In determining the sentence the Trial Chamber took into account the general circumstances in Srebrenica at the time, and those particular to the accused and the crimes committed, and imposed a sentence reflecting his limited criminal responsibility.
The prosecution had sought a prison sentence of 18 years, while the defence sought acquittal.
As Oric was in detention since 10 April 2003, the judges ruled that he be released as soon as the necessary practical arrangements had been met.
Under the verdict, conditions in Srebrenica in 1992/93 were abysmal. Militarily superior Serb forces encircled the town, there was an unmanageable influx of refugees there, as well as a critical shortage of food and the breakdown of law and order.
The judges also ruled that Oric, aged 25 at the time, was elected commander of a poorly trained volunteer force that lacked effective links with government forces in Sarajevo. His authority, they assessed, was scorned by some other Bosnian Muslim leaders and his situation became worse as the Bosnian Serb forces increased the momentum of their siege.
Under the initial indictment from March 2003, Oric was charged with the destruction of 12 Serb villages in the area of Srebrenica in 1992/93 and the cruel treatment and murder of Serb prisoners in the police station in Srebrenica, committed by members of the miliary police under his command.
Charges of plunder of public and private property were dismissed in June 2005.
The President of the Presidency of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sulejman Tihic, today welcomed the verdict, while a representative of the Bosnian Serb association of former inmates of prison camps said that he was appalled by the ruling.
The local media quoted Tihic as saying that the verdict clearly showed who attacked and who defended themselves in Srebrenica. He added that Oric's verdict proved that those who had nothing to hide had no reason not to cooperate with the tribunal.
The president of the Republika Srpska association of former inmates of prison camps, Slavko Jovicic, said that the verdict only proved the tribunal's bias, adding that the association would discontinue cooperation with the tribunal.
After Oric's sentencing, it remains unclear who is responsible for crimes against some 3,000 Serbs in the Drina River valley and the destruction of more than 150 villages in that area, Jovicic said.