Hague Court rejects genocide claims by Serbia and Croatia

The International Court of Justice Tuesday dismissed claims of genocide by both Croatia and Serbia allegedly committed during the Balkan wars of the 1990s.
“Croatia has failed to substantiate its allegation that genocide was committed. Accordingly, no issue of responsibility under the Convention for the commission of genocide can arise in the present case,” ruled the Hague-based court.
“Accordingly, Croatia’s claim must be dismissed in its entirety,” it said.
Croatia had alleged that Serbia committed genocide in the town of Vukovar and in other places in 1991.
Accordingly, the Court said it found “that it has not been proved that genocide was committed during and after Operation “Storm” against the Serb population of Croatia,” and added that “the counter-claim must be dismissed in its entirety.”
Serbia also filed a counter-claim alleging that over 200,000 Serbs were expelled from Croatia.
An estimated 20,000 people were killed during the 1991-1995 war, when Croatia broke away from the former Yugoslavia.