Verdict in case against former KLA leaders to be delivered tomorrow at Kosovo Specialist Chambers in The Hague

In their closing arguments, prosecutors requested 45-year prison sentences for the accused, Hashim Thaçi, Jakup Krasniqi, Rexhep Selimi and Kadri Veseli.

The delivery of the first-instance verdict, which the parties to the proceedings will have the right to appeal, is scheduled for 10 a.m. The hearing can be followed live or via the Kosovo Specialist Chambers’ website, with a 10-minute delay.

The indictment charges them, on the basis of individual criminal responsibility, with six counts of crimes against humanity: persecution, imprisonment, other inhumane acts, torture, murder and enforced disappearance of persons; as well as four counts of war crimes: unlawful or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, cruel treatment, torture and murder.

According to the indictment, the victims were people who did not support the so-called KLA, including Serbs, Roma, Ashkali, civilians whom the so-called KLA considered to be cooperating with Serbian authorities, Albanians who supported or were affiliated with the Democratic League of Kosovo or other political parties that the so-called KLA considered to be its opponents, Albanians who did not join or support the so-called KLA, people whom the so-called KLA considered opponents based on their current or former employment, as well as people who associated with Serbs.

The indictment states that the crimes with which the defendants are charged were committed no later than March 1998 through the end of September 1999 at more than 40 locations across Kosovo and Metohija, as well as in Kukës and Cahan in northern Albania.

Thaçi, Veseli, Selimi and Krasniqi are charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against at least 407 detainees, of whom at least 102 were killed.

The prosecution argued that the defendants played a strong collective role as key members of the so-called KLA General Staff, that they acted with intent, were aware of the crimes being committed and exercised effective control on the ground, and that each defendant made a significant contribution to the joint criminal enterprise.

During the trial, prosecutors argued that the defendants had formulated and shared a common goal: to gain control over the entire Kosovo and Metohija through violence against anyone they considered their opponents.

The prosecution gave a detailed account of how members of the so-called KLA tortured people they had abducted and detained. Simon Laws, the victims’ counsel representing 156 victims participating in the proceedings, said that members of the so-called KLA had shown the victims “incredible brutality and extreme cruelty.”

The defense teams argued that the prosecution had failed to prove the allegations in the indictment and called for the defendants to be acquitted.

The defense also argued that the so-called KLA did not have a unified command structure and that its leaders did not exercise control on the ground.

Thaçi’s defense called seven witnesses, including former NATO commander Wesley Clark, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State James Rubin, former U.S. envoy to Pristina Christopher Hill, and Jock Covey, the former deputy head of the UNMIK administration at the time when the mission was headed by Bernard Kouchner.

The original indictment against Thaçi and the other defendants was confirmed on October 26, 2020, and was subsequently amended in September 2021 and in April and September 2022.

A less-redacted version of the indictment was filed in February 2023 and is the operative indictment in the case.

The accused leaders of the so-called KLA have been held in detention in The Hague since their arrests in November 2020, while the trial began in April 2023.

Closing arguments were presented from February 9 to 18 of this year.

During the trial, a total of 134 witnesses testified, including 125 called by the prosecution, two called by the victims’ counsel, and seven by the defense.

In addition, 164 witness statements were admitted in written form.

The prosecution presented approximately 3,000 pieces of evidence.

Separate proceedings are also underway before the Kosovo Specialist Chambers against Thaçi for obstructing the administration of justice and attempting to influence witnesses. He is charged in that case alongside four other former members of the so-called KLA.

The prosecution has requested a six-year prison sentence for Thaçi in that case.

During 1998 and 1999, the so-called KLA committed numerous crimes, including killings and abductions, against members of the military and police forces of the then Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Serbs and other non-Albanians, as well as Albanians who refused to become its supporters or members.