FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
In the Specialized Chambers of The Hague, finally, in April 2023, the trial against Hashim Thaçi, Kadri Veseli, Rexhep Selim and Jakup Krasniqi started.
After more than 2 and a half years in custody, without trial, the trial began in the city of The Hague.
By the end of the year, 38 witnesses were heard in the process. In total, the Specialized Prosecution had foreseen the hearing of about 300 witnesses. However, this is expected to be decided again by the court.
As the deadline for closing her case, the Prosecutor's Office of The Hague has estimated April 2025, reports Nacionale.
The start of the trial in The Hague was preceded by a mass march that took place in Pristina, and another march in The Hague. However, away from the protests, time remained for the battle in court.
Everything started with the opening statement in April where the Prosecution and the defense presented their first initial evidence.
Hashim Thaçi, Rexhep Selimi and Jakup Krasniqi, in their introductory speech, declared themselves innocent. Kadri Veseli had not agreed to give a longer speech.
"Both the peaceful and the armed resistance had the same goal, the freedom, citizenship and democratic order of Kosovo. Without that popular resistance today, Kosovo would not exist at all. The citizens of Kosovo did not want war, they were determined and had the will for peace. The war was imposed on him. They did what any freedom-loving people would do, to protect their families, their children, their country. So we, Kosovo, were on the right side of history", said Thaçi.
"After the establishment of this court, I have often been asked if I was afraid of justice, I have always said and I repeat it today, I am not afraid of justice, but we should all be afraid of injustice. But despite this, today I stand in front of you, with full confidence that at the end of this process you will decide in favor of my innocence", said Rexhep Selimi.
"I cried when I saw all the murdered Jashari families in a warehouse of construction materials. Adem Demaçi told me 'Jakup has no victory' without struggle and sacrifice. I knew this was the 'price of freedom'. I was crying for the children, for the descendants of my nation, for those who did not have the opportunity to live a single day of their childhood", said Jakup Krasniqi.
Until now, there have been Albanian witnesses in The Hague who have answered before the jury. Most of the testimonies have been closed to the public, which has caused reactions in Kosovo regarding transparency.
There were former superiors of the KLA who testified in The Hague, as is the case with Rrustem Mustafa or Sadik Haitjaha.
There were also Serbian witnesses who claimed to have been detained by the Kosovo Liberation Army.
There have also been international experts, as is the case with the Human Rights Watch researcher, Fred Abrahams, or the OSCE official, Sandra Mitchell. Each of the two, in fact, admitted some errors in the reports they drafted.
Abrahams admitted that he relied on some testimonies of the Serbian government and media, while Mitchell admitted that he had accused the KLA of the Panda case in Peja.
Even this year, the KLA leaders found it impossible to be released from detention, as all their requests were rejected.
Even, for a while, their visits and phone calls were also blocked. This is on the grounds that Thaçi, Veseli and Selimi have shown details of witnesses to visitors. After a 10-day wait, the court decided to have some strict conditions for the visits, but they were allowed.
As never before, in 2023, there were dozens, if not hundreds, of actions and raids by the Office of the Specialized Prosecutor. The houses and families of heroes such as Fahri Fazliu, Zahir Pajaziti and others were not spared either.
Almost all the former advisers of the president of Kosovo, Hashim Thaçi, were also raided. Almost all of them also had their phones taken away. This with the accusations of obstruction of justice and attempted influence on witnesses.
Precisely under these suspicions there were also arrests: Isni Kilaj, Haxhi Shala, Ismet Bahtijari and Sabit Januzi were arrested. All pleaded not guilty.
While four were arrested on charges of obstruction of justice, two others were released during 2023. We are talking about Hysni Gucat and Nasim Haradinaj, who were released on bail by the Special Court of The Hague.
During the stay in The Hague, the Nacional team interviewed Thaçi's lawyer, Gregory Kehoen. The same said that there may be no need to defend him, since the Prosecution is not presenting any evidence. He said that if they decide to present evidence, they have powerful international names who will testify in favor of Thaçi.
Yes, in The Hague, during this year the decision of the Court of Appeal was made against Salih Mustafa. He had 4 years removed from his original 26-year sentence. Although no violation was found according to the appeal panel, the first-instance decision was excessive and the trial court had exceeded its powers.
Mustafa is now, according to the laws of the Special, expected to be sent to another country to serve the sentence.
In Special, the trial is also continuing against Pjetër Shala, where the defense is expected to end soon after March with the presentation of her case.
The number of victims who have been accepted to participate in the trial of the leaders of the KLA is 143. / National
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