Top U.N. court clears Serbia and Croatia of 1990s genocide

(Image credit: Michel Porro/Getty Images)

published 3 February 2015

On Tuesday, the International Court of Justice — the top United Nations court — ruled that neither Serbia nor Croatia committed genocide in the bloody breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s. More than 130,000 people died in the eight years of Balkans wars, and forces from both nascent nations committed war crimes. But neither side proved their case of genocide, or the intention of "destroying a population in whole or in part," says ICJ president Peter Tomka, meaning neither country violated the 1948 Genocide Convention.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.