Element:
In Stakić, the Trial Chamber said:
"This Trial Chamber does not find that the case-law provides support for the Defence submission that the killings must occur on a vast scale in a concentrated place over a short period. Such a claim does not follow from the requirement that the killings must be massive. Nor does the Trial Chamber believe that a specific minimum number of victims is required. As the Trial Chamber in Prosecutor v. Vasiljević held, the lowest figure from the Second World War cases to which the crime of extermination was applied was a total of 733 killings. The Chamber added in a footnote however that it does not suggest 'that a lower number of victims would disqualify that act as 'extermination' as a crime against humanity, nor does it suggest that such a threshold must necessarily be met.' In the opinion of this Trial Chamber, an assessment of whether the element of massiveness has been reached depends on a case-by-case analysis of all relevant factors. As the Trial Chamber in Krstić held, the massiveness of the crime automatically assumes a substantial degree of preparation and organisation which may serve as indicia for the existence of a murderous 'scheme' or 'plan', but not, as proposed by the Defence, of a 'vast scheme of collective murder' as a separate element of crime."[1]
Prosecutor v. Radovan Karadžić, Case No. IT-95-5/18-T, Public Redacted Version of Judgement Issued on 24 March 2016 – Volume I of IV (TC), 24 March 2016, paras. 485-486:
"485. The mens rea of extermination requires the intention that a large number of individuals be killed."
"486. In line with jurisprudence on the actus reus, the mens rea of extermination similarly does not require the intent to kill a certain threshold number of victims. Additionally, there is no requirement that the act of extermination be carried out with the intent to destroy the group or part of the group to which the victims belong, or pursuant to a pre-existing plan or policy."
Footnotes:
[1] ICTY, Prosecutor v. Stakić, "Judgement", IT-97-24-T, 31 July 2003, para. 640. Se also ICTY, Prosecutor v. Brđanin, "Judgement", IT-99-36-T, 1 September 2004, para. 394; ICTY, Prosecutor v. Jokić, "Judgement", IT-01-42/1-S, 18 March 2004, para. 576.
