

Introduction On 10 July 2008, Trial Chamber II (1) of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia ('ICTY') delivered the judgment in the case of Prosecutor v Ljube Boskoski and Johan Tarculovski. (2) The case concerned an alleged attack on the unarmed ethnic Albanian village of Ljuboten, the subsequent murder and cruel treatment of its residents, and the wanton destruction of property by the army and police ('Security Forces') of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia ('FYROM'). The Indictment alleged that these crimes occurred during an armed conflict between the FYROM Security Forces and the ethnic Albanian National Liberation Army ('NLA'). (3) This is a significant case because it provides a detailed application of the Tadic (4) threshold test to ascertain whether a state of 'internal armed conflict' exists. Also, the Trial Chamber's findings on the principle of superior responsibility demonstrates the difficulties associated with holding a civilian and, more specifically, a politician, criminally responsible for the acts of their subordinates. The decision sends a strong message that the principle of superior responsibility imposes different obligations on military commanders and civilian superiors. In the case of civilian superiors, the Trial Chamber held that it would suffice for them to report crimes to competent authorities to escape international criminal responsibility.