European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) rejected Friday an appeal to a case that upheld the impunity of the United Nations force that was deployed to Srebrenica during the massacre in 1995, which has been recognized as an act of genocide by two international courts.
Munira Subasic, president of the Mothers of Srebrenica association, which brings together families of the victims, described the decision as "shameful" and "political, not legal".
“We don't want to believe this, because it violates all human and ethical rights. We can say that this decision was made because of our Muslim identity," she said. "They killed the victims once again."
The court ruled that the association could not identify itself as a “party affected by human rights violations”. Srebrenica mothers will not be able to appeal again.
Six thousand people, representing Muslims killed in the massacre, had filed a complaint last year to the court in Strasbourg against the Netherlands, which provided the UN with the military force assigned to protect Srebrenica during the time when the massacre happened. Srebrenica was designated 'safe' by the UN before the killings.
The court rejected the complaint, saying UN soldiers had impunity.
The massacre took place on July 11, 1995 when Serbian troops under the leadership of Ratko Mladic invaded Srebrenica and killed eight thousand men above the age of 14 in the city.
Mladic was extradited to The Hague in 2011 on charges of crimes against humanity and genocide. His trial formally began on May, 2012.
