AP —
A European Union-backed court on Wednesday convicted former Kosovo President Hashim Thaci of four counts of war crimes committed during Kosovo’s war of independence from Serbia and sentenced him to 25 years in prison.
Thaçi, 58, who resigned nearly six years ago to face the charges, was found guilty of murder, torture, cruel treatment and arbitrary detention by a panel of Kosovo specialized courts.
Sasi, dressed in a suit and tie, stood silently as Presiding Judge Charles Smith read the verdict.
Thaçi, along with three other former Kosovo Liberation Army leaders who fought against Serb forces in the 1998-1999 war, faced multiple charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, including murder, torture and persecution. They are widely recognized as national heroes in their homeland.
Thousands of people rallied in Kosovo’s capital Pristina over the weekend in support of the four men. Demonstrators filled the capital’s central square, many carrying red and black Albanian flags.
Portraits of four former KLA fighters were plastered across the city, and giant digital clocks counted down to Wednesday’s verdict.
The banner read: “In the name of the people, declare their innocence.”
Prosecutors at Kosovo’s Specialized Commercial and Commercial Court in The Hague had asked for a maximum sentence of 45 years in prison for Thaçi and the other defendants, Kadri Veseli, Rekhep Selimi and Jakub Krasniqi. They all deny the charges.
“All my life I have stood by the people of Kosovo in defending freedom, life and dignity. I have always been guided by Western ideals of democracy, equality and justice,” Thaci told the judge in February at the end of a nearly three-year trial.
Prosecutors say the men targeted political opponents and civilians who were considered collaborators or traitors during the Korean People’s Liberation Army era.
Due to concerns about the safety and security of witnesses, the staff of European Union-backed courts are mostly international. In 2022, a court convicted two leaders of the Kosovo Veterans Association for intimidating witnesses by publishing leaked confidential documents.
Sashi also faces a separate trial starting later this month on charges of witness intimidation.
He was a student who returned to Switzerland to take part in Kosovo’s independence struggle, claiming political asylum. He was given the nickname “Snake” for his ability to evade attacks by Serbian forces during the conflict.
He was welcomed by Western leaders, invited to peace talks in France in 1999 as political director of the Kosovo Liberation Army, and was seen as a leader in leading the country to independence.
Thaci assumed political power after the war, but resigned as president to defend himself in court in The Hague.
Most of the 13,000 people who died in the Kosovo war were Albanians. The fighting ended after 78 days of NATO airstrikes against Serbian forces. Approximately 1 million Kosovars of ethnic Albanian origin were forced to flee their homes.
In 2008, Kosovo declared independence from Serbia, but Belgrade refuses to recognize this move. Despite years of negotiations brokered by the European Union and backed by the United States, relations between Kosovo and Serbia remain strained.
