## Facts

- In 2001, FYROM/Macedonian security forces fought the ethnic Albanian National Liberation Army (NLA) amid violence in and around Ljuboten.
- On 12 August 2001, police forces led by Johan Tarčulovski and elements of the FYROM army carried out a combined operation in the ethnic Albanian village of Ljuboten.
- The operation resulted in killings of civilians, cruel treatment of residents, and destruction of civilian homes and property.
- Tarčulovski was a police inspector alleged to have commanded the police unit involved in the Ljuboten operation.
- Ljube Boškoski was the Minister of Interior and was charged as a civilian superior for failing to prevent or punish crimes by police subordinates.
- The indictment charged war crimes under Article 3 of the ICTY Statute: murder, cruel treatment, and wanton destruction of property not justified by military necessity; Boškoski’s liability was pleaded under Article 7(3), and Tarčulovski’s under Article 7(1).

## Issues

1. Whether the 2001 hostilities between FYROM forces and the NLA constituted an internal armed conflict sufficient to trigger Article 3 jurisdiction.
2. Whether Tarčulovski planned, ordered, or otherwise participated in murder, cruel treatment, and wanton destruction of property during and after the Ljuboten operation.
3. Whether Boškoski, as a civilian political superior, had effective control over the perpetrators and knew or had reason to know of crimes yet failed to take necessary and reasonable measures to prevent or punish them.
4. Whether the content of “necessary and reasonable measures” differs in application for civilian political superiors compared to military commanders.

## Decision

- The Trial Chamber held that the FYROM–NLA hostilities met the Article 3 threshold for an internal armed conflict.
- The Trial Chamber found that killings, mistreatment, and property destruction in Ljuboten were not justified by military necessity and constituted violations of the laws or customs of war.
- Tarčulovski was convicted for war crimes based on his command role and participation in the commission of murder, cruel treatment, and wanton destruction of property.
- Tarčulovski was sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment.
- Boškoski was acquitted on all counts because the Prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that he had effective control over the relevant forces or that his response to information about crimes was culpably inadequate for a civilian superior.

## Legal Principles

- For Article 3 jurisdiction, an internal armed conflict exists where there is protracted armed violence involving sufficiently organized armed groups; intensity and organization are central indicators.
- Individual criminal responsibility under Article 7(1) may attach where an accused, including a commander, plans, orders, or otherwise participates in war crimes committed in the course of an operation.
- Superior responsibility under Article 7(3) requires proof that the superior had effective control over perpetrators (material ability to prevent or punish), knew or had reason to know of crimes, and failed to take necessary and reasonable measures.
- While the Article 7(3) elements apply to both military and civilian superiors, the content of “necessary and reasonable measures” may differ for civilian political officials; enabling investigations and reporting to competent authorities can, depending on proven authority and access to levers of control, satisfy the duty to act.

## Conclusion

The Trial Chamber found an internal armed conflict and convicted Tarčulovski for war crimes committed during the Ljuboten operation, but acquitted Boškoski because the evidence did not establish the effective control and culpable inaction required to impose civilian superior responsibility.


Prosecutor v. Boškoski (Boscoski) & Tarčulovski, Case No. IT-04-82-T (Int’l Crim. Trib. for the Former Yugoslavia Trial Chamber II 2008)