Kill or Be Killed Another Look at Erdemovic

The case of Drazen Erdemovic raises the question whether a soldier may rely on the defence of duress if he shoots a large number of civilians because his superior has threatened to kill him if he does not carry out that unlawful command. This problem has engendered much controversy within the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and beyond, with Judge Antonio Cassese at the forefront of the debate. The author comes to the conclusion that duress may, depending on the circumstances, provide a justification as well as an excuse, but that it depends on issues of fact whether Drazen Erdemovic could have claimed either